An enormous flood of migration may set out from Africa for Europe unless we take the necessary measures as climate change, poverty and acts of terrorism may induce tens of millions to set out for the European Union, Péter Szijjártó told the Hungarian News Agency MTI from Ghana by telephone on Wednesday.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade stressed that the European Union must cooperate with the stable African countries boasting a good economic performance in order to reduce the pressure of migration which is reaching the continent from the direction of the region of Africa south of the Sahara. He added that there are at least 12.5 million internal refugees in the Sub-Saharan region.
Mr Szijjártó had talks on Wednesday in Accra, the capital of Ghana. The Minister met with President of the Republic John Dramani Mahama and Foreign Minister Hanna Tetteh, and will later have talks with the ministers for sports and health and company executives, among others.
The Foreign Minister takes the view that the West-African country is ready to cooperate with the EU in the interest of alleviating the pressure of immigration. He pointed out that he and Foreign Minister Hanna Tetteh agreed that European development funds should be used in the countries of the region in such a way that they should also target and contribute to the reduction of the pressure of migration.
The European aid provided for Ghana may contribute to the country as an emerging economy gaining the capacity to absorb some of the immigration pressure originating from the Sub-Saharan region towards Europe by offering increasingly better living conditions, Mr Szijjártó told MTI. He added: Hungary will propose to the European Commission that the awarding of development funds should be tied to conditions in Africa, in the wake of which the pressure of immigration may abate.
Mr Szijjártó is of the opinion that Ghana is at present receiving very limited aid from the European Union, and this, too, is tied to conditions which the people of Ghana are very unhappy with. He said he sincerely hopes that the European Commission will soon change the system of awarding development funds.
The Minister reported that, during the course of his visit, an economic cooperation agreement was signed by Hungary and Ghana, on the basis of which a mixed economic committee will be set up. Additionally, they entered into a scholarship agreement, agreed upon a diplomatic exchange programme, and affixed a paraph to a visa waiver agreement between the two countries for individuals holding diplomatic and service passports.
During the course of the talks, the parties identified the possible areas of cooperation. Mr Szijjártó takes the view that the two countries could cooperate most in the fields of information technology and cyber security, and the modernisation of energy systems.
Mr Szijjártó informed MTI that the opening of a Hungarian Embassy in Ghana is going to plan; the foreign representation will open in Accra next March.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade announced on the first of June that Hungary will open five new embassies within the next eighteen months in Latin-America and in Sub-Saharan African. He named Angola, Ethiopia and Ghana as the host countries of the three embassies to be opened in Africa.