The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) in the Upper West Region has intensified operations against undocumented migrants and persons who facilitate their entry into Ghana through unapproved routes.
The Regional Public Affairs Officer, Inspector Ibn Yusuf Duranah Abdul Mumin Seidu, said the number of migrants attempting to enter the country through unapproved routes had reduced following intensified enforcement, public education, and community sensitisation.
He said the region’s porous borders continued to attract economic migrants from Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal and Guinea seeking greener pastures in Ghana.
Inspector Seidu recalled that on June 3, 2025, the Upper West Regional Enforcement Team, acting on intelligence, arrested 11 suspected undocumented migrants at Nakori, a suburb of Wa.
He said the group was made up of 10 Burkinabes and one Malian. Investigations revealed that they had entered Ghana through unapproved routes and were in the country to engage in QNET-related activities
With approval from the GIS headquarters in Accra, the migrants were removed through the Hamile border.
Inspector Seidu said the service regularly intercepted and removed undocumented migrants found at border points and inland checkpoints.
He identified Ga, Naro, Moji and Babile inland checkpoints as important buffer zones for intercepting migrants who might have entered the country through unapproved routes.
He said the regional commander, DCO I Ayensu Bosunpi, had directed 24-hour deployment to known unapproved routes.
However, he said unknown routes remained a challenge because some border residents were familiar with them and occasionally facilitated migrants’ movement.
Inspector Seidu said intensified public education by the GIS Public Affairs Unit had also contributed to the decline in illegal entries.
He cautioned residents who facilitated undocumented migration to desist from the practice.
“To the few unrepentant people who think illegality is a birthright, they either change or we change them,” he warned.
He said offenders would face the full rigours of the law, adding that the GIS would continue combining enforcement with education and community engagement to safeguard Ghana’s borders.
Meanwhile, some residents in the Wa municipality have called for regular checks by the appropriate authorities, saying the presence and movement of undocumented migrants remain a matter of concern in the region.
They also called on local authorities and other relevant agencies to provide updated figures on foreign nationals intercepted and found in the country without the required documentation to provide a clearer picture of the situation.
