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02.09.2015 Feature Article

The Return Of Iran Into The International Sphere: How Should Ghana Strategically Position Herself?

The Return Of Iran Into The International Sphere: How Should Ghana Strategically Position Herself?
02.09.2015 LISTEN

Tehran has been in the “cold” for quite some time now. Despite the odds stuck against the Iranian government and her people, they have consistently proven how resilient they can be, even in the face of the most trying adversities. And with the recent Nuke Deal in Vienna, Austria; Iran is in the process of accessing billions of US Dollars of her money that has been locked away because of sanctions imposed on her by the West, especially America. Since the nuclear deal a number of countries are beginning to take advantage of such opportunities to re-establish their diplomatic ties with Iran.

Western governments and their capitalist conglomerates are jostling for Tehran’s attention for business and other deals. While developed economies are looking for investment opportunities, developing economies are also seeking for the opportunity to partner with Iranian state and private companies to invest in their home countries.

Ghana’s ties with the Islamic Republic are historical. Even at the time when Iran was in the “cold”, Ghana continued to engage with the Republic at various levels, for cultural and other development partnerships/exchanges. The question is: What is the current government doing, so that they can also plug into the opportunities that are emerging, in the wake of the Nuclear Deal? We cannot let some of these chances slide, as countries across sub-Saharan Africa look to that direction to strengthen their cultural and diplomatic ties. Despite her own internal development challenges, Iran is a big player within the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), and seeking to increasingly reach out to countries even outside the Persian Gulf, for development and other strategic partnerships. We stand to make some tremendous gains if we “knock at their doors” now, than wait till all our neighbours have done the knocking, and attracted all the “juicy” investments to their countries.

Oil and Gas/Energy prospects

With Ghana becoming a player in the oil market, there is the need to tap into the enormous experiences of pioneering nations like Iran. Ghana needs a state-of-the-art petroleum value chain technology, and the management expertise to transform the economy in the most positive ways. Because we are not in the position to refine our own oil, even as world oil prices continue to fall, Ghanaians have barely felt the effects of such low oil prices at the international market. With a partnership for the installation of a new refinery, or upgrading what we already have, we would spare the economy the pain of using hard-earned foreign exchange to import petroleum products. These steps would go a long way in reducing our Balance of Payment Deficit (BoP) challenges.

Since Ghana found oil in commercial quantity, some tertiary institutions have mounted programmes and courses in response to the “find”. However, most of these courses and programmes are management related, with only few delving into the technical aspects of it. The skills needed to fulfill even the “Local Content” part of most of these oil deals are hard to achieve. Due largely to the absence of Ghanaians with the needed engineering and other skills set to tap into such opportunities. Sadly, most of the scholarship opportunities that came in the way of most Ghanaian students were focused largely on management and administrative expertise, instead of the technical and engineering know-hows that are core to the exploration process.

Expats continue to dominate the technical areas of the petroleum exploration venture. This is where a nation like Iran can help fill the vacuum. The Ghana government, in agreement with her Iranian counterpart can help universities both here and in Iran to sign some flexibly guided Memorandum of Understanding (MOU): where students and lecturers would have the opportunity to engage in exchange programmes for experience sharing. As these students and their teachers gain the necessary expertise, they would eventually be able to play greater roles in the existing exploration processes, and the subsequent oil-finds in the country. From what we are gathering, it looks very likely that Ghana has a chance of discovering more areas with the potential for viable oil exploration.

Beyond partnerships with universities, the Ghanaian authority can lobby the Iranian government to partner them invest in the energy sector, since capital required for establishing such ventures are huge and intensive. With the plummeting of investment confidence in the oil sector, due to low prices, it would be prudent to find new partners instead of the known ones. Such steps would help diversify our investments in case of losses. At least, when some companies are contemplating laying off Ghanaian workers or folding up, some may for some reasons also decide to stay, regardless of the price levels at the world market.

Other strategic areas

Apart from the energy sector, Iran continues to play a huge role in the health delivery system in some Ghanaian communities. Medical Doctors and other professionals from Iran continue to play significant roles in such communities. With Ghana’s poor doctor-patient ratio, have we thought of how to [possibly] engage our Iranian friends to buy into the idea of training some Ghanaian students in their medical schools? There are a number of deprived communities (whether Muslim or non-Muslim) who need health professionals in their communities. Students with potential from such communities can the "plucked" and encouraged to undergo such training, so that they can come home and help their communities.

Also, with the increasing level of Islamic fundamentalism across the globe, Ghanaian Muslim youths can have a lot to learn from their Iranian counterparts. Despite her relationship with America, and some few hardliners who are inclined to anti-Israeli sentiments, the Iranian people are generally moderate Muslims whose ideologies are progressive and pluralistic in outlook.

I was surprised to learn that, even as her relationship with Israel increasingly turn frosty, there are over 100, 000 Jews in Iran. Even though some of these Iranian Jews have fled in the aftermath of the “revolution”, a relatively large Jewish Community still exist in Iran. That is the sort of pluralism and diversity we want to engender in our communities.

So, as diplomats continue to jostle for Iran’s attention, it is my hope that the government of Ghana would step up its game by joining the bandwagon to strengthen her economic and cultural ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

By: Inusah Mohammed Awall

Twitter: @Wagoooni

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