Minister Coveney leads successful Trade Mission to Ghana

From 2-4 December, Minister Simon Coveney T.D. led a Trade Mission to Ghana. In addition to a wide range of business engagements, Minister Coveney met his counterpart while visiting an Irish Aid funded UN response depot, delivered a keynote address at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Centre and spent a day celebrating farming with the World Food Programme and Ghana's Vice President.

The December 2015 Trade Mission to Ghana led by Minister for Agriculture, Food, the Marine and Defence Simon Coveney is a clear sign that Ireland recognises the enormous potential of the Ghanaian market for Irish business in areas such as agri-business, technology, education and financial services.

Speaking from Accra, the Ghanaian capital, Minister Coveney said “Ghana has for many years been a peaceful country in the midst of conflict in West Africa. Ireland congratulates the people of Ghana for choosing the path of democracy and setting the bar in terms of governance in the region. It is also a country which is now firmly established as one of our key trading partners. It has particularly grown in significance in recent years such that it is now one of our primary non-EU export destinations. My visit here will be about exploring further opportunities for cooperation between Ghana and Ireland across a range of sectors from agri-food to energy to education.”

The Minister joined by the Minister of Agriculture of Ghana, Hon. Fifi Kwetey, conducted a joint tour of the Irish Aid funded UN Humanitarian Response Depot at Accra airport. Two members of the Irish Defence Forces are currently deployed as Irish Aid Rapid Responders to work on logistics in this hub which manages the distribution of supplies in the response to emergencies such as the 2014 Ebola outbreak in the region.

During a bilateral meeting with his Ghanaian counterpart, Minister Coveney invited his counterpart to visit Ireland in 2016.

At the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, the Minister gave a keynote lecture on Ireland and Peacekeeping over 50 years, noting links with Ghana troops that also served in the Congo in the 1960’s and suffered their first casualties in the field. Troops from Ghana and Ireland serve side by side in the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Lebanon to this day.

In Ghana, the 4th of December is National Farmers Day, a public holiday to celebration the contribution of those who work in agriculture. The theme of the 2015 celebration was 'Transform Ghana: Invest in Agriculture'. Minister Coveney celebrated farmers day with the Vice President of Ghana. Commenting on the work being done in Ghana by WFP the Minister said 'Ireland is a long term partner of the WFP in the areas of nutrition and agriculture. It has been very worthwhile to meet those involved in running these programs while here.

Kofi Annan School press release on Minister Coveney's visit