…On First International Assignment
…Due To Meet UN Secretary-General Today

President John Dramani Mahama on Saturday arrived in New York in the United States of America ahead of the High-Level Meeting on the Rule of Law and the United Nations General Assembly.

The two high level meetings are the first international assignments since assuming the high office as President of the Republic of Ghana in the aftermath of the untimely death of President John Evans Atta Mills on July 24 2012. President Mahama who arrived at the John F. Kennedy Airport aboard the British Airways along with Ambassador Victor James Gbeho, Presidential Adviser on Foreign Policy, Hanna Tetteh, Minister of Trade, Fritz Baffour Minister of Information and Seth Terkper, Deputy Minister of Finance was met on arrival by the Foreign Minister Hon. Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni and Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States Ambassador Daniel Ohene Agyekum among others.

As part of a tall-list of events scheduled ahead of the United Nations General Debate Opening Session and aftermath, President Mahama is due to meet the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon at his office in the UN headquarters today 8:20 a.m local time (that is 12:20 p.m in Accra) and thence to the opening session of the United Nations High Level Meeting on the Rule of Law.

It would be followed immediately with yet another meeting with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator, Helen Clark. President Mahama at approximately 11:45 a.m US local time will address UN High Level Meeting on Rule of Law and later address an investment forum organized by the Renaissance Group. He will there after, meet the World Bank President, Mr. Jim Y. Kim and have one-on-one meetings with fellow Heads of States and business executives among others.

At 7:oo p.m President Mahama will be hosted to a reception by United States President, Barack Obama at the Waldorf Astoria in New York where he is expected to thank his host for delegating Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State to attend the funeral of Ghana’s late President John Evans Atta Mills in Accra on Friday August 10 2012. The conveyance of thank you message to Barack Obama is an extension to international platform of the “Than You” message, and President Mahama is thus, expected to use the sidelines of the opportunity occasioned by the UN General Assembly to thank some of the world leaders who came or delegated special personalities to attend the funeral of the late president.

It would be recalled that prior to the UN General Assembly Meeting President Mahama recently took time off his busy schedules to embark on a regional tour of the country to, as customs demand, personally thank the chiefs and people of Ghana for supporting and mourning the death and burial of the late President Mills. It was followed immediately by another thank you to West African countries such as Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso and Cote d’ Ivoire. The UN General Assembly is an opportunity generally to thank especially some African and in particular, most world leaders he has so far been unable to meet and thank ever since the funeral of President Mills.

As at the time of going to press yesterday, President Mahama was due to attend the opening plenary session of the 2012 annual meeting of Clinton Global Initiative at the 1301 Avenue of the Americas 37th Floor.

He was earlier on Saturday evening hosted to a dinner by Ambassador Ken Kanda, Ghana’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations at his residence in New Rochelle in New York United States.

President Mahama Takes ‘Thank U’ Message Abroad From Benjamin Akuffo In New York, United States

President John Dramani Mahama is expected to thank some world leaders for attending the funeral of Ghana’s late President John Evans Atta Mills at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly Meeting slated for tomorrow Tuesday September 25 2012 in New York in the United States of America.

The President since the funeral of the late president has not had time or opportunity to thank some of the world leaders who attended the funeral or delegated special dignitaries in their stead.

The UN General Assembly meeting is thus, reckoned to be an opportune moment to thank these world leaders notable among them are US President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel among others. President Mahama’s first ‘Thank You’ message is expected to be conveyed to US President Barack Obama today Monday September 24 2012 at 7:oo p.m US local time when he (Mahama) is hosted to a special reception by President Barack Obama at the Waldorf Astoria in New York.

The Ghanaian President will thank his host for delegating Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State for attending the funeral of Ghana’s late President John Evans Atta Mills in Accra on Friday August 10 2012. The two leaders will also discuss matters of mutual interest and concern such as strengthening the bonds of bilateral cooperation, trade and investment as well as measures to address the threat posed by the Alshabab Militants in Mali and the way forward in the Somalia debacle among others respectively. The other world leaders will also receive such commendatory messages from Tomorrow Tuesday 25th September 2012 at the sidelines of the commencement of the United Nations General Assembly Debate Opening Session.

The conveyance of ‘Thank U’ Messages to the world leaders abroad or in the US comes in the wake of recent regional ‘Thank You’ tours embarked upon in Ghana by President Mahama to personally thank the chiefs and people of Ghana as per the customary demand and practice of the Ghanaian culture.

It would be recalled that a similar ‘Thank You’ tour was undertaken by President Mahama to thank the Heads of States of West African neighbours such as Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Benin, Togo and Cote d’ Ivoire for coming to the funeral of the late President Mills.

The much expected thank you messages to be conveyed to the world leaders will mark the end of exactly two months of mourning, burial and conveyance of customary thank you messages to sympathisers, well-wishers and loved ones ever since the death of President John Evans Atta Mills on July 24 2012 at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra.