Costs are high but Ghanaians continue to invest in other economies

The acting Managing Director of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, Mr Ransford Tetteh, has bemoaned the influx of imports into the country, explaining that the strong demand for such products means that Ghanaians are investing in the economies of other countries to the detriment of Ghana.

As a result, he urged Ghanaians to patronise local produce to help grow local businesses and stimulate growth in the economy.

He was speaking at the ongoing GRAPHIC BUSINESS/Stanbic Bank Breakfast forum on manufacturing at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra, on the theme “Unlocking Economic Growth Through Manufacturing - Cost Quality And Competitiveness”.

"Many years ago, we used to have a place called North Industrial Area," he said in reference to the once vibrant North Industrial Area in Accra that played host to many factories in the 1990s.

"Today, it's no longer an industrial area but a trading place where all manner of goods are being warehoused, among others," he said.

This, he said, was evidence of how imports had strangulated industry in recent years.

"If we don't support our own but patronise the products of others, we'll always be developing the economies of others," he said.

He was however optimistic that the discussion at the forum, to be spearheaded by the Senior Minister, Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo and Dr Tony Oteng-Gyasi of Tropical Cables and Conductors, will set a positive stage for an industrial revolution.