Dr Maleki presenting a Quran to Mr. Adda
The Ministry of Aviation is in discussions with its counterpart in Iran to commence direct flight route between the two countries by the end of this year.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to ensure the realisation of the arrangement is currently under consideration, Minister of Aviation, Joseph Kofi Adda, has disclosed.
He was speaking in Accra yesterday when the Iranian Ambassador to Ghana, Dr Nosratollah Maleki, paid a courtesy call on him, in Accra.
According to the minister, it was time the relationship between Ghana and Iran was extended to exploiting opportunities in the fast-growing global aviation sector.
Mr Adda said the collaboration between the two countries had grown from strength to strength, ranging from the area of health, education, agriculture, pharmaceuticals among others.
He stressed: “You may have heard about the government of Ghana’s plans to develop our aviation sector, including introducing a home-based carrier. We are prepared to explore the aviation sector and we believe Iran can become a good partner, and support us with their Information and Communication Technology in our quest.”
Mr Adda said, over the past few years, the growth of Iranian businesses in Ghana and the rise in number of Ghanaian students and possibly visitors in Iran, required that the two countries cooperate to establish a direct route to facilitate easy and fast travel between the countries.
The government, he noted would continue to build strategic relations with Iran to identify and grow mutually beneficial sectors to support the economic and social development of both countries.
In support of government’s agenda to ensure religious and social cohesion in the country, the minister appealed to the Iranian government to support the country’s Muslim community with Qurans to enable teaching and provision of Islamic instructions in educational institutions.
Dr Maleki said he was confident the MOU on aviation sector cooperation would be signed this year during the 7th Permanent Joint Commission for Cooperation (PJCC), scheduled for Tehran, Iran.
He said the aviation sector officials of both countries would visit and assess infrastructure and facilities in Accra and Tehran within the coming months as part of the process.
He said within the past two years, Iran had offered about 70 scholarships to Ghanaian students, and plans were advanced to increase the number.
Additionally, Iran provided medical supplies and services, assisted farmers with modern farming technologies, especially in the field of rice production, to support activities in Ghana’s health and agricultural sectors, Dr Maleki said.
In 2018, he said, Ghana exported about US$52 million worth of goods to Iran, while it received US$7million worth of goods from Iran, adding that Iran was ready to work with Ghana to increase trade between the two countries.
By Claude Nyarko Adams
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