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Four new envoys accredited to Ghana have officially presented their open letters to Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Representative of the President at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration in Accra.
They are the High Commissioner-designate of Namibia in Ghana, Ms. Selma Ashipala-Musavyi; and the Ambassador-designate of China in Ghana, Mr. Lu Kun.
The remainder are the Ambassador-designate of Austria to Ghana, Mr. Thomas Schlesinger; and the Designated Ambassador of Mexico in Ghana, Mr. Enrique Ernesto Escorza Zamudio.
The envoys took turns presenting their open letters to Mrs. Ayorkor Botchwey, who formally welcomed them and wished them a successful service tour of the country.
During a meeting with the Namibian High Commissioner-designate in Ghana, the Minister-designate recalled the long-standing historical relations between Ghana and Namibia, dating back to the days of Ghana’s first president, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, who supported the struggle which was spearheaded by the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), as a cardinal part of Ghana’s African decolonization policy, adding that Nkrumah’s vital support laid the foundation and contributed to the establishment of current political goodwill among Both countries .
She encouraged the High Commissioner-designate to continue efforts to further improve bilateral relations between the two countries by working to convene the next session of the Ghana-Namibia Permanent Joint Cooperation Commission whose preparatory meetings began in 2019 but stalled in 2020 due to to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ms Ayorkor Botchwey assured the designated High Commissioner of Namibia of the commitment of the Government of Ghana to promote cooperation between Ghana and Namibia in sectors that are of mutual benefit and interest to expand bilateral relations.
The Minister-designate, in her interaction with the Ambassador-designate of China, noted with satisfaction that high-level visits and exchanges between Ghana and China had become frequent and fruitful in recent years.
He added that as a result of the exchanges, trade relations between the two countries had seen a remarkable increase, resulting in China being Ghana’s largest trading partner with trade volume between the two countries exceeding $ 7.4 billion.
Ms Ayorkor Botchwey assured Mr Lu of Ghana’s continued solidarity and mutual support in the global fight against the Covid-19 pandemic that had seriously affected the world economy and expressed her appreciation to the Government of China for the invaluable support and timely supply of medical items. including PCR machines and personal protective equipment to assist in Ghana’s fight against the pandemic.
Ms Ayorkor Botchwey acknowledged the long-standing ties of friendship and cooperation that exist “happily” between Ghana and Austria, founded on mutual commitment to peaceful coexistence, respect for the rule of law, democratic governance and international cooperation. .
He reaffirmed Ghana’s determination and personal desire to continue forging strong cooperative partnerships between Ghana and Austria, and Ghana recently opened its first Diplomatic Mission in Vienna as a sign of the Government of Ghana’s commitment to expanding relations. with Austria.
Ms Ayorkor Botchwey recalled President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s visit to Austria in May 2019, during which she held fruitful bilateral talks with President Alexander Van der Bellen, to further deepen relations between the two countries.
She also mentioned the official visit of Mr. Andreas Melán, Austrian Special Envoy for Relations with Africa, in June 2019, during which mutually beneficial discussions were held with her (Ms. Ayorkor Botchwey), and welcomed Mr. Thomas Schlesinger, Designated Ambassador of Austria to Ghana.
Ms Ayorkor Botchwey expressed her appreciation for the financial and technical assistance provided by the Government of Austria to Ghana in various fields, including those related to infrastructure, health, agriculture and the education sector, where various programs had been offered training and scholarships for Ghanaians to study in Austria, which has contributed to the development of human resources and Ghana’s expertise.
Mrs. Ayorkor Botchwey, in her engagement to Enrique Ernesto Escorza Zamudio, Mexico’s Ambassador-designate to Ghana, spoke about the long-standing historical relations between the two countries, dating back to August 1961, when Mexico became the first country Latin American in establishing diplomatic relations. relations with Ghana.
He indicated that Mexico-Ghana relations had always been cordial based on solidarity and mutual respect and emphasized Ghana’s willingness to continue working closely with Mexico within the framework of multilateral organizations to protect and promote the interests of the nations in development in an increasingly challenging global environment.
