3rd US-Ghana Business Expo slated for Feb. 16-22
Scores of Ghanaian businesses from both the private and public sectors of the economy will take part in the 3rd US-Ghana Business Expo Roundtable and B2B matching scheduled for February 16-22, this year, in Philadelphia and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA.
An initiative of the US-Ghana Chamber of Commerce, Philadelphia, in collaboration with the US Commercial Service, Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) and Millersville University, Lancaster, among others, the programme is meant to, among other things, serve as a major platform for Ghanaian businesses to discuss business opportunities with their US counterparts.
Coming at a time when there is renewed hope in both countries as a result of the election of what many have described as business-friendly leaders in the persons of John Dramani Mahama of Ghana and Donald Trump of the USA, the expo roundtable will also be attended by government officials and state agency heads who will lay bare the various policy directions of their respective governments.
Key sectors of focus during the event are: Agriculture, Energy, Health care, Transportation, and Trade and Investment. The rest are Fintech, Real Estate and Technology.
New dawn of business
The President of the chamber, Florence Torson Hart, described the event as timely because of the determination of the two leaders in Ghana and the US to change the business narrative.
Regarding Ghana, for instance, she said the event would be used to explore how the 24-hour policy of President Mahama could be supported to benefit businesses and the economy as a whole.
“We believe that a component of the 24-hour Economy will be export-driven as a way to utilise the excess production gained through increased productivity, particularly in the agricultural sector.
“It also means that many companies might look to expand capacity, which will require additional resources, including technology, capital resources and market expansion,” Mrs Torson Hart added.
She said the chamber believed that one way to drive increased mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and joint ventures would be through the carefully planned Business to Business (B2B) matching component of the business summit on the schedule.
“This also ties in very neatly with the summit theme: “Ghana as the key to African Connectivity”,” she said, adding that “Other major areas will be how to use artificial intelligence (AI) to drive efficiency in energy production and green energy, international real estate investment/financing, investment in the ports, agriculture, agribusiness and manufacturing.
Takeaways
She said the event would also provide a platform for discussion, orientation and education about business opportunities in Ghana.
Ms Torson-Hart said the turnaround point, after all, would be opportunities for market expansion, the ability to scale business, new lead generation, and identifying resources, including technological solutions and funding.