Ghana Beyond Aid not achievable without standards

The mantra of the current government — Ghana Beyond Aid — resonates well with us at the Daily Graphic and we have so much faith that it is achievable.

However, if we are to refrain from relying on handouts from Europe, the Americas, Asia and other countries in order to progress as a country, then we have to put in place pragmatic measures that will make that possible.

One of the key things that have to be pursued without let or hindrance is the adherence to international standards, as agreed by the comity of nations.

Ghana is blessed with vast arable lands, many cash crops, minerals, forest products, oil, among other gifts of nature which are in high demand the world over and can fetch us so much in foreign exchange.

Nonetheless, our desire to cash in on these items through trade and exchange of goods cannot be realised without the accepted standards of labelling and packaging, measurement and weights, as well as quality.

There have been instances when products from Ghana, such as palm oil, have been rejected on the foreign market.

For instance, in 2004, the UK Food Standards Agency recalled Adun Foods Zomi Oil and Juliamco Zomi Fresh Palm Oil which had been imported from Ghana from the UK market after investigations proved that they were contaminated with a harmful dye known as scarlet red.

Speaking at the signing of an agreement on “Improving sustainable value chains for exports from Ghana” in 2013, the Swiss Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Andrea Semadeni, had said more Ghanaian exports were rejected at European Union and United States borders because of non-compliance with international standards.

Again, in 2014, large quantities of yam exported to the US from Ghana were rejected, as most were found to be unwholesome on arrival in that country.
Such recalls certainly weaken Ghana’s receipts from those commodities from the countries concerned and have an adverse long-lasting effect on its socio-economic development.

We laud Parliament’s recommendation for a review of the legal mandate of the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) to accommodate the imposition of administrative fines and the power to destroy substandard goods that are impounded.

That is because it will help the authority seize non-conforming goods that have inundated the markets and which do not only pose risks to the health of Ghanaians but also make the country unpopular on the global market.

Research conducted on selected markets in Accra and Kumasi in 2018 to sample products, including electrical gadgets, cables and accessories, footwear, bags, dresses, vehicle spare parts and household appliances, showed that over 90 per cent of the products failed labelling requirements, while majority also failed tests for critical parameters, with health and safety implications.

That, indeed, is very scary.

Our expectation is that giving more power to the GSA will enable it to prevent the exportation or importation of substandard goods, so that the authority is not made to go in to confiscate inferior goods only after they have been brought in or produced.

We urge that Ghanaian manufacturing companies be assisted to adhere to globally accepted standards, so that their long-term investments are not made to go down the drain.

The Daily Graphic, in the same breath, requests that importers who deliberately import substandard goods and companies that produce shoddy goods just to make money from unsuspecting buyers be made to face the music.

That is the only way by which both Ghanaians and foreign markets will clamour for made-in-Ghana goods and give the country the kind of leverage it needs to take care of its people without foreign aid.