China to help build Bui city

Accra, May 9, GNA - Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning on Wednesday said government had allocated 20 million dollars for the construction of a city at Bui in line with the Bui dam project.

He said the money allocated for the construction of the city formed part of a 600 million dollars loan to be funded by the Chinese government through a mixed credit facility.


Mr. Baah-Wiredu said lessons from the construction of the Akosombo dam has necessitated that a well-planned city, the likes of Tema, be put in place to accommodate all those who would be displaced due to the construction of the dam.


"The Bui city with its own university is expected to accommodate over one million inhabitants in the next 30 years," he told Mr Zhang Keyuan, out-going Chinese Ambassador who called at his office to bid him farewell.


Mr Zhang, who had been in Ghana for almost four years was being recalled to his home country.


Thanking Mr Zhang, through whose effort Ghana was about to implement the Bui Hydro-Electric Power Project, the Minister expressed the hope that Mr Zhang could stay to witness the sod cutting scheduled for June 15.

The project had been on drawing board for more than 85 years. "With the engineering, procurement and construction contract already signed between the government of Ghana and the project contractors, the way is paved for work to start on the project soon," Mr Baah-Wiredu said.


He said Mr Zhang's duty in Ghana had been one of the most active and fruitful periods in Ghana-China bilateral co-operation initiated in the early 1960s.


"Your term of office has witnessed an unprecedented expansion of the Chinese Government support to Ghana as China is now Ghana's third largest bilateral development partner," The Finance Minister said. He called for a better trade relationship with an increase in exports from Ghana.


Mr Zhang expressed his appreciation to President John Agyekum Kufuor, Ministers of State and the people of Ghana for the hospitable and excellent relationship saying he had enjoyed the nearly four years stay in Ghana.


He said he would have wished to stay much longer in Ghana to complete the projects that were initiated during his tenure of office, but promised to encourage his successor to be committed to the completion of all those projects.

He named some of the projects as the construction of an office complex for the Ministry of Defence, the rehabilitation of the Peduase Presidential Lodge, the Kumasi Youth Centre project and the Bui Hydro-Electric Power Dam project.


He noted that bilateral relations, as well as trade between Ghana and China had deepened over the last three years, including the signing of a number of financial agreements and contracts with the government on various projects.


"I hope the bilateral relationship would be enhanced to a new level with the new ambassador to be," Mr Zhang said.