Rare video of the first Ghana International Trade Fair in 1967 surfaces

A rare footage which captures the opening of the Ghana International Trade Fair in 1967 initiated by Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah has surfaced on the internet.

The video, sighted by GhanaWeb highlighted a much cleaner trade fair site with many stores and items on display both from indigenous and international companies. The fair however took place from 1-19 of February 1967.

A noticeable moment in the video also captured the Ghana National Trading Corporation (GNTC) stand which managed trading and commerce activities at the time. Also striking was the State Paint Corporation stand which was the designated stand for the purchase of locally produced paint.

Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, established the trade centre exactly some 60 years ago as part of an industrialization programme to expand the country’s international trade, especially in Africa.

However, Lieutenant General J. A. Ankrah, who was the Head of State after the 1966 coup, which overthrew Dr Nkrumah officially opened the first International Trade Fair on February 1, 1967, with a total of 17 foreign countries, 7 African countries as well as over 40 Ghanaian industries participating. The second and third fairs came off in 1971 and 1976 respectively.

The video was posted on Twitter by @GhanaianMuseum on January 16, 2020 with the caption: “Footage of Ghana International Trade Fair in 1967. The fair was initiated by Dr Kwame Nkrumah in order to stimulate the country's international trade. But today, this heartbeat of business where commercial deals and business ties were established can best be described as requiring life support”

PS: This video has no sound.

Footage of Ghana International Trade Fair 1967. The fair was initiated by Nkrumah in order to stimulate the country's international trade. But today, this heartbeat of business where commercial deals & business ties were established can best be described as requiring life support pic.twitter.com/z1FF3KTSBN

— GHANA FACTS & HISTORY (@GhanaianMuseum) January 16, 2020

About Ghana International Trade Fair

From being a department under the Ministry of Trade and Industry to an authority, the company was converted into a limited liability and christened the Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited. It was incorporated under the Statutory Corporations (Conversion to Companies) Act 1993, Act 461 in April 1997.

The centre had the vision to become the preferred international trade fair centre in the sub-region to promote beneficial trade between Ghana and its global trading partners but it has not received much support from successive governments, while some its facilities continue to deteriorate.