NEWS
South Africa Blocks Ghana’s Push to Place Xenophobic Violence on AU Agenda
South Africa has successfully blocked Ghana’s attempt to place the issue of xenophobic violence in the country on the agenda of the African Union’s Mid-Year Coordination Meeting scheduled for October, shifting the focus instead toward a wider continental debate on migration.
The development unfolded on Wednesday during the African Union Executive Council meeting of foreign ministers in Addis Ababa, where Ghana sought to have South Africa’s recent anti-immigrant violence formally discussed at the upcoming summit.
However, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, opposed the proposal, insisting that the conversation should not be limited to one country.
Lamola argued that the African Union should instead examine migration across the continent as a whole, including the political, economic and social conditions that compel citizens of many African nations to leave their home countries in search of better opportunities elsewhere.
According to South Africa, the migration debate should address the broader “push-pull” factors driving movement across borders, rather than focusing solely on incidents of xenophobic violence within one member state.
The Executive Council ultimately rejected Ghana’s proposal, meaning South Africa will not be placed under the spotlight during the AU Mid-Year Coordination Meeting scheduled to hold in Alamein, Egypt.
Ghana has remained one of the strongest critics of anti-immigrant protests and xenophobic attacks in South Africa in recent months. The West African nation has already repatriated several hundred of its citizens from South Africa and, on July 25, announced plans to begin another evacuation exercise involving about 1,000 additional Ghanaians.
The decision by the Executive Council has now created uncertainty over when the African Union will formally deliberate on migration and xenophobia, as well as the scope such discussions may eventually take.
Just days earlier, Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama had disclosed via his X account that he had secured a commitment from African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf to ensure that the ongoing xenophobic attacks in South Africa would be placed on the agenda of the next AU Summit.
That announcement was widely interpreted as referring to the African Union’s next Ordinary Summit expected to take place in Addis Ababa in February 2027.
Consequently, Ghana’s move to table the matter during Wednesday’s Executive Council meeting came as a surprise to many observers, especially since only a limited number of African leaders are expected to participate in the October mid-year gathering.
South Africa’s preference for a wider migration dialogue is also believed to require a dedicated African Union summit focused exclusively on migration issues, a proposal that has circulated within the continental body for several years but has yet to materialize.
Despite the setback, Ghana maintains that taking the issue before the African Union would provide an opportunity for constructive engagement, allowing South Africa to present its position while enabling member states to collectively seek lasting solutions to the recurring challenge of xenophobia and migration across the continent.