Ghana and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) have underscored the cordial relations between them over the last 63 years, and expressed the need to further deepen their development cooperation and warmth bilateral relations for the benefits of both countries.
Ghana’s Interior Minister, Ambrose Dery and the KSA Ambassador to Ghana, Sultan Abdul-Rahman Al-Dhakel, were proposing a toast on Monday in Accra to mark the 93 KSA National Day held on the theme, ‘we dream, we achieve” attended by Saudi community in Ghana, Ministers of States, Members of Parliament, Diplomatic corps, traditional authorities and friends of the Kingdom.
Mr Dery expressed Ghana’s warm felicitation to the custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and His Royal Highness Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, assuring of Ghana’s continuous collaboration with the Kingdom in the maintenance of global peace and security.
He expressed Ghana’s appreciation to Saudi Arabia for its supports to Ghana in the areas of energy, education, health humanitarian assistance, agriculture and infrastructure development.
The Interior Minister said Ghana had taken a keen interest in the Kingdom’s vision 2030 roadmap to the future with “ambitious strategies to unleash the Kingdom’s enormous potential by building a diversified forward thinking country.”
Mr Dery said in pursuit of further cooperation and development, it was imperative for Ghana to deepen its private sector development with the Kingdom, and urged Saudi Arabia investors to take advantage of Ghana’s abundance of natural resource, peace and security as well as the presence of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area secretariat in Accra, to do business in Ghana.
“Ghana stands out as the best investment destination in the sub region,” Mr Dery pointed out and praised KSA for its support to Ghanaian pilgrims over the years.
Mr Al-Dhakel said the 93rd anniversary of the KSA National Day “we celebrate today stirs up in us the remembrances of old glory led by true men who left their fingerprints on history and highlighted the established eternal values that have meanings of loyalty and belonging to the soil of this dear homeland.”
He said it was a legacy embraced by generations, and “a story from which we have learned to raise our heads high, with pride and splendor. It also shares critical development information regarding Saudi’s ambitious Vision 2030.”
He said KSA and Ghana had enjoyed cordial bilateral relations which dates back to the 1960s and “the bonds of friendship between the two countries have witnessed steady growth in different sectors.”
He pointed out that the services and facilities provided by the KSA to pilgrims and visitors from Ghana every year had enabled them to perform their Hajj and Umrah rituals with ease and comfort.
He added that KSA was one of the world’s leading scholarship destination for students as, it continued to remain a priority partner for Ghana, saying that KSA recently increased the scholarship package for eligible Ghanaian applicants to 159 annually.
Mr Al-Dhakel said that KSA had contributed in vital areas of Ghana’s national development including education, health care, energy, road construction, as well as donations to build mosques, orphanages and provision of potable water in Ghana.
BY ALHAJI SALIFU ABDUL-RAHAMAN
