Aiming to strengthen ties, Ghana and Portugal on Tuesday signed cooperation agreements.
They exchanged bilateral agreements for trade, political consultation, and defence cooperation.
“This latest form of agreement will go a long way to strengthening the ties of friendship and the bonds of co-operation between Ghana and Portugal.” President Akufo-Addo said this at a joint press conference with President Marcelo Rebelo De Sousa, as part of his three-day State Visit to Portugal.
He declared that Ghana was determined “to reject our old economy, which has been dependent on the production and export of raw materials, as well as on aid.”
“We want to build a value-added, industrialised economy with modernised agriculture, that is neither a victim nor a pawn of the world economic order. We want our relations with Portugal and, indeed, the rest of the world, to be characterised by an increase in trade and investment cooperation.
“This is the way to develop healthy relations between our two countries, put Ghana at the high end of the value chain in the global marketplace, and create jobs for the teeming masses of Ghanaians, particularly the youth,” he stated.
The President stated that his conversations with his Portuguese counterpart also centered on fostering additional multilateral political, cultural, and inter-ethnic exchanges and cooperation, as well as the necessity of advancing a better world by addressing global issues related to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“We have noted with satisfaction the value that the Ghana-Portugal Business Forum scheduled to be held tomorrow will add to our investment initiatives, he said.”
The president of Portugal decided to speak up for Ghana’s interests and cause within the European Union, according to President Akufo-Addo.
In order to increase trade volumes, Ghana would also assist in providing a platform for improved economic engagement between Portugal and the ECOWAS member nations.
Regarding international security, the President stated that Ghana and Portugal were looking forward to Russia, China, and the United Kingdom supporting the United States of America and France in the UN Security Council reform process in accordance with the Ezulwini consensus.
He assured President De Sousa that Ghana will “collaborate with Portugal to find solutions to challenges such as eradicating widespread poverty, eliminating irregular migration, insecurity and human rights violations, terrorism and violent extremism, human and drug trafficking, piracy, and climate change and its attendant negative impact on the environment and livelihoods.”
President Akufo-Addo was later summoned to the Lisbon City Council, where he was presented with the keys to the city by the Deputy Mayor, Filipe Anacoreta Correia.
In his speech, the President stated that history teaches us that “a rich trading partner operating within a fair trading system brings far more prosperity to both sides than the exploitation of a poor partner.”
“I have come to Lisbon to advocate for increased investment and trade between our two countries.” Ghana-Portugal trade relations have evolved over time, and a new paradigm must be defined, which will be dependent on the structural transformation of the Ghanaian economy from a raw material producing and exporting economy to a value-adding, industrialising economy.
“This will enable Ghana to trade at the top of the global value chain, dealing in products that we manufacture and grow.” “As a result of this, a strong trading system between Portugal and Ghana will be established, resulting in mutual prosperity for the peoples of the two countries,” he said.
