Ghana’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Alan Kyeremanten, has said the hosting of the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and subsequent commencement of the trade pact has by default made Ghana, the commercial capital and trade hub of the African Continent.
“As a country hosting the Secretariat of the AfCFTA, it by default makes us the new commercial capital for the continent,” he noted, adding this is going to attract large foreign investments into Ghana from investors around the globe.
“I can tell you that it is probably the most powerful stimulus for attracting investments into our country because if investors from around the globe now appreciate the fact that situating a production facility in Ghana not only sells in Ghana, but also to the entire continent is a big deal,” he stated.
According to the Trade Minister, AfCFTA first of all presents to Ghanaian manufacturers the potential to go beyond the local market to serve a larger market by exporting to other African countries.
“Once we have a single market, you enhance the economies of scale, meaning that Ghanaian manufacturers now have the potential to export to a larger market, that is beyond the local market,” he noted.
“Second it enables us to add value to our natural resources because that’s what industrialization is all about. And we can take advantage of regional value chains by collaborating with our partners in Nigeria, Togo, etc and consolidating our efforts on how to take advantage of the market in other parts of Africa,” he added.
Speaking further, Mr Kyeremanten noted Ghana becoming the commercial capital of the Continent will inure to the benefit of Ghanaians through the influx of businesses and creation of good, quality and highly paid jobs for the nation’s teeming youth.
The implementation of the AfCFTA trade pact commenced on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2021.
