The Joint Coordinating Committee (JCC) meeting
is part of implementation of the 2015 Intergovernmental Agreement on the
peaceful use of atomic energy.
The meeting agenda included all key issues
related to the nuclear program, including infrastructure,
staff training, financing, technical issues related to construction of
facilities for the joint projects and regulation in the nuclear power industry.
The parties also discussed practical
aspects of cooperation in the form of task groups between JCC meetings.
According to Viktor Polikarpov, ROSATOM Regional
Vice-President of Sub-Saharan Africa, "although there are no nuclear power
plants, Ghana has competences in nuclear technology, and the country
understands that the development of peaceful nuclear power is necessary”.
Ghana is developing the National Nuclear Power
Program and has conducted self-assessment of its nuclear infrastructure in
accordance with the IAEA standards.
The country is also preparing to accept the
first INIR mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“In the long term, Ghana may be expected to
become one of the countries that make use of nuclear power. This will help
overcome energy shortage, as well as provide a necessary impetus for economic
development in the country," said Mr. Polikarpov.
Director
General of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Professor Benjamin Nyarko, has
argued that nuclear energy offers the opportunity to grow greener economies and
for Ghana to conform to the new Paris Agreement on climate change.
In
spite of the benefits, he says the country is not in a rush to compromise on
safety standards.
The next meeting of the countries'
representatives is to be held during the IAEA General Conference in September,
while the second JCC meeting will take place in 2017.
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