Iran ready to assist Ghana in agricultural projects

Iranian Minister of Agricultural Jihad Mahmoud Hojjati Tuesday extended full support for the efforts made by the fifth Iran-Ghana Joint Economic Cooperation Commission to expand mutual cooperation, and voiced readiness to share his ministry's experiences with the Ghanaian side. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the fifth Iran–Ghana Joint Commission session, Hojjati noted that expansion of relations with African countries is a priority of Iran's foreign policy. He further voiced Iran's readiness to transfer its experiences to African developing nations in particular Ghana. He asserted that Iran hopes to finalize several trade agreements in today's session. The fifth Iran–Ghana Joint Commission kicked off here on Tuesday a day after commission's experts discussed the offered plans of both sides to pave better grounds for expansion of Tehran-Accra ties. Abdul Rashid Hassan Pelpuo, the Ghanaian Minister of State at the Presidency in charge of Public-Private Partnerships, heads a visiting Ghana's high-ranking  delegation. Experts of Iran and Ghana on Monday discussed grounds for cooperation in the areas of agriculture, environment, education, culture and youth related issues. During the two-day meetings, the two sides are due to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to encourage bilateral investment in all fields, particularly in agriculture. Tehran has prioritized promotion of its economic and political ties with the African states and the country is now considered as one of the African Union (AU)'s strategic partners. Tehran's efforts to boost ties and cooperation with Africa have led to its acceptance as an observing member of the AU, where it has shown an active presence in the AU summit meetings.