Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, vice president, has received an honorary membership from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Policy Network (APN).
Executives from the network also extended an invitation to Dr. Bawumia to attend the network’s upcoming flagship event, the Africa Globalized Investment Summit in Seychelles in 2023, during a courtesy call on the Vice-President at the Jubilee House.
This APN
As the largest and most influential international non-governmental organisation (NGO) with a primary focus on AfCFTA implementation, the APN was founded in 2019.
The executive director of the APN Women of Africa Network, Audrey Biney, the executive counsel of Women of Africa, Dr. Joe Tackie, the board chairman of the APN, and Joyce Williams, the leader of the USA delegation, were all part of the delegation.
Others included Kwasi Okyere-Boateng, Special Advisor to the APN Executive Director; Hannah Hayford Affriyie, Head of Administration; Prof. Faisal Ellis, President and Co-Founder of the African Professionals Network; Jenny Sutmoller, Director of Strategic Partnerships at the University of Cincinnati; Raj Mehta, Vice-Provost for International Affairs; Julia Lartey of Jex Travel and Tours Ltd, and member of APN, Gertrude Ankah Nyavi.
Gratitude
The Vice-President was thanked for his welcome and on-going support of the AfCFTA by the Board Chair of the APN.
He claimed that the APN had invested a lot of time in helping the government implement the AfCFTA.
The AfCFTA, which has its headquarters in Ghana, aims to increase trade within Africa and improve the continent’s position in international markets.
Dr. Tackie continued by saying that the APN was increasing understanding of the initiatives among stakeholders. He emphasised that it was doing this through its programmes, which included those aimed at the youth, women, manufacturing, and technology, among other groups.
He clarified that the goal of the Africa Globalized Investment Summit was to entice investors from outside of Africa to take advantage of opportunities presented by the free trade zone.
For his part, APN’s Executive Director, Mr. Louis Afful, stated that APN is currently investigating the activities of the manufacturing sector in an effort to create more synergy between trade within the African Continental Free Trade Area and manufacturing in Ghana.
He added that APN has started talks with foreign investors about the creation of a “Investment Hope City” hub to encourage the expansion of entrepreneurship on the African continent.
According to him, the investment hub will serve as a centre of excellence for matters relating to the AfCFTA and companies operating on the continent.
“The focus is to have an APN tower that will be a centre of excellence,” he said. Additionally, we desire a tourism eco system.
Veep commends APN
Dr. Bawumia stated that the AfCFTA could have a significant impact on Africa’s economy and could be a game-changer for the continent’s economic transformation.
He applauded the APN for trying to aid in the implementation of the policy.
Dr. Bawumia claimed that the current administration had achieved more technological advancement successes than any other Ghanaian administration.
He listed some of the accomplishments as the interoperability of mobile money, digitalization of the GhanaPost address system, delivery of public services through the Ghana Card, integration of national databases, and the use of drones for medical delivery.
Dr. Bawumia added that since 2017, the government has accelerated the delivery of public services through the use of digital technology, which has also helped to lower corruption in those services.
Investment, economy
Mrs. Williams urged the creation of an enabling environment so that Ghanaians living abroad could make investments in the nation.
She lamented the challenges and cumbersome procedures she had to deal with when attempting to invest in the Ghanaian economy.
However, Dr. Bawumia reaffirmed the government’s efforts to strengthen the economy for the benefit of the business sector and the entire nation.
He emphasised that the government had made a decision to create a comprehensive and sustainable approach for a long-term solution to the challenges facing the economy.