Fourth session of Ghana-European Union Political Dialogue held
The fourth session of the Ghana-European Union (EU) Political Dialogue has been held in Accra with a focus on the discussion of matters pertaining to the national and economic development of Ghana, individual states of the EU and the EU as an institution.
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High on the agenda were plans to step up efforts to implement partnership agreements between Ghana and EU member states before the end of the year.
At the formal opening of the session, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ms Hanna Serwaa Tetteh, said the broadening of development co-operation between the EU and Ghana had an impact on the everyday lives of Ghanaians.
Areas of co-operation
She recounted the areas of co-operation as infrastructure development, social protection, employment and skills development to support job creation, anti-corruption, the rule of law and the country’s election processes.
Currently, she said the country was faced with new challenges on climate change, meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), migration and regional security, among others.
She said the two parties had agreed to place those issues on the agenda to enable them to deliberate extensively on them.
Ms Tetteh expressed confidence that the dialogue processes provided a strong expression of the importance and value which both parties placed on their relations.
She said it also indicated the strength of collaboration that individual members of the EU shared with Ghana.
Commitment and dedication
“I trust that with commitment and dedication from both parties, this dialogue would come out with implementable conclusions to enhance mutually beneficial collaboration in addressing the challenges ahead.
For his part, the EU Ambassador to Ghana, Mr William Hanna, said the EU was happy with the smooth manner that its engagements with Ghana had proceeded over the years.
He said much progress had been made regarding the agreements that were reached in last year’s session which had set the pace for engagement on common issues that affected not only Ghana but the EU as well.
He said one issue of concern for the EU last year was the Ebola outbreak but noted with satisfaction that Ebola had become a thing of the past.
Mr Hanna was also gratified that the yellow card that was placed on the exportation of fisheries from Ghana had been withdrawn.
Progress made
He, however, added that it was instructive to correct the misrepresentation that a red card was placed on fish imports from Ghana saying “it was a yellow card and not a red card”.
Mr Hanna said another milestone that the country had chalked up following its engagement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was the huge wage bill and the issues with the country’s payroll.
He was satisfied that policy decisions had been taken to address those challenges and expressed the hope that the outcome of the current session would further enhance relations between the EU and Ghana.