Ghana Pauses Diaspora Citizenship Applications Amid Process Overhaul
Ghana has paused citizenship applications for members of the African diaspora to make the process more accessible and user-friendly.
Since 2016, people able to prove African ancestry, largely descendants of those affected by the transatlantic slave trade, have been eligible for Ghanaian nationality. More than 1,000 people, including African American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, have obtained Ghanaian citizenship in recent years.
Some applicants have complained about the number of stages involved, as well as the high cost. Dr Erieka Bennet, the ambassador for the Diaspora African Forum, said that many applicants struggled to meet these requirements to submit DNA evidence within a week of the application, saying the timeframe was “impossible” for most and that some also questioned DNA testing reliability. S
Ghana’s outreach to the diaspora, rooted in Kwame Nkrumah’s Pan-African vision and revived in the 2019 Year of Return, continued to attract people investing in sectors such as real estate, agriculture, tech, and small businesses, with similar citizenship pathways also available in countries like Benin and Sierra Leone.
By Ndubuisi Christian Ani
