Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has bid farewell to outgoing British High Commissioner to Ghana, Iain Walker.
Mr. Walker was at the Foreign Ministry recently to say “goodbye” to the Minister.
He spoke extensively about his time in Ghana, and how he enjoyed the Ghanaian culture.
On foreign policy, he observed that Britain and Ghana worked very closely and got a lot of deals done.
He announced that the new British High Commissioner to Ghana will be a woman.
Mr Walker had been Commissioner to Ghana since August 2017.
While bidding him farewell, Madam Ayorkor Botchwey acknowledged that bilateral relations between Ghana and the United Kingdom witnessed active engagements and growth during the tenure of the High Commissioner, who discharged his duties creditably with a high sense of purpose and tenacity.
She applauded the High Commissioner for his exemplary work, which resulted in a number of high-level official visits to Ghana, including the visit by the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, in November 2018, Rt. Hon. James Duddridge (MP), Minister for Africa at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom, in January 2021. Other visits were by Mr. James Heappey, UK Minister for Armed Forces in February 2021 and the just ended visit of Rt. Hon. Priti Patel, UK Secretary of State for Home Department from 1st to 2nd June, 2021.
She mentioned that Ghana and the UK have signed the Interim Trade Partnership Agreement, which is expected to provide duty free and quota free access for Ghana to the UK market and the same preferential tariff reductions for British exporters into the Ghanaian market.
According to her, the relations between Ghana and the UK in the area of security has moved a notch higher during his tenure of office;
She lauded the instrumentality of the High Commissioner in the establishment of the Ghana-UK Business Council in 2018 to promote bilateral relations and strategic partnerships between the private sectors of Ghana and UK trade and investment.
She observed the immense contribution that the UK has made and continues to make towards the socio-economic development of Ghana and highlighted the commendable work of the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) in:
● working closely with Government to reduce Ghana’s reliance on UK aid, by improving domestic tax mobilization and improved management of the economy;
● helping over 900,000 poor and vulnerable Ghanaians to lead safer, healthier and more prosperous lives through various social intervention initiatives; and
● supporting Ghana’s industrialization and economic transformation agenda, which are critical to strengthening Ghana’s economic resilience and unlocking its ambition of the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda.
She expressed appreciation to the High Commissioner for his efforts in ensuring UK support for Ghana’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the UK’s pledge of a £450,000 support package to help Ghana’s Pharmaceutical Sector to adapt and build back better in the wake of COVID-19 and its commitment to continue to offer public health epidemiological modelling support.
By Melvin Tarlue