Presidents Mahama and Hollande hold talks at Elysee Palace

(From George Ramsey Benamba, GNA Special Correspondent, Paris)

Paris (France), Oct. 5, GNA - French President Francois Hollande on Monday commended President John Mahama for helping to bring stability to the West African sub-region during his tenure as Chair of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

In a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, President Hollande made reference to the developments in Burkina Faso last year and in September this year, and the leadership role played by President Mahama in ensuring a peaceful and smooth management of the two situations.

The Paris meeting formed part of the itinerary of President Mahama's five-day official visit to that country.

President Hollande said as Chair of ECOWAS, President Mahama also brought the Group's influence to bear on the elections in Nigeria and Togo, ahead of his handing over the leadership of the sub-regional body to Senegal's President Macky Sall.

President Mahama's role in the sub-region's management of the Ebola outbreak and his involvement in ensuring maritime security along the Gulf of Guinea also came up for mention.

The two leaders who were meeting for the second time, also discussed the security situation in the West African sub-region, the Economic Partnership Agreement and French support for development projects in Ghana.

France has meanwhile agreed to provide, through the French Development Agency (AfD), a € 37.50 million financing for the second phase of the Kumasi Roads and Drainage Extension Project. This involves the construction of the Lake Road - Oforikrom bypass and the Aboabo drainage works.

President Mahama expressed appreciation to President Hollande for his support during the Ebola outbreak and France's role in stabilising the situation in Mali and other parts of the sub-region.

He also thanked France for agreeing to support the training of teachers in the teaching and learning of French language in Ghanaian schools.

President Mahama who was accompanied by Foreign Minister Hannah Tetteh, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, Minister for Communications and Mr Kwasi Quartey, Executive Secretary to President, later held similar discussions with the Francophone Business Forum.

The focus of his visit to France is Ghana's decision to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to share ideas bordering on economic and political development.

President Mahama would also attend and address a forum of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Ambassadors and Ghanaians in the Diaspora.

While in France, President Mahama is also expected to visit Bordeaux where he would hold discussions with the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and present a lecture at the University of Bordeaux.

He is also expected to hold discussions with the Mayor of Bordeaux on a number of development issues.

GNA