Investment Group Inaugurated

A Regional Investment Promotion Co-ordinating Group (RIPCG) for the Volta Region was inaugurated on Monday at Ho with a call on its members to brace themselves up for a fierce inter-regional competition for investors.

The group, is the second in the country after the Western Region and was inaugurated to coincide with the opening of a Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) regional office.

While the RIPCG would promote investment activities at both the regional and district levels, the GIPC regional office would provide professional advice and guidance to investors.

In a speech read on his behalf, Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Minister of Information and Presidential Affairs urged the authorities in the region to streamline land acquisition procedures to make them less cumbersome for investors.

He urged the RIPCG to concentrate on areas in which the region has comparative advantage while exploring opportunities offered by the African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA) of the US government.

Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey, recommended that the group examine crop cultivation, livestock rearing, fishing and agro-processing as well as textile, craft industry, ornamental and beauty products, among others in the region.

"Above all, I believe that your greatest asset is the very high potential for tourism that exists in this region.

"Sooner rather than later, the vast investment opportunities in this sector would be highlighted and aggressively marketed," he added.

Mr Kwesi Abeasi, Chief Executive of the GIPC said the clamour for investment worldwide has become so fierce that countries like Ghana would have to turn to their local investors and the foreign ones already in the country.

He said there is need to correct the one-sided investment profile in the country where for example between 1994 and 2001 out of the 1200 foreign investments in the country, Greater Accra alone had 948 (78 per cent) with the remaining 32 per cent shared among the other regions and the Volta Region taking 20 (1.65 per cent).

Mr Abeasi said Brong Ahafo, Upper West and Upper East regions attracted less than 0.5 per cent with Ashanti Region attracting 90 investment projects.

The Western, Central, Eastern and Northern regions had 57, 41, 36 and 13 projects respectively, he said.

Mr Abeasi advised entrepreneurs in the Volta Region to pool their resources and be "less individualistic in their approach to business."

Nana Dr Baah Boakye, Executive Director of the National Board for Small-Scale Industries (NBSSI) observed that micro and small enterprises accelerate national development and generate employment.

In a speech read for him, he criticised the country's educational system for producing manpower which focuses on white collar jobs rather than entrepreneurs who would take risks in business.