The Diplomat
King Philip VI received yesterday at La Zarzuela Palace the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who paid a state visit to Spain to participate in the presentation of the Africa 2023 Focus at La Moncloa Palace.
Nana Akufo Addo, who in addition to being the head of state of Ghana is the current president of the Community of West African States (ECOWAS), was received in audience by the King. The meeting was also attended by the Spanish State Secretary for Global Spain, Manuel Muñiz Villa, and the Spanish Ambassador to Ghana, Alicia Rico Pérez del Pulgar, and by the Ghanaian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, and the Ghanaian Ambassador to Spain, Muhammad Adam.
The Ghanaian leader participated last Monday, together with the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, in the presentation of the document Focus Africa 2023, the Government’s action program aligned with the 3rd Africa Plan. Ghana is precisely among the group of “priority countries” of the Focus Africa and the 3rd Africa Plan, together with Senegal, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Angola, Mozambique and Tanzania. In addition, Senegal and Morocco are listed as “pilot countries” for the implementation of the work program, and Nigeria, Ethiopia and South Africa are listed as “anchor countries” because of their political and economic relevance and regional weight.
Ghana is currently the second richest and most populous country in West Africa. Between 2007 and 2013, GDP grew at an average of 8.3% and crossed the lower-middle income threshold in 2010. Today, the country has the third largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa and in 2019 experienced growth of nearly 9%, second only to Nigeria in the region. Because of this, Ghana has an educated middle class and stable, democratic institutions. Ghana hosts the headquarters of the African Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
Economic relations between Spain and Ghana, traditionally of little importance, began to gain importance in 2011 in both investment and trade, whether in goods or services. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Ghana is attracting increasing attention from Spanish companies”. On the other hand, Ghana has not traditionally been a priority country for Spanish Cooperation, which is channeled through ECOWAS or, in a delegated manner, through the EU.
Before participating in the Africa 2023 Focus, Nana Akufo-Addo, was received at the Moncloa Complex by Pedro Sanchez, who highlighted the increase in trade relations between the two countries in recent years and recalled the more than 20,000 Ghanaian citizens currently residing in Spain. The head of the Executive also praised the bilateral collaboration on defense, border control and counter-terrorism issues and recalled, in this regard, that Spain sends, every six months, offshore patrol boats to carry out surveillance and training tasks to the Ghanaian Navy. “Spain deeply values the institutional stability of Ghana”, he added.
The African leader also participated on Monday in a Spain-Ghana business meeting in the course of which the president of the Chamber of Commerce, José Luis Bonet, stressed “the importance of Ghana in relations between Spain and Africa” and the president of the CEOE, Antonio Garamendi, pledged to continue “working for bilateral relations between the two countries and for the promotion of business internationalization”.
