Turkey to increase investment flow to Ghana

The Turkish kitchenware sector is working to increase its trade investment inflow to Ghana from the current US$1.06 million to US$10 million in the next three years through partnerships with Ghanaian industrialists.The Chairman of the Istanbul Chemicals and Chemical Product Exporters' Association (ICCPEA) ,Murat Akyuz, said: "Our goal is to increase the Turkish kitchenware exports to Ghana to $10 million in the next three years and $20 million in the next five years.”

According to him, Turkish kitchenware exports to Ghana now stood at $1.06 million but on the whole, Turkey’s annual kitchenware exports to the rest of the world was $4 billion.

Mr Akyuz said this when he led a 14-member kitchenware business delegation to Ghana. He  further noted that the current export levels were low and that the target was to increase it ten-fold.

The delegation had business meetings with kitchenware importers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers in the country.

The chairman said Ghana was chosen because of the great potential it had as a stable democracy and the gateway to countries in the West African sub-region.

He said the long-term focus of the delegation was to seek joint-venture opportunities with their Ghanaian counterparts that would enable them to bring their expertise to bear on the production of kitchenware.

Mr Akyuz said the “focus is not sales but our vision is to encourage Turkish industry players to see Ghana as a market where they could establish their production plants to produce locally and for export to the rest of the countries in West Africa. Selling alone will not help one another’s economy.”

He further explained that their visit was to establish the base for future business engagement that would yield better mutual benefits for both countries in the long term.