China Supports Two New Projects in Ghana Worth U.S.$ 66 Million

By G.D. Zaney, Esq

Ghana and China have signed two documents--The Exchange of Notes for a Fishing Port Complex at James town in Accra and the Draft Bilateral Agreement on Economic and Technical Co-operation--which will involve about US $ 66 million.

Under the Draft Bilateral Agreement on Economic and Technical Co-operation, the Government of the People's Republic of China will provide RMB 100 million Yuan (approximately US $ 16 million) to the Government of Ghana for the implementation of projects including phase 2 (two) of the University of Health and Allied Sciences.

And for the Exchange of Notes on the construction of the Jamestown Fishing Port Complex, China will provide an amount of US $ 50 million.

The construction of the Jamestown Fishing Port Complex, which begins this year, will be in three major parts--dredging of about 118 000 cubic meters of harbour basin and shipping channels; construction of about 1,200 meters of hydraulic structures, comprising berths, seawall and a break water; and the construction of administration, production and supporting facilities including an office building, kindergarten, trading market, processing area, commercial area and other production and supporting facilities.

Ghana's Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta and China's Ambassador to Ghana, Her Excellency Sun Baohong, initialled the documents for their respective countries at a ceremony in Accra on Friday.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Ofori-Atta, said the occasion marked another important milestone in the bilateral economic relations between Ghana and China and reaffirmed their commitments and determination to broaden and deepen the bilateral co-operation between the two countries.

Mr Ofori-Atta said the Fishing harbour project was expected to enhance the productivity of fisher folks and create 1,000 job opportunities for the youth of the community.

In a statement, H.E. Baohong noted that Ghana and China had enjoyed very fruitful bilateral relations for decades and that the current agreements would open up new chapters of co-operation in trade and development.

H.E. Baohong expressed the hope that Ghana's international partners would play some role in the realization of the Ghana beyond aid agenda.

She disclosed that feasibility studies on phase two of the University of Health and Allied Sciences were on-going while that on the Cocoa Processing project at Sefwi Juaboso was yet to begin.

The Chinese Ambassador also made it known that China would begin the implementation of 80 satellite TV projects in 300 Ghanaian villages in May, this year, while implementation of the supply of police vehicles and equipment to the Ghana Police Service had begun.

The Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Elizabeth Afoley Quaye, expressed appreciation to the Chinese government for the assistance and pledged her Ministry's support to ensure the successful implementation of the project.

Currently, China is Ghana's largest trading partner, with Ghana's export to China worth more than 1.85 billion US dollars, an increase of over 41 per cent.

Last year, China's financial investment in Ghana amounted to US $123 million, involving 25 projects and ranking top among all foreign investment countries while bilateral trade between Ghana and China reached US $ 6.67 billion, registering an increase of 11.6 per cent and ranking sixth among 54 African countries.

In the sphere of human resources, China provided over 900 training opportunities for Ghana in 2017.

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