PRETORIA — South Africa has dismissed reports claiming that President Cyril Ramaphosa requested a state visit to Ghana and was subsequently rejected by Ghanaian authorities, describing the allegations as false.
Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said no request for a state visit had been made and that there are currently no plans for such a trip.
“The reports are untrue. No request was submitted to the Government of Ghana, and no state visit is being planned,” Magwenya said.
The claims first appeared in several Ghanaian media outlets before spreading widely across social media and news platforms across West Africa and beyond. The reports fueled speculation that Ghana had allegedly declined to host Ramaphosa due to concerns over recent attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa.
However, South African authorities have firmly rejected the narrative, insisting that the alleged diplomatic exchange never occurred.
The incident highlights the rapid spread of unverified information online, where a single headline can quickly gain traction and be shared thousands of times before its accuracy is confirmed.
South Africa and Ghana maintain longstanding diplomatic relations and are among Africa’s most influential economies, cooperating on a range of continental and international issues.
As of now, neither Pretoria nor Accra has announced any plans for an official state visit involving President Ramaphosa.
Say less: One viral headline, thousands of shares, and then the facts catch up. South Africa says the supposed Ghana visit rejection never happened.
