Ghana has postponed bilateral meetings with South Africa that were expected next month, adding a diplomatic layer to rising concern over anti-migrant violence in South Africa. The decision pauses a high-level encounter that had been planned under the South Africa-Ghana Bi-National Commission.
The meetings were due to be hosted by Ghana and co-chaired by Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. Ghanaian government spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu said the atmosphere around attacks on migrants would likely have overshadowed the agenda.
South African officials said the commission session had been discussed months earlier and that Pretoria learned of Ghana's intention to defer the gathering when it sought confirmation. Ramaphosa's spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, said the two governments would keep working through diplomatic channels to find a mutually convenient date.
The postponement follows months of anti-migrant protests in South Africa. Many demonstrations have remained peaceful, but some have escalated into violence, including attacks on foreigners and looting of foreign-owned shops.
Ghana repatriated hundreds of its citizens before a June 30 deadline announced by a South African anti-migrant movement for undocumented foreigners to leave. Ghana's foreign ministry also said last week that a Ghanaian citizen had been shot dead in Cape Town's Khayelitsha township during anti-immigrant demonstrations on June 30.
South African police disputed that account in part, saying they had no record of such an incident on that date. They said a Ghanaian national had been killed a day earlier in another Cape Town settlement, but that the case was believed to be linked to extortion rather than anti-migrant sentiment.
For both governments, the delay keeps formal bilateral diplomacy open while acknowledging the political sensitivity of the moment. Ghana has said it values its relationship with South Africa, but wants the presidential-level engagement to take place once the issue no longer dominates the setting for talks.
