President John Dramani Mahama has clarified that Ghana’s engagement with the BRICS bloc will be under a partner-country arrangement rather than full membership, stressing that the decision aligns with the country’s long-standing non-aligned foreign policy. He emphasised that the partnership should not be interpreted as Ghana shifting its allegiance towards Russia or other Eastern powers, maintaining that the country remains committed to fostering cordial relations with nations across the world.
Speaking during a meet-the-press session at the Jubilee House on Thursday, November 5, 2026, President Mahama reiterated that Ghana’s foreign policy was anchored in the principle of non-alignment. Quoting Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, he said: “We neither face east nor west; we face forward. And so, that is at the basis of our non-alignment.”
The President also dismissed suggestions that his recent visit to Russia signalled a move towards the Eastern bloc. He explained that diplomatic engagements with Russia should not be viewed as a departure from Ghana’s neutral foreign policy, recalling that former President Nana Akufo-Addo also participated in the first Russia-Africa Summit held in Sochi.
“Why my visit to Russia? It shouldn’t be an issue that means that we are going to the east,” he stated. Mr Mahama further distinguished between full BRICS membership and partnership, making it clear that Ghana was pursuing the latter. “Let me make it clear. There’s BRICS membership and there’s BRICS partnership. We’re not going as a BRICS member. We’re going as a partner,” he said.
To illustrate his point, the President compared Ghana’s proposed BRICS partnership to the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) the country maintains with European nations, explaining that such arrangements do not undermine its non-aligned foreign policy. “For instance, with Europe, we have the economic partnership agreements, EPAs. They are the same as the BRICS partnership. And so, it just fits with our non-aligned status,” he explained.
President Mahama reaffirmed Ghana’s commitment to maintaining diplomatic and economic relations with countries regardless of their geopolitical affiliations, insisting that the country would not align itself exclusively with any global power bloc. “We’re not drifting anywhere. We are friends to all and enemies to none,” he emphasised.
