26 a citizen of any of the countries of which either parent is a citizen. Around Aflao, at Ghana’s border with Togo, there is a community called Kologa on the Ghana side of an unauthorized entry point. This community is made up predominantly of people who are considered Nigeriens and not citizens of Ghana. Ghana Immigration Service officials that operate around the Aflao border classify the people of this community as non-Ghanaians. Residents of Kologa believe they are citizens of Ghana. In an interview for this study, a cross section of these residents revealed that most of them were born in Ghana. In some cases, their grandparents were born in Ghana before Ghana gained independence from the British. In their view, it is unacceptable for persons and institutions in Ghana to continue to identify them as non-Ghanaians and deprive them of many essential services that are ordinarily given to citizens of Ghana. Most of them know no other home but Ghana. That said, many persons in Kologa may be at risk of statelessness. To the extent that births and deaths that occur in this community are not registered, the potential risk of statelessness is increased, especially if the parents of a child born in Kologa do not have the necessary documentation to prove or confirm their nationality, whether Ghanaian or Nigerien. Ghana’s Migration Policy (2016) recognizes the need for effective border management that aims to prevent irregular migration, human trafficking, smuggling, and other illicit activities. Border enforcement, establishment of a national entry/exit database, and strengthening the capacity of government agencies on migration and national security are also necessary to manage mixed migration flows, combat immigration crime, and manage border movements (Ghana Migration Policy 2016). Zongo Communities in Ghana This study found that descendants of persons who lived in Zongo communities, pre- and post-independence, who originated from other countries (particularly other West African countries) might be at risk of statelessness in the absence of identity documentation to prove their Ghanaian citizenship. As stated, Ghana is a jus sanguinis nation where nationality is by ancestry, and the descendants of persons in Zongo communities are nationals of other countries. They are also at risk of statelessness as a result of administrative practices of key institutions of Journal on Migration and Human Security 8(1) state that discriminate against them on grounds of their origin, religion, language, and physical traits, in violation of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana. Zongo communities constitute some of the most heterogeneous communities in Ghana. There is a Zongo community in almost every major town in Ghana. During the precolonial era, Zongo communities were the communities most settled in by both non-natives of a town and non-Ghanaian citizens, particularly citizens of other West African countries that found themselves living in Ghana for extended periods of time. Undoubtedly, the Zongo communities have always been and continue to be part of the most underprivileged and least economically developed communities in Ghana. Their access to education, health, potable water, good sanitation, and other essentials of life has always been quite poor, with serious deleterious effects on these communities. Historically, the Zongo communities were made up of nationals of other countries as well as non-natives of their towns and villages. The majority of these residents became citizens of Ghana effective March 6, 1957, when Ghana gained independence from Great Britain. All non-nationals of the then–Gold Coast who had apparently lost the assistance and protection of the countries they originated from became citizens of the new country, Ghana. This was the case notwithstanding the heterogeneity of these communities and the fact that persons in these communities could still speak languages that originate in other West African countries. The main issue, however, is one of documentation. Since there is no database or register of persons who became citizens of Ghana after Ghana gained its independence, we found that it is difficult for such persons to proffer satisfactory evidence that they are citizens of Ghana. Notwithstanding the grant of Ghanaian nationality to persons in the then–Gold Coast, persons who did not acquire Ghanaian citizenship at the time Ghana gained independence, as well as those who entered Ghana after independence and never acquired Ghanaian citizenship, may be stateless or at risk of statelessness, even if they have fully integrated in Ghana, adopted the culture of these communities, consider themselves to be citizens of Ghana, and have lost the assistance and protection of their home countries. Recent arrivals to the Zongo communities from abroad would not have parents or grandparents who are Ghanaian, and may not have any