UK now focusing on investor partnerships — Baroness Chapman
The Minister for International Development of the UK, Baroness Jenny Chapman, has said the country is moving from an aid donor to an investor in partner countries.
She said the UK was unlocking economic growth and trading opportunities in Ghana as part of its modernised approach to international development.
The minister was speaking in Accra at the end of the first of her three-day visit to Ghana last Friday, where she visited UK-backed businesses which were unlocking economic opportunities and jobs for both countries.
Partnership
Baroness Chapman said the UK-Ghana partnership was thriving, adding “together, we are tackling global challenges, and British expertise is helping to unlock opportunities and wealth here”.
The minister touched on how the UK tax partnership helped Ghana generate an additional £100 million in revenue in 2024, which had been invested in public services such as health and education.
She welcomed the position of the Government of Ghana, which wants a fair opportunity to trade rather than depending on aid.
Baroness Chapman said such a policy was in line with the UK’s new modernised approach to international development – “one where we invest in and work with countries, as partners”.
Tour
Among the establishments the minister visited was Atlantic Life Sciences, where UK expertise had enabled the production of essential and advanced medicines, including snake venom antiserum.
It is one of 300 active research partnerships between the UK and Ghana that is driving innovation and global health security.
She said the UK’s growth in partnership with Ghana had also helped raise over £125 million to support key sectors such as automotive, pharmaceuticals and garments, creating over 5,000 jobs.
The partnerships, the minister said, had also improved the production of essential and advanced medicines, and enabled exports of textiles across Africa and to the UK.
She also visited a garments company supported by British International Investment (UK’s development finance institution) - one of the largest in the region, providing job opportunities for women, and exporting ethically-made garments globally.
Other places visited were a school that helps children back into Ghana’s education system, co-funded by the UK; a hospital supported by the UK through the Global Fund that provides essential health care for diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV.
The minister also called on President John Dramani Mahama, where they discussed the UK’s growth partnership with Ghana that had benefited both countries.
It includes peer-to-peer collaboration, business environment reforms, as well as trade and investment opportunities in line with the government’s 24-hour Economy policy.
Currently, trade between the UK and Ghana totals approximately £1.5bn annually, with major UK companies, including Tullow Oil, Unilever, Standard Chartered and Blue Skies, operating in Ghana.
Arthur Wharton
Baroness Chapman honoured the legacy of Arthur Wharton, the world’s first black professional footballer, ahead of the 160th anniversary of his birth next month.
He was born in Ghana and played for Darlington FC.
Baroness Chapman exchanged tributes with representatives of Ghana’s Football Association and celebrated the enduring relationship between the UK and Ghana, built on historical ties, shared values, and vibrant people-to-people connections.
