The recent state-assisted repatriation of hundreds of Ghanaian citizens from South Africa is a commendable display of swift government intervention. Helping our people escape rising xenophobic tensions and get home safely was a necessary first step.
But we must look beyond the immediate rescue and confront a much deeper, uncomfortable truth: Why did they choose to leave Ghana in the first place?
To truly solve our migration challenges, we have to look closely at what pushes our people to pack their bags. In a 2025 research paper I co-authored with Elena Weinreich, using Afrobarometer survey data collected in Ghana in 2024, the numbers tell a very clear story about the anxieties of ordinary citizens.
According to our findings, a staggering six in 10 Ghanaians (61%) say they have seriously considered moving to another country. More alarming is the fact that this desire is strongest among the very people Ghana needs the most to build its future: Our youth aged 18–35 (72%) and our most highly educated citizens (78%).
This is not a casual search for travel adventure. The data shows that 55% of potential emigrants are looking for work opportunities, while 33% are trying to escape severe economic hardship and poverty. Essentially, our brightest minds and youngest hands are looking abroad because they feel they cannot build a secure, stable life at home.
While international headlines often focus on Africans risking everything to reach Europe or North America, the reality is that the vast majority of migration happens right here on the continent. Over 70% of West African migrants move within the region.
Yet, actually executing this movement is incredibly difficult. Three-quarters (76%) of the Ghanaians we surveyed noted that crossing international borders in practice remains “difficult” or “very difficult”. When you combine difficult border realities with economic desperation, citizens often end up trapped in legal or administrative loops abroad, making them vulnerable during localised crises.
If we want to reduce these desperate migrations, our policymakers must move past reactionary measures and target the root economic causes. First, we must focus on quality, sustainable local jobs.
It is no longer enough to just talk about employment numbers; we need deliberate investment in industries like technology, value-added agriculture, and local manufacturing that offer viable career paths for educated youth.
Second, we need to aggressively support young entrepreneurs. By making it cheaper and easier for young people to access credit, business training, and markets, we can empower them to create wealth within Ghana instead of seeking it elsewhere.
Finally, regional administrative bottlenecks must be fixed. Since intra-African migration is so common, African governments must align their immigration systems. Bureaucratic delays in processing visas and work permits—as seen in South Africa—effectively push legal migrants into “undocumented” status through no fault of their own. Streamlining these processes protects our citizens abroad.
Bringing our citizens home during a crisis shows good leadership. But building an economy where they actually want to stay is the ultimate solution.
By Maame Akua Amoah Twum
The writer is a communications professional and co-author of Afrobarometer Dispatch No. 959 titled “Majority of Ghanaians consider emigration; young and educated most likely to look abroad.”
