PM Modi’s historic Ghana visit: UPI push, 4 MoUs inked, new frontiers in defence, and minerals explored | A look
India and Ghana signed four MoUs to enhance cooperation in culture, health, standardisation, and institutional dialogue, following talks between Prime Minister Modi and President Mahama.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held a bilateral meeting with Ghanaian President John Mahama, during which the two leaders upgraded their relationship to a Comprehensive Partnership. PM Modi highlighted the significant potential for collaboration in key areas such as critical minerals, defence, maritime security, and energy.
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Taking to X, PM Modi said, “India and Ghana also see immense scope in working closely in areas such as critical minerals, defence, maritime security and energy. Enhancing cultural linkages was also talked about.”
India-Ghana signed four MoUs
India and Ghana signed four Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) on Wednesday to strengthen bilateral cooperation in key areas such as culture, health, standardisation, and institutional dialogue.
The agreements were signed following delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ghanaian President John Mahama in Accra.
<p>Addressing a press briefing after the meeting, Secretary (Economic Relations) Dammu Ravi said the MoUs covered cultural exchange, traditional medicine, standards collaboration, and the establishment of a Joint Commission.
"After the delegation-level talks, there was the signing of four Memoranda of Understanding, one to establish the Joint Commission meeting at the Foreign Office level. Second is traditional medicine, where there is scope for both sides to exchange expert training. The third is the cultural exchange programme, where there's hope that this will encourage cultural exchanges and tourism. The fourth one is in the area of standard setting," he said.
The four Memoranda of Understanding signed between India and Ghana include a Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP), aimed at promoting greater cultural understanding and exchanges in the fields of art, music, dance, literature, and heritage.
The second MoU, signed between the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), seeks to enhance cooperation in standardisation, certification, and conformity assessment.
The third agreement was signed between the Institute of Traditional and Alternative Medicine (ITAM), Ghana, and the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), India, to facilitate collaboration in traditional medicine education, training, and research.
The fourth MoU relates to the Joint Commission Meeting, which aims to institutionalise high-level dialogue and ensure regular reviews of bilateral cooperation mechanisms.
UPI, Defence, agriculture, tech in focus
The prime minister also highlighted the upswing in trade relations between the two countries.
“Indian companies have invested nearly two billion dollars in about 900 projects. Today, we have set a target to double our mutual trade in the next five years,” he said.
"In the field of FinTech, India is ready to share its experience of UPI digital payments with Ghana," he noted.
The prime minister also said that Indian companies will cooperate in the exploration and mining of critical minerals.
The prime minister said both sides were unanimous that terrorism is the enemy of humanity and that it was decided to further strengthen mutual cooperation in countering the menace.
"We are unanimous that terrorism is the enemy of humanity. We thank Ghana for its cooperation in our fight against terrorism," Modi said.
“In this context, we have decided to further strengthen mutual cooperation in counter-terrorism,” he said.
In the field of defence and security, we will move forward with the mantra of "security through solidarity", he added.
India-Ghana cooperation will be enhanced in areas such as training of armed forces, maritime security, defence supply and cyber security, he added.
The prime minister said both sides expressed serious concerns over the conflicts in West Asia and Europe and called for finding solutions to the problems through dialogue and diplomacy.
Secretary Dammu Ravi also confirmed that Prime Minister Modi had agreed to support Ghana in the field of agriculture.
“Ghanaian President Mahama mentioned during the discussions that he sought India's cooperation in the area of agriculture... The entrepreneurs to be able to develop Ghana as a food basket and provide food security to its people. PM Modi had agreed to support Ghana in this endeavour,” he said.
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The two leaders also discussed boosting cooperation in pharmaceuticals, with a focus on enhancing vaccine production capacity in Ghana.
"The second item was in the area of pharma and vaccines. President Mahama is interested in creating Ghana a hub for vaccines. Some development has already taken place in collaboration with the Global Vaccine Alliance. He wants Indian entrepreneurs to come and set up manufacturing units in the pharma and vaccines, where India has advanced its capacity," Ravi added.
This marks the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ghana in over three decades. The visit is expected to significantly deepen the India-Ghana partnership and signal India's continued engagement with Africa and the Global South.
(With inputs from ANI)