The Committee on Presidential Affairs has called for stronger accountability, reliable utilities and clear performance targets for Dei BioPharma Limited, following a government investment of Shs723.4 billion in the pharmaceutical manufacturing project.
The committee during its assessment of the company’s performance revealed that the substantial public investment in the privately operated company lacks proper documentation of the government’s shareholding, expected returns, project deliverables and measurable benefits to Ugandans.
“Government should ensure that clear documentation of government’s shares in Dei BioPharma, the expected returns, deliverables and performance targets, commensurate with the public resources invested are provided,” said Hon. Martin Mapenduzi while presenting the committee’s report on its assessment of selected Science, Technology and Innovation Projects.
Mapenduzi presented the report during the plenary sitting chaired by Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa on Tuesday, 06 October 2026.
According to the report, government provided Shs70 billion to Dei BioPharma in the 2023/2024 financial year, an additional Shs75 billion in December 2023 and Shs578.4 billion through a supplementary budget in the 2024/2025 financial year.
The committee also found out that government holds a 9.4 per cent stake in the company, which is expected to increase if additional financing is provided. However, proof of the government’s shareholding was not presented during the assessment.
Dei BioPharma operates a 150-acre pharmaceutical manufacturing complex in Matugga, Wakiso District, comprising laboratories and facilities for the production of generic medicines, vaccines, injectables, oncology medicines, penicillin, medical devices and other pharmaceutical products.
The company however operates below its capacity due to gaps in infrastructural development and funding. In the 2024/2025 financial year, Dei Biopharma produced and distributed six generic medicines, including paracetamol, tramadol, metformin, doxycycline and metronidazole. However, a number of specialised production lines remain under installation, validation and commissioning.
“The current level and range of production remain below the envisaged capacity of the overall investment. Unless this financial gap is urgently addressed, government risks having a strategically important national investment operating below capacity,” said Mapenduzi.
He called for the speedy completion and commissioning of the remaining production lines to support import substitution, national medicine security, pharmaceutical exports and employment creation.
In this, the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development was tasked to provide the additional US$434 million required to complete and fully operationalise the facility which has reportedly created more than 1,000 jobs and is projected to generate up to 20,000 employment opportunities when fully operational.
The report also recommends government to prioritise the provision of 100 MW of reliable electricity to the facility and the National Water and Sewerage Corporation to establish adequate water-treatment and storage infrastructure, noting that the facility requires between seven million and 10 million litres of water daily to operate at full capacity.
Other projects assessed include; the Engineering Development and Innovation Centre in Kiruhura District, the Nyakihanga Fruit Factory in Ntungamo district, the Banana Industrial Research and Development Center in Bushenyi district, the Africa Coffee Park in Ntungamo district.
Debate on the report is scheduled for Wednesday, 07 October 2026.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.
Foreign Ministry: Mediation Efforts Between Washington and Tehran Continue
Doha, October 06, 2026
Director of the Media and Communication Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ibrahim bin Sultan Al Hashmi affirmed Tuesday that mediation efforts between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran are ongoing and uninterrupted. He noted that these efforts aim to achieve progress that can be built upon, covering all issues of concern to both parties. During the Foreign Ministry’s weekly media briefing, Al Hashmi indicated that talks are ongoing, messages are being exchanged between Washington and Tehran, and Qatar is acting as a mediator between the parties. He emphasized that resolving this issue requires making every effort to find negotiable solutions while taking into account the concerns of all parties involved. Regarding the issue of the Iranian pilots, Al Hashmi said that the State of Qatar was clear from the outset that this matter has been addressed and that the Iranian side has been informed of the latest developments. He noted that Qatar is open to a visit by the Iranian side to discuss the measures taken in this regard. Regarding developments in the region, the Director of the Media and Communication Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the State of Qatar supports any initiatives undertaken by regional states to safeguard their security, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, including the “Mecca Pact.” He noted that this alliance strengthens regional cooperation in preserving capabilities and ensuring the stability of the region’s nations. He reiterated the State of Qatar’s support for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in all measures it may take to safeguard its security and territorial integrity. He said that Qatar condemns the irresponsible approach adopted by the Houthi group in targeting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Islamic holy sites, and civilian facilities, adding that Qatar supports the Kingdom in all measures it may take to maintain its security and territorial integrity. Director of the Media and Communication Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ibrahim bin Sultan Al Hashmi stressed the State of Qatar’s support for any move that preserves the security and stability of the region, noting that it is too early to discuss Qatar joining the “Mecca Pact.”
The Republic of Liberia was represented at the 2nd ECOWAS Startup Awards, held from 21–30 September 2026 at the ECOWAS Commission Headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria.
Representing the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Hon. Benedict A. Dolo, Deputy Minister for Small Business Administration, attended the event on behalf of the Ministry. The regional initiative brought together governments, entrepreneurs, investors, development partners, business support organizations, and innovative startups from across the ECOWAS region.
The 2026 ECOWAS Startup Awards focused on promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, digital transformation, youth empowerment, and private-sector development, with emphasis on six strategic sectors: EdTech, FinTech, HealthTech, AgriTech, CleanTech, and Tourism and Travel Technology.
The event also featured startup pitching, exhibitions, networking, business-to-business engagements, mentorship, and investor interactions, culminating in the recognition of the top three startups on 30 September 2026.
Hon. Dolo’s participation on behalf of Liberia underscores the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s commitment to strengthening Liberia’s startup and MSME ecosystem, supporting innovation, and connecting Liberian entrepreneurs with regional opportunities for growth, investment, and competitiveness.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Commerce & Industry, The Government of the Republic of Liberia.
The update comes as neighbouring Kenya confirmed its first case and death from the disease, believed to have come from DRC.
“Ebola takes the people children depend on and unravels their lives,” said Halimatou Amadou, UNICEF Chief of Communication in the DRC, speaking to journalists in Geneva.
“The parents fall ill, a child may be exposed, the parent is taken for treatment or dies. At the very moment a child most needs someone, fear and stigma can keep relatives and neighbours away.”
Nearly 2,000 children affected
More than 1,900 boys and girls have either lost one or both parents, or their caregivers, since the outbreak was declared in May, or have been separated from them.
Most of these children, 1,581, are in North Kivu province, the epicentre of the crisis. A further 322 are in neighbouring North Kivu province.
“And these are the children we know about because these figures cover only the area where UNICEF works with social affairs teams in the affected provinces,” she said.
Fighters and survivors
Ms. Amadou put names behind the numbers, such as Lina*, a seven-month-old girl who she met at a UNICEF-supported nursery next to an Ebola treatment centre in Bunia, the Ituri capital.
Lina’s mother died and her father is missing. Her grandfather, who lives nearby, has visited twice and the hope is that they will soon be together.
Another child, Raphael*, just eight months old, survived Ebola but lost eight family members. He stayed at the nursery for more than three weeks until his older brother could take him home.
Young lives lost
“Children are not only losing their parents. They’re also losing their own lives,” Ms. Amadou said.
As of 29 September, at least 2,017 children had been confirmed with Ebola in DRC. At least 1,062 have died.
She noted that children make up just over one in four confirmed cases, but around one in three deaths. However, the situation is worse among under-fives where the death rate is seven in 10, up from six in 10 just a few weeks ago.
“Many die before the virus is ever detected, before they ever reach treatment,” she said.
Care and access
While in Bunia Ms. Amadou “also saw what works” for young lives upended by Ebola.
UNICEF supports 12 nurseries in Ituri and North Kivyu that care for babies and young children who have been exposed to the virus, or whose parents are in treatment, or who are on their own.
“Children are fed, they are held, they’re cared for, they are also watched closely so that if symptoms appear, they get paediatric care fast,” she said.
UNICEF is calling for nurseries at every Ebola treatment centre in the DRC, while underscoring the need to maintain health essential services. That way children receive early detection and quick referral to Ebola care, as well as protection from common childhood diseases.
First case in Kenya
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) is monitoring the situation in Kenya, which on Tuesday confirmed its first case and fatality, according to media reports.
Spokesman Christian Lindmeier the case was “likely imported from DRC” but more information was not available.
He said colleagues on the ground are working with the Kenyan authorities to get more details.
Adviser to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari underscored the importance of strengthening resilience and preparedness, enhancing national capabilities and deepening regional cooperation to build a broader and more resilient security architecture capable of addressing emerging challenges. He made the remarks during a discussion on “GCC Security: Alliances, Threats, and Strategic Choices,” organized by Georgetown University Qatar’s Center for International and Regional Studies.
Dr. Al Ansari also highlighted the evolving security landscape within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), as well as the role of alliances, international partnerships, international law and multilateral frameworks in addressing emerging security challenges.
Addressing relations between the State of Qatar and the Islamic Republic of Iran, Dr. Al Ansari stressed the importance of maintaining channels of dialogue and communication and strengthening regional dialogue as a means of managing differences and supporting stability across the region.
He pointed to growing cooperation and greater cohesion among GCC states following successive regional crises, noting that this progress has translated into stronger coordination across a range of areas.
Dr. Al Ansari also addressed the broader security and economic implications of regional developments, highlighting the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz to regional and international security, energy flows, global trade and supply chains. He noted that the repercussions of regional crises extend well beyond the Gulf, with far-reaching implications for global security and the international economy.
The Adviser to the Prime Minister and Official Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed Qatar’s longstanding role in mediation, stressing that mediation remains an important tool for enhancing security and that Qatar continues to prioritize dialogue and facilitate channels of communication between the parties.
He explained that a mediator’s role is to bring parties with divergent positions together and help them reach understandings and agreements, rather than assume responsibility for reconstruction or guarantee the achievement of peace.
The session concluded with an interactive discussion, during which Dr. Al Ansari answered questions on regional security, GCC cooperation, Qatar’s foreign policy and mediation efforts, as well as a range of regional and international developments.
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Paola Vesco, Senior Researcher, Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
Estimates of the number of people directly killed in Sudan’s civil war vary widely, in part because counting casualties in active conflict zones is extremely difficult. In 2025, for instance, one conflict monitoring organisation reported around 19,000 direct deaths from political violence across Sudan. Other research teams put the toll at more than 70,000.
Conflict researcher Paola Vesco and her team have developed a model that helps measure the uncertainty around such conflict death estimates. Their approach takes into account the tendency of conflict datasets to underestimate fatalities, and provides a more realistic range of possible death tolls. They explain how their model could improve estimates in conflicts like Sudan’s.
What do we know about the number of dead in Sudan?
The number of people killed in Sudan’s war since it began in April 2023 remains contested. Deaths in 2025 have been especially hard to establish as communications were cut and humanitarian access was blocked.
In 2025, fighting intensified as the Rapid Support Forces – a paramilitary group which has fought the Sudanese army for control of the state since 2023 – advanced in Darfur and North Kordofan. Civilian deaths and displacement rose.
In February 2026, a UN fact-finding mission concluded that the Rapid Support Forces’ killings in El-Fasher bore the hallmarks of genocide.
The group’s capture of El-Fasher in the Darfur region in October 2025, after an 18-month siege, marked a significant territorial and strategic shift in the war. It consolidated the Rapid Support Forces’ control over much of Darfur and strengthened their position in western Sudan. It was also one of the war’s deadliest episodes.
The Uppsala Conflict Data Program, a research team at Uppsala University that has recorded conflict deaths worldwide for decades, estimated that attacks against civilians killed at least 60,000 people. More than 10,000 died in fighting between the army and armed groups.
Drawing on survivors’ reports, satellite imagery and other evidence, Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab estimates that at least 60,000 people were killed during and after the paramilitary group’s capture of El-Fasher between late October and the end of December 2025.
Even worse, these figures capture only direct deaths from violence in Sudan. Many more have probably died from disease and starvation, as the Rapid Support Forces built earthen walls around El-Fasher in an effort to starve out the population.
Why are the estimates so different?
The true number of war deaths can never be known with certainty, but scholars understand reasonably well why estimates vary.
Much of the difference across reports stems from how organisations select and handle sources.
The Uppsala Conflict Data Program’s estimate of 60,000 killed in El-Fasher draws directly on Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab. It is corroborated by independent reporting from Sudanese media, NGOs and UN agencies.
Beyond this “best” (most likely) figure, Uppsala’s programme also keeps a “high” estimate (75,000), reflecting the upper end of Yale’s assessment, and a markedly lower “low” estimate to flag that the exact number of deaths is uncertain.
ACLED, on the other hand, reports a single fatality number. When sources disagree, it takes the most conservative figure.
The differences in the estimates of deaths also stem from how monitoring organisations process information.
Both the Uppsala Conflict Data Program and ACLED record the exact date and location of violent incidents when these are available. But ACLED only counts deaths that can be linked to a specific incident. Deaths reported only as a broad total, without identifiable incidents, may therefore be left out. Uppsala’s programme instead records them as a “summary” event, which presents the total death toll over a longer period or a wider area, rather than for a single attack.
This apparently simple rule matters enormously when many smaller, undated incidents add up to a large total, as in El-Fasher.
What did you do differently and what numbers did you come up with?
Providing an uncertainty estimate – a plausible range rather than a single number of people who may have died in war – reflects how much confidence an estimate deserves, and invites caution.
Still, most sources report only one number.
In a recently published article, we built an uncertainty estimate. We surveyed Uppsala Conflict Data Program’s expert coders to build a model converting any single number into a range of people that have plausibly died in a given war. This range is known as a “probability distribution”.
We applied this model to Sudan in 2025. The results are provided in the figure below. For each number of deaths on the horizontal axis, the height of the curve shows how plausible that number is according to our model. The higher the curve, the more plausible the number.
The peak of the curve from our model indicates that the most likely death toll in Sudan’s war in 2025 is close to 80,000 deaths. As our model is estimated from the Uppsala programme, it is unsurprising that this estimate is close to what they report.
Probability distribution of plausible fatalities for Sudan, 2025, estimated from our scientific article (Vesco et al., 2026, Journal of Conflict Resolution: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00220027261423826).
We find that the true number of people killed in 2025 is very likely (with a 90% probability) to fall between 73,000 and 90,000, and there is a small chance that the actual number is as high as 100,000.
This relatively small range indicates that the uncertainty around Sudan’s deaths is much narrower than assumed – even the lower bound number far exceeds many official estimates.
Our estimates, however, should be read with caution. They are informed by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program’s knowledge and only indirectly reflect other estimates. Crucially, our model results cannot be checked against the true number of deaths, which tends to remain unknown as conflict actors have incentives to conceal it.
Despite these caveats, providing a range of people that plausibly have died in war instead of a single figure gives weight to the estimate, and leaves little room to dismiss inconvenient numbers as unreliable.
Why are these data points important?
Understanding how conflict death estimates vary across sources, and why, increases transparency.
Around the attack on El-Fasher, the uncertainty around death reports became a political issue. We argue that it should be a scientific one. One that can be measured.
The evidence suggests that the El-Fasher massacre could have been prevented. Throughout the siege, NGOs and academic institutions repeatedly warned foreign officials of an impending bloodbath.
Pressure against the United Arab Emirates – the Rapid Support Forces’ main supporter – could have curbed the flow of weapons to the group. Yet, western politicians prioritised economic and political ties with Abu Dhabi over preventing atrocity. Officials looked the other way, ignoring or downplaying the reports of rising deaths as uncertain.
This suffering could have been foreseen and minimised. Even in the most conservative case, our model finds that more than 70,000 people died in 2025, most of them within a few months. Are 70,000 deaths enough to look the other way?
Conflict monitoring organisations such as the Uppsala Conflict Data Program have documented war deaths for decades, drawing on vetted sources and consistent coding rules. Since the uncertainty around their figures can be quantified, as our model shows, this uncertainty is no longer a reason for delay or inaction.
Decision-makers often have the information they need to act early. Used in time, this information can help prevent atrocities and save lives.
– Sudan’s death toll in 2025 could be as high as 100,000: how we did the count – https://theconversation.com/sudans-death-toll-in-2025-could-be-as-high-as-100-000-how-we-did-the-count-292159
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Murray Leibbrandt, UCT Emeritus Professor and Senior Research Scholar; Director of ARUA’s African Centre of Excellence for Inequality Research within SALDRU., University of Cape Town
World leaders have been asked to support a proposed International Panel on Inequality. Brazil, Norway, South Africa and Spain, together with Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz, made the call on the margins of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York in September 2026.
The panel would be modelled on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It would assess the scale of inequality, its drivers and consequences, and the policies that can reduce it. The African Union endorsed the initiative in February, and South Africa intends to present a General Assembly resolution to establish it.
This is a significant step. Inequality could, for the first time, have a permanent scientific body within the multilateral system. But the usefulness of such a panel will depend on whose realities its assessments reflect.
Recent experience shows why this question matters. The Global Justice Report, released in June by the World Inequality Lab, puts forward ambitious proposals. But, as economists working on labour and informality recently argued, many of the proposals are based on how things work in high-income countries. They assume that certain kinds of employment relationships, labour protections and institutions exist.
We think global initiatives are a great step forward. The problem is that frameworks built mainly on the data and institutions of the global north might not be accurate where inequality is most severe.
To address this problem, we have been closely involved in the development of the African Inequality Review. Its aim is to close the knowledge gap about inequality. It will start new cross-country research on African inequality and build a public resource linking the continent’s inequality datasets.
The review can offer three things:
African-led assessments of inequality, grounded in the continent’s institutions and labour markets
linked data infrastructure needed to study rents, assets and fiscal choices alongside household outcomes
a model of research designed with policymakers rather than delivered to them.
Most Africans are concentrated at the bottom of the global income distribution, so this demographic shift pulls the world’s distribution with it. Between 1990 and 2016, the share of the world’s poorest income decile living in sub-Saharan Africa rose from about one in five to one in three, according to African Development Bank and World Bank estimates.
The prospects of Africa’s young and growing population will therefore determine where global inequality goes. An international panel without a strong African evidence base would be assessing the past of global inequality rather than its future.
That evidence base remains thin. The picture of African inequality is based on fewer country observations than other regions. And different databases present markedly different pictures of the levels and changes in inequality on the continent.
Inputs on inequality
The African Inequality Review is modelled on two previous reviews:
the Deaton Review in the UK, a multi-year, multidisciplinary assessment of inequalities in income, wealth, health and opportunity led by the Institute for Fiscal Studies chaired by Nobel laureate Angus Deaton
The launch was held immediately after a meeting of the African Union and South Africa African Expert Panel. Having the panel involved ensured that senior African policymakers took part along with African and international practitioners and researchers. Participants were asked two questions.
Where are important policy choices being made without the evidence decision-makers need?
Which inequality questions, answered well, would change policy?
Several priorities emerged.
The first was that many of the most pressing evidence gaps lie where fiscal, corporate and asset data meet. Participants pointed to tax breaks that governments grant to individual large firms case by case, through negotiated agreements rather than through rules in tax law that apply to every firm. These incentives are rarely tied to results that can be checked, such as jobs created, purchases from local suppliers, or skills and technology passed on to local workers.
They also pointed to difficulties in assessing full economic and social returns to investments in public infrastructure. Impact studies routinely examine who is displaced by a new road and who gains market access. They far less often examine the impacts across the procurement chain and throughout time. In other words who wins contracts and subcontracts and who ultimately captures the rents.
Control over land, mineral resources and credit, and access to legal identity through civil registration, were raised in the same vein.
These patterns of control shape who gains access to opportunity and where productivity stays blocked. Assessments that ask whether a policy or an investment loosens those constraints, rather than only who gains and loses at the point of delivery, give a better account of its longer-term returns.
The second priority was that these questions build on household survey research rather than replace it. Decades of survey and panel data tell us who is poor, how people move in and out of poverty, and how disadvantage passes between generations. The frontier now is to link these microdata with tax records, administrative and firm-level data, and ownership and procurement registers. That would connect the distribution of outcomes to the mechanisms that produce them.
The third concerned the limits of single summary measures. A Gini coefficient, the single number ranging from 0 and 1 as inequality rises, summarises how unequally income is shared across a population. But it cannot tell a government whether its priority should be competition policy and progressive taxation, social protection, or early childhood investment.
Nor is there a known threshold where inequality becomes too high to sustain growth. This depends on what’s causing inequality in that context. For example, in many African contexts even low aggregate inequality masks strong gender biases.
The fourth was that policy design must start from the reality of informal livelihoods, rather than assume they can simply be regulated into formality.
Finally, participants stressed that researchers and policymakers need to work together from the outset if research is to inform decisions.
– The global panel on inequality needs African evidence: here’s how it could work – https://theconversation.com/the-global-panel-on-inequality-needs-african-evidence-heres-how-it-could-work-292927
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) extends its warmest congratulations and best wishes to His Majesty King Letsie III, the Government, and the people of the Kingdom of Lesotho on the momentous occasion of the 60th Anniversary of Independence.
SADC joins all Basotho in celebrating the remarkable progress achieved in promoting peace, democracy, stability, and socio-economic advancement as the Kingdom continues to make important contributions towards regional integration, cooperation, and the collective pursuit of sustainable development and prosperity for the peoples of Southern Africa.
On this historic occasion, SADC wishes the Kingdom of Lesotho continued peace, unity, stability, and prosperity as the nation advances towards an even brighter future. May the celebrations of this Diamond Jubilee inspire renewed hope and commitment to building a resilient, inclusive, and prosperous Lesotho for generations to come.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Government of Lesotho.
Ghana and the Kyrgyz Republic have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral relations and advancing cooperation across a range of strategic areas following the inaugural Ghana-Kyrgyzstan Political Consultations held in Accra on Thursday, 1st October, 2026. The Consultations were led by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Honourable Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (MP) and his Kyrgyz counterpart, His Excellency Zheenbek Kulubaev.
In his remarks, Hon. Ablakwa welcomed his Kyrgyz counterpart and his delegation to Ghana and described the engagement as an important milestone in the evolving relations between the two countries. He recalled his official visit to Bishkek in March 2026, which marked the first official visit to the Kyrgyz Republic by an African Foreign Minister and opened a new chapter in Ghana-Kyrgyzstan relations. He also congratulated Kyrgyzstan on its election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2027-2028 term and reaffirmed Ghana’s readiness to work closely with Kyrgyzstan.
For his part, H.E. Kulubaev expressed appreciation to the Government and people of Ghana for the warm reception accorded him and his delegation, as well as for Ghana’s support for Kyrgyzstan’s successful bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council. He conveyed greetings from the President of the Kyrgyz Republic, H.E. Sadyr Japarov, and highlighted Kyrgyzstan’s interest in expanding its engagement with Africa, with Ghana identified as an important partner and potential gateway to West Africa. He reaffirmed Kyrgyzstan’s readiness to work with Ghana in advancing the interests of developing countries and promoting a more representative and effective multilateral system.
Discussions identified agriculture, education, mining, digital transformation, sports, healthcare and people-to-people exchange as key areas for enhanced cooperation, with discussions also covering trade and investment, livestock development, scholarships, climate change, tourism and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence. Both sides further agreed to strengthen coordination on matters of common interest, including United Nations Security Council reform, international peace and security, sustainable development, climate change and the representation of developing countries in global decision-making.
The Consultations concluded with the signing of three (3) Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), which were;
i) MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Physical Culture and Sports between the Ministry of Sports and Recreation of Ghana and the State Agency of Physical Culture and Sports under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic;
ii) MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Agriculture between the Ministry of Food and Agriculture of Ghana and the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry of the Kyrgyz Republic; and
iii) MoU and Cooperation between the Foreign Service Institute under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ghana and the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic named after Kazy Dikambaev.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Ghana.
In the early morning of Monday 5th October, 2026, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Honourable Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, embarked on a working field visit, setting out to evaluate the conditions faced by Ghanaian visa applicants at over twenty Embassies and Visa Application Centers in Accra. He was accompanied by some senior officials of the Foreign Ministry.
This journey was more than a mere assessment of the current situation; it was an interactive experience, an opportunity to witness first-hand the current state of affairs and to engage in direct candid dialogue with fellow citizens regarding their unique encounters, in order to understand their experiences, and their hopes for a more streamlined process.
Speaking to the Media at the end of the tour, the Minister recalled that, in his first month as Foreign Minister, he had already made it a point to stress the importance of protecting the dignity and welfare of Ghanaian visa applicants. He had urged diplomatic Missions to address persistent issue of long waiting periods for appointments and ensure adequate arrangements were in place to protect applicants from the whims of unpredictable weather.
While he was pleased to acknowledge the considerable progress made by some missions, he was quick to add that, it is also clear that others must do more to ensure that the welfare of Ghanaians was truly safeguarded. He added that, as he has consistently emphasized, it is the prerogative of the diplomatic missions to determine who qualifies for their visas. Therefore, while he shall not interfere with this decision-making process, his role is to ensure that their actions safeguard the dignity of Ghanaians.
Throughout the journey, the Minister engaged with visa applicants eager to share his findings and observations with the concerned Missions. His goal was a collaborative effort towards securing improvements in the visa application process.
Therefore, in the days ahead, the Minister plans to engage with the Heads of the diplomatic Missions. Armed with his observations and findings, his aim is to foster a collaborative effort towards securing improvements in their respective operations, and to see to it that concrete steps are taken to uphold the dignity of Ghanaians.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and the Minister took the first stride towards bettering the visa application process. He looks forward to the days ahead, where together with the diplomatic Missions, they can create a system that not only meets the needs of Ghanaian citizens but also reflects the pride and dignity of Ghana.
Thus, the Minister’s visit is not just a report card, but a call to action. It is a reminder that the welfare of Ghanaian citizens is paramount to the Government of Ghana, and that every diplomatic Mission in Ghana has a responsibility to uphold the highest standards of service. Together, we can strive for a system that is not just efficient, but also compassionate and respectful of the dignity of all involved.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Ghana.
