As part of his 4-day official visit to Italy, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo paid a courtesy call on Pope Francis, the Head of the Catholic Church, the Bishop of Rome and Sovereign of the Vatican City State, at the Vatican, in Rome on On Saturday, 22nd July 2023.
He was also taken on a tour of the Pontifical Academies of Sciences at the Vatican by its Chancellor, our fellow Ghanaian, Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, who has served in this position since 2022.
President Akufo-Addo traveled to Italy at the invitation of the European Corporate Council on Africa and the Middle East (ECAM), as a keynote speaker at the 4th ECAM Annual Summit scheduled to be held from today the 23rd to 24th July, 2023.
He earlier met with Italian Prime Minister, H.E. Giorgia Meloni to discuss issues of mutual interest between the two countries.
Welcoming President Akufo-Addo, his Italian counterpart lauded Ghana’s continued adherence to the tenets of democracy, good governance, the rule of law and to the principles of democratic accountability, all of which, he said, have made Ghana a beacon of democracy and stability not only in West Africa, but also on the continent of Africa.
President Akufo-Addo, on his part, noted that Ghana and Italy have had strong relations spanning several decades, which have resulted in many Italian companies being successful in their operations in Ghana, citing the Italian engineering firm, Impregilo, which constructed the Akosombo Dam, as an example.
Reiterated Ghana’s commitment to working with Italy, the President thanked the Italian President for the support given to Ghana by Italy, a member of the Creditor Committee for Ghana under the G20 Common Framework for Debt Treatments, in the restructuring of Ghana’s finances, which helped her secure a $3 billion Extended Credit Facility from the International Monetary Fund.
Collaboration with Italy in the development of the Ghana’s pharmaceutical and agro-based industries, President Akufo-Addo said, is high on the agenda of his visit, and indicated that it will be one of the matters he will bring up in his discussions with the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, which is scheduled to take place on Monday, 24th July 2023.
Both leaders agreed that the quest for the development of their respective economies will not be possible in conditions of chaos and armed conflict. To this end, President Mattarella applauded the role being played by Ghana in helping to confront the jihadist and terrorist threat in the Sahel.