By: Hannah Dadzie
Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey paid a working visit to the Republic of Malta on Monday, 15th July, 2024, during which she held bilateral meetings with the President of Malta, H.E. Myriam Spiteri Debono, Prime Minister H.E. Dr. Robert Abela, and the Minister for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade, Dr. Ian Borg.
The two sides acknowledged the strong and cordial relations between Ghana and Malta, which have led to high-level visits from both sides, discussed strengthening existing bilateral relations and exploring new areas of cooperation, such as renewable energy, tourism, aviation, the health sector among others.
At the end of the fruitful deliberations, the leaders agreed to further enhance cooperation between Ghana and Malta through initiatives that would increase trade, joint ventures in renewable energy, collaborative efforts in the tourism and aviation industries, educational exchanges, and the sharing of best practices in governance and economic development.
They also underscored the need to take concrete steps to implement the Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) and agreements that have been signed, to ensure that the commitments translate into mutually beneficial outcomes.
Madam Ayorkor Botchwey seized the opportunity to inform of her candidature for the position of Secretary-General of the Commonwealth and shared her vision for the organisation.
She emphasised the need for a transformative agenda focused on building resilience to tackle contemporary challenges such as stagnant economies, growing inequality, high youth unemployment, climate disasters and threats to democracy and human rights.
Malta plays an active role within the Commonwealth, thus, its leaders expressed readiness to continue to contribute to enhancing the organisation’s relevance for it to achieve tangible outcomes that benefit all Member Countries.
