Africa is now opened to business-President Kufuor

From Kwaku Osei Bonsu, GNA Special Correspondent, London

London, May 6, GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Tuesday encouraged the world's business giants to look more to Africa to support economic growth, create jobs and reduce poverty among its peoples. The Region was now opened to business and that the prospects of good returns on investments were high.

"The next million dollar you want to make could come from Africa than anywhere else", he said at a gathering of Chief Executive Officers of some multinational companies, including Coca Cola, Microsoft, Diagao, SABMiller, Sumitomo and Vodafone at the Canary-Wharf, the financial district of London.

Also present at the meeting dubbed: "Business Call to Action" and jointly hosted by the United Kingdom (UK) Government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) were senior Government Ministers and high ranking representatives of the United Nations (UN). They were discussing concrete ideas for drawing on the power of businesses to help speed up progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in developing countries, particularly Africa. The MDGs, which range from halving extreme poverty to halving HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education by 2015 form a blueprint agreed on by all countries and the world's development institutions. There is however, growing anxiety that many African nations were off track in achieving the goals. Ghana and Rwanda are the only countries on the continent seen to be making strong showing at realising these goals.

President Kufuor said there were enormous opportunities for investment in the region, citing the raw material base and quality human resources and asked that it was time the multinationals shook themselves off whatever doubts they had about Africa.

He said, under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), Ghana for example could export 6,400 duty free and quota-free commodities to the US market.

Added to this, were trade agreements with Europe, India, China and Japan, that had also opened their markets to Africa. "We are waiting for you to come in", he said, while expressing concern about the low Foreign Direct Investment flow to the Continent.

President Kufuor pointed out that, although the development partners had been generous with their Overseas Development Assistance (ODA), the dependence on this could not take Africans out of poverty. UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said it was in the best interest of businesses to bring the poorest countries into the global economy and to create a globalisation that was all inclusive.

"I am not talking about a moral imperative but about a strategic and economic one."

He said there was the need to fully acknowledge the critical importance of the private sector in driving development-focusing its attention not on an old one-dimensional "welfarist approach" but on enterprise, on free and fair trade and open markets and on harnessing the power of innovation and the building blocks of growth.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, said dignity and prosperity went hand in hand and pledged that Africa would be a good partner. Mr Kemal Dervis, UNDP Administrator said the "Business Call to Action" was not a one time event, but a commitment to speed up progress on the MDGs.