South African authorities have disclosed that only 10 out of nearly 300 Ghanaian nationals who registered for voluntary repatriation were found to be legally residing in the country, raising fresh questions over immigration compliance among the group.

The revelation was made by officials from South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs, as preparations were underway for the departure of the group from OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg to Accra.

According to Home Affairs Immigration and Law Enforcement head Stephen van Neel, preliminary checks revealed widespread breaches of immigration regulations among those listed for repatriation.

“Of the 300 individuals that were on that list, we only found 10 of them being legal in the country,” he stated, adding that the remaining individuals were either undocumented, non-compliant with visa conditions, or had overstayed their permitted stay.

The repatriation exercise, which involved Ghanaian nationals opting for voluntary return, took place amid rising anti-undocumented migration protests in parts of South Africa, where immigration enforcement has increasingly become a politically sensitive issue.

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Officials indicated that those found to be in breach of immigration laws would face the necessary administrative sanctions in line with South African immigration policy.

Ghana’s diplomatic mission in South Africa later confirmed that fewer than 300 nationals eventually boarded the scheduled repatriation flight, noting that some individuals were turned away due to documentation irregularities. A follow-up flight is expected to be arranged for those affected.

The High Commissioner of Ghana to South Africa, Benjamin Kofi Quashie, has urged calm among affected citizens and called for orderly handling of the situation through official state channels.

He emphasised that any repatriation of foreign nationals should be handled institutionally, warning against retaliatory actions and stressing the importance of diplomatic engagement between both countries.

Despite the tensions, he reaffirmed Ghana’s commitment to maintaining strong bilateral relations with South Africa and promoting the principles of Pan-African cooperation and mutual respect among member states.