Ghana and Burkina Faso are moving to put security behind a trade relationship worth hundreds of millions of dollars, with a new defence cooperation agreement providing for security and escort support along key cross-border commercial routes.
The agreement, signed by Acting Defence Minister Cassiel Ato Forson and Burkina Faso’s Minister of State and Minister of War and Patriotic Defence, Major General Célestin Simporé, comes as Ghana’s commercial links with the landlocked Sahel country deepen and security risks affect the movement of goods.
“The Ministry of Defence has signed a Defence Cooperation with the Ministry of War and Patriotic Defence of Burkina Faso to provide security and escort support along vital cross-border trade corridors,” the Ministry of Defence stated.
Ghana exported GH¢11.82 billion worth of goods to Burkina Faso in 2025, while imports from the country stood at GH¢1.35 billion, underscoring the scale of the trade relationship and Ghana’s significant trade surplus with its northern neighbour.
Ghana Statistical Service data show that informal trade with Burkina Faso, Togo and Côte d’Ivoire exceeded GH¢20.1 billion in formal trade during the first nine months of 2025. Burkina Faso alone accounted for nearly 63% of Ghana’s agricultural exports during the period, making the northern corridor particularly important to farmers, traders and transport operators.
That makes the security of the routes an economic issue rather than simply a defence concern.
The two countries said the defence cooperation is intended to safeguard economic stability, secure critical supply routes and strengthen bilateral defence ties. “The Defence Cooperation aims to safeguard economic stability, secure critical supply routes and strengthen bilateral defence ties between Ghana and Burkina Faso,” the Ministry added.
For traders moving goods between the two markets, the practical effect could be lower exposure to disruptions and greater predictability along routes linking Ghana’s northern border with Burkina Faso.
The urgency has been underscored by attacks affecting Ghanaian traders. In February, Ghana’s Interior and National Security authorities confirmed that a truck carrying Ghanaian tomato traders came under a terrorist attack at Titao in Burkina Faso. The incident highlighted the risks faced by traders dependent on the corridor for agricultural supplies.
Ghana also has a broader commercial interest in keeping the corridor functional because Burkina Faso is its largest transit trade partner, according to the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority. Ghana’s ports, particularly Tema, serve as a maritime gateway for Burkinabè imports and exports.
The economic relationship therefore extends well beyond bilateral exports. It supports activity across ports, freight forwarding, trucking, warehousing, customs, insurance and wholesale trade.
The latest defence agreement builds on a broader push to strengthen the economic relationship. Together, the measures point to a more integrated approach: improving the physical movement of goods while reducing the security risks associated with that movement.
