President Kufuor arrives in Beijing for China-Africa Summit

President John Agyekum Kufuor on Thursday arrived in the Chinese capital Beijing, to attend the China-Africa Heads ofState Summit, to define the investment and trade relations between Africa and China, an emerging global economic giant, in the coming years.

About 48 African Heads of State and Governments are expected to take part in the meeting, said to be the largest ever to be held in that country and which, gets underway from Friday, November 3-5.

Trade between China and Africa stood at 50 billion dollars last year.
The meeting would take a critical look back at the friendship between the continent and China and devise a blueprint for future partnerships, to bring about broader prospects of development.

President Kufuor, accompanied by Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo, the Foreign Minister, Mr Joseph Adda, Minister of Energy, and other senior Government Officials were met on arrival at the Beijing International Airport, by high ranking Chinese Officials.

The President would seek, during the meeting to convince China for a development support of 1.2 billion dollars to fund the Bui Dam project, rural electrification and the improvement of Ghana’s telecommunication system.

He is scheduled to hold separate bilateral talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao, and Premier Wen Jiabao, as well as meet with Sino Hydro Corporation on the Bui Dam Project.
His other engagements would include meetings with Huawei Technologies Company Limited over Ghana’s Internet backbone and E-Government Project and the ZTE Corporation on the GOTA Security System Project.

Relations between China and Ghana, which dates back to 1960 has always been good but was taken to a new level following a state visit to that country by President Kufuor in 2002.

During that visit, China agreed to a 30 million dollar interest free loan for the construction of the 17.4 kilometre dual carriageway of the Ofankor-Nsawam section of the Accra-Kumasi Highway.

Additionally, it wrote off 83 million dollars of debt owed her by Ghana, while ACATEL Shanghai of China put in an investment of 150 million dollars in the Ghana Telecom.

Besides, China has also been supporting the construction of military and police barracks in Ghana, with trade between the two countries hitting an all time record of 769 million dollars last year.
GNA