The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman Alan Yarrow, is to lead a business delegation to Accra, Ghana, selling the City of London and the UK as the regional partner of choice when it comes to financial and professional services.

The Lord Mayor acts as ambassador for the UK’s financial and professional services, and will be meeting with senior members of the government, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, regulators and business leaders. Other notable events he will take part in include:

• Hosting a roundtable with the Minister of Finance, the CEO of Private Sector Development, Office of the President and Deputy Minister of Power.
• A reception boosting business ties with the financial, professional and legal services sector.
• Visiting Prudential Ghana’s training facility in Darquah.
• Discussing actuarial training with the Ghana Insurance Commission.

Speaking ahead of his trip, Lord Mayor Yarrow said:

“Building partnership between our two countries is the main goal of my visit this week. I want to make sure that the City of London and the rest of the UK are Ghana’s first thought when they want to do business.

“Bilateral trade between Ghana and the UK, which reached an all-time high in recent times, is expected to continue with its strong growth. And while the country is the UK’s sixth largest export market in sub Saharan Africa, I think we can and should be building on this over the years and the prime objective of my visit is to do just this.”

Notes to editors

About the Lord Mayor of the City of London

• The Lord Mayor is head of the Square Mile’s City of London authority for one year and the position is unpaid and apolitical. It is an exceptionally demanding role. The Lord Mayor spends some 90 days abroad and addresses some 10,000 people face-to-face each month (making around 800 speeches a year).

• The Lord Mayor represents City businesses and helps the City Corporation advise the Government of the day on what is needed to help the financial services sector to function well. The Lord Mayor frequently travels to represent the City; and travels overseas with the status of a Cabinet Minister.

• The Lord Mayor meets several international Heads of Government and Business each month to discuss financial services, often in conjunction with senior City business representatives. The Lord Mayor lives in the Mansion House for the Mayoral year.