President John Dramani Mahama and the visiting Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Dr Terrance Michael Drew, have held bilateral discussions at the Presidency in Accra.
The two leaders held productive bilateral talks focused on strengthening diplomatic ties, expanding trade and investment and deepening cooperation between Ghana and St. Kitts and Nevis.
One of the major highlights of the bilateral talks was reaching an agreement for the extension of their 2018 Visa Waiver Agreement.
Announcing the Visa Waiver Agreement during a luncheon held in honour of Dr Drew at the Presidency in Accra, President Mahama said this was previously applicable to holders of only diplomatic and service passports, however, the current extension of the Visa Waiver includes holders of ordinary passports.
He reiterated that this practical and transformative step would significantly facilitate tourism, trade, business exchanges, and people-to-people connections.
He said further that they would also continue discussions on structured labour mobility arrangements.
President Mahama said Ghana was prepared where appropriate to support St. Kitts and Nevis with skilled professionals, including nurses, teachers, and other technical experts, while ensuring mutually beneficial frameworks between our countries.
“Beyond mobility, we’ve defined key sectors for deeper cooperation. Tourism development, climate-resilient agriculture, renewable energy, blue economy initiatives, heritage tourism, and cultural industries. Improved air connectivity between Africa and the Caribbean remains essential,” the President said.
“However, we cannot delay progress until every structural constraint is resolved,” he added.
President Mahama said platforms such as the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) offer immediate pathways for them to expand trade and forge investment partnerships.
“Our mission is clear, to position Ghana and St. Kitts and Nevis as model partners in South-South cooperation,” he stated.
He commended Dr Drew’s leadership of CARICOM and the successful hosting of the 50th regular meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in St. Kitts and Nevis.
He noted that Ghana deeply appreciates the opportunity he offered Ghana to address CARICOM leaders, though virtually.
“We value CARICOM’s principled stance on reparatory justice and look forward to intensified collaboration on truth, reconciliation, and equitable global reforms.”
He emphasised that Ghana recognizes the vulnerabilities faced by small island developing states, especially in the context of climate change, rising sea levels, food insecurity, and external economic shocks.
“We stand in solidarity with St. Kitts and Nevis, in advocating for climate justice, equitable access to climate finance, and reform of global financial institutions to reflect the realities of developing nations.”
He expressed his sincere appreciation to the Prime Minister for extending his stay in Ghana to join Ghanaians and participate in their 69th Independence Anniversary Celebration.
The President said the Prime Minister’s presence at this milestone event, as their special guest, symbolizes the unbroken thread connecting their liberation struggles and their contemporary quest for economic emancipation.
President Mahama said the political independence Ghana secured in 1957 sparked a continental awakening.
“Today, the next frontier is economic sovereignty, building productive economies, strengthening intra-African and Afro-Caribbean trade, and asserting our rightful place in global governance.”
President Mahama said Dr Drew was the first Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, to make an official visit to Ghana, hence he was charting a new and historic course in their bilateral relations.
He said though separated by the Atlantic Ocean, their nations remain united by history, ancestry, culture, and in their spirits.
“What geography once divided, history now compels us to bring back together. The painful rapture caused by the transatlantic slave trade severed physical ties between our people, but it did not erase our shared identity,” President Mahama said.
“The time has come to move beyond remembrance to reconstruction, to transform shared memories into shared purpose.”
He said the artificial, mental, and economic barriers that long separated Africa and the Caribbean must give way to bridges of trade, mobility, knowledge, exchange, and cultural renewal.
He said in this regard, Ghana strongly supports the renewed momentum between the African Union and CARICOM to deepen structured engagement between their two regional blocs; declaring that political solidarity must now be matched by economic integration.
He said expanding the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) into the Caribbean was a bold and strategic step towards unlocking trade, investment, and financial cooperation across the Atlantic.
“Our responsibility as leaders is to mobilize our people around a unifying vision, one that secures dignity, prosperity, and global respect for people of African descent everywhere in the world,” he said.
“Together, Africa and the Caribbean must speak with one voice, with clarity, unity, and moral conviction,” the President added.
Prime Minister Drew said one of the things that sparked his interest in Ghana was listening to President Mahama’s address at the United Nations in 2025, adding that the depth of President Mahama’s presentation was quite inspiring.
GNA
