Government deploys armoured buses to tackle highway robbery in Ghana

The government has disclosed that armoured buses have been deployed on major highways across Ghana as part of strengthened measures aimed at fighting highway robbery and enhancing passenger safety.

Interior Minister Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak said the buses are operating under various transport company identities to enable security agencies to monitor movements and identify criminal activities along key transport routes.

He made the announcement during President John Dramani Mahama’s “Resetting Ghana” citizens’ engagement programme in the Savannah Region, expressing optimism that the initiative would help reduce attacks on travellers.

Muntaka noted that highway robberies on long-distance routes had long posed a major challenge, with armed criminals often ambushing passengers and stealing their belongings.

According to him, the Mahama administration has introduced the armoured buses as part of efforts to strengthen security along vulnerable routes.

He explained that the vehicles are regularly rebranded under different transport operators, including STC, VIP and OA, as a tactical strategy to help security operatives identify and apprehend highway robbers.

The Interior Minister added that the strategy is being reinforced through ongoing police operations and commended the Inspector General of Police and his team for their work in combating highway crime.

He assured the public that security agencies have already made significant arrests involving highway robbery suspects and expressed confidence that the new intervention would make Ghana’s roads much safer in the coming years.