The Uncertain Frontier: Ghana-Togo

Abstract

The unsatisfactory nature of the frontiers between the independent African states is widely stressed, and provides an additional argument for those who would like to see a regrouping of the African scene in terms of larger political units. This short article discusses the boundary between Ghana and Togo—a classic example (it might be thought) of colonial division calling for early revision along rational lines. It was demarcated between Britain and France some 40 years ago: now African governments have come into existence on both sides under leaders who have given their support at one time or another to Pan-African movements for closer union. The alternative is likely to be constant friction, the interruption of trade, the harbouring of refugees seeking a base from which to continue a struggle already lost in their own country, and accusations by the party leaders in Ghana and Togo that these refugee organisations are actively sponsored by the Lomé or Accra governments. These unhappy consequences are indeed present today following the independence of Ghana in 1957 and Togo in 1960; and it is worth enquiring why they should have come about, in view of the great advantages which it is generally assumed would flow from a more cordial, open association between the two republics. In January 1963, the assassination of Sylvanus Olympio added a further, tragic element to the problem, although whether the coup d'état which installed a new, quasi-military government in Lome will materially alter the relationship between Ghana and Togo remains to be seen.

Securitising Decolonisation

“…The Securitisation of Ewe & Togoland Unification before the United Nations 235 Trusteeship Agreement. 314 The proposed Joint Council for Togoland Affairs would be virtually as ineffectual as the ECC. The French representative, Pignon, dismissed this as the "usual criticisms" of the representative of the USSR and did not even try to refute them.…”

‘9th May 2017 is OUR DAY’: The Homeland Study Group Foundation and contested national imaginaries in postindependence Ghana

“…These are separate but interrelated problems; the former basically refers to demands for the unification of the former German territory of Togo while the latter was for the unification of the Ewe ethnic group in the two Togolands and the Gold Coast. The origins of both Togoland and Ewe nationalism have been extensively discussed so it need not detain us here (Adotey, 2013; Amenumey, 1989; Austin, 1963; Bening, 1983; Meyer, 2002; Nugent, 2002; Skinner, 2015). Suffice to say they largely stemmed from opposition to the international boundary which had divided these related peoples.…”

Different Ideas of Borders and Border Construction in Northern Ghana: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives

“…Indeed, from 1886 to 1914, what is now the eastern part of Ghana and Togo was part of "German Togoland." It was subsequently dismembered into two League of Nations mandated territories given respectively to Great Britain and France, the colonial powers that occupied Germany's colonies during the First World War (see Austin 1963;Pyeatt 1988;Schuerkens 2001). While Britain imposed indirect rule in the new territory, it needed to clearly divide the space among different local powers, with the aim to better rule and control land and people.…”

“…The British assumed control of the northeastern section of the Northern Territories in 1919 from German Togoland. The League of Nations defined the area as a protectorate, following Germany's loss of its colonial territories after the First World War (see Austin 1963;Pyeatt 1988;Schuerkens 2001). The societies in this region had deeply rooted reciprocal connections, which, in many respects, remain today.…”