Zambia and Ghana have signed 10 Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) across various sectors of the economy as part of efforts to further strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by President Hakainde Hichilema and his Ghanaian counterpart, President John Mahama.
The media reports that Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Rodney Sikumba, and Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Ablakwa, signed the MOU on Diaspora cooperation, among other agreements.
Mr Sikumba, who is also Minister of Tourism, signed additional MOUs on cooperation in disaster risk management, an agreement between the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) and the Ghana Export Promotion Authority.
He further signed an MOU between the Zambia Bureau of Standards and the Ghana Standards Authority, focusing on standardisation, conformity assessment and training.
Meanwhile, Acting Minister of Defence, Jack Mwiimbu, signed an agreement on the waiver of visa requirements for holders of diplomatic, official and ordinary passports between Zambia and Ghana.
Mr Mwiimbu also signed an addendum to the existing MOU on military and defence cooperation, including rules of procedure for the Joint Defence Implementation Committee between the two countries.
In the transport sector, Acting Minister of Transport and Logistics, Gift Sialubalo, signed a bilateral Air Services Agreement between Zambia and Ghana.
Minister of Health, Elijah Muchima, signed an MOU on cooperation in the field of health, as well as an agreement between the Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority and Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority.
The MoUs are expected to further deepen bilateral ties that exist between the two countries.
Earlier, Zambia and Ghana held high-level bilateral talks at State House aimed at strengthening cooperation and advancing shared development priorities.
President Hichilema hosted President John Mahama, with discussions centred on enhancing political, economic and diplomatic relations between the two nations.
The talks focused on priority sectors such as agriculture, mining and education among others.
Both leaders reaffirmed the need to promote best practices in the area of Artisanal mining in a quest to get maximum benefit from the sector.
President Mahama expressed appreciation to President Hichilema for the invitation to undertake a State Visit to Zambia, noting that the visit is aimed at further deepening bilateral cooperation across various sectors of the economy.
These two countries famously defaulted on their external debts .Load shedding and urban decay also also joins them together like conjoined twins.