The heads of the Ghana Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) have reaffirmed their commitment to cooperate closely on nuclear safety and regulation. This reaffirmation, jointly by NRA director-general Nii Kwashie Allotey and NRC chair Christopher T Hanson, was made at the end of last week when the latter was on a visit to Ghana.

The two agencies signed their first bilateral cooperation and technical information exchange agreement in 2017. This agreement, and the subsequent cooperation between them, was part of a broader Ghanaian-US initiative to assist the African country in developing a civil nuclear power programme. The cooperation between the NRA and NRC embraced issues such as nuclear energy safety and security-related issues.

“We value the partnership that the NRA has forged over many years with the US NRC, one of the world’s leading and most experienced nuclear regulators,” said Allotey. “We greatly value the NRC’s expertise as we seek to develop Ghana’s own strong, independent regulatory oversight programme. International partnerships such as this provide a solid foundation for the NRA’s oversight programmes, which will protect people and the environment and align with international standards and obligations.”

“We have worked closely with Ghana’s NRA as it develops a technically competent, independent regulatory programme in preparation of overseeing commercial nuclear power in Ghana,” reported Hanson. “Establishing a strong and transparent regulatory framework based on high safety standards is a critical step toward the adoption of nuclear technologies. We have a long-standing partnership with Ghana’s regulator, and we welcome our continued collaboration as [the] NRA progresses in establishing a regulatory structure.”

Ghana is now seeking to create a legal framework for civil nuclear cooperation with the US. These frameworks are known as “123 Agreements”.

During his visit to Ghana, Hanson also met with leading officials in the Ministry of Energy and in the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation. He also met senior officials of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission.