Jamaica and Ghana are exploring opportunities to strengthen trade and investment ties, with leaders from both countries engaging in dialogue on ways to deepen economic cooperation and capitalise on shifting global trade routes.

The discussions began during a working luncheon hosted at Kingston Wharves Limited on Monday, attended by Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator Aubyn Hill, and President of the Republic of Ghana John Dramani Mahama, who is on a four-day State Visit to Jamaica at the invitation of Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness.

Senator Hill noted that Jamaica and Ghana are bound by strong historical, ethnic and social connections.

“We have allowed the breadth of water between us to separate us for too long. We’re similar in so many ways. We must now make that distance between us disappear. We need connectivity in airlines and so on,” he said.

Minister Hill invited Ghanaian businesses to invest in Jamaica’s Special Economic Zone, highlighting the country’s strategic geographic location.

“Look at where we are…an hour and 15 minutes from the biggest market in the world. You take another flight and go south, and you’re in all of South America…not to mention Guyana, which is now going to become…an economic leader in the economic hinterland of the Caribbean. Jamaica is the right place to be. We speak English…we understand each other,” he explained.

President Mahama said Jamaica and Ghana are well positioned to serve as regional hubs, providing a strong foundation for expanding bilateral cooperation.

“One of the things that has kept us apart is that the logistical routes were established by the colonial masters. So if we needed to send something from Jamaica to Ghana, we necessarily had to transship through Europe. If we had to send something from Ghana to Jamaica…we’d have to transship through Europe,” he shared.

The president underscored that international trade routes are changing, noting that issues in the Middle East have prompted many major carriers from the Far East to reroute via the Cape of Good Hope and along Africa’s coastline, with some continuing on to the Caribbean, the Americas and Europe.

“We can take advantage of the changing global trade logistics to be able to create that direct link between us…and we need to do so because of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). It was an important Protocol that was signed by African countries,” President Mahama stated.

He said the AfCFTA is already facilitating greater intra-African trade, citing the exchange of goods such as tea from Kenya and mangoes exported to Morocco.

“Gradually, trade amongst African countries is ticking up. It used to be 11 per cent…I think it’s somewhere about 13 per cent to 14 per cent now. We believe that a link between Africa and the Caribbean would allow the Caribbean to plug into the African Continental Free Trade Area,” President Mahama indicated.