In recent years, Ghana has somewhat become a shining light, not only in the West African sub region, but in all of the continent. It has become a holiday destination of choice for Nigerians and other foreigners, especially Africans in the Diaspora. It has become an education hub for Africans. In 2019, the number of Nigerian students studying in Ghana was estimated at 4,959. Additionally, Ghana is fast becoming a preferred destination for business in Africa, due to its conducive environment.
One of the first things I noticed, landing at the Kotoka International airport in Accra is the similarity between Ghanaians and Nigerians. One of the airport staff that was directing passengers did not hesitate to ask me what I brought and another staff tried to playfully hustle me. These were very familiar characters. The airport was organised and clean. As I made my way to the hotel, I also noticed that the city was clean and organised.
In the words of my tour guide, “Ghanaian political leaders are afraid of their people”. What she meant by this is that the leaders are accountable to the people. She said they have consistently been blessed with good leaders that care about the people. She said though they are not perfect, they are much better than our own political leaders in Nigeria. This was quickly confirmed by our driver, who quipped that they take promises by politicians seriously.
Forced eviction of Nigerian embassy staff is not the only embarrassing thing about Nigeria in Ghana. My tour guide said the average Ghanaian believes Nigerian women are in Ghana for prostitution. This is most disheartening. I realised that Ghana is not only a business, tourism and educational destination for Nigerians, it seems to have become a prostitution destination for our young women.