Border Residents and Border Control in Ghana: Practices and Challenges

Abstract

This study assesses border control practices in Ghana, using evidence from the eastern border town of Aflao. It ascertains the practices adopted by the Ghana Immigration Service to identify illegal migrants and criminals from the large numbers of people who normally across the border daily. It finds out that the Immigration Service performs the border control functions in an environment of a high local cross-border mobility. The situation has led to the development of many informal rules, which regulate cross-border mobility and the work of the service. To effectively implement the rules on cross-border mobility, the service has adopted practices, which strike a dynamic balance between the need for easy cross-border movement of border residents and the duty to prevent illegal migration. Challenges such as lack of border surveillance tools, border identification system, vehicles, and weapons, are undermining the work of the service. The study recommends the provision of logistics including surveillance tools, vehicles, and weapons, to the service.