Slovenian delegation in Ghana explores investment opportunities

Company News of Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Source: Myjoyonline.com

2018-11-28

Slovenia, the third fastest growing economy in the European Union, is committed to making Ghana its special trading partner over the next few months.

The announcement was made during the first Ghana-Slovenia Business Summit, during which a delegation of Slovenian investors hired the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) on business opportunities and opportunities. Investment in the non-traditional export sector.

State Secretary at the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dobran Bozic, told JoyBusiness that the decision to explore investment opportunities in Ghana was a strategic decision.

"I hope that is the future of the Ghanaian economy. This is an opportunity for Ghana to be one of the leading countries on the continent in green energy. The stable political landscape and sound macroeconomic fundamentals are sufficient for investment and we are confident in mutual benefits, "he said.

Afua Asabea Asare, CEO of the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA), said the arrival of these Slovenian investors would help boost the country's export margins.

"We help each other; we are looking for places where we can collaborate to work. So far, they have expressed interest in cocoa and cashew nuts and we hope to see how trade commitments will generate the necessary economic margins, "she said.

At the same time, the Ghana Export Promotion Authority is confident that it will reach its target of 2021 for non-traditional exports, set at $ 5.3 billion.

Asare said strategies have been put in place to reach the target. She added that while it is not easy to double the gains over the next three years, GEPA was putting in place interventions to reach the goal in a timely manner.

"It will not be an easy task, but we are confident that plans to increase the production of NTE products such as cashews, mangoes and vegetables would help us achieve our goal," she said. .

GEPA has developed a 10-year development plan for cashew nut production, which includes added value, and has also committed 4.2 million GH ¢ to secure 15 million pineapple suckers for planting. .

There is also a program to introduce a mbadive pilot spraying and distribution of grafted cashew plants from farmers in Wenchi, in the Brong Ahafo region.
GEPA also undertook extensive consultations with all metropolitan, municipal and district bademblies to identify at least one culture from each district to be developed for export in accordance with the government's industrialization agenda.

Asabea Asare said all interventions should increase revenues in the coming years to allow GEPA to reach its goal.

Revenues from NTEs were $ 2.6 billion in 2017, an increase of 3.81% from $ 2.5 billion in 2016.

NTEs currently account for 18.37% of the country's total national merchandise exports.

Asabea Asare, who was on Tuesday to mark Ghana's day at the SIAO fair, described Ghana's participation in the fair as a success.

This year's edition, which also coincides with the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the fair's establishment, focuses on the theme: "African Craftsmanship, Market Requirements and Technological Development".