Ayorkor Botchwey calls on Sultan of Brunei to discuss bilateral co-operation and the Commonwealth
The meeting between Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey and the Sultan took place at the Istana Nurul Iman Palace in the capital city, Bandar Seri Begawan
Ghana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has called on the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah ibni Omar Ali Saifuddien III, as part of her tour of Commonwealth countries in her campaign to be elected as the next secretary general of the Commonwealth.
At the meeting, which took place on Saturday (8 June 2024), Ms Botchwey and Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah discussed ways to strengthen bilateral co-operation between Ghana and Brunei, as well as ways to renew and improve the Commonwealth.
The meeting was held at the splendid Istana Nurul Iman Palace in Brunei’s capital, Bandar Seri Begawan.
Both the Sultan and Ms Botchwey expressed a firm commitment to enhancing co-operation across multiple sectors and reiterated their shared values and mutual interests.
A highlight of the discussions was global climate change, with both parties acknowledging the urgent need to combat this pressing issue.
They agreed that collaborative initiatives among Commonwealth nations would help mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
Ms Botchwey, one of Africa’s leading diplomats and a former ECOWAS legislator, has made climate change a pillar of her bid to become the Commonwealth secretary general.
A new secretary general is due to be elected in October by the heads of government of the 56-member organisation.
Earlier, Ms Botchwey held talks with her counterpart in Brunei, Dato Erywan Pehin Yusof, the country’s second minister of foreign affairs. They discussed youth empowerment and strategies to create skills and livelihood opportunities for young people across the Commonwealth.
With 60% of the Commonwealth’s 2.6 billion people under the age of 30, youth development is a critical focus of her campaign.
Ms Botchwey and Dato Yusof committed to fostering education exchange programmes between Ghana and Brunei, emphasising the critical role of young people as drivers of social and economic progress.
Ms Botchwey envisions youth development through skills training, innovation and start-ups as key to making the Commonwealth work for its citizens.
In a notable development, the two ministers discussed the prospect of waiving visas for their respective diplomatic and service passport holders to facilitate more efficient engagement between Ghana and Brunei.
Ms Botchwey also visited the impressive Brunei National Museum, where the artefacts include a sculpted drummer from Ghana, presented to Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah by President Jerry Rawlings 24 years ago during a visit to Brunei.
The Foreign Minister is confident that the outcomes of this visit could signal a resurgence of relations between Ghana and oil-rich Brunei, and underscore the potential for “a new Commonwealth”, should she become secretary general.
During her years in the ECOWAS Parliament, she served as the vice-chair of its committees on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). She was also a legislator for 16 years in Ghana’s Parliament, including eight as the MP for the country’s most populous constituency, Weija, which was subsequently split into three.
Analysts consider her a “people’s diplomat”, capable of engaging with youth, traders, kiosk attendants and sultans in gold-bedecked palaces with equal ease.
Reporting by Wilberforce Asare in Accra
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