Mahama warns Africa: Unite now or surrender your future to foreign powers

President John Dramani Mahama has sounded an urgent alarm about the threat of external powers exploiting Africa's natural resources and security vulnerabilities, calling for immediate continental unity to protect African sovereignty. Speaking at the 12th Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, on Saturday, October 24, the President warned that without coordinated action, African nations risk ceding control of their political and security futures to foreign interests competing for influence across the continent.

The stark message comes as competition over Africa's mineral wealth intensifies, with conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo directly linked to competition for valuable resources such as gold, coltan and cobalt. Mahama emphasised that external powers from the East, West, and Gulf regions are actively pursuing leverage and establishing client states across African soil. "External powers, from the East, the West, and the Gulf, are actively seeking leverage, access, and client states on our soil," he said, adding that Africa cannot be treated as a playing field for foreign manipulation.

The growing security crisis Africa faces

Beyond resource competition, Mahama highlighted multiple interconnected threats undermining continental stability. Governance failures in Somalia, youth marginalisation in Mozambique's gas-rich Cabo Delgado region, and deepening divisions between ECOWAS and the Alliance of Sahel States are fragmenting regional cooperation at a critical moment. These fractures weaken Africa's collective ability to respond to security threats and allow external actors to exploit divisions for strategic advantage.

A particularly alarming development is the proliferation of commercial drones being weaponised by armed groups and non-state actors. The relatively low cost and accessibility of drone technology have made conflicts increasingly lethal for civilians. In Sudan alone, drones accounted for the vast majority of civilian casualties in early 2024, demonstrating how technological innovation is reshaping African conflict dynamics in ways the continent is unprepared to address.

Why it matters for Ghana and West Africa

Mahama's message carries specific implications for Ghana and the broader West African region. As a nation with significant natural resources and a strategic position in an increasingly unstable Sahel, Ghana faces direct exposure to the security and resource competition he describes. The tensions between ECOWAS and the Alliance of Sahel States—largely driven by recent military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger—have already destabilised the entire subregion, affecting Ghana's borders and regional influence.

Ghana's role as a potential stabilising force in ECOWAS makes Mahama's call for unified African leadership particularly relevant. The country must balance its commitment to West African integration with its security interests as non-aligned states increasingly look to foreign powers for military and economic support. Furthermore, as African nations compete for foreign investment in critical minerals and energy resources, Ghana's resource wealth makes it vulnerable to the exact interference patterns Mahama warns against.

The President's emphasis on improving governance also resonates domestically, as weak institutions and corruption can create openings for foreign interference. His call to take greater control of natural resources echoes growing continental demands for fairer extraction terms and local benefit-sharing rather than resource exploitation that enriches foreign corporations and external states at Africa's expense.

Mahama's address represents a broader African pushback against perceived neo-colonialism and external dependency, positioning African agency and continental solidarity as essential for the continent's future security and prosperity.