Ghana-Korea to establish a bilateral committee to deepen relationships

Ghana and South Korea would soon establish a bilateral committee to look at special relationships between the two countries and deepen agreements in various sectors of the economy, Mr Ken Ofori-Attah, Minister of Finance, has said.

He said Ghana-Korea Strategy Committee would be a platform to learn and share the ingredients of accelerated industrial growth- tapping into similar bilateral cooperation between Korea on one hand and Cambodia and Vietnam on the other.

Mr Ofori-Attah was speaking to the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of the African Development Bank Annual Meetings 2018 (AfDBA2018) in Busan, South Korea.

The event was held under the theme: “Accelerating Africa’s Industrialisation.”

He said this was the outcome of a meeting with the Prime Minister Dong Yeon Kim doubling as the Minister of Strategy and Finance, Republic of Korea.

Mr Ofori-Attah said lessons leant from the AfDBAM2018 include strategy for diversification to absorb the type of demographics being seen in the country for a guaranteed future.

He said education was crucial in building an innovative industrialized economy, hence the creation of smart society, hotspots, ICT compliant society, tech hubs, and creating a macro stability.

“Our hope is that Ghana would become the regional focal point for education, medical services, ICT, logistics and entrepreneurship hub.

“Education will leverage creating a modern society dependent on our oil resources.”

The Finance Minister said being the chair of the Development Committee of the World Bank for the next two years, was an opportunity to set the agenda for the Bank on key issues for Ghana, Africa and the world at large, with illicit financial flows (IFFs), revenue mobilization and digitization of global economies high on his agenda.

He said data shows that between $ 50 - $70 Billion of IFF leaves developing countries annually estimated at $ 1 Trillion since 1960 adding that the availability of such funds redirected into the economies of such countries would have notched unending progress.

Mr Ofori-Attah said the wisdom in President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ agenda lays a greater foundation for Africa Beyond Aid as the continent infrastructural deficits is at $ 70 Billion annually.

He said vocational and technical training would build a wise society, an inclusive and empowered youth ready to excel.

He said Africa at 2050 would become the most populous continent with 2.5 billion to feed and Ghana and Africa Beyond Aid would be the key to unlocking the potentials of the continent.

The Finance Minister expressed hope that with the dividends actualized in the previous year, the coming years would ensure stability, increased mobilize domestic revenue and tax, revamping educational infrastructure, building a hitech and modernized society as well as protecting the public purse.