The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has commended Muslim and Christian leaders in Ghana for their immense contributions to religious tolerance and peace in the country.

Addressing thousands of Muslims on Saturday, at the 2021 National Maulid - the celebration of the birth of Prophet Muhammad, S.A.W - Dr. Bawumia said the country's global credentials as a religious tolerant and a peaceful nation, has been made possible by the understanding and camaraderie between leaders of the two major religions in the country.

"The increasing rate of religious tolerance in the country, leading to the peace we continue to enjoy, has been the collective efforts of all, including, Muslim and Christian leaders.

"When the National Chief Imam paid a surprise visit to a church a few years ago and the BBC reported it, the renowned global broadcaster was not only telling the world the uniqueness of Sheikh Sharubutu, the remarkable story, was also about the beauty of our country; how religious tolerance reigns in Ghana, and how peaceful our country is. This happened at a time there had been religious upheavals around the world.

"I acknowledge and appreciate overtures many Christian leaders continue to extend to the National Chief Imam and other Islamic clerics across the country," he said.

The Vice President called for a continuation of such collective efforts to maintain the peace of the country, to ensure a conducive atmosphere for the government to continue with the development of the nation.

"Maintaining the peace we enjoy in our communities and country, should be the concern and responsibility of all, regardless of political or religious affiliation. Without tolerance, there will be no peace. And without peace, there will be no development" Dr Bawumia urged.

He further added that "We need to jealously guard this, because without peace, our government would not have had the conducive atmosphere to achieve so much in the past five years in the areas of infrastructure development, inclusive policies to reduce the suffering of Ghanaians and massive investment in education, etc.

According to him, government has always prioritized maintaining and promoting peace in the country.

In view of that, he averred that "it is no fluke that Ghana has been ranked the most peaceful country in West Africa and 2nd most peaceful country on the African continent for 2021 by the Global Peace Index."