Ghana and Viet Nam have signed a visa waiver agreement for holders of diplomatic, service and official passports during the maiden Ghana–Viet Nam Political Consultations, marking a significant step in efforts to strengthen diplomatic relations, facilitate official travel and deepen bilateral cooperation.
The agreement was signed by Ghana’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, James Gyakye Quayson, and Viet Nam’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mr. Lê Anh Tuấn, as part of the inaugural consultations, which established a formal platform for regular political dialogue between the two countries.
The visa waiver forms part of Ghana’s broader diplomatic efforts to enhance the global value and mobility of the Ghanaian passport. With the latest agreement, Ghana has now concluded more than 42 visa waiver agreements with countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, the Caribbean and the Americas. The arrangement is expected to facilitate official exchanges, strengthen institutional cooperation and reinforce the longstanding friendship between Accra and Hanoi.
This year alone, Ghana has pursued similar visa waiver agreements with countries including Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Zambia, Antigua and Barbuda, and South Korea. Ghana also maintains reciprocal visa arrangements with several countries, including China, Cuba, Germany, Brazil, South Africa, Namibia, India, Equatorial Guinea and Morocco, for holders of diplomatic and service passports.
Opening the consultations, The Deputy Minister welcomed the Vietnamese delegation to Ghana and described the inaugural Political Consultations as a historic milestone in bilateral relations. He noted that the meeting coincided with the 60th anniversary of Ghana’s first President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah’s peace mission to Viet Nam, describing the visit as an enduring symbol of Ghana’s commitment to peace, solidarity and international cooperation.
Ghana and Viet Nam have over the years built a strong partnership founded on mutual respect, sovereign equality and South-South cooperation, with collaboration spanning trade, agriculture, fisheries, education, technical cooperation and capacity building.
Gyakye Quayson underscored that the establishment of the Political Consultations mechanism would institutionalise regular dialogue, strengthen mutual understanding and provide a structured platform to review bilateral cooperation, exchange perspectives on regional and global developments, and identify new opportunities for collaboration.
He further expressed Ghana’s interest in expanding cooperation in priority sectors including agribusiness, manufacturing, digital innovation, renewable energy, infrastructure development, tourism, investment promotion, skills development and technology transfer. He also underscored the importance of continued collaboration within multilateral institutions to advance international peace, sustainable development and the collective interests of developing countries.
For his part, The Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister thanked the Government of Ghana for its warm hospitality and described the maiden Political Consultations as a significant step towards strengthening the longstanding friendship between the two countries. He also conveyed Viet Nam’s condolences to the Government and people of Ghana following the recent floods that claimed several lives.
He commended Ghana’s progress in economic diversification, improvements in living standards and its leadership role in promoting regional integration in Africa. He reaffirmed Viet Nam’s commitment to a foreign policy anchored on peace, friendship, multilateralism and diversified international partnerships.
Describing Ghana as one of Viet Nam’s most important partners in West Africa, Mr. Tuấn said his country was committed to expanding cooperation through government-to-government, parliamentary and people-to-people exchanges. He noted that bilateral trade exceeded US$1 billion in 2025, making Ghana Viet Nam’s fourth-largest trading partner on the African continent, and called for closer collaboration in addressing common global challenges while enhancing both countries’ influence in regional and international affairs.
The Political Consultations brought together senior officials from both countries to review bilateral relations, exchange views on regional and international developments, and identify practical measures to deepen cooperation. Discussions covered political relations, high-level exchanges, trade and investment, technical cooperation, agriculture, education, capacity building and multilateral engagement.
The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation across areas of mutual interest, with the newly signed visa waiver agreement expected to ease official mobility, support stronger institutional partnerships and create new opportunities for trade, investment, cultural exchanges and educational collaboration between Ghana and Viet Nam.
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