The Vegetable Producers and Exporters Association of Ghana (VEPEAG) has called on government to urgently rehabilitate and expand irrigation infrastructure nationwide after seven Ghanaian tomato traders were killed in a jihadist attack in northern Burkina Faso on Saturday, February 14.
A truck carrying Ghanaian traders travelling to purchase tomatoes for the local market was ambushed by suspected militants in Titao, a town in northern Burkina Faso that has experienced repeated extremist assaults since 2019. Three others sustained injuries in the attack, one of whom remains in critical condition. Eight women who were travelling with the group survived and have been assisting authorities with the identification of victims.
The Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, known by its Arabic acronym as Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), claimed responsibility for the attack on February 16, saying it had killed dozens of Burkinabe soldiers in the same assault. Security analysts identify JNIM as the primary armed threat in the Titao area, where militants from al-Qaeda-affiliated factions have targeted supply routes and commercial vehicles to enforce blockades and expand territorial influence toward coastal West African states.
Interior Minister Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak confirmed the casualty figures on Monday and said Burkina Faso authorities had buried the deceased following the collection of DNA samples, with the consent of the Ghanaian government. Efforts to evacuate survivors to Ghana’s diplomatic mission in Ouagadougou are ongoing. The minister separately urged the public on Tuesday to refrain from circulating images and videos of the charred remains of victims out of respect for families still awaiting official notification.
In a statement signed by its President Dr Felix Mawuli Kamassah, VEPEAG described the attack as a recurring pattern of danger that underscores a structural vulnerability in Ghana’s food supply chain. The association said Ghanaian traders are repeatedly exposed to life-threatening risk because Ghana’s domestic tomato production cannot meet local demand, particularly during dry season months when output from northern farming communities falls sharply.
VEPEAG urged government to prioritise rehabilitation of existing irrigation schemes to support year-round tomato production. The association maintained that Ghana possesses the agricultural expertise, climate conditions and suitable land to produce sufficient tomatoes domestically, arguing that limited investment in production infrastructure rather than any inherent productive incapacity is the primary cause of the dependence on cross-border sourcing.
The association pledged the active support of its membership to expand domestic tomato production, describing stronger collaboration between government, farmers and traders as the pathway to eliminating the cross-border risks that have now cost Ghanaian lives on multiple occasions.
Industry analysts point to underutilisation of existing government irrigation schemes as a persistent challenge. The Accra Plains Irrigation Project, Kpong Left Bank Irrigation Project and Tono Irrigation Scheme in the Upper East Region are among the facilities operating well below their designed capacity due to maintenance deficits, equipment failures and inadequate funding for operational inputs.
The attack has also reignited debate about the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) trade protection framework and whether it adequately safeguards the safety of regional traders in conflict-affected zones. Burkina Faso withdrew from ECOWAS in January 2025 alongside Mali and Niger following their military governments’ formation of the Alliance of Sahel States, complicating consular and diplomatic assistance channels for Ghanaian traders operating in the country.
President John Mahama has not yet made a public statement specifically addressing the Titao attack. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Monday that Ghana’s ambassador to Burkina Faso is coordinating with local authorities to facilitate the safe return of survivors.
