The Guest of Honour at the well-attended event was Honourable Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, the Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture.

During his speech, he urged foreign investors to take advantage of Ghana’s strategic position to invest in the country under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Hon. Awal further explained that AfCFTA, which is a market of about 1.3 billion people with a combined GDP of over US$3.3 Trillion, equally offers enormous opportunities for private sector operators to establish their businesses in Ghana through strategic partnerships and Joint Ventures.

The Minister stressed the four pillars of the Government’s Economic Transformation Agenda which encompass the building of a resilient economy, modernizing Ghana’s agricultural sector, industrial transformation, and infrastructural development.

He added that Ghana is committed to building a competitive and stable economy and becoming a more attractive destination for investment.

“Government’s prioritization of strategic sectors such as tourism, pharmaceuticals, mining, petrochemicals and integrated aluminium situated within the ambit of flagship programmes such as the “Year of Return and Beyond the Return”, “One District One Factory”, present golden opportunities for an enhanced Ghana-Malta cooperation,” he said.

Relations
On the Ghana/Malta relations, he said Ghana valued its relations with Malta and welcomed the cooperation between the two countries in various fields which have deepened bonds of friendship and cooperation.
“Malta is reputed to be a country that has made steady progress to become one of the most competitive industrialised countries in the world.

It is, therefore, worth mentioning that Malta’s efforts towards achieving a buoyant economy and asserting itself as a relevant global player, is indeed worthy of emulation,” he added.

Increasing cooperation

The Maltese High Commissioner to Ghana, Jean Claude Galea Mallia, said since the establishment of the High Commission of Malta in Ghana in 2019, the relationship between the two countries has developed.
He said going forward, his outfit will continue working enthusiastically as a proponent for more exchanges between the people of Malta and Ghana.

He said Malta’s priorities in Ghana are driven by the Malta-Africa Strategy for Partnership and aimed at establishing a strong and lasting mutually beneficial collaboration with the country, region, and continent.

“Malta and Ghana are both committed to increasing cooperation and meaningful exchanges in tourism and culture, including knowledge transfer and cooperation on destination marketing strategies, public relations, advertising campaigns, heritage regeneration and repurposing, as well as exchanging tourism-related research and information,” he said.

Photography exhibition

As part of the celebration, a photography exhibition, dubbed, Valletta-Accra: A Dialogue between Mercantile Cities, was inaugurated.

According to the High Commissioner, the exhibition forms part of an ongoing collaboration between Maltese and Ghanaian researchers: Architect Erica Giusta representing AP Valletta, Architect David Kojo Derban, Art and Design Writer, Ann Dingli, and Photographer, Paul Addo, supported by the Malta Arts Council.

He said the purpose of the exhibition and the research project is to convey a dynamic perspective on heritage, rooted in the basic theoretical principle that heritage should not be static but rather in constant evolution.

“The conclusion that shall be taken from this is that sustainable heritage could be achieved by the full utilisation and harmonisation of natural, cultural, folkloric, and historical and architectural resources fused.

Through such partnerships, researchers, architects, artists, and curators from both countries may share experience and knowledge with finding innovative solutions for preserving heritage and bringing it closer to the public,” he said.