Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall due in Accra this week

Accra, Oct 29, GNA - The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall will visit Ghana from November 2 to November 6.

A statement issued by the British High Commission in Accra and copied to the Ghana News Agency said during the visit, the Royals would celebrate the close relationship between the United Kingdom and Ghana, the importance of the Commonwealth ties and their shared values.

It said the West African tour would be The Prince of Wales’ and The Duchess of Cornwall’s first visit to the Commonwealth since Commonwealth Heads of Government unanimously decided The Prince should succeed The Queen as the future Head of the Commonwealth, during the Commonwealth Summit held in London in April.

It recalled that the Summit was the largest of its kind in British history, with leaders agreeing on a range of actions to build a reformed and revitalised Commonwealth that was fairer, more sustainable, prosperous and secure.

The statement said the Commonwealth was a fundamental feature for The Prince of Wales throughout his life and the Prince of Wales spoke fondly about being part of the Commonwealth family.

It noted that on November 5, he would give a speech at the Accra International Conference Centre, where he would share his reflections on the Commonwealth and he would be joined by President Nana Akufo-Addo, representatives from Commonwealth organisations and a cross-section of Ghana’s youth who represent the future of the Commonwealth.

It said the Prince of Wales would recognise the value of this diverse community, the unique qualities that each brought and their collective ability to create a more positive future for the one billion Commonwealth citizens living in 53 member states.

The statement said the visit would highlight a number of important commitments made by the

Commonwealth Heads of Government during the Commonwealth Summit and the UK and Ghana were members of the Commonwealth Clean Oceans Alliance and, at the Summit, made a commitment to work together to protect their oceans by taking steps to eliminate avoidable plastic waste.

It said The Prince of Wales would bring together global partners at a Plastics Roundtable to discuss implementation of the Commonwealth Blue Charter and their collective responsibility to tackle marine plastic pollution.

It said he would see the work of local artists who were turning plastic waste into art to raise awareness about plastic pollution and said young people make up 60 per cent of the Commonwealth.

It said The Duchess of Cornwall, joined by The First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo, would launch the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition, the world’s oldest international schools’ writing competition.

The statement said Commonwealth youth under the age of 18 were invited to express their hopes for the future, opinions of the present and thoughts on the past.

"This is the first time this competition, an important platform for the voices of young people, will be launched outside the UK," it stated.

It said the event would be one of the first of The Duchess of Cornwall's activities in her new role as Royal Commonwealth Society Vice Patron, which was announced earlier this year and the Commonwealth brought people together through a shared sense of purpose and common values.

It noted that The Duchess of Cornwall would celebrate what united them at the Commonwealth Big Lunch, a festive gathering that would bring together children from schools across Accra to celebrate the shared values of the Commonwealth and to promote Ghana’s rich cultural diversity and community spirit.

It said since its creation, the Commonwealth had had a lasting impact on the promotion of peace, democracy and human rights and the Royals recognised the sacrifices that had been made by the UK, Ghana and other Commonwealth nations to create a more secure world and said they would lay wreaths at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery, to acknowledge the sacrifice made by Ghanaian and British soldiers during the First and Second World Wars, and in more recent times during international peacekeeping missions.

It said they would be joined by President Akufo-Addo, The First Lady and The Earl of Wessex and as the Centenary of the Great War approached, the Royals would reflect on the Commonwealth’s on-going efforts to respond to today’s global security challenges.

Mr Iain Walker, British High Commissioner to Ghana said: “The Royal Visit comes at an exciting time for the both the UK and Ghana".

"In the six months since the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the Commonwealth has been working together to drive forward our commitments to build a Commonwealth that is fairer, more sustainable, prosperous and secure," he added.

He said their visit was a moment to celebrate the warm, enduring relationship and our shared ambition for the Commonwealth.

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