New garment factory hits world market

Accra, March 3,GNA - Mr Alan Kyerematen, Minister of Trade and Industry, has repeated Government's commitment to provide right environment for industries to flourish.

It would also facilitate their collaboration with European Union (EU) and American markets.

"We also have to provide the necessary institutional support to improve access to technical assistance, finance and skilled labour so that our companies would be competitive on the global market" he said The Minister was inaugurating a garment factory, "Sixteen 47 Ghana limited", a subsidiary of "Sixteen 47 UK Company", which specializes in producing and making big size and high quality brand named garments for the United Kingdom and the American markets.

"Sixteen 47 Ghana Limited" is one of the companies selected to participate in the Export Action Programme for Garments and Textiles under the President's Special Initiatives (PSI).

Mr Kyerematen said world trade in garments was very huge, running into more than 350 billion dollars per annum and offering employment to more than four 4 million people.

He said the Government under a programme expected "Sixteen 47(Ghana) Limited" to become a significant garment exporter and to bring in about 20 million dollars per annum and to employ about 1,000 Ghanaians in the next four years.

"Government would work closely with the private sector to ensure that we collectively derive maximum benefits from the vast opportunities to be derived for the implementation of Ghana's Trade policy.

"In our endeavour to grow into a middle income country, we must strive to be a key player in this market" he said.

He said the challenge facing "Sixteen 47 Ghana Limited" was to supply capacity, quality and competitiveness to respond to market opportunities.

He urged all those who were privileged to be working with the Company to dedicate themselves to the work and the ethics prevailing in the industry to ensure the Company's viability.

The Minister said in due course the Government would inaugurate many more of such production lines and facilities to bring relief to Ghanaians through employment creation and revenue generation all being a pre-requisite for wealth creation.

Mr Gordon Wetherell, British High Commissioner to Ghana, said the inauguration of the garment factory demonstrated a successful strategic partnership between the people "in our two countries, which would help to meet Ghana's objective of adding value to raw materials.

"We believe that this would help generate the growth necessary to underpin Ghana's wider development", he said

"Sixteen 47(Ghana) Limited" was registered in Ghana in November 1998 and its products are marketed in the UK through big retailers such as the Arcadia Group, Harrods and Liberty and Selfridges. The garments are sold under the brand name "Sixteen 47" and are also sold on line from a web site managed by the Ghanaian office.