By Francis Ntow
Accra, July 11, GNA – The Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) has assured investors of significant improvements in the country’s investment laws to ease trade.
The State organisation responsible for facilitating and promoting investments into the country said it would table the reformed GIPC Act 2013 (Act 865) before Cabinet for consideration and further action by Parliament for its passage.
Mr Yofi Grant, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GIPC, said changes to the policy, which had lasted for about a decade, would address various bottlenecks investors faced and ensure their lasting stay in the country.
“Reforms to the GIPC law will be put before Cabinet next week. The President is much interested in the reforms and has asked me to ensure that it gets to Cabinet by next week,” Mr Grant said.
“The president is keen on seeing the economy rise back to its feet and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is one of the directions. So, we’re hoping that the processes at Cabinet would end soon for Parliament to also work on it,” he added.
He was speaking at the ninth Economic Counsellors Dialogue in Accra on the theme: “Promoting Bilateral Investment: Igniting Growth and Strengthening Economic Partnerships”.
The GIPC CEO said the new Act had some radical measures but aligned with global standards to ensure that Ghana retained its investors and helped them to be more profitable.
He also said the Centre would introduce a code to help streamline investment activities and ensure the difficulties between investors and various Government agencies and departments were addressed.
The new reforms to the GIPC’s investment laws were necessitated by concerns expressed by both foreign and local investors that some provisions in the law made the investment climate in the country unhealthy.
Mr Grant said despite the current economic challenges facing the country, Ghana offered numerous prospects for investments as the government implemented reforms to improve investor confidence.
The reforms were on public financial management, State-Owned Enterprises (SEOs), the financial sector, tax policy and administration, and social protection.
“Ghana is still extremely attractive and a good place to invest, but we can get better by eliminating some of the myths, and making sure that the information gaps are closed and there’s mutuality in the way we look at the benefits,” he said.
Addressing participants at the event, Mr Maher Kheir, the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassador of Lebanon to Ghana said economic partnerships were crucial because they served as the backbone of global prosperity and stability.
He, therefore, called on governments to prioritise open communications with a collaborative mindset, explore bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and invest in infrastructure development and the education and skillset of labourers.
During a panel discussion, strategies and best practices to foster sustainable partnerships between Ghanaian businesses and international investors were offered.
They include aggressive policy advocacy, harmonisation of investment laws, investing in skilled labour, and the inclusion of relevant stakeholders at all levels in investment talks.
The Economic Counsellors Dialogue was attended by various trade missions in Ghana and representatives from government agencies such as the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.
GNA