Without a doubt, the Republic of Ghana and the Czech Republic have a long- standing relationship, dating back to the period before Ghana attained independence from Great Britain. Then referred to as Czechoslovakia, bilateral relationship with Ghana actively commenced in 1959. To place a spotlight on the current state of Ghana – Czech bilateral relations, i had a conversation with His Excellency Ján F ü r y, Ambassador of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ghana which is also responsible for Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Togo, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Ambassador F ü r y who arrived in Ghana a year ago during the peak of the conorovanirus pandemic shared his experience in Ghana and further spoke about the direction of the Czech embassy under his leadership with regards to the relations with Ghana. According to him, his experience has been challenging but an adventurous one, after arriving in the country on board a special UN World Food Programme aircraft as most countries had closed their borders to commercial flights at the time.
“The pandemic has had a fundamental impact on diplomatic practice as it has reduced active social contacts and caused enormous damage in bilateral cooperation. Moreover, our Accra office is accredited to six more countries in West Africa and so dealing with immigration formalities while on a short business trip is administratively an exhausting process.
Although I was previously active mostly in Asia, I am familiar with some parts of the African continent since I have been touring Africa a few times in the past to maintain cultural balance. Coming to Ghana was my personal preference not just because of the stable environment and friendly people, but also because, for many years, I was a fan of Kojo Antwi, Daddy Lumba and other stars of Ghana’s highlife music,” he disclosed.
On the direction of the embassy, Ambassador F ü r y mentioned that developing friendly relations and strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation is the basic starting point of the Czech foreign policy towards Africa. However, to give this vision a meaningful country-specific content requires a lot of effort. With Ghana, the Czech Republic has had more than 60 years of friendship and cooperation.
“President Nkrumah’s visit to my country in 1961 represented a solid commitment, which we have never lost sight of. Despite some historical challenges, our ties have never been broken up. Today both nations are committed to democracy, human rights and good governance. We are partners in multilateral institutions and Czech businesses consider Ghana as a gateway to the markets of ECOWAS. We are allies in fighting violent extremism in the Sahel and we are keen to restore peace and stability there,” he added.
There are various sectors of keen interest as part of Ghana- Czech relationship including high – level political exchanges which is expected to ensure a sustainable and ever growing cooperation between both countries. Though political contacts were rather limited during the pandemic, it is expected to pick up from how it used to be prior to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Our Deputy Foreign Minister met Ghana’s Deputy Foreign Minister at the joint EU-AU ministerial meeting recently held in Kigali and both have agreed to hold inter-ministerial consultations in Prague in the first half of 2022. As far as our current bilateral relations are concerned, we are primarily focused on the security sector including, cyber security and cooperation with the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Centre, but defense and development cooperation, trade and promotion of commerce between the two countries have also received much focus,” Ambassador F ü r y highlighted.
The Embassy has in the recent past embarked on transformation projects to assist local communities. The health sector has also become one of the priority areas this year with the recent implementation of a “tied financial donation” to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and delivery of high standard hospital beds by Linet, a Czech company, worth €400,000 to fight COVID-19.
Under the MEDEVAC programme, Czech doctors have been arriving every year to assist their Ghanaian colleagues with complicated surgeries. This year, two missions of Czech flying doctors in gynaecology arrived at the Tamale Teaching Hospital and a mission in traumatology will land soon at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital. On the other hand, Ghanaian doctors are on annual internships at Czech hospitals. Currently, some of the 150 Ghanaian students at Czech Universities are studying medicine.
Additionally, Vamed Health Project has so far built 10 polyclinics in different parts of Ghana, while preparatory work is underway to build 12 more fully equipped clinics around the country. There has been tremendous support from the Czech Republic in the construction of forty bridges in Ghana, presentation of mini tractors to small farmers and the construction of the Kumasi tram system project is under consideration. There are also ongoing conversations and engagement in agribusiness, transportation, mining and environmental protection.
According to the Head of the Czech Mission, “as you may have noticed, the debate on the Green deal is now taking place in the European Union. In the future, we would like to promote a sustainable economy and environmental protection. Last year, we planned an incoming mission from Ghana to the Czech Republic in waste incinerators with power generation, waste management, recycling, solar and wind power. Unfortunately, due to the complications caused by COVID-19, this mission was postponed, for perhaps next year. The Czech Republic is a country with strong scientific capacity and innovative ideas that Ghana could explore in favour of its sustainable development.”
There is a huge potential for bilateral trade between Ghana and the Czech Republic and the ambassador mentioned key initiatives aimed at increasing the trade volume. He said “trade and economy are of great importance and the Embassy carries out several projects to promote economic diplomacy by exchanging trade missions. We also implement PROPEA projects where a Czech subject can apply for a subsidy, for the purchase of licenses, or for advice if entering a new market.
The Export and Guarantee Insurance Company supports business entities for export projects and, of course, private banks, without which major investment projects would fail to materialize. Our government actively supports Czech business activities abroad and business missions often accompany our representatives. Ghana´s active involvement in ECOWAS and AfCFTA activities create new space for Czech businesses in the sub region. Gradual removal of administrative and customs barriers, overall improvement of business climate would further lead to an increase in the trade exchange.”
The Ghanaian government has a bold agenda to move Ghana beyond aid which the Czech Ambassador considers laudable.
“If there is any West African country that can achieve this bold initiative, then it should be Ghana. The Czech Republic fully supports this initiative and have been opened to work with the Ghanaian government to achieve this agenda. Since this bold and ambitious vision was announced by President Nana Akuffo Addo, the Czech Republic has been closely following the progress Ghana has made in shifting from aid to trade and investment in order to create jobs, promote economic growth and generate wealth for the people.
It is in line with the Czech Republic’s intentions to build a stronger trade and economic relationship with Ghana. We believe Czech industries have the ability to assist local companies to transform Ghana‘s rich natural resources and raw materials into products with more value addition,“ he explained.
In concluding the interview, Ambassador F ü r y recounted Czech Republic’s intervention in Africa during the coronavirus pandemic. “The Czech Republic has promptly responded to the pandemic in Africa by strengthening healthcare capacities of individual countries and delivered necessary medical equipment and much needed vaccines. The African countries can further rely on renowned Czech producers of medical technology, on scientific and academic expertise and experience in foreign development cooperation,” he added.
