Accra, Ghana – November 12, 2025, A day of hope turned to tragedy on Wednesday, November 12th, 2025, as six young Ghanaian women lost their lives in a devastating stampede during a military recruitment screening at the El-Wak Stadium in Accra.
The incident has cast a shadow over an otherwise transparent recruitment process and sparked a national conversation on public safety protocols.
The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) recruitment exercise, which was being conducted simultaneously across all 16 regional capitals for the first time in years, was reported to have been generally smooth nationwide.
However, the overwhelming turnout in Accra led to a fatal crowd crush.
In addition to the fatalities, numerous applicants sustained injuries and are currently receiving treatment at the 37 Military Hospital.
In the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, a delegation of the nation’s top leadership visited the 37 Military Hospital to assess the situation and offer condolences. The group included the Acting Defence Minister, Dr. Ato Forson; the Deputy Defence Minister, Mr. Ernest Brogya Genfi; the Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General William Agyapong; and the President of the Republic, H.E. John Mahama.
They met with the injured, offered words of encouragement, and expressed their profound grief over the lives lost.
While the loss of life is deeply regrettable, it is important to acknowledge the significant strides made in ensuring the transparency of this recruitment process.
This year’s exercise marked the first in nearly a decade to be conducted with such a high level of openness, a move widely commended by the leadership of the Chief of Defence Staff LT GEN William Agyepong, and Ernest Brogya Genfi the Deputy Defence Minister.
The massive, unprecedented crowds that gathered at the El-Wak Stadium and other centers were a direct testament to the public’s trust in this new, transparent system.
However, this very success exposed a critical failure in crowd management and logistical planning.
The tragedy underscores that transparency must be matched with meticulous operational safety to be truly effective.
To prevent a recurrence of such a disaster, it is imperative to enhance the recruitment process.
The policy of decentralizing the screening to the regional level should be maintained to ensure nationwide access and equity. However, the format must be urgently revised to disperse crowds and mitigate risks.
A key recommendation is to leverage the structure of the Ghana Armed Forces itself to stagger the screening process.
We suggest that, instead of processing all applicants for every branch on a single day, the exercise should be spread across a week, with each branch assigned specific days.
For example:
🔺Army: Screening for shortlisted Army candidates on Monday and Tuesday.
🔹Navy: Screening for shortlisted Navy candidates on Wednesday and Thursday.
▪️Air Force: Screening for shortlisted Air Force candidates on Friday and Saturday.
This structured, branch-specific approach would significantly reduce the number of applicants present at any given time, effectively eliminating the conditions that can lead to a deadly stampede.
Such a measure would ensure that the pursuit of opportunity for Ghana’s youth does not come at the cost of their safety.
While at it, sincere condolences go to the families of those who lost their lives in such a traumatic situation and may the injured receive speedy treatment and recovery
