President John Dramani Mahama says Ghana and Zambia are facing similar economic and financial difficulties, describing both countries as “twins of the same mother” because of their shared economic structure and dependence on mining.
He made the remarks at a state banquet hosted in his honour by Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema in Lusaka, after bilateral talks between the two leaders.
“Indeed in the tete-a-tete I had with President, my brother, it was so striking the similarities in the trajectory that our countries are travelling, especially at this particular time,” Mahama said.
According to him, both nations have reached a defining period where they are confronting the same pressures.
“We’ve come to a defining moment where Ghana and Zambia seem to be twins of the same mother, going through the same economic and financial challenges, having the same structure of the economy, mining playing a very important part in terms of value to our gross domestic product,” he stated.
Mahama said the similarities made their engagement productive, noting that discussions with President Hichilema extended beyond the scheduled time.
“And so we got so engrossed in the bilateral that we actually went long beyond the time we had awarded to hold the bilateral. And it was a very fruitful time. We shared best practises,” he said.
He explained that both countries identified areas for mutual learning.
The President said both governments agreed to strengthen their bilateral relationship beyond continental alliances, including plans for an enhanced economic cooperation partnership.
“We agreed that notwithstanding the continental alliances that exist, we must underpin those continental alliances by forging stronger bilateral relationships between our two countries,” he said.
Mahama said the proposed framework would go beyond the existing joint commission arrangement. He assured President Hichilema that Ghana would act quickly on the outcomes of the talks.
He also praised Zambia for the hospitality shown to Ghanaians living in the country, describing them as being treated like neighbours rather than foreigners.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
