Ghana-Caribbean ties are set for further expansion through health worker placements, port cooperation, energy investment and planned direct air links, Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has said.
The Minister disclosed the developments after bilateral meetings with counterparts from Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Antigua and Barbuda has requested additional Ghanaian health professionals after what officials described as the positive performance of the first 120 nurses deployed there.
“The first group of 120 nurses from Ghana are making impressive impact. Antigua has therefore requested more health workers,” Ablakwa said.
Ghana and Antigua and Barbuda have also introduced a visa waiver covering ordinary, service and diplomatic passport holders, a move Ablakwa said should support tourism, trade and closer people to people relations.
Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Ministry currently lists Antigua and Barbuda among countries covered by visa free arrangements for all three passport categories.
Tema and Kingston ports to cooperate
Ablakwa said discussions with Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith centred on a Ghana Jamaica Port Cooperation Agreement which is now ready.
Under the arrangement, Tema Port and the Port of Kingston are expected to cooperate in trade, logistics and maritime activities, with the government also expecting the partnership to support job creation.
Another group of Ghanaian nurses has arrived in Jamaica under the labour mobility programme negotiated between the two countries last year.
Direct Caribbean flights under discussion
In talks with Trinidad and Tobago’s Foreign Minister Sean Sobers, Ablakwa said the two countries discussed new investment and expanded oil and gas cooperation.
Ghana also plans to commission a new High Commission in Trinidad and Tobago in 2027.
The government is finalising air services agreements with Caribbean partners, with direct flights expected to be considered once the planned revival of Ghana Airways is completed.
Ablakwa said the wider diplomatic push also covers United Nations reform, climate justice, artificial intelligence regulation, resource sovereignty and reparatory justice as Ghana seeks stronger international partnerships.
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