The governments of Jamaica and Ghana are to implement a visa waiver as part of efforts to build the fraternal bond and take relations between the two countries to greater heights.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness made the announcement following bilateral talks with Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who arrived in Jamaica on Sunday for a two-day working visit, the Jamaica Gleaner reported.
“We cannot have visas standing in the way of those relations, so the decision has been taken by my government … to provide visa-free arrangements for Jamaicans in Ghana, and facilitate and make it easier for you to accept our invitation to come and join us for the Year of Return,” the Ghanaian president stated.
Holness said the foreign affairs ministers of both countries have been mandated to negotiate and conclude the agreement.
Akufo-Addo’s visit to Jamaica forms part of a Caribbean tour to promote “The Year of Return, Ghana 2019,” which is a major landmark marketing campaign targeting the African American and the Diaspora market to mark 400 years of the first enslaved African arriving in Jamestown, Virginia.
The Jamaican prime minister noted that the campaign was “central in our discussions” since the initiative presents excellent opportunities to “build on the fraternal bonds and take the relations between our two countries and our peoples to greater heights.”
“We can use this initiative to forge increased inter-personal connections and at the same time deepen the trade and commercial relations between our respective countries,” Holness said.