The Director-General of the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), Ambassador Edward Boateng has paid a courtesy call on the Ambassador of Japan to Ghana, H.E. Mochizuki Hisanobu.

The 29^th November 2022 meeting at the Japan Embassy in Accra, centered on issues of bilateral interests and co-operation between Ghana (through SIGA) and Japan.

Ambassador Boateng thanked H.E. Hisanobu for the warm reception accorded his delegation and introduced SIGA to the Japanese Ambassador, detailing the history and mandate of the Authority. He acknowledged the long-standing relationship between the two countries and the support Ghana has received from Japan over the years. Particularly recalling the fact that Japan was the first Asian country to write off Ghana’s debts during the period when the country joined the World Bank’s Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative.

“Japan is among the top 5 countries in the world with the best managed state-owned enterprises that has drastically catapulted its citizenry out of poverty and Ghana seeks to emulate the best practices accordingly.” He added.

The Director-General ended his remarks by extending an invitation to H.E. Mochizuki Hisanobu to visit the Authority in January 2023.

Mr. George Ofori, head of IT at SIGA in his submission made mention of how the Vice President of Ghana, Alhaji Dr. Bawumia’s digitalization agenda falls rightly in place with the functions of SIGA as far as its mandate of overseeing Specified Entities (SEs) are concerned. He added that a revamp of technology in SIGA and its SEs would equip the Authority with the necessary systems to efficiently execute its mandate.

In his welcome, H.E. Hisanobu thanked Ambassador Boateng for the visit and commended SIGA for its key role considering the fact that the Authority is fairly new and pledged his country’s continuous support to Ghana.

Citing the works of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, Ambassador Hisanobu stressed that the harmonious bilateral relations the two countries share is reflected through the various supports, grants and loans Japan has given Ghana over the years.

Ambassador Hisanobu concluded his address by urging SIGA to take advantage of the Japanese government’s various programmes and initiatives.

Other members of the delegation were Mrs. Helen Addo (Board Secretary, SIGA), Mr. Godfred Sowah Khartey (Manager, Director- General’s Secretariat) and Ms. Louisa Aubin (Ag. Manager PR & External Affairs).