The Indian High Commissioner to Ghana, Sugandh Rajaram, has indicated that his country will reduce development assistance to Ghana as it deals with the delta variant of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the years, India has assisted Ghana in development to the total of over $500 million. This comes under ‘Lines of Credit’ and an additional amount of $ 500 million under ‘Buyers Credit’ for various projects
“When the kitty (a fund of money for communal use, made up of contributions from a group of people) is low, development assistance will also be reduced. There is the need to balance the domestic needs together with the assistance needs.
If the kitty has been reduced, the assistance coming out of the kitty will also be reduced and you need to prioritize something. Some of the countries that have genuine needs and assistance will be prioritized over some other countries – Ghana is no exception”, Sugandh Rajaram told an Accra based radio station on the state of bilateral ties amid the Coronavirus pandemic.
The High Commissioner said that but with the devastation the Covid-19 economy has caused its economy, development assistance to Ghana will be provided on a “priority” basis.
In July this year, the governments of India and Ghana undertook a review of the entire extent of bilateral, regional, and international issues of mutual interest.
Both sides have agreed to take steps that will increase the depth and the momentum of engagement which would be a mutual benefit to them. They noted with gratitude, their cooperation on Covid-19 related issues, including the donation of 50,000 Covid-19 vaccines by India to Ghana as a gesture of friendship & solidarity and 600,000 Covishield made-in-India vaccines under the initiative of COVAX.
