Visiting South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa who is on a two-day working visit to Ghana is aiming at strengthening the already existing bilateral, political and economic relations between South Africa and Ghana.
He is being hosted by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Jubilee House.
The President’s visit to Ghana is part of his ongoing four-nation visit to West Africa. He has already visited Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire, and will wrap up the tour with a visit to Senegal.
The State Visit to Ghana is directed towards enhancing bilateral relations premised on mutual respect, commitment to democracy, good governance, rules-based multilateralism underpinned by the rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Diplomatic relations between South Africa and Ghana have enabled cooperation across a range of sectors, including trade and investments.
The State Visit will include the inaugural session of the Ghana-South Africa Bi-National Commission, which will facilitate engagement between the two countries under the leadership of the two Heads of State.
On Saturday, 04 December 2021, President Ramaphosa was the guest of honour at the Jubilee State House Ceremonial Welcome.
President Ramaphosa and President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo will elevate the structural bilateral mechanism from the Permanent Joint Commission for Cooperation and inaugurate the South Africa-Ghana Bi-National Commission to be chaired by the Heads of State and Government.
The Bi-National Commission will co-ordinate various sectors of government and facilitate communication between the public and private industries of the respective countries to collaborate on economic, social, cultural, scientific, technical and other areas of cooperation identified and agreed upon.
South Africa is one of the largest foreign direct investors in Ghana, mainly in mining, communication, beverages, retail and franchising. Several South African companies are operating in Ghana, including MTN, AngloGold Ashanti, Shoprite, Goldfields, Stanbic Bank, First National Bank, Barclays/Absa, Multichoice and South African Airways.
President Ramaphosa’s first working Visits to Ghana was somewhere in November 2019 which provided an opportunity for South Africa to explore new areas of cooperation with the three partner states and to promote increased trade and investment flows to the mutual benefit of the peoples of the four countries.
This visit is expected to also create a platform for President Ramaphosa to engage with his counterparts on matters of mutual interest in South Africa’s quest for a peaceful and prosperous continent.
President Ramaphosa is expected to lead South African delegation in talks with President Akufo-Addo at Jubilee House in the capital Accra.
President Ramaphosa is scheduled to lay wreaths on Sunday December 5, 2021 at the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, the final resting place for the founding father of the African Union and Ghana’s first President and the late First Lady Fathia Nkrumah.
He will also later on the same day address the South Africa-Ghana Business Forum to further explore new areas of economic, trade and investment cooperation, especially in Ghana’s key sectors such as roads and railway infrastructure, mining, energy, manufacturing and agro-processing, to the mutual benefit of both countries.
Upon the completion of his Ghana visit, he will depart for Dakar, the last stop of his West African tour.
By Vincent Kubi