The first group of Ghanaian students evacuated from Ukraine, following the Russian invasion, arrived Accra on Tuesday.
More than 660,000 people have fled Ukraine while around one million people are internally displaced, the United Nations said on Tuesday.
The African Union (AU) on Monday condemned reports that Africans had been mistreated and in some cases denied the right to cross Ukraine’s borders to safety.
Looking cheerful after finally reaching the capital Accra, the Ghanaian students said they wanted to get back together with their families after the difficult journey.
Ghanaian officials said the 17 students were the first batch of over 500 students expected to be brought home. They arrived on commercial flights paid by the government.
“I was afraid for my life, that is why I decided to leave. Some cities were being bombed close to my place and I spoke to my parents who asked that I should leave,” Priscilla Adjai, one of the students said.
“It has not been easy but thank God we managed to move out and have finally made it to Ghana.”
Another student, Esther Edze, said her group had been helped by the Church of Pentecost to leave Ukraine and meet up with Ghanaian diplomats on the other side of the border.
“It’s not an experience I would wish for anyone,” Edze said.
The deputy minister for foreign affairs, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, said the government would help the students reintegrate and reunite with their families.
Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey said 527 Ghanaians had crossed the Ukrainian border to various European countries and would soon be evacuated if they wanted.