NO country lives in a vacuum. That explains why even advanced nations like the US, United Kingdom, France etcetera would depend on countries like Ghana and Cote D’ivoire to import cocoa, gold and other products.
WHILE each government is rightfully concerned about the needs of its own people, that does not mean that each country can operate as though it is the only state. Especially now that technology has made this “global community” a reality, there is no excuse not to be mindful of one’s place within the international network and not to use this network to the advantage of the individual state.
DURING his recent visit to Equatorial Guinea for the inauguration of President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, President Mills expressed an interest in learning various strategies for dealing with oil from the Equatorial Guinean government.
THIS sort of international cooperation should not only be praised, but recognized as absolutely necessary. When one country has experience or perspective that could directly benefit the citizens of another country, it is the duty of all involved to sit down together and discuss openly.
THIS is certainly harder than it sounds, depending on international relations and comparable circumstances, but it is possible.
MEETING with President Mbasogo, President Mills kept the necessity of this form of association in mind.
HIS Director of Communications, Mr Koku Anyidoho, said that President Mills was going to learn from Equatorial Guinea a variety of safeguards that can and should be put in place in order to prevent embezzlement of the oil revenue by people in positions of power and responsibility.
THE President’s stated intention is to ensure maximum transparency and fairness in the mobilization and usage of revenue from the oil sector. And that intention by the President to ensure that Ghana’s oil discovery becomes a blessing and not a curse.
THESE goals directly benefit the Ghanaian people, making sure that the trust placed by voters in the government is not betrayed. While President Mills is looking to other countries for advice on infrastructure, it is simply because it would be to the greatest benefit of Ghanaians. If a country, like Equatorial Guinea, has experience and advice to share, it does not make sense to ignore that knowledge and blunder through the same mistakes.
IT is not a show of weakness for the government to look to another country for help or advice. It does not indicate any kind of inferiority, but rather the maturity to know where help can come from and when it is needed.
IN this global community, it is not just important to know your neighbours, but also to know that individual experience can become shared experience.
