WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ghana Airways has been granted authority to begin service between that West African nation and the Baltimore-Washington area, the Transportation Department said Thursday.

The twice-weekly service between Accra, Ghana, and Baltimore-Washington International Airport will begin in July. Ghana Airways also operates between Accra and New York.

The United States and Ghana signed an open-skies agreement March 16. Under that deal all restrictions on air service between the two countries will be eliminated over six years, allowing the airlines of both countries to fly to, from and beyond the other nation.