The Commonwealth of The Bahamas will recruit 300 Ghanaian teachers this year under a new bilateral labour mobility arrangement, marking the first phase of an expanded education cooperation between the two countries, Minister for Foreign Affairs Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has announced following an official visit to Nassau on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama.
The agreement broadens Ghana’s labour export engagements beyond the health sector and is expected to create new employment opportunities for qualified Ghanaian teachers while strengthening education delivery in The Bahamas.
Announcing the outcome of bilateral talks held during The Bahamas’ 53rd Independence Anniversary celebrations, Ablakwa said the Caribbean nation was “ready to receive 300 Ghanaian teachers” this year under what he described as the “first phase” of a new education partnership.
He said the initiative follows the success of an existing arrangement under which Ghanaian nurses have been deployed to The Bahamas, noting that Bahamian authorities were impressed with the “excellent work ethic” demonstrated by the Ghanaian health professionals. That performance, he said, has created the confidence to extend cooperation into the education sector, ushering in “a new era of expanded labour mobility” between the two countries.
The Foreign Affairs Minister announced that the Government of The Bahamas had agreed to renew work permits for Ghanaians employed in the country’s construction and engineering sectors under private business arrangements.
He said the permit issue had been “successfully resolved” after constructive discussions with Bahamian authorities, providing certainty for affected Ghanaian workers and employers.
Ablakwa expressed appreciation to The Bahamas’ Minister of State for Immigration, Darron S. Pickstock, for his “remarkable leadership” in helping resolve the matter.
He also highlighted the longstanding historical relationship between the two countries, describing the ancestral ties between Ghana and The Bahamas as an important foundation for deeper economic and people-to-people cooperation. According to the minister, the two governments intend to pursue stronger strategic partnerships through diplomacy that deliver direct benefits to the Ghanaian people.
The latest agreements form part of Ghana’s broader economic diplomacy strategy, which seeks to expand overseas employment opportunities for skilled professionals while strengthening bilateral relations with countries facing labour shortages.
