Nurses Appeal to Government for Evacuation Over Bawku Conflict: "Our Lives and Families Are at Risk"

Nurses Appeal to Government for Evacuation Over Bawku Conflict: "Our Lives and Families Are at Risk"

  • Nurses in the Upper East Region have appealed to the government for evacuation due to ongoing tribal conflict
  • They said their lives and those of their families are in danger after alleged gunshots and threats of revenge killings
  • The health workers, who are mostly women with children, added that they have been living in fear for many days

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Some nurses in some parts of the Upper East Region have appealed to government to evacuate them amid the escalating tribal conflict in the region.

Speaking to Kwame Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's Kokrokoo morning show on Monday, July 28, 2025, two of the nurses said their lives and those of their families are in danger due to the tensions in the area.

President John Mahama, Bawku conflict, Ghanaian nurses, Upper East Region, Binduri, Garu
Ghanaian nurses appeal to President John Mahama for evacuation amid the escalating Bawku conflict. Photo credit: UGC.
Source: UGC

According to the nurses, who work at health facilities in Binduri, Garu, Pusiga and Bawku, they have been living in fear since Thursday, July 24, 2025, owing to the conflict.

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One of them said that while at work, the husband of a senior colleague at the hospital called to inform her that a member of one feuding tribe had been murdered in Kumasi and his people had planned revenge.

She said a few minutes after the call from the husband of their senior nurse, they received another call asking them to rush home immediately.

While on their way home, she said they heard gunshots and quickly ran for cover, with one of the nurses giving her kids to an okada rider to take home.

"Even when we managed to get home, the gunshots never ceased; they continued from Thursday morning until we heard that the curfew had been shifted to 2PM," she said.
"The indigenes of the town told us that they want the government to withdraw the security and all the settlers so that the two feuding tribes can face each other. So we want to beg the government to bring us home with our families. We are about 50, and the majority of us are women with kids. We were posted here in 2015," one of the nurses said.

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Watch the video below:

Ghanaians react to plight of Bawku nurses

Ghanaians on social media have reacted to the plight of the nurses in the conflict-prone areas in the Upper East Region.

YEN.com.gh compiled a few of the reactions below:

@Reinhard Yawson said:

"If their faces are the ones being shown then it’s a wrong move. Revealing their identity could put them in danger as well."

@Kwame Kwahu also said:

"Basintale should send his 5K men to stop the fight in Bawku. Kwasiasem nkoaaa na modi wo Ghana."

@Limbistik commented:

"That day erhhh. Bro nurses are suffering oo. And all public workers. it wasn't easy."

@Obengsika also commented:

"The sad part is most people from that part of the country don't want to work in their region. Government should reconsider sending natives to government institutions there."
President John Mahama, Bawku conflict, Ghanaian nurses, Upper East Region, Armed Forces, Reviewed curfew
The government is sending the Ghana Armed Forces to Bawku to maintain law and order. Photo credit: @GhArmedForcesOfficial
Source: Getty Images

Government deploys Armed Forces to Bawku

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that the government of Ghana announced a change in its strategy for handling the long-standing Bawku chieftaincy conflict.

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In an official statement, the government acknowledged the role being played by key stakeholders like Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II in resolving the ongoing tension.

Several Ghanaians who read the statement shared varied opinions on the new approach to addressing the Bawku conflict, which resulted in many losing their lives.

Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
Salifu Bagulube Moro avatar

Salifu Bagulube Moro (Human-Interest Editor) Salifu Bagulube Moro is a Human Interest Editor at YEN.com.gh. He has over five years of experience in journalism. He graduated from the Ghana Institute of Journalism in 2018, where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies with a specialization in Journalism. Salifu previously worked with Opera News as a Content Management Systems (CMS) Editor. He also worked as an Online Reporter for the Ghanatalksbusiness.com news portal, as well as with the Graphic Communications Group Limited as a National Service Person. Salifu joined YEN.com.gh in 2024. Email: salifu.moro@yen.com.gh.

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