Korea- Ghana @ 50- a partnership anchored on mutual respect, trust and shared prosperity
South Korea and Ghana will be celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relationship next year. Without doubt, Korea continues to play an important role in Ghana’s socio-economic development. Ghana remains a beneficiary of Korea’s grants and loans for projects that contribute to the well-being of Ghanaians. The Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the Korean Foundation … The post Korea- Ghana @ 50- a partnership anchored on mutual respect, trust and shared prosperity appeared first on Ghanaian Times.
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South Korea and Ghana will be celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relationship next year.
Without doubt, Korea continues to play an important role in Ghana’s socio-economic development. Ghana remains a beneficiary of Korea’s grants and loans for projects that contribute to the well-being of Ghanaians.
The Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the Korean Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH) are two amazing partners with offices in Ghana, offering excellent services in social and health outcomes to Ghanaians.
Ghana and South Korea share a common history, dating back to struggles for independence and a checkered democracy characterised by military takeovers.
Ghana and South Korea struck diplomatic relations in 1977.
To date, the relations between the two countries is anchored on mutual respect, trust and shared prosperity.
Korea’s Ambassdor to Ghana, Mr Kyongsig Park, speaking to The Ghanaian Times in an exclusive interview at the Korean Embassy last Thursday, shed light on some key milestone achievements in education, agriculture, trade and ICT.
Agriculture
About 63 per cent of Korea’s land mass is mountainous, yet it is somewhat self-sufficient in rice production and many other agricultural products. Korea produces one of the best high yield rice varieties in the world.
If Korea had a land, the size of what Ghana has, it would probably be a leading producer of the rice in the world.
As part of its shared and continued support to Ghana, Korea is sharing its agriculture technology and experience with Ghana to ensure food security.
A notable example is the 100-hectre rice seed production complex in Dawhenya starting next year, which will introduce Korean rice varieties and technologies to increase productivity and strengthen Ghana’s food security.
Education
No nation can prosper without investment in good quality education.
An educated nation is one in which the people utilised skills and knowledge into tangible outcomes, thus creating jobs through industrialisation, innovation and transfer of knowledge.
Ghana is well endowed with natural resources (gold, diamond, bauxite, manganese, oil, you name them ).
Korea, on the other hand does not have any of these. But through investment in human resource, Korea is currently among the 10 biggest economies in the world.
Aside that, Korea is a leader in the automobile industry. More than ever before, Kia and Hyundai continue to dominate the markets and are among the choicest for many car users around the world- thanks to its elegance and durability.
The Korean Government continued to provide scholarships and training programmes for Ghanaians. And to date 219 Ghanaians have participated in the Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) programmes; 179 in programmes of the Korea Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH), and more than 1,800 in programmes of the Korea International Cooperation (KOICA).
Trade
Over the past decades, trade between Ghana and Korea continue to grow in leaps and bounds. Economic ties had already grown significantly, with bilateral trade increasing approximately 38-fold since the establishment of diplomatic relationship in 1977.
President John Mahama’s visit to Korea in March gave further momentum to the partnership between Korea and Ghana, with both sides agreeing to deepen cooperation in trade and investment, security, agriculture, culture, as well as emerging areas such as climate change, AI and digital innovation.
Last year, Korea established the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Cooperation Fund to support a range of projects aimed at promoting greater economic integration and cross-border cooperation across African continent. Through these efforts, Ambassdor Park said Korea hopes to deepen its partnership not only with Ghana but with Africa as a whole.
ICT
In a world driven by technology, the risk of going extinct without exploring digital tools are high.
This is the reason governments are investing in technology to catch up with the rest of the world. It is trite that past and present governments in Ghana have made huge investments in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) across all educational institutions, including training and retaining of trainers, training of personnel in various security agencies, staff of ministries, departments, metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies nationwide.
ICT is yet another area Korea continue to support Ghana. One concrete example is Korea’s support in ICT education and digital employment opportunities for Ghanaian youth, including training for data-related work.
Mr Park said Korea is supporting an ICT innovation center at the University of Ghana to nurture start-ups and young entrepreneurs.
In addition, he said KOICA was launching a Digital Basic Education Capacity-Building Programme for 2026-2032, with a budget of $28 million, to further strengthen Ghana’s digital education capacity.
The overarching goal Mr Park added, was not simply to introduce new technologies, but to build the human capacity to use them.
He believes that with appropriate education, reskilling and investment, AI can improve productivity, create new industries and generate employment opportunities, adding that “Korea stands ready to share experience and work with Ghana toward that goal.”
The new chapter
Fifty years of excellent diplomatic relations is no mean achievement. As Korea and Ghana looked into the future beyond 50, the two partners can chart a new course with the ultimate goal of deepening the bond of friendship and exploring possibilities for the betterment of their people.
Already, Korea has demonstrated its readiness to use its advanced technologies and manufacturing capabilities to support Ghana to add value in processing and developing Ghana’s rich and abundant natural resources.
On Ghana’s part, leadership must move away from being a recipient of handouts and donor funding, to promoting trade with Korea and other countries.
Ghana’s pledge to move beyond aid should be backed by concrete action and deliberate effort not rhetorics. With the right leadership, Ghana can exploit its vast resources to spur economic growth.
Korea’s investment in human resource and the resultant progress in all spheres of life, is a testament that Ghana can reach the pinnacle with the right mindset.
It may grind slowly, but it will eventually reach its destination.
BY MALIK SULLEMANA
The writer is a journalist and youth activist
Email:sullemanababa@gmail.com
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