Ghana Freezones officials visit Yaa Naa; Tamale hosts 2019 Investment Week Promotion

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Freezones Authority (GFZA), Mr Michael Okyere Baafi, has paid a courtesy call on the Overlord of Dagbon, Yaa Naa Abukari Mahama II, at the Gbewaa Palace in the Northern region to solicit his support and blessing for this year's Investment Week Promotion. 

Tamale is hosting this year's Investment Week Promotion.

The Free Zones boss was in the company of a delegation from his outfit, including the Head of Marketing, Anita Quarshie; Western Regional Manager, Hajia Hanatu Abubakar;  Head Of Estate and Enclave Development,Kwame Nsiah Asante;  Head Of Legal unit, Mrs. Kristine Lartey, and Dr Susan Aga Alo, a Board Member. 

Some executives of the Ghana Freezones Authority 

The purpose of the visit was to seek the support and blessing of the Yaa-Naa as the Free Zones Authority marks the ongoing 2019 Investment Week Promotion in Tamale.

The Dagbon Overlord in a brief remarks expressed his readiness to personally work with the GFZA and assured the team of his full support.

For his part, Mr. Baafi indicated said a critical moment has come for the Free Zones to include indigenous Ghanaian businesses and entrepreneurs, explaining that over the years, the Investment Promotion has been held in Accra, Takoradi, Kumasi among other regions, hence the need to bring the event this year to Tamale as part of efforts to reach more investors and local entrepreneurs in the northern part of the country.

"Over the years, the perception has been that the Ghana Freezones regime is mainly tailored towards attracting only foreign investors. Under the Akuffo Addo led administration, the drive is to consciously have a Freezone enclave in as many regions as practicable as a way of attracting more local investments," Mr Baafi said. 

The Ghana Free Zone Authority was established on August 31, 1995 by an Act of Parliament–the Free Zones Act, 1995 (Act 504), to enable the establishment of Free Zones in Ghana for the promotion of economic development, to provide for the regulation of activities in the free zones and for related purposes.

The Ghana Free Zones programme combines both the enclave and single-factory enterprise schemes, which is designated to provide processing and manufacturing of goods through the establishment of Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and encourage the development of commercial and service activities at sea and airport areas.