137 Ghanaian evacuees from Cote d'Ivoire who hail from Central Region welcomed by minister
A total of 327 Ghanaian nationals who were stranded in Côte d’Ivoire following a demolition exercise carried out by authorities in the Port Bouët Municipality of Abidjan are being repatriated.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement issued on Friday [June 12, 2026] said 228 of the affected nationals arrived in Ghana on Thursday, June 11, 2026.
From that number, 137 who hail from the Central Region have been welcomed by the Central Regional Minister.
The 137 returnees, including children, women and three pregnant women, arrived in Cape Coast in the early hours of Friday and were received by officials from the Central Regional Coordinating Council, the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), the Ghana Health Service, the Ghana Immigration Service, Social Welfare and other security agencies.
The are from vairous places in the Central Region, including Cape Coast, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA), Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese (AAK), Mfantseman and Ekumfi.
For many of them, the journey home marked the end of a painful ordeal.
One of the victims, a Ghanaian herbal practitioner, who had lived and worked in Abidjan for 30 years, Stephen Otoo said the demolition came without warning and shattered the lives of hundreds of residents.
“Excavators arrived and started pulling down houses. Many people suddenly became homeless. Some collapsed from shock while others reportedly lost their lives. We were not even allowed to take our belongings. Everything happened so fast,” he recounted.
He praised Ghana’s Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire for facilitating their evacuation and ensuring their safe return.
Another returnee, Maranatha Eshun, said although she was grateful to be back home, she faced an uncertain future after losing her savings and possessions.
“I have lost everything I worked for. My belongings were destroyed and all my money is gone. Starting life again will not be easy, but I thank God that we survived and have been brought back safely,” she said.
Welcoming the returnees, the Central Regional Minister, Ekow Panyin Okyere Eduamoah, described their experiences as heartbreaking and assured them of government support.
He said the welfare of the evacuees remained the immediate priority and indicated that authorities would undertake individual assessments to determine the specific needs of each person.
“What is important now is that they are safe. We know they have returned without the properties and livelihoods they worked hard to build, but we will continue to engage them and explore the best ways of supporting their reintegration,” he said.
The Minister added that Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives have been tasked to ensure that all returnees were reunited with their families and communities.
He also urged them not to attempt returning to Côte d’Ivoire to recover lost belongings, stressing that their safety and long-term well-being should take precedence.
The Central Regional Director of NADMO, Emmanuel Kwesi Dawood, said the returnees have undergone health screening, immigration procedures, psychosocial counselling and profiling upon arrival.
He explained that KEEA recorded the highest number of returnees with 74 persons, followed by Mfantseman with 22, Cape Coast and AAK with 19 each, while Ekumfi recorded three.
According to him, many of the affected persons were fisherfolk whose livelihoods were wiped out by the demolition exercise.
Mr Dawood further revealed that a considerable number of the children have spent most of their lives in Côte d’Ivoire and would required support to integrate into Ghana’s educational and social systems.
He appealed to humanitarian organisations, development partners and corporate institutions to assist with educational materials, relief items and livelihood support to help the affected families rebuild their lives.
