Stranded Ghanaians returned home in Europe

About 2,000 Ghanaians who could not return to various countries in Europe where they reside because of Covid-19 travel restrictions have been evacuated to their destinations.

They were evacuated under an exercise collaborated by Ghana, the Spanish, Italian and German Embassy, as well as the British High Commission and the Joy Diaspora Consult.

They were returned to Spain, Germany, Sweden, France, Finland, among others.

Mr Jones Owusu Yeboah, the Chief Executive Officer of Joy Diaspora Consult, in a statement issued to the GNA, on Thursday, said the Ghanaian Community in Germany also supported the endeavour, through the Consult, to provide some documentation needed for the return of their counterparts. Mr Yeboah said the Consult was in discussions with the authorities of the Spanish Embassy in Accra over future evacuation exercises. Mr Seibik Bugri, Director of Communication at the Ministry of Inner-City and Zongo Development was part of the discussions hosted by Mr Rafael Rodriguez-Ponga Albala, the Deputy Head of Mission of the Spanish Embassy. Mr Albala, the statement said, expressed the Embassy's commitment to supporting any effort to return stranded Ghanaians to join their families in Spain. Spain, he said, was now safer with regard to COVID-19 so visitors could go there now without any anxiety or fear and thanked the Government of Ghana for granting permission for the evacuation. Mr Yeboah appealed to the travelling public to channel their petitions through the appropriate authorities rather than non authorised sources to avoid challenges of illegal immigration.