German Chancellor Angela Merkel To Visit Ghana In August

Angela Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is scheduled to visit Ghana in August at the invitation of President Nana Akufo-Addo.

The visit was confirmed by the German Ambassador to Ghana, Christoph Retzlaff, who said Chancellor Merkel would be accompanied by the Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Gerd Müller and a high-level business delegation.

The trip will also see the German leader visit two other nations; Nigeria and Senegal.

Merkel’s visit to Accra will be the first by a German Chancellor since 2004.

Retzlaff said the visit would focus on economic cooperation and on promoting investment and business in Ghana.

Merkel will also take the opportunity to discuss and take stock of the G20 “Compact with Africa Initiative”, launched in June 2017 in Berlin under Germany’s G20 presidency.

Ambassador Retzlaff also said his country was supporting Ghana through long-standing development cooperation programs as well as a new bilateral “Investment and Reform Partnership” launched in December 2017.

It is expected that the thorny migrant issue will also be on the agenda.

The European Union has tabled a proposal to build migrants detention centers in North Africa, where they would be processed.

The African countries have however rejected the proposal, fearing that they’ll be left to deal with migrants whose applications are rejected.

Merkel’s visit to Ghana also comes ahead of the “German African Business Summit (GABS)” which will be held in Accra from February 11-13, 2019.