Stranded Ghanaians in Ukraine reluctant to return home due to the hardships – Minister reveals
The thought of having their education and various dreams in Ukraine truncated when they return to Ghana has made it difficult for some of the Ghanaians stranded over there to come home according to reports as they do not know how they are going to cope when they return home.
After the gloomy picture was revealed by the Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey during a meeting with relatives of Ghanaians in Ukraine, she appealed to them[families] “to encourage them to take advantage of this evacuation exercise to return to Ghana.”
Since the Russian troops commenced their invasion of Ukraine it has been a source of worry for the Ghanaian government considering the fact that some of its citizens are there on various with others studying and other activities.
Currently, there are 527 Ghanaian citizens who are reported to have successfully crossed the Ukrainian border to other European countries.
As Ukraine’s airspace has unfortunately been closed, the options available to Ghanaians have been countries such as Moldova, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.
“My Ministry, therefore, collaborated with the Ghana Diplomatic Missions in Bern in Switzerland, Prague in the Czech Republic, Ankara, Turkey, and the Vatican, Holy See, Ghana’s Honorary Consuls in Ukraine, Hungary, Romania, Ghanaian communities and students’ unions in Poland, Hungary and Romania as well as religious groups to facilitate the evacuation of our nationals after being conveyed from Ukraine by road to the closest borders of the European Countries mentioned earlier,” she explained.
“We are all gratified to learn that over 500 of our citizens have made it safely across various European borders to safety. We share in your anxieties and pray for the safe return of all our compatriots to Ghana.”
According to the government records, there were about 1,200 Ghanaians in Ukraine with 945 of them being students registered with the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS), Ukraine.
The Minister also reports that 49 Ghanaians, including one child, have moved to the Czech Republic, 25 Ghanaians are in Slovakia, 134 Ghanaians in Romania, 81 in Poland, and 221 in Hungary.
She assured that “The Government of Ghana is ready to evacuate all the five hundred and twenty-seven (527) of our citizens in a coordinated manner,”.
On Tuesday 1st March 2022, 17 Ghanaians who were evacuated from Ukraine touched down at the Kotoka International Airport to the relief of anxious relatives. The government through the Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Kwaku Amparatwum-Sarpong touted its efforts of being the first African country to successfully evacuate its citizens from Ukraine.
“Two other batches from Romania in different groups of 70 and 64, respectively, are expected to arrive later this week,” he added.
