President Nana Akufo-Addo on Sunday left the country to lead a Ghanaian delegation to attend the 60th-anniversary ceremony of founding the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in Belgrade, Serbia.
The Non-Aligned Movement is a forum of 120 developing states that are not formally aligned with any major power bloc.
After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
Ghana’s first President, Kwame Nkrumah, was one of the five historic founding fathers of the Movement, together with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of India, President Ahmed Sukarno of Indonesia, President Gamel Abdel Nasser of Egypt, and President Josip Broz Tito of the then Yugoslavia, who launched the Movement in Belgrade.
The Serbian government is organising a commemorative event in Belgrade on 11th and 12th October to mark the 60th anniversary of the first NAM Conference in Belgrade.
Whilst attending the Conference, President Akufo-Addo will deliver a statement on the floor reaffirming Ghana’s commitment to the principles of the Movement.
The President will hold bilateral talks with his Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vučić, to strengthen the ties of cooperation between the two countries.
He is also expected to meet the Prime Minister of Algeria and the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia on the sidelines of the Conference to discuss matters of mutual interest.
The President was accompanied by the Foreign Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey; the daughter of Ghana’s first President, Samia Nkrumah, and the Presidency and Foreign Ministry officials.
The President will return to Ghana on October 12.
In his absence, the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, shall act in his stead per Article 60(8) of the Constitution.