President John Dramani Mahama co-chaired the second plenary session of the ongoing 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Yokohama, Japan, on Thursday, August 21, 2025, with the theme “Economy: Co-create Innovative Solutions with Africa.”
He took the stage alongside former Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, with assistance from UN Under-Secretary-General Cristina Duarte, Kenyan President William Ruto, Comoros President Azali Assoumani, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, and Togo’s Faure Gnassingbé.
TICAD-9 arrives at a time when global dynamics are changing, Mahama said in his closing remarks, adding that even the biggest economy in the world has become “more insular and transactional” in its dealings with other countries.
In order to establish themselves as reliable investment destinations, he advised African countries to embrace stability and reform.
“Africa is open for business. We wish to partner with any nation on a win-win basis. But let’s not kid ourselves—trade and investments will not come to Africa because we wish for it,” Mahama reiterated.
In order to spur prosperity and international collaborations, he continued, the continent must “silence the guns, reform economies for stability, strengthen governance, and make public service accountable and corruption-free.”
However, after President John Dramani Mahama and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba met bilaterally on the margins of TICAD 9 in Yokohama, Ghana and Japan signaled a fresh resolve to accelerate important infrastructure projects and enhance economic cooperation.
President Mahama emphasized Ghana’s crucial contribution to Japan’s cocoa supply, pointing out that the nation supplies almost 70% of Japan’s imports.
In order to modernize facilities and promote value addition, he asked Japanese companies to increase their investments in Ghana’s cocoa value chain, particularly through a proposed public-private collaboration with the Cocoa Processing Company.
In addition, the President mentioned future events that he had previously discussed with Japan’s Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Hiroshi Yoshimoto, including the centennial of Dr. Hideyo Noguchi’s arrival in Ghana and the 50th anniversary of the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) in 2027.
Source: newsthemegh.com