At least 55 Ghanaians have been killed while fighting in Ukraine, Ghana’s Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has disclosed, raising fresh concerns over the growing number of Africans recruited into Russia’s war effort.
In a statement posted on X after meeting his Ukrainian counterpart in Kyiv, Ablakwa revealed that 272 Ghanaians are believed to have been lured into the conflict since 2022. Of that number, an estimated 55 have died, while two are currently being held as prisoners of war.
Describing the situation as “depressing and frightening,” the minister stressed that the figures represent more than statistics.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to these heartbreaking numbers. They are not just figures; they represent human lives, the hopes of Ghanaian families, and the future of our nation,” he wrote.
Ukrainian authorities said on Wednesday that more than 1,780 citizens from 36 African countries have been identified among Russian ranks since the war began.
Ablakwa said Ghana’s government is determined to clamp down on recruitment networks allegedly operating through illicit online channels. “We are committed to tracking and dismantling all dark web illegal recruitment schemes operating within our jurisdiction,” he stated.
Investigations have revealed a troubling pattern across the continent. In late 2025, AFP reporters in Ukraine interviewed prisoners of war from Kenya, Togo, Cameroon, and Nigeria who had been captured while fighting for Russia.
AFP also spoke to four Kenyans—three of them wounded—who had returned home after being promised well-paying civilian jobs in Russia. Instead, they said they were coerced into signing military contracts and deployed to the frontlines in Ukraine with minimal training.
In Kenya, a central figure allegedly responsible for sending more than 1,000 recruits to fight for the Russian army was charged with human trafficking, according to the state prosecutor.
Meanwhile, in South Africa, 15 men reportedly deceived into joining mercenary units were repatriated this week. The country’s Foreign Minister, Ronald Lamola, confirmed that several South Africans remain in Russia and that at least two have died in the conflict.
The revelations underscore the widening global reach of the Ukraine war and the human cost borne by vulnerable recruits drawn into a distant battlefield under false promises.
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