President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has described China as a true partner of Ghana.
He said China was Ghana’s biggest trading partner and that many ongoing development projects in the country were taking place with the assistance of the Chinese government and companies.
The President mentioned a $2 billion Sinohydro deal, and said it would lead to the construction of more infrastructure projects in Ghana.
President Akufo-Addo said this when the Vice Premier of China, Ms Sun Chunlan, called on him at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday.
She was on a two-day working visit to Ghana. The visit forms part of efforts to implement agreements reached between the President and President Xi Jinping of China at the 3rd summit of the Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC) in Beijing in 2018.
Sinohydro
President Akufo-Addo said the first four projects under phase one of the Sinohydro Master Project Support Agreement were the Tamale Interchange, Prestea and Cape Coast inner city roads; the upgrading of selected feeder roads in the Ashanti and Western regions, and the Hohoe-Jasikan-Dodo Pepesu roads.
President Akufo-Addo expressed the hope that the remaining projects, including the construction of Accra inner city roads, currently under evaluation by Sinosure, would be approved by the end of the year for work to commence in earnest.
He said Ghana shared the expression of mutual co-operation, mutual development and shared prosperity by President Xi Jinping, “so, we are looking forward to prosecuting the relationship between our two countries, and it is within that context that we are very happy to have you here with us”.
Commendation
Ms Chunlan lauded the leadership style of President Akufo-Addo, which had culminated in reforms, growth of the economy and the improvement in the lives of Ghanaians.
According to her, Ghana’s stability and development were exemplary and said China was excited about the country’s achievements.
Ms Chunlan said President Akufo-Addo was an ‘old and good friend of China’, and commended Ghana for its interest in the development and growth of China.
She added that her visit would help in the realisation of the outcomes of FOCAC, which would lead to the deepening of the relationship between the two countries.
The Premier also expressed the hope that with Ghana and China celebrating 60 years of bilateral relations next year, the friendly relations between the two countries, which were forged by Chairman Mao Zedong and President Kwame Nkrumah, would continue to stand the test of time and become even stronger in many years to come.
After addressing the media, the President and his guest went into a closed-door meeting.
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