Business News of Saturday, 31 July 2021
Source: Lord Kweku Sekyi, Contributor
2021-07-31
The visit was intended to strengthen the relationship between government and the industry
The Deputy Minister for Trade and Industry, Herbert Krapa has embarked on his first working visit to assess work so far on exportation among firms across the country.
The visit is intended to strengthen the relationship between government and industry stakeholders to boost foreign direct investment in Ghana’s export sector.
Addressing journalists during a tour of Golden Exotics Limited (GEL) at Asutuare in the Shai Osudoku District of the Greater Accra Region, Hon. Krapa expressed satisfaction with the company’s efforts to produce high-quality bananas in Ghana in strict conformity to European Union (EU) standards.
He said the Trade Ministry has commenced the rolling out of a series of programmes and interventions to increase the volume of non-traditional exports from 2.5 USD to 25 billion USD by 2030 through the National Export Development Strategy (NEDS) which is being spearheaded by the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA).
Hon. Krapa added that engaging investors on the field also offers the Government of Ghana the opportunity to get updated with information about recent developments at some of the country’s key industrial centres for non-traditional export products.
Employing over 3000 Ghanaians and located on a surface area of over 8,600 hectares, GEL, which is Fair Trade certified, produces 50,000 tonnes of bananas and 10,000 tonnes of pineapples annually, making it the largest exporter of bananas and pineapples in Ghana.
The company’s plantation in Ghana also hosts one of the largest organic banana farms in the world, exporting mainly to EU countries and some African countries including Mali and Burkina Faso.
Vice President of GEL, Olivier Chassang, said the company is confident in its products produced in Ghana after almost 2 decades of operations in the country.
He also expressed confidence in the commitment of the Government of Ghana to ensure political and economic stability to create an enabling environment that will attract more investment to create employment and boost the nation’s economy.