Ghana has become the first African country to officially receive an envoy from the Republic of Suriname as a resident Ambassador.

Surinamese Diplomat Natasha Eugenia Halfhuid will officially commence her tour of duties in the West African nation in the coming days after Ghana finalised arrangements for the two nations to increase partnership between each other in diverse ways.

Paying a courtesy call on Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ms Halfhuid said she is eager to build a bridge between the South American country and Ghana.

“I thought I should pay you a courtesy call before I move into the fields so that’s the main purpose of my visit and to say that I’m eager just to build that bridge between Suriname and Ghana, so, we are looking forward to signing the (Services Agreements),” the diplomat told Ms Botchwey.   

For her part, Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister seized the opportunity to congratulate the Suriname Ambassador on the successful presentation of her credentials to President Akufo-Addo on 10 September 2019.

Ms Botchwey referred to the long-standing historical relations between the two countries which dates back to the 1970s when diplomatic relations were first established and noted that the Ghana-Suriname relationship has seen a revival in recent times with the exchange of several high-level visits.

“There’s a lot that binds us together and the historical ties, the family ties which are quite strong. I’m told that when you go to Suriname, you’ll find that you have preserved the culture even more than we have and it’s really great to hear stuff like that and, so, we are very much looking forward to putting into practice the agreements, the MoUs that we’ve signed and then we can work quickly toward the realisation of that goal,” she stated.

Ms Botchwey also touted Ghana as the gateway to the sub-region and added that with the establishment of the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) in the country, Ghana has also become the point of entry into the entire African market.

According to her, as part of its economic transformation agenda, Ghana is implementing flagship programmes such as the 'One District-One Factory' (1D1F), 'One Village-One Dam' and the 'Planting for Food and Jobs' initiatives among others, and called on Surinamese businesses to take advantage of existing opportunities and invest in these projects.

She further noted that the country's education sector also has great potential for cooperation, especially in the field of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

The Foreign Affairs Minister expressed hope for bilateral engagements which will further strengthen relations between the two countries.