Ghana and Iran deepened their ties Sunday when President John Dramani Mahama and his Iranian counterpart, Dr Hassan Rouhani, discussed a wide range of issues of mutual interest at the start of the Ghanaian leader’s state visit to the Islamic state.
Two new agreements were also signed in agriculture and international cooperation.
At a bilateral meeting at the magnificent Sa’d Abad Palace, the seat of the presidency in the capital, Tehran, Sunady, the two leaders discussed collaboration in the oil and gas, petrochemical and refinery industry, the generation and distribution of power, light industry, civil engineering and cement production.
Iran has comparative advantage in those areas and both presidents believed the two countries could work together for their mutual benefit.
In the international arena, they discussed terrorism and other forms of extremism, which they believed were a threat to the whole world, as well as the Palestinian issue and Africa’s development.
Historic visit
President Mahama, who is the first Ghanaian head of state to visit Iran, was accorded a warm welcome by his host on a cold morning, with temperature at five degrees Celsius.
Accompanied by President Rouhani, President Mahama inspected a guard of honour mounted by a detachment of the Iranian presidential guard.
New Iran
President Rouhani has, since assuming the leadership of Iran, ushered in a fresh approach to regional and international issues.
That has resulted in the lifting of international sanctions against the country, a development which has allowed Iran to rejoin the world’s economy.
President Mahama’s visit is on the invitation of his host.
Ghana and Iran began diplomatic relations in 1974 and both were founder members of the Non-Aligned Movement.
In recent times, they have been working to enhance economic and trade ties.
In 2014, the two countries established a permanent joint economic cooperation commission when then President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited Ghana.
A good number of Iranian business people are working in Ghana.
Gratitude
Addressing a news conference after the bilateral meeting, President Mahama expressed gratitude to Iran for the support it was giving to Ghana in its development.
He mentioned medicine, education and agriculture as some of the areas where Ghana had benefited immensely from Iran.
In the area of medicine, President Mahama mentioned the establishment of the Iran Clinic in Accra, which was providing subsidised and affordable health care to Ghanaians.
In education, many young Ghanaians have been given scholarships to study critical programmes such as medicine and engineering in Iran. Mention can also be made of the establishment of the Islamic University in Ghana.
With regard to agriculture, President Mahama said the establishment of the rural agriculture programme had boosted the incomes of many rural farmers.
President Mahama expressed the hope that a political rather than a military option could resolve the conflicts in Africa and other parts of the world.
“And I believe that now that Iran has put its nuclear issue behind it, it can play a prominent role in the resolution of a lot of these conflicts,” he added.
President Rouhani
President Rouhani for his part said Africa occupied a special place in Iran’s affairs.
Ghana, he said, had been a great friend of his country and indicated that President Mahama’s visit was a testimony of the tremendous relations.
By: www.dailyviewgh.com
