Ghana-US business expo opens in Accra
A Garments and Textiles manufacturing policy and incentive framework that seeks to attract investment from United States (US) and other countries into the industry has been developed, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Kobina Tahir Hammond, has announced.
At the opening of the US-Ghana business Expo 2023 in Accra yesterday, he said, the document, formulated with industry experts, would be outdoored in the last quarter of this year, after ongoing consultations were concluded.
He said the move was to make Ghana the new global hub for garments by taking advantage of the quest for cost-competitive sourcing destinations due to increased manufacturing costs in top manufacturing hubs worldwide.
Organised by the American Chamber of Commerce –Ghana, the US Embassy and other partners, the two-day Expo, on the theme “Leveraging US-Ghana trade relations for growth and prosperity” provided a platform to foster bilateral trade collaboration between Ghana and US.
It convened Ghana and US business communities in Ghana, 40
exhibitors and a Global Diversity Export Initiative Trade Mission made up of diverse American businesses and experts.
According to factsheets made available at the event, the value of trade between the two countries hit an all-time high of $3.7 billion with exports from Ghana, being $2.7 billion.
Besides the garment industry, Mr Hammond said, the government had stepped up support for the private sector, both domestic and foreign, to enhance production and export capacity, particularly in the manufacturing sector.
He advocated more trade and investments to boost the value of trade between the two countries to aid socio-economic development of both countries.
“We would like to see more export products from our shores into the U.S. market, the most lucrative consumer market globally. This can be achieved through increased investment from the U.S., especially in respect of harnessing the considerable and largely untapped U.S. market opportunities offered under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the Prosper Africa Initiative of the U.S. Government,” he said.
The US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, Marisa Lago – U.S. Department of Commerce, said there was enormous potential for increased commercial cooperation.
She said this was because Africa had one of the world’s fastest growing populations and the potential to be the largest burgeoning free trade area, and people-to-people and diaspora ties between the US and the nations of Africa.
“We must strive to clearly identify inhibiting factors that are holding our businesses back from delivering greater trade and investment, and then work together to reduce or eliminate those barriers,” she said.
The US Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, said the American and Ghanaian businesses had been at the forefront of efforts to boost economic ties between the two countries.
She said the Embassy was ready to help U.S. and Ghanaian companies build on the already strong trade and investment foundation to launch new cooperative projects and partnerships.
The President of the American Chamber of Commerce, Ghana, Ayesha Ibe, said the expo shows the desire of the organisers to see Ghana-US business ties flourish.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
