Approximately 8,000 Ghanaians who were recently displaced by the violent clashes in the Savannah Region's Gbiniyiri have returned, the Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Minister, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has indicated.
He stated that the government of Ghana has, meanwhile, made available 6 million CFA to cover thousands of Ghanaians still stuck in Côte d'Ivoire.
The fights, having initially begun as a border conflict in early September 2025, had widened into 12 communities in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District.
Official reports through September 8 stated that 31 people had been killed and close to 48,000 left displaced, the majority of whom fled into the surrounding countries of Côte d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso.
Mr Ablakwa delivered new figures during the press session titled Government Accountability Series in Accra on September 15, 2025.
He reported his ministry acted quickly to assist affected Ghanaians abroad.
"After the clashes in Gbiniyiri, I directed our embassies in Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire to work closely with their respective governments in providing necessary consular assistance to our citizens. During my three-day working visit to Côte d'Ivoire on Friday, September 12, I met my Ivorian counterpart and visited the Bounkani neighborhood where some 13,253 Ghanaians displaced initially took refuge," Mr Ablakwa said.
He added, "On my visit, I confirmed that about 8,000 Ghanaians have safely returned home. The census presently put the number of Ghanaians in Côte d'Ivoire at 5,309 out of 13,253."
Mr Ablakwa said he delivered a special message from President John Dramani Mahama urging peace and forgiveness and for people who had been displaced to return home since security had been beefed up and normalcy restored.
On behalf of President Mahama, I donated 6 million CFA to meet urgent humanitarian needs and to help logistics facilitation for their return safely. Added to food, water, blankets and medicines already provided through NADMO," the minister stated.
He further disclosed that negotiations with Burkinabe Foreign Minister, Mr Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré, confirmed that the number of Ghanaian refugees in Burkina Faso had dropped to 1,455 from an earlier figure of 2,500.
"My ministry remains committed to protecting the well-being of Ghanaian nationals in foreign lands. No Ghanaian in trouble anywhere in the globe will be ignored by the Mahama government," stated Mr Ablakwa.