Ghana Says No to $18m Repatriation Bill, Reveals Why It Escaped South Africa’s Demand

Ghana has avoided a multimillion-dollar bill South Africa is seeking from several African countries after Pretoria spent heavily repatriating foreign nationals amid a crackdown on undocumented migration and rising xenophobic tensions.

South Africa says it spent nearly R300 million (about $18 million) on the wider repatriation exercise, covering transportation, accommodation, food and other operational costs. The country is now seeking reimbursement from countries including Nigeria, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Ghana, however, is not on the list.

The reason is simple: Ghana paid for the evacuation of its own citizens.

As anti-foreigner attacks intensified in parts of South Africa, Ghana's government launched an evacuation programme and financed the return of distressed nationals. More than 1,600 Ghanaians have since been brought home, with the government also providing support intended to help returnees rebuild their lives.

Ghana's Foreign Affairs Ministry has consequently rejected any suggestion that Accra owes Pretoria money for the evacuation. Officials say the repatriation was funded by the Ghanaian government and its partners rather than South Africa.

The decision came as Ghana faced its own painful consequences from the violence. In June, Bashiru Isak, a 40-year-old Ghanaian, was shot dead in Cape Town during unrest linked to anti-immigrant tensions. Ghana demanded an investigation and prosecution, while continuing efforts to bring vulnerable citizens home.

South Africa's repatriation operation has since become a major financial burden for Pretoria. Officials told Parliament that the programme expanded far beyond initial expectations, with tens of thousands of foreign nationals processed for return.

The dispute over the bill has now added a financial dimension to an already sensitive diplomatic issue. Countries whose citizens were repatriated through South African-funded arrangements are being asked to contribute to the cost, while Ghana's early decision to finance its own evacuation has effectively kept it outside that dispute.

There is a broader lesson in Ghana's response. The country faced the same difficult choice confronting governments across Africa during the crisis: protect citizens abroad while avoiding a diplomatic confrontation with the host country.

By taking responsibility for its own evacuation, Ghana managed to turn a painful episode into a demonstration of how governments can protect citizens overseas without leaving taxpayers to settle the bill later.