BY Nadia Ntiamoah
Tragedy has struck the Nkwanta township in Ghana’s Oti Region, where renewed ethnic clashes have left three students of the Nkwanta Senior High School (SHS) dead, prompting an emergency shutdown of the school and raising national concern over rising insecurity in conflict-prone areas.
The fatal incidents occurred on Thursday, June 26, and Friday, June 27, 2025, when violence once again erupted between rival ethnic groups in the town, despite previous efforts at reconciliation.
According to school authorities and eyewitness reports, two female day students in Forms Two and Three of the General Arts programme were killed in a crossfire on their way home after school on Thursday.
A third victim, a male student in Form Three Business, was hit by a stray bullet on Friday while reportedly walking near the school compound.
The renewed ethnic clashes in Nkwanta—long regarded as a flashpoint in the Oti Region—have been linked to longstanding tensions between indigenous and settler communities.
These tensions, often inflamed by disputes over chieftaincy, land, and political representation, have resulted in sporadic outbreaks of violence over the years.
In a swift response to the unfolding crisis, the Ghana Education Service (GES), in consultation with the Acting Oti Regional Director of Education, ordered the temporary closure of the school.
GES also arranged police escorts to ensure the safe evacuation of students from the institution to their various hometowns.
