Ghanaians in Australia’s largest city, Sydney, have marked the 40th anniversary of Ghana becoming a republic in the company of Foreign Affairs Minister Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni.

Alhaji Mumuni has been on an official visit to Australia, holding talks on bilateral issues with Australia’s foreign minister Stephen Smith.

At a community meeting with the Ghanaians in Sydney on Republic Day (July 1), Alhaji Mumuni hailed the close relations between Accra and Canberra, and urged Ghanaians in Australia to uphold the good name of their homeland.

He took the opportunity to update the gathering on progress made on several fronts since President Atta-Mills’ administration was sworn into office in January last year.

“The president’s ‘Better Ghana Vision’ is alive and well”, he said.

Alhaji Mumuni said the government spent the whole of last year (2009) stabilising the national economy after government spending had gone through the roof in the last year of ex-President Kufuor’s NPP administration.

“That stabilisation sphere was completely successful. Now, the budget deficit has fallen from 22 per cent to 15 per cent of GDP. Inflation in May 2010 was 10.7 per cent, also from 22 per cent”, he added.

Interest rates were on a downward spiral, the minister said, adding that that development was making Ghanaian businesspeople happy.

He continued to paint quite a rosy picture of the national economic outlook. The weather, as well, was good.

“I think we have a good story to tell”, he added, to applause from the gathering.

Turning to Ghanaians in the Diaspora, Alhaji Mumuni entreated them to show more interest in the way the nation is run by making inputs in fashioning Ghana’s foreign policy.

He said Ghana and Australia were in agreement in ensuring that the rule of law and democracy were entrenched in Africa, especially in Commonwealth countries.

The foreign minister pledged Ghana’s support for Australia’s bid to secure a seat on the United Nations Security Council.

After his address, Alhaji Mumuni spent more than half an hour answering questions on a whole lot of issues from Ghanaians.

Alhaji Mumuni also visited Perth and Canberra during his one-week tour which ended on July 2.

He was accompanied to the various functions he attended by Ghana’s High Commissioner in Australia Mr Paul Yaw Essel and Minister Counsellor Mr Paul Badu Antwi.

From: Martin Sannah Kwakwa, Sydney