By Ivan Amponsah
On 20th June, the President will join other African and European leaders for a special meeting in Aqaba Spain. At the Cordoba meeting, terrorism and jihadist activities in West Africa and the Gulf of Guinea will be focal. The meeting at the behest of the King of Spain, King Abdullah seeks to tackle jihadist movement, bolster security and military cooperation in the fight against terrorism from the Sahel region.
President Akufo-Addo in a discussion with Spain’s Ambassador to Ghana, Javier Gutierrez, said the agenda is very critical to West African security and pledged to work with the meeting to deal with the growing security threats in West Africa.
The visit of Spain’s Ambassador to Ghana, Javier Gutierrez, to the Jubilee House was to meet President Akufo-Addo to discuss two main issues. First is to present an official invitation from the King of Spain King Abdullah to attend the Aqaba Meeting on June 20th 2023. The 2023 meeting is focusing on how to tackle the growing security threats from Jihadist insurgency in West Africa which is the spillover from the Sahel region.
The Aqaba Meeting will also look at how participating countries work with the authorities in West Africa to support the Accra Initiative, a regional initiative to fight terrorism in West Africa.
President Akufo-Addo said the government’s efforts to deal with terrorism in the region will receive Ghana’s full support.
Mr. Gutierrez said Spain’s new Law for Sustainable Development Cooperation is a move by the Spanish government to strengthen cooperation with other African countries and encouraged Ghana to take advantage of it to support her development.
President Akufo-Addo said Ghana will explore all the needed avenues to improve relations between Accra and Madrid.
Mr. Gutierrez called for Ghana’s support for Spain’s bid to host the 2027 Specialized International Exhibition, with a special focus on sustainable cities.