GEPA asks businesses to merge for higher exports

The Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) has encouraged businesses in the country to consider merging to take advantage of the growing global export market.

Such merging, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the authority, Mr Albert Diwura, said, would help the local businesses to enjoy economies of scale and benefit from trade liberalisation in Africa.

He was speaking at the quarterly CEOs breakfast meeting organised by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) in Accra yesterday.

The meeting is a platform for captains of industry to discuss trends and challenges in the industry and make policy recommendations to the government.

It was attended by key stakeholders, such as the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the Ghana Chamber of Commerce (GCC), exporters and investors.

The meeting was held on the theme: “Promoting trade and export financing to support Ghana’s industrialisation drive”.

Standards

Mr Diwura urged local businesses to adhere to quality standards and best practices that would help them harness the opportunities on the West African market and the world at large.

“Strict adherence to standards is key if businesses in this country are to take advantage of the opportunities on global markets. Companies must be able to do things right because if you do not do things right, others will overtake you,” he stressed.

He urged businesses to put in place systems to promote value addition, since that was the way forward to ensure that Ghana raked in the needed foreign exchange.

The Deputy GEPA CEO also urged stakeholders in the export sector and local businesses to invest in extensive research to help them strategise to properly harness market opportunities.

He said GEPA was in the process of putting together a 10-year national export development strategy to boost the export sector.

GIPC mandate

The Chief Operating Officer of the GIPC, Mr Carl Nelson, gave an assurance that the centre would continue to interface with all actors in the export space to facilitate the growth of businesses.

He said it would live up to its mandate by collating views from the relevant stakeholders and making policy recommendations to the government.

He asked businesses in the country to adequately prepare to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement and reach out to more markets.