President John Dramani Mahama has held talks with Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation and Special Envoy of President Cyril Ramaphosa, on the recent xenophobic attacks in South Africa.

The closed-door meeting took place at the Presidency in Accra.

President Mahama disclosed this during a courtesy call by Mr Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, on the sidelines of the AU Extraordinary Health Summit in Accra.

“President Ramaphosa sent a delegation to me yesterday. We met with them and I explained why it was important for us to discuss the matter,” President Mahama said.

“Sometimes these things happen and we want to sweep them under the carpet. But when we do that, we do not cure the problem.”

He said Ghana harboured no ill feelings towards South Africa but considered it important to raise the issue at the continental level to allow South Africa to explain the measures it was taking to address the attacks.

President Mahama said Ghana had submitted a petition to the AU Commission over the xenophobic attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa.

He described the incidents as traumatic for countries such as Ghana, particularly in view of the long-standing solidarity between the two countries and the broader objective of African integration.

“When something like this happens, it sets all of us back,” he said.

President Mahama said the attacks had resulted in the displacement of people, the destruction of livelihoods and the closure of businesses.

He said two Ghanaian nationals had been killed, while several others sustained injuries and were hospitalised.

“It doesn’t appear that the South African authorities are responding to the magnitude that one would expect,” he said.

“The persons who are funding these xenophobic attacks are known, and they have been left free to continue what they are doing. It has become something they are doing with impunity.”

President Mahama said the Government of Ghana had incurred significant costs in evacuating affected citizens from South Africa.

He said three chartered flights had already been deployed, with another three scheduled to evacuate about 900 Ghanaians who had voluntarily opted to return home.

“They come back with nothing, most of them with just the clothes on their backs and a small bag,” he said.

He noted that some of the returnees had lived in South Africa for between 15 and 20 years and had established successful businesses there.

President Mahama said the Government was providing reintegration support and allowances to enable the returnees to rebuild their lives.

He urged the AU to treat the issue as a continental concern, warning that xenophobic attacks had the potential to undermine African solidarity and integration.

He recalled that Ghana had requested that the issue be placed on the agenda of the AU Summit originally scheduled to be held in Egypt but was postponed.

“We’re hoping that at the next opportunity, we will be able to put it on the agenda,” he said, appealing to the AU Commission Chairperson to facilitate discussion of Ghana’s petition at the next AU Summit.

Mr Youssouf said during a recent visit to South Africa, President Ramaphosa and Mr Lamola had both condemned the xenophobic attacks.

He reaffirmed the AU’s commitment to protecting the rights, dignity and safety of all African citizens wherever they reside, stressing the need to address such challenges through solidarity, dialogue and respect for the rule of law.

Mr Youssouf also thanked President Mahama for Ghana’s successful hosting of the AU Extraordinary Health Summit.

He commended President Mahama’s leadership and reaffirmed Ghana’s important contribution to advancing the AU’s Agenda 2063.

The AU Commission Chairperson further lauded Ghana’s progress in strengthening domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity, describing it as an important example of the continent’s ambition to build resilient and self-sustaining health systems.