New Delhi [India], June 30 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming five-nation tour, beginning on July 2, will see significant advancements in India's bilateral relations with African nations of Ghana and Namibia, including the establishment of a vaccine hub in Ghana and the expansion of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in Namibia.

During a special briefing by the Ministry of External Affairs, Secretary of Economic Relations, Dammu Ravi, outlined the key agendas during the PM's visit to five countries- Ghana, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina, Brazil and Namibia.

The MEA Secretary highlighted the focus on vaccine development in Ghana. 'Focus items of the visits will be agriculture, vaccine development, creating a vaccine hub in Ghana... Defence cooperation is also an agenda, along with discussion on critical minerals and Digital Public Infrastructure... MoUs will also be signed, with negotiations still underway on this.'

This move aims to bolster Ghana's healthcare infrastructure, particularly as the country undergoes economic restructuring under IMF conditionalities, and strengthen India's role in the matter, the Secretary stated.

In Ghana, PM Modi will engage in delegation-level talks, have a one-on-one meeting with President John Dramani Mahama, address the parliament, and interact with the Indian community of approximately 15,000.

The visit, early in Mahama's tenure following his landslide victory in January, aims to deepen bilateral ties, with economic cooperation dominating the agenda due to Ghana's USD 3 billion trade with India, largely driven by gold exports, and USD 2 billion in investments.

'PM will be visiting Ghana on July 2nd and 3rd. This visit is happening after 30 years. The programme is quite hectic. On July 2nd, there will be a ceremonial welcome for the PM, there will be delegation-level talks during which bilateral relations will be reviewed and also to discuss various ways to strengthen the bilateral relations. PM will be having a one-on-one meeting with his counterpart and there will be a banquet dinner. The next day he will be addressing the parliament and also engaging with the Indian community, which is about 15000,' Secretary Ravi said.

'President John Dramani Mahama just assumed office after a landslide victory in January; that's why the visit carries importance, as the PM will be visiting Ghana early in his tenure. It will help in continuity and deepening the relation and further strengthening it... Both countries will be working to boost economic cooperation as Ghana is undergoing deep economic restructuring, especially as it has undergone IMF conditionalities... Economic agenda will dominate the talks... Bilateral trade between India and Ghana is about USD 3 billion in favour of Ghana because of gold. Investment is about USD 2 billion in both public and private investment,' he said.

As per a statement by the MEA, this will be Prime Minister's first ever bilateral visit to Ghana. During the visit, Prime Minister will hold talks with the President of Ghana to review the strong bilateral partnership and discuss further avenues to enhance it through economic, energy, and defence collaboration, and development cooperation partnership.

This visit will reaffirm the shared commitment of the two countries to deepen bilateral ties and strengthen India's engagement with the ECOWAS [Economic Community of West African States] and the African Union.

Duiring the final leg of his visit, at the invitation of the President of Namibia, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Prime Minister Modi will embark on a State Visit to Namibia on July 9.

This will be the first visit of Prime Minister to Namibia, and the third ever Prime Ministerial visit from India to Namibia.

During his visit, Prime Minister will hold bilateral talks with President Nandi-Ndaitwah and deliver an address at the Parliament of Namibia. The visit of Prime Minister is a reiteration of India's multi-faceted and deep-rooted historical ties with Namibia.

MEA Secretary Dammu Ravi in the media briefing today said that Namibia will see the expansion of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as agreements have been signed by the Central Bank of Namibia and NPCI International (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India.

'In the development cooperation area, capacity building, defence cooperation...the centre for excellence for IT - we are going to set it up. During the visit, the setting up of UPI with the country as a technology agreement has already been signed between the Central Bank of Namibia and NPCI... Namibia is a very resource-rich country, with many critical minerals... and discussions will be there on this also,' the MEA Secretary Ravi stated.

In Namibia, PM Modi will also pay homage to Dr Sam Nujoma, the first president of the African nation.

'PM will be visiting Namibia for the last leg on July 9. This visit is coming after 27 years, and the current President, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, assumed office in March this year. The visit happening early in his tenure is important, as it will help to renew the relationship and deepen our economic engagement with Namibia... The programme will have a ceremonial welcome. PM will pay homage to Dr Sam Nujoma. There will be delegation-level discussions and one-on-one talks, and he will also address the parliament,' he noted.

Prime Minister Modi will embark on the five-country visit from July 2, during which he will attend the BRICS Summit in Brazil and hold meetings with leaders of Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, Argentina and Namibia to strengthen bilateral ties.

He will start his five-nation visit with Ghana on July 2 and conclude his visit Namibia in the last leg on July 9. In the second leg of his visit, at the invitation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Prime Minister Modi will pay an Official Visit to Trinidad & Tobago (T&T) from July 3-4. This will be his first visit to the country as Prime Minister and the first bilateral visit at the Prime Ministerial level to T&T since 1999. In the third leg of his visit, at the invitation of the President of Republic of Argentina, Javier Milei, Prime Minister will travel to Argentina on an Official Visit from July 04-05. Prime Minister will travel to Brazil from July 5-8 to attend the 17th BRICS Summit 2025 followed by a State Visit. (ANI)