Lebanese Ambassador pays courtesy call on Asantehene, eulogises the king's role in peace building

Ambassador Maher Kheir, Lebanese Ambassador to Ghana has praised the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II for his outstanding role in making sure there is peaceful coexistence among all people across the world. According to him, Otumfuo's prominent fight for peace has been very instrumental to the extent that it has brought peaceful coexistence in Ghana, between Ghana and other nations, etc. He disclosed this in an interview with the media after he had visited the Manhyia palace on Friday. The ambassador who visited the Manhyia palace with his entourage to pay a courtesy call on the Ashanti overlord, said, their visit was to initiate good rapport with the people of Kumasi-Ashanti and possibly bring in more investment ventures. "The relationship between Ghana and Lebanon goes beyond. The Lebanese community contribute in many sectors and we will continue in many other areas like education, and you know we have a Lebanese scholarship program which has already benefited around 400 students in Accra and Kumasi," he said. He further disclosed that the Lebanese community was ready to invest much more in Kumasi and that is why they were also scheduled to meet his royal majesty to give notice of their future vision and listen to his wise advice. From the Manhyia palace, the Lebanese Ambassador also paid a visit to the Salki Zongo of Kumasi, where the Salki Zongo commended the Lebanese for their continuous support and good relationship with the people of Ghana, especially those within the Zongo communities. According to the Salki Zongo, His Eminence Sultan Omar Farouk Saeed, the Lebanese community are the first people that the Zongo people know as compared to the other foreigners due to their continuous support and good relationship with the Zongos. "They assist us and we see them assisting others. I think not all people here know the history between Lebanon and Ghana. People like us have known the kind of assistance the Lebanese people have been offering to Ghanaians. When we were kids, any whiteman we saw we say he's Lebanese because they're the only people that used to assist the Zongo communities. They used to help our students a lot in terms of education and we're always grateful," the Salki Zongo revealed. The Salki Zongo further pleaded with the ambassador to continue extending more support to the Zongo communities especially those in the Ashanti region, where he expressed worry over the frequent rate at which some Zongo youth drop out of school due to financial difficulties. There is a problem in our Zongo community which is education. Some of our students that are going to school some are not able to continue because of financial support. I would like to take this opportunity to ask the Lebanese Ambassador in Ghana to as a matter of urgency share more of the scholarships they have been doing, to our people here". Secondly, the Salki Zongo pleaded with H.E Maher Kheir to help them complete an ICT centre by providing them with computers and other accessories. His Excellency Maher Kheir who expressed joy over the nice reception given to him and his entourage pledged to do more for the Ghanaian community especially those within the Zongo. He said investment in ventures such as businesses to employ more people, educational scholarships, and helping others in terms of education were their key dreams for which they visited Kumasi.