FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WORLD PEACE DAY 2026 – PEACE CAMPAIGN AWARENESS
Theme: “Invest in Peace for Everyone, Everywhere, Everyday”
UNIVERSAL FRIENDSHIP ORGANIZATION RAISES ALARM OVER GHANA’S FALLING PEACE RANKING
Accra, Ghana – 17th September, 2026 – Ahead of the World Peace Day Celebration on 21st September 2026, the Universal Friendship Organization has launched its Peace Campaign Awareness under the theme “Invest in Peace for Everyone, Everywhere, Everyday.”
While commending successive governments for their efforts in protecting the lives of Ghanaians and sustaining Ghana’s image as a beacon of peace, the Organization expresses deep worry over Ghana’s declining performance in the Global Peace Index (GPI) from 2016 to 2026.
Ghana’s Peace Trend: A Cause for Concern
Ghana made steady progress between 2016 and 2021, improving from 44th globally (6th in Sub-Saharan Africa) in 2016 to 38th globally (2nd in Africa) in 2021 – its best ranking in a decade, with a GPI score of 1.715.
However, since 2022, Ghana has recorded a consistent decline:
- 2022: 40th Globally, 2nd in Africa – Score 1.759
- 2023: 51st Globally, 4th in Africa – Score 1.799
- 2024: 55th Globally, 4th in Africa – Score 1.938
- 2025: 61st Globally, 7th in Africa – Score 1.898
- 2026: 76th Globally, 10th in Africa – Score 1.943
In 2026, Ghana now ranks 10th in Africa, behind Mauritius (18th globally), Botswana (50th), The Gambia (56th), Sierra Leone (74th) and Senegal (75th).
This represents a drop of 38 places globally in just five years.
Why We Must Invest in Peace Now
The Universal Friendship Organization believes this decline is driven by:
1. Economic Factors: High cost of living, youth unemployment and inequality.
2. Social Factors: Chieftaincy disputes, communal conflicts and violence.
3. Discrimination Against Certain Groups: Exclusion and stigmatization of vulnerable groups.
4. Political Factors: Growing political polarization, intolerance and mistrust.
As the Nation Prepares for the Political Season
As the nation is preparing for its political season, the Universal Friendship Organization strongly cautions Government and all political actors to desist from self-interest politics.
Ghana’s peace is bigger than any political party, candidate, or personal ambition. Self-interest politics, hate speech, vote-buying, and the politics of insults and division will only further damage our peace ranking and erode the safety and security we all enjoy.
We urge Government and political parties to put Ghana first. This is the time to invest in peace, not invest in violence; to invest in unity, not invest in division.
Political power is meaningless without a peaceful nation to govern.
Our Call to Action for World Peace Day
In line with our theme – Invest in Peace for Everyone, Everywhere, Everyday – we call on:
- Government to invest more in youth employment, social justice and citizen safety;
- Political Parties to commit to decent, issue-based campaigns and desist from self-interest politics;
- Traditional and Religious Leaders to invest in dialogue and inclusion;
- Every Ghanaian to invest in everyday acts of tolerance and friendship.
Peace is not cheap, but it is cheaper than conflict. Let us all invest in it.
Ghana must reclaim its place among the top 3 most peaceful countries in Africa.
Signed
Universal Friendship Organization (UFO)
Promoting Friendship, Tolerance and Peace for All
