What Ghana’s four overseas evacuations cost and the figures still missing
Four major operations have brought thousands of Ghanaians home from crises since 2020, but publicly reported costs are available for only two as the Auditor-General prepares to examine the spending.
Ghana has spent tens of millions of cedis evacuating citizens from crises abroad, but the full cost of two of its four major operations since 2020 remains absent from the public record.
Publicly reported figures put the COVID-19 evacuation and quarantine bill above GH¢64 million, while the government says the 2026 South Africa operation cost GH¢49.72 million.
No complete expenditure figures could be established from the available published sources for the evacuations from Ukraine in 2022 and Sudan in 2023.
The gaps could now come under independent scrutiny after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked the Auditor-General to conduct a special audit of government evacuation exercises dating back to 2017.
Its request, dated September 17, 2026, specifically names the COVID-19, Ukraine, Sudan and South Africa operations, while allowing the Auditor-General to review any other exercise considered relevant.
The ministry wants each operation assessed separately, including its costs, findings and administrative weaknesses. It says the review should also recommend measures to strengthen Ghana’s response to future emergencies.
What the public record shows
The figures come from Foreign Ministry information and statements to Parliament as reported by Ghanaian media.
Ghana began its COVID-19 evacuation programme in May 2020 after Cabinet approved a strategy to bring home citizens stranded by pandemic-related border closures and travel restrictions.
Then Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey told Parliament in July 2021 that 10,025 people had been evacuated.
Reports of her statement put the airfare bill at GH¢19,854,960.41. This included payments for flights from China, the United Arab Emirates and other countries, as well as operations covering West and Central Africa.
Quarantine accounted for a larger amount.
The government reportedly spent GH¢44,460,530 to accommodate returnees in 85 hotels in Accra, Prampram, Bolgatanga, Takoradi and Kasoa. The package included three meals and water daily during the 14-day quarantine period.
Together, the reported airfare and quarantine expenditure exceeded GH¢64 million, excluding private contributions made for particular groups.
The evacuees included students, deportees and domestic workers from Gulf countries. Commercial airlines and Ghana Air Force aircraft were used.
Ukraine: Escape through neighbouring countries
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 forced Ghana to organise an overland evacuation because Ukrainian airspace had been closed.
Ghanaians travelled through Poland, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova and the Czech Republic, with diplomatic officials assisting them at border crossings.
More than 220 citizens had left Ukraine by February 27, according to a government briefing. By the time the first 17 students arrived in Accra on March 1, reports indicated that about 460 people had crossed out of the country.
Ghana had estimated that more than 1,000 of its citizens were in Ukraine.
The government said it would cover transportation, accommodation, food and medical support, but no complete cost for the operation was identified in the published material reviewed.
Some evacuation totals also vary between reports because the figures were issued at different stages of the operation.
Sudan: A long journey to safety
Ghana again relied on neighbouring countries when fighting erupted in Sudan in April 2023.
The Foreign Ministry said willing citizens would be moved into Egypt and Ethiopia. By April 30, 76 Ghanaians had crossed into Ethiopia, while another group travelled through Wadi Halfa into Egypt.
Seventy-four people were flown from Addis Ababa to Accra on May 2, with smaller groups returning later from Ethiopia and Egypt.
Ghanaian embassies helped coordinate the border crossings and published emergency contact details for citizens who remained stranded.
However, no complete publicly available expenditure figure for the Sudan operation.
South Africa: GH¢49.72m for 1,964 people
President John Mahama approved the 2026 evacuation from South Africa on May 12, following a wave of anti-foreigner violence.
Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa travelled to South Africa as arrangements were made to register citizens and secure their return.
The first phase used three chartered flights in late May and early June. A second phase began on July 26 using commercial flights, with the final 41 returnees arriving on September 4.
In all, the government says 1,964 people were brought home.
A ministry report puts the total cost at GH¢49,721,786.
Of this amount, GH¢36.6 million went to flights, including GH¢27.18 million for charters and GH¢9.42 million for commercial tickets and layovers.
Reintegration support cost GH¢10.8 million, comprising a GH¢5,000 grant and GH¢500 transportation allowance for each returnee.
About GH¢2.3 million covered other expenses, including ground transportation, food, hotels, medical services and the repatriation of two bodies.
The government paid GH¢33.72 million, while Engineers and Planners, a company linked to businessman Ibrahim Mahama, contributed GH¢16 million.
The ministry says the bill has been settled fully.
The total works out at approximately GH¢25,300 for each person evacuated.
Returnees also received National Health Insurance Scheme registration, relief items, SIM cards, trauma counselling and skills profiling. The government says about 200 jobs were secured through private companies, including 100 at Engineers and Planners.
Mr Ablakwa defended the expenditure, saying: “The lives protected and the dignity of Ghanaians far outweighs the cost.”
Questions over the final account
The opposition Minority in Parliament says it supports bringing citizens home but wants the South Africa expenditure independently verified.
“The issue is not whether Ghanaians should have been evacuated,” Deputy Ranking Member Nana Asafo-Adjei Ayeh said. “It is about whether the final public account can be verified.”
The Minority has reportedly filed a Right to Information request seeking documents including passenger manifests, invoices, payment schedules and information about the GH¢16 million private contribution.
It has also questioned differences between passenger figures reported at various stages of the operation.
The government has not been accused of wrongdoing in the ministry’s audit request. The ministry says the review is intended to promote transparency, accountability and good governance because of the scale and complexity of emergency evacuations.
It has promised to provide the Auditor-General with relevant financial and administrative records.
No reporting deadline for the special audit has been announced.
Its findings could provide the first consolidated account of how Ghana finances emergency rescues abroad and establish what was spent on the Ukraine and Sudan operations.