Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emma Bonino, is visiting Ghana from the 5th to the 7th of January 2014, the first visit of an Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs in many years.

During her stay, Minister Emma Bonino will hold bilateral talks with a Government team headed by Ms Hanna Tetteh, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, and call on other prominent personalities.

A statement issued by the Italian Embassy in Accra and copied to the Ghana News Agency said Minister Bonino launched an initiative known as “Italy-Africa” in Rome on December 30, 2013, which aimed at focusing Italy’s spotlight once again on Africa by revitalizing the political, economic and cultural partnership between Italy and the entire African continent.

“The visit to Ghana is the first one of a series of trips that will take Minister Bonino to African countries in 2014, in the framework of the above-mentioned initiative.

“It is a sign of the Italian interest in strengthening even further the already excellent relations with Ghana,” said the release.

It added that in the course of her visit, Minister Bonino and her interlocutors will discuss the most important aspects of the bilateral political and economic relations, as well as a wide range of international and regional topics.

“The talks will explore possible avenues for further cooperation, especially in the economic sector, given the growing interest of the Italian business community towards Ghana,” it indicated.

According to the statement, Minister Bonino will also visit one of the Ghanaian enterprises that had benefited from the Ghana Private Sector Development Facility, a program of the Italian Development Cooperation, aimed at strengthening the Ghanaian private sector through the support of Small and Medium Enterprises.