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Jaishankar opens Africa tour in Ghana; two MoUs exchanged

By CAShorts DeskPublished Updated Source: The Hindu

Jaishankar opens Africa tour in Ghana; two MoUs exchanged
Illustration (AI-generated)

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar began a three-nation Africa tour in Ghana on October 6, 2026, meeting President John Dramani Mahama and his counterpart Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa. The talks covered multilateral cooperation and India's deeper engagement with the African Union and ECOWAS. Two MoUs, on scientific and agricultural research, were exchanged. Côte d'Ivoire and Ethiopia are next.

Syllabus: Prelims · Current Affairs & IR; GS2 · Groupings & Agreements; GS2 · International Institutions

Why it matters

Ghana helped found West Africa's main regional bloc, and its President will lead the African Union from 2027, so good relations with Ghana help India work with both groupings. The visit keeps up the momentum of Prime Minister Modi's 2025 trip, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in three decades. The talks went beyond formal diplomacy to everyday areas such as trade, medicines, defence and technology, and the two new agreements link Indian research bodies with Ghanaian partners in science and farming. The tour, which also covers Côte d'Ivoire and Ethiopia, is meant to strengthen bilateral ties, and Jaishankar framed India and Ghana as Global South partners with shared development aspirations.

Prelims pointers

  • ECOWAS: Economic Community of West African States, set up by the Treaty of Lagos in 1975; headquarters Abuja, Nigeria. Ghana is a founding member.
  • African Union: launched in 2002 as successor to the Organisation of African Unity (1963); headquarters Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; permanent G20 member since 2023.
  • The CSIR-Crops Research Institute that partnered ICAR is a Ghanaian body; do not confuse it with India's Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.
  • ICAR: India's apex agricultural research body, working under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
  • Zoological Survey of India: set up in 1916, headquartered in Kolkata, under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
  • Geography: Ghana lies on the Gulf of Guinea, with Accra as capital; it borders Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north and Togo to the east.
  • Tour map: Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire are West African coastal states; Ethiopia, also on the tour, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa.

Practise a UPSC-style question

With reference to regional organisations in Africa, consider the following statements:

1. ECOWAS was set up by the Treaty of Lagos in 1975 and has its headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria.

2. The African Union, successor to the Organisation of African Unity, has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

3. The African Union became a permanent member of the G20 in 2023, under India's G20 presidency.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. (a) 1 and 2 only
  2. (b) 2 and 3 only
  3. (c) 1 and 3 only
  4. (d) 1, 2 and 3
Show the answer

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

1 is correct: the Economic Community of West African States was created by the 1975 Treaty of Lagos and is based in Abuja. 2 is incorrect: the African Union is headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 3 is correct: the AU joined the G20 as a permanent member in 2023 during India's presidency.

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