This year, the EU Delegation to Ghana celebrated 65 years of partnership between the EU and Ghana. 2022 marks the 65^th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome – as well as that of Ghana’s independence. This was an opportunity to highlight the strong partnership between EU and Ghana across different sectors and to invite a wide range of partners and stakeholders to celebrate Europe Day with us.

Europe Week celebrations in Ghana culminated with the Europe Day reception on 9^th May at the Ambassador’s Residence. This included an exhibition of EU projects in Ghana highlighting “ordinary Ghanaian heroes” that are actively supporting planet and prosperity, as well as Ghanaian food and live music.

The Minister of Defence, Hon. Dominic Nitiwul, represented government at the reception – a key indication of active interest for a stronger EU-Ghana partnership on security and defence. The Minister highlighted the EU’s support to Ghana throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, including by providing the very first COVAX vaccine doses to Ghana. He also emphasised the close relations between EU and Ghana evidenced by recent high-level visits by H.E. President Nana Akufo-Addo to the EU institutions and EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen’s recent visit to Accra.

His Royal Majesty, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, Ga-Mantse and President of the Ga Traditional Council, attended with his entourage and welcomed guests to the Europe Day celebrations on his land.

Several other members of the government were among the Europe Day guests, including Deputy Minister of Finance, Hon. Abena Osei-Asare, Deputy Minister of Health, Hon. Mahama Asei Seini, Deputy Ministers of Trade, Hon. Herbert Krapa and Hon. Nana Ama Dokua respectively. Also in attendance was the Member of Parliament for Korle Klottey Constituency, Dr. Zanator Agyemen-Rawlings.

With around 500 guests, Europe Day in Ghana demonstrated the broad range of EU-Ghana partnership across different sectors: from political, business, and agriculture, to the culture and arts.

In the lead up to Europe Day, the EU organised several activities to highlight areas continued partnership with Ghana.

EU is committed to supporting Ghana’s fishing industry – a significant source of income and livelihoods in the country – and the shared ambition towards more sustainable fishing practices. To highlight this partnership on fisheries, EU Ambassador to Ghana, Irchad RAZAALY, paid a visit to the fishing communities at Whuti and Keta in the Volta Region, beneficiaries of the EU-funded Far Ban Bo project. There he discussed the challenges faced by the fishing communities – including illegal unreported unregulated (IUU) fishing and securing of landing beaches from encroachment – and how the EU is helping address these issues.

To promote shared democratic values, Ambassador RAZAALY joined the Ghana Journalist Association, UNESCO and the UN on 4^th May to celebrate World Press Freedom Day.

EU is actively supporting Ghana’s green growth by investing in renewable energy sources. For that reason, the EU Delegation team paid a visit to Miniplast Ltd, a Ghana-based plastic manufacturing and recycling company powered by solar panels, which is partially supported by EU funding. They witnessed how EU investments can enable a faster uptake of local clean energy production – creating jobs while mitigating environmental impact.

To promote a stronger EU-Ghana partnership on youth and education, the EU Ambassador hosted a networking event for alumni of the Erasmus+ scholarship programme and higher education stakeholders at his Residence. Representatives from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Youth and Sport, and the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations were among the guests.

In the spirit of increasing cross-cultural exchanges between EU and Ghana, the EU screened two movies at the National Theatre: the short film Spirits We Dance and the Italian comedy My Brother Chases Dinosaurs. One takes place in Europe, the other in Ghana, but both are compelling films that discuss the struggles of living with a disability.