By Yussif Ibrahim
Kumasi, May 15, GNA – The Association of Ghana Apparel Manufacturers (AGAM) has called for the enforcement of a national local procurement policy for garments and textiles, saying such a move could create over 100,000 jobs for the youth and women across the country.
Nana Poquah Adiamah, National Coordinator of AGAM, said Ghana’s apparel manufacturing sector had the capacity to absorb thousands of unemployed youth if government institutions were mandated to procure uniforms and other garments from local manufacturers.
Speaking at a national dialogue on local procurement policy for apparel, garment and textiles in Kumasi, she noted that women constituted between 70 and 85 per cent of ownership, management, workforce and supply chains within the garment manufacturing industry.
According to her, the industry remained one of the most inclusive sectors for women and young people and had enormous potential to contribute to national economic growth.
“We are predominantly women in this sector, from ownership to management and supply. It tells you that when women are involved in something, it works,” she stated.
Ms Adiamah explained that AGAM was advocating the tightening of existing procurement laws to ensure that state institutions sourced uniforms and garments from Ghanaian-owned manufacturing companies operating in the country.
She said although Ghana had a Public Procurement Act and local procurement provisions, there was no clear enforcement mechanism compelling public institutions to buy locally produced garments.
“At the moment, a Ghanaian can secure a contract from a state institution and still import the products because the law does not specifically mandate procurement from Ghanaian manufacturers producing here in Ghana,” she noted.
She said the proposed policy would target uniforms for schools, security services, health institutions and other public sector agencies as a starting point.
Ms Adiamah said Ghana currently spent more than 200 million US dollars annually on imported garments and apparel, draining scarce foreign exchange that could otherwise support local industries and job creation.
She said despite significant investments in skills development, factory expansion and international compliance standards, many local garment factories were operating below 40 per cent of their production capacity due to lack of orders.
She noted that AGAM’s membership comprised factories with an average of about 100 industrial machines, while some larger factories employed about 5,000 workers in Accra and Tema.
The National Coordinator said Ghanaian apparel manufacturers had proven their competitiveness on the international market, exporting garments worth between 45 million and 60 million US dollars to the United States in recent years.
“The export market does not tolerate mediocrity, so if Ghanaian factories continue to export successfully, then it means we have the capacity and quality to deliver,” she stressed.
Ms Adiamah said the garment manufacturing sector offered opportunities for rapid skills training and employment creation since workers could be trained within one to three months to become productive members of a production line.
She said the advocacy aligned with government’s industrialisation agenda, the 24-hour economy policy, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and the Sustainable Development Goal Eight on decent work and economic growth.
The campaign was on the theme: “Dress Ghanaian, Build Ghana,” and it seeks to promote local manufacturing, create jobs, reduce imports and strengthen the country’s industrial base.
GNA
Edited by Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Reporter: Yussif Ibrahim
Email: [email protected]