GHANA has received approval from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) authority to trade 700 local products within the African continent. Minister of Trade and Industry Kobina Tahir Hammond made the announcement on the first day of the Made-in-Ghana Bazaar, highlighting the government’s efforts to make Ghanaian products competitive domestically and abroad under the AfCFTA.
‘The government has taken advantage of the AfCFTA Guided Trade Initiative, facilitating market exploratory missions for 63 companies to Kenya and 52 companies to Tanzania,’ Hammond stated. ‘As a result, a total of 700 products have received rules-of-origin certification to trade under AfCFTA.’
Hammond emphasised the government’s commitment to creating a conducive environment for the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and other manufacturing concerns in Ghana. He urged the private sector to seize the opportunity to invest in local manufacturing.
‘Ghana can only make strides in AfCFTA with the full participation of the private sector, particularly our SMEs, which form an integral part of Ghana’s economic transformation,’ added Mavis Nkansah-Boadu, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, in her speech.
The Made-in-Ghana Bazaar, organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, aimed to identify SMEs producing local products for export. The event attracted batik makers, weavers of Ghanaian kente fabric, food processing companies, and machinery fabricators, among others.
