President John Dramani Mahama has held discussions with India’s Minister for External Affairs, Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, on strengthening bilateral trade and investment between Ghana and India.
Dr Jaishankar called on President Mahama at the Presidency on Tuesday, where the two sides also discussed cooperation in Ghana’s rail sector and pharmaceutical industry.
The discussions further focused on the growing demand for a new world order that rejects unilateralism and the abuse of nations, as well as broader efforts to deepen Ghana-India relations.
President Mahama said trade between the two countries had recorded significant growth, with Ghana’s exports to India increasing from about US$3 billion to almost US$7 billion, driven mainly by goods exports.
“In the area of trade, we are already doing quite well. Our exports to India have increased from just about US$3 billion to almost US$7 billion, driven mainly by goods exports,” he said.
He noted that Ghana also imports agricultural machinery and automobiles, including buses, from India, describing the trade relationship as mutually beneficial.
Pharmaceutical cooperation
On pharmaceuticals, President Mahama said Ghana was open to partnerships that would support local drug manufacturing as part of efforts to strengthen the country’s health sovereignty.
He said the policy was aligned with the Accra Reset agenda, which promotes greater capacity for countries to meet their own healthcare needs.
“There are already positive signals. Currently, one of our major pharmaceutical companies, Atlantic Life Sciences, is from India and they are working closely with an indigenous company, KinaPharma, in developing vaccines for Ghana,” he said.
President Mahama also pointed to recent high-level engagements as evidence of deepening relations between the two countries, citing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ghana in July 2025 and Dr Jaishankar’s subsequent visit.
He also highlighted the Jubilee House, which was financed and constructed by an Indian company during Ghana’s Jubilee year celebrations, as a tangible symbol of the relationship.
Other areas of cooperation cited by the President included the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre for ICT and the Tema-Mpakadan Railway Line.
India seeks stronger partnership
Dr Jaishankar conveyed warm greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu to President Mahama.
He said Prime Minister Modi had tasked the Foreign Ministers of the two countries with giving greater substance to the comprehensive partnership agreed between Ghana and India.
“And in fact, he is urging us that the comprehensive partnership that you and he decided upon was the task of the Foreign Ministers to give it more concrete shape to explore new possibilities and avenues for cooperation,” Dr Jaishankar said.
The meeting was attended by Chief of Staff Julius Debrah, Minister for Foreign Affairs Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and other government officials.
