PM Modi receives Ghana's highest state honour 'Officer of the Order of the Star'

Jul 03, 2025 05:49 AM IST

Accepting the award on behalf of 1.4 billion Indians, Prime Minister devoted the honour to the aspirations of the youth of India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (native time) conferred the nationwide honour of Ghana, Officer of the Order of the Star of Ghana, by its President, John Dramani Mahama, in recognition of his “distinguished” statesmanship and influential international management, Ministry of External Affairs stated in an official assertion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Ghana President John Mahama, at Kotoka International Airport in Accra on Wednesday(DPR PMO)

Accepting the award on behalf of 1.4 billion Indians, Prime Minister devoted the honour to the aspirations of the youth of India, its cultural traditions and variety, and to the historic ties between Ghana and India.

PM Modi additionally thanked the individuals and authorities of Ghana for this particular gesture.

Noting that the shared democratic values and traditions of the 2 international locations would proceed to nurture the partnership, the Prime Minister said that the award additional deepens the friendship between the 2 international locations and locations new duty on him to embrace and advance bilateral ties. Prime Minister affirmed he was assured that his historic State Visit to Ghana would impart a brand new momentum to India-Ghana ties, the MEA assertion added.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced India will set up a Skill Development Centre to coach youth and help Ghana’s ‘Feed Ghana’ programme as a part of a broader plan to strengthen ties between the 2 international locations.

During a joint press briefing with Ghanaian President John Mahama, PM Modi stated India would broaden cooperation with Ghana in key sectors together with agriculture, schooling, defence, healthcare and digital funds.

“Today, we have decided to double the ITEC and ICCR scholarships for Ghana. Work will be done to establish a Skill Development Centre for vocational education of youth,” PM Modi stated.

“In the agricultural sector, we would be happy to cooperate with President Mahama’s ‘Feed Ghana’ programme. Through Jan Aushadhi Kendra, India proposes to provide ‘affordable healthcare, reliable care’ to the citizens of Ghana. We discussed cooperation in vaccine production,” he added.

The Prime Minister additionally stated that India plans to double commerce with Ghana inside the subsequent 5 years and supply its digital funds system, Bharat UPI, to spice up monetary connectivity.

President Mahama earlier within the day welcomed the Indian Prime Minister and stated the go to mirrored the long-standing friendship between the international locations.

“This visit is a testament to the deep-rooted historical ties between Ghana and India founded on the visionary leadership of Ghana’s first President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and India’s former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, as well as the ever-growing bonds of friendship and cooperation that exist between our two sisterly countries for the mutual benefit of our people,” he stated.

This is the primary go to by an Indian Prime Minister to Ghana in over 30 years. The journey is anticipated to deepen the India-Ghana partnership and sign New Delhi’s continued engagement with Africa and the Global South.