Israel eyes groundbreaking partnerships with Ghana
Israel’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sharren Haskel, has expressed her nation’s readiness to collaborate with Ghana across key sectors, aiming to foster development for both countries.
Her remarks came during her first official visit to Ghana, which included attending the inauguration of President John Dramani Mahama’s second term on Tuesday (7 January) at Independence Square in Accra.
Speaking at a press briefing on Wednesday (8 January) at the Embassy of the State of Israel in Accra, Haskel highlighted Ghana’s potential for partnerships in agriculture, technology, and cultural initiatives, following discussions with President Mahama and Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang.
She spoke about the Vice President’s passion for agriculture and food security, describing it as a promising area for collaboration.
“I think there’s many collaborations that we can do together,” Haskel said. “Our former Prime Minister Golda Meir, she had a very special place in her heart for the African nations because she’s really identified with them and she saw how we can really share knowledge and also tools to advance and develop all of our nations.”
Haskel also emphasised Israel’s expertise in advanced farming techniques, suggesting that these could help Ghana address food security challenges.
“I think that Israel has proven itself, especially economically, in how to develop industries [and] advance technology; for example, in farming,” she stated.
“The deputy president was really focused on farming; she’s really worried about food security and so we have much of advanced technology in the farming industry, so there can be a lot of collaboration,” she added.
Beyond agriculture, Haskel pointed to other areas of potential cooperation, including cybersecurity, early childhood education, and women’s empowerment.
“There’s different programmes, for example, that we’ve done on early childcare and early learning, developing certain programmes in education and empowering women, and so there’s many, many fields,” she said.
“We said that we are going to continue and discuss a lot of these issues, and I really hope that we can form something serious about it.”
Israel’s ambassador to Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, Roey Gilad, also weighed in, highlighting renewable energy as another avenue for partnership.
“One issue that the deputy minister and I discussed today was the possibility of solar energy. There is plenty of sun in this place; there is a cutting-edge technology in Israel concerning solar energy, and this might be another field we would like to develop,” Gilad remarked.
The Israeli delegation’s visit underlines the country’s commitment to deepening ties with Ghana, with an emphasis on innovation, development, and shared values.