Ghana and Canada have pledged a series of engagements to strengthen bilateral cooperation after President John Dramani Mahama and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held talks on the margins of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), underway in St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda.
Stressing the need for multilateralism and a rules-based international order, President Mahama positioned Ghana, whose foreign policy is built on the principles of non-alignment, positive neutrality, and being “friends of all and enemies of none”, as a key partner to Canada in the evolving global order.
Citing decades of goodwill built through development cooperation, President Mahama urged Prime Minister Carney to help amplify Africa’s demand for reform of the existing international financial architecture, which is not favourable to Africa and the Global South.
He also commended Prime Minister Carney for his vocal stance on the breakdown of multilateralism and the rise of unilateral actions by some nations.
“You are quite vocal on issues to do with the breakdown of multilateralism… I think that you are a fresh new voice in terms of global advocacy,” he noted, drawing a parallel between Canada’s recent experience with tariffs and Africa’s broader structural grievances.
He thanked Canada for its support for Ghana’s development initiatives over the years, especially poverty-alleviation interventions in the rural north where he grew up, citing the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) as a cornerstone of bilateral ties.
Prime Minister Carney said Canada’s ready to work closely with Ghana in key sectors, including energy, critical minerals, trade, and development.
