The European Union pledges to invest 4.5 billion euros to boost job creation

Company News of Monday, June 17, 2019

Source: ghananewsagency.org

2019-06-17

The first business summit between Ghana and the European Union has been completed in Accra. The European Union (EU) had pledged an external investment of 4.5 billion euros from the EU budget in Africa, to create about 10 million jobs on the continent.

Mr Jyrki Katainen, Vice President of the Commission of the European Union for Employment, Growth and Investment, who announced it at the closing ceremony in Accra, said that the Africa-EU Alliance for Sustainable Jobs, launched last September, saw job creation as a key pillar. to solve the problems of job creation in Africa.

Therefore, he called for a continuous strengthening of partnerships and cooperation between Ghana and the EU in order to achieve the goal of guaranteeing a win-win situation, accelerate economic development and the prosperity of their peoples.

Mr Katainen highlighted the EU's commitment to help Ghana and other African countries achieve their goals through trade facilitation and innovation.

He said the economic summit showed the EU's commitment to working in partnership with Ghana to accelerate socio-economic development. He also commended Ghana for being one of the fastest growing economies in sub-Saharan Africa.

He urged Ghana to continue to diversify its economy in the areas of agriculture, manufacturing and services in order to increase its exports to the EU market in order to increase its foreign exchange earnings.

He said that sub-Saharan Africa was to create about 18 million jobs every year to rid many unemployed graduates and stressed the need to mobilize private sector investment to achieve this feat.

The Vice President of the EU said that the partnership between the EU and Ghana would mean to accelerate its economic growth and ensure the prosperity of their peoples, stressing that there was a lot of space for growth, job creation and innovation.

In a speech, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia said that the EU-Ghana Economic Summit reinforced the common conviction to strengthen partnerships.

He added that the alliance fits well with the vision of the "Ghana Beyond Aid" program pursued by the government of President Akufo-Addo and was convinced that it would refuse a new impetus in their relations.

He said the summit would strengthen the unique partnership between them, boosting economic growth and promoting accountability and transparency.
Vice President Bawumia said that the EU accounted for the largest foreign direct investment in Ghana with $ 300 million a year and the largest provider of development badistance of more than $ 500 million.

He said that the spirit and the letter of the "Ghana beyond Aid" program were articulated around four growth poles, namely: mobilize national resources, strengthen the modernization of agriculture for the industrial development, strengthen the private sector as an engine of growth, build a stable and resilient economy, able to transform and include appropriate policy interventions.

He said these growth pillars should be strengthened by a sound macroeconomic environment and a vibrant financial sector.

Given this, he said, the government pbaded the Fiscal Responsibility Law, which required the country's budget deficit not to exceed 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), noting that Over the last two years, the main fiscal indicators have stabilized and moved in the right direction.

The Vice President spoke of the phenomenal impact of the Plant for Food and Employment program, which provided farmers with subsidized fertilizer, quality seedlings and extension services, leading an increase in food production, while surplus food products were exported to neighboring countries.

Regarding the framework of industrialization, he said, the government was pursuing a valorization program through the initiative "A district, a factory" aimed at refining raw materials. 70% of the projects are focused on the valorisation of agriculture.

As a result, the government was interested in the integrated bauxite and aluminum industry and in the iron and steel industry and believed that both industries would change the game in industrial processing. from the country.

He said the government is pursuing digital programs in different sectors of the economy to improve the ease of doing business, adding that these initiatives have improved access to some public services.

He felt that Ghana would be a preferred destination for many businesses and investors, especially with the entry into force of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement.

The two-day summit aimed to boost private sector investment and enhance trade opportunities between Ghana and the European Union (EU) for their mutual benefits.