Ghana ready to share ideas with others – says Bawumia, as he welcomes Guyana VP

Ghana is ready to share her learnings and development experiences with other countries as they all seek to better the lives of their citizens, the Vice President of the Republic, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has assured.

Thus, Ghana will continue to develop and enhance cordial and mutually beneficial relations with friends both near and far, with the ultimate aim of accelerated development and improved livelihoods.

Dr. Bawumia assured of Ghana’s commitment to the exchange of practical development ideas on Friday, 15 October 2021 when he welcomed H.E. Bharrat Jagdeo, Vice President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, to the Jubilee House, Accra for bilateral talks at the beginning of a three-day visit to the country.

Amongst other objectives, Vice President Jagdeo and his delegation are in Ghana to learn about the country’s experiences in the oil and gas sector, with particular reference to local content and participation, the legal framework, and general best practices in exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbon finds, having discovered hydrocarbons on a large scale in 2015.

During the visit, technical teams from Ghana’s Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Petroleum Commission (PC), Ghana Gas, Energy Commission and other stakeholders in the energy sector will be engaging their counterparts from Guyana to share ideas and exchange learnings.

“We are here to listen and learn, and given your experiences in the oil and gas sector, I am sure we have come to the right place” Vice President Jagdeo declared, adding, “Our ongoing cooperation is testament to how well we can work together and learn from each other.

“We want to deepen our cooperation beyond the oil and gas sector, to trade and investment in each other’s country. We want to learn from you in the areas of agriculture, digitization, health, especially your Agenda 111, and infrastructure development” he indicated.

Recalling the longstanding relations between Ghana and Guyana and the uncanny similarities in their histories, Vice President Bawumia said Ghana remains a bulwark for peace and democratic development in the West Africa sub region, and indicated that given the emerging opportunities, particularly in the energy sector, greater cooperation would serve as a catalyst for trade and investment for both countries.

As a sign of Ghana’s readiness to provide practical learnings, Vice President Bawumia presented a large, bound folder detailing the origins and implementation plans for Government’s Agenda 111, designed to make health care accessible and affordable at the lowest level of society.

A beaming Vice President Jagdeo described the document as the “highlight” of his day.