Africa-Press – Ghana. President John Dramani Mahama on Friday held bilateral talks with the visiting Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Amiss Thomas Mitchell at the Presidency in Accra.
The President and the Prime Minister discussed the strong growing relations between Ghana and Grenada, a Caribbean Island nation, focusing on trade, culture, education, visa waivers and political consultations.
At the event a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the recruitment of Ghanaian nurses to Grenada was signed between Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister and Mr Joseph Andall, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Export Development of Grenada, initialed for his country.
President Mahama said they were happy that the visit would allow them to continue with the rapprochement that they had been engaged in, especially with the MoUs that they had signed on political consultations.
He said he was happy that yesterday the two Foreign Ministers could sit and have that consultation so that, based on the shared values that they have, they could take common positions at international meetings.
He said they also have the MoU on trade, culture, and education, and his hope was that the Prime Minister’s visit would deepen that even further.
President Mahama said they had the MoU on visa waiver for each other’s citizens, which was in operation.
“We’ve had a few complaints of a few Grenadian citizens who didn’t have a very good experience, but we are asking the foreign ministry to sort it out so that we can fully implement the visa waiver for all categories of passports, diplomatic, service, and online passports,” President Mahama stated.
He added; “Our two citizens should be able to travel freely between each other, and so it’s something that we’ll work on to make sure that it’s fully implemented.”
Touching on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), President Mahama said Ghana happens to be the headquarters of the AfCFTA, which was a very historic trade agreement that was signed, and that so far more than 50 countries have ratified it.
He said the AfCFTA allows member countries to export duty-free and tariff-free into each other’s markets.
President Mahama said, he believes the AfCFTA becomes an opportunity for African and Caribbean businesses to invest together to take advantage of a 1.3 billion population market with a GDP of more than $3 trillion.
He reiterated the need for them to find ways and means of bringing the two business communities together to create further investments.
“And so, we are happy to welcome you, and we always welcome a visit, and I look forward to the opportunity to pay a visit back to Grenada in order that we cement the relationship even further,” President Mahama said
The Grenadian Prime Minister Mitchell, who is the leader of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) of Grenada thanked President Mahama, who is the leader of Ghana’s ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the warm reception extended to him and his delegation during two-day state visit.
He also extended an invitation to President Mahama to visit Grenada somewhere in August 2026.
He called for the strengthening of the Ghana-Grenada relations in the areas of trade, health, culture and education.
“In July at the African Bank Conference, I revealed my DNA ancestry tracing on my maternal side, and it was traced to the Akan people of Ghana,” the Prime Minister said.
He said further: “So, I think I could say the Akwaaba that was given to me yesterday, I think, is a reflection of the homecoming that is deeply personal to me, but I think anecdotal to Grenada and the Caribbean.
“I’m not so sure of the veracity of it, but I’m told 75 per cent of the population of Grenada can trace its ancestry to Ghana.”
He noted that there was the need for a deliberate use of the ocean as a bridge to make sure that they in the Caribbean could reconnect in a deliberate way with their roots, both politically, socially, culturally, and importantly, economically as well.
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