Source: newsthemegh.com
The Ghanaian trading, commercial, and industrial community has received a strong call from Hon. Kobina Tahir Hammond (MP), Minister of Trade and Industry, to lower their pricing and assist make life a little easier for customers.
According to him, carrying out this action would be a component of their corporate social obligation to the nation and its customers.
The Minister made the appeal at the 47th Annual General Meeting of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Accra. He also mentioned that the government would match the goodwill by creating an environment that is favorable to the growth of both their companies and the country.
Hon. K.T. Hammond brought up the topic of the disproportionate profits made by certain members of the corporate community, which is a common theme in public conversation.
The Minister acknowledged that he was not indifferent to the different cost and input factors of production, nor to the impact of the dollarization of the economy and its ripple effect on product prices, nor to the wailing laments over taxes and levies paid to the government, but he questioned whether these were the only factors contributing to Ghana’s unacceptably high cost of living.
The Minister urged the Chamber and its members to reject the false notion that the public is radically ignorant of what some refer to as “the abnormal or super-normal” profits that some of them make. The Minister, however, had no problems with any attempts to achieve respectable profits.
He related a recent incident involving certain High Street stores and supermarkets in certain areas that decided as a group not to charge their already overburdened customers the additional costs they would have otherwise had to pay.
He claimed that as part of their collective corporate social duty to the public, the businesses chose to take up the costs in order to lessen the load on the customer.
Speaking of the AGM’s theme, “Building Business Confidence in the Midst of Economic Challenges,” he pointed out that the invasion of Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic have caused significant disruptions to the global economy, making this the most challenging time since World War II.
He noted that the world faces numerous issues as a result of the two crises and other longer-term tendencies, which will probably restrict growth and pose serious challenges for international leaders for some time to come.
The Minister claims that there is hope because the Bank of Ghana reports that economic growth was robust in the first half of 2023. Additionally, data from the Ghana Statistical Service shows that real GDP growth in the second quarter of 2023 was 3.2 percent, slightly lower than the 3.5 percent and 3.3 percent growth in the same period last year.
He advocated for investments in R&D and creative thinking, especially in sectors of the economy that have shown signs of expansion. He added that by developing initiatives that support small business development and entrepreneurship, the government is fostering innovation.
The Minister revealed that Government, upon realising that complicated regulatory environments can encourage disinvestment, has tried to demystify the investment regime by simplifying the legislative framework surrounding it.
He said Ghana’s Business Regulatory Reform Strategy sought to institutionalise policy reform measures to encourage the private sector to invest in industrial ventures, create more jobs, and promote interventions in support of innovation and entrepreneurship.
According to Hon K.T.Hammond, Government is making progress in implementing a comprehensive and integrated programme for industrial transformation with initiatives such as the ‘1 District 1 Factory’ policy – to transform the structure of Ghana’s economy from dependency on the import and export of raw materials to one focused on manufacturing, value addition and export of processed goods. He revealed that at the last count, a Hundred and Sixty-nine (169) factories were operational, with the number expected to increase next year.
Among others, the Minister also noted that over a relatively short span of 3 years of a deliberate policy intervention to create a new automotive sector, Ghana is now recognized as an emerging hub for vehicle assembly, with the country currently hosting 6 vehicle assembly plants producing 11 vehicle brands including Volks Wagen, Toyota, Suzuki, Nissan, KIA and Hyundai.
He assured the gathering that Government would continue to implement transformative initiatives in key strategic sectors which would anchor the country’s vision of industrialisation, and called on them to continue to keep faith in the Government, support Government initiatives with their constructive inputs and know-how and enrich the reform programmes with their experience to help build the most business-friendly economy in Africa.