A group of Ghanaian tomato traders has returned safely from Burkina Faso, nearly two weeks after fellow traders were caught up in a terrorist attack in that country.

The traders, who travelled on Monday, February 22, made it back to Ghana on Thursday, February 26, marking the first successful sourcing trip since the attack in the Titao community of Burkina Faso disrupted cross-border trade.

Their departure followed government intervention that led to the reopening of the border to enable tomato sellers to resume their sourcing activities. The temporary closure had triggered supply shortages and sharp price increases in several markets across the country.

The traders’ safe return has brought relief to major tomato hubs, particularly the CMB area in Accra, where sellers had been struggling with dwindling stocks and rising wholesale prices in recent weeks.

At the CMB Underbridge branch of the Ghana National Tomato Traders Association, traders expressed gratitude for the safe return of their colleagues and commended the government for facilitating the reopening of the border.

However, they also voiced dissatisfaction over what they described as delays in taking that decision, arguing that the prolonged uncertainty had compounded their financial losses.

Some traders admitted that anxiety remains high following the earlier attack, describing the latest journey as tense but necessary due to the acute shortage of tomatoes on the local market and Ghana’s heavy reliance on supplies from Burkina Faso.