Ghana and Austria on Friday signed four Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on development, migration, health and education, in line with renewed efforts to deepen bilateral relations between the two countries.
Two of the MoU are for cooperation in the field of development, mobility and migration, and reciprocal access to the labour market for dependents of members of diplomatic missions and career consular posts.
They were signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, and Austria’s Minister for European and International Affairs, Alexander Schallenberg, at a bilateral meeting in Accra.
Earlier at a business breakfast meeting, the other MoU were signed between the Ministry of Health, the University of Ghana (UG), the University of Innsbruck of Austria and MED-EL GmbH, a global company, as well as the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences of Austria and the UG.
The bilateral meeting and breakfast meeting were part of the Austria Minister’s two-day official visit to Ghana to enhance his country’s six decades and more relations with Ghana.
While here, the Austrian delegation also met President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, engaged the business community and officially opened the Austria embassy in Accra.
Briefing journalists after signing the first two MOU, Ms Botchwey said the visit of the Austrian Minister to Ghana marked a pivotal moment in the bilateral relationship between the two nations which dates back to the 1960s.
She said that despite a long history of cooperation, trade and investment between Ghana and Austria had been limited, hence a pressing need to enhance economic linkages and partnerships.
She encouraged Austrian investors to do business in Ghana and have access to the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, the world’s largest free trade area with 54 countries and combined Gross Domestic Product of $ 3.4 trillion.
She thanked Austria for its support through concessionary loans for various developmental projects and assured that the government remained committed to repaying the loans.
She said Ghana would keep working with Austria in international groups like the International Atomic Energy Agency and Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation to tackle global problems like nuclear weapons.
On regional peace and security, Ms Botchwey said ECOWAS and the African Union were making efforts to tackle terrorism and political instability in the Sahel and West Africa and stressed Ghana’s commitment to combat transnational threats and welcomed Austria’s support in these efforts.
She said at the meeting the two countries discussed the impact of global conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and reaffirmed Ghana’s support for Ukraine and a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.
She called for increased international pressure on Hamas to release Israeli hostages and urged continued diplomatic efforts to resolve these conflicts.
She expressed the hope that the visit would further strengthen Ghana-Austria relations and open new avenues for collaboration, stating Ghana’s commitment to the deepening of the ties.
On his part, Mr Schallenberg said his country would continue to work together with Ghana to leverage huge potentials and opportunities that existed between the two countries, especially in the area of trade.
He called for closer security cooperation between Austria and Ghana especially on peacekeeping and migration, and announced new training courses at the Austrian Diplomatic Academy for young Ghanaian diplomats.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR AND TONY KRAPAH