Business Opportunities

Recent amendments to Ghana’s 1985 Investment Code have opened up a wide range of new business opportunities. The 1994 Ghana Investment Promotion Act guarantees the freedom for non-Ghanaians to establish and run enterprises in potentially lucrative areas such as natural gas; hydropower projects; fruit and vegetable farming; food processing, including fish canning; production of agro- chemicals; pharmaceuticals and information technology. The government’s ongoing privatization initiatives also open up a number of sectors for new business partnerships and investment, notably the banking, the state petroleum and telecommunications sectors. Tourism sector in particular is a strong area for new business projects. Key opportunities in this sector include: tourist accommodation, particularly beach resorts; tourist transportation; catering enterprises; eco-tourism projects; night life and leisure and tourist servicing enterprises. The Government of Ghana has estimated that tourism will generate over $270 million annually after 1996.

Types of Opportunities

There are 11 main sectors that have been identified as priority areas for foreign direct investment. Ghana has comparative advantage in these areas and intends to capitalize on this advantage to attract investment into the country.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Ghana has the potential for the development of ICT. Currently, there are various institutions offering training in different aspects of ICT. Thus, Ghana offers a steady stream of young professionals with marketable skills in ICT. ICT enabling infrastructure is being developed which will in turn lead to the creation of more Information Technology Enabling Services (ITES) in the country. Ghana is taking advantage of its status as an English speaking country to attract business processing orders and outsourcing/back office jobs from the USA and Europe.

Textile/Apparel Manufacturing

Ghana has benefited from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) initiative and still enjoys the extension of this advantage for another 10 years during which time the USA market can be accessed easily on a quota/duty free status. The Textile & Garment industry has therefore become a lucrative investment area with unimpeded quota/duty free access to the US market. Ghana is maximizing this advantage by the creation of a 178-acre Textile and Garment village located within the Tema Export Processing Zone. This Textile & Garment village is located close to the port city of Tema and Ghana’s international airport thus providing easy access for the import of raw materials and export of finished products to the USA and Europe. The textile village also has facilities like electricity, water and ready factory shells for investors who wish to re-locate their industries in Ghana to take advantage of the duty and quota free access that the country enjoys.

Agro-food Processing

Ghana has a wide range of agro-products that are currently exported in their raw state. Opportunities therefore exist in the agro-food processing sector for manufacturing industries to add value to local agricultural products e.g. cocoa, cashew, tropical fruits and vegetables. With the emphasis shifting from raw exports to processed exports, the investment opportunities are endless.

Seafood Processing

The seafood processing sub-sector is emerging as one of the attractive sectors for investment. The free zone can currently boast of one of the major fish processing firms in West Africa, processing about 170 tons of seafood (tuna) a day. There is, in fact, a large volume of tuna, available all year round in the coastal water of Ghana. The processing of tuna and many other marine species therefore presents a great opportunity to any investor interested in seafood processing.

Jewellery/Handicraft Production

The jewellery sector is one of the potential areas for investment. Ghana’s position as a major exporter of gold affords investors the opportunity to refine the gold and produce jewellery for export. Ghana currently exports unrefined gold. Investments in this sector, which will lead to value addition to the unrefined gold, will yield great returns for business.

Metal/Hand Tool Fabrication

Opportunities exist in the metal/hand tool fabrication industry for investment. There is an untapped pool of skilled labour in the tool manufacturing industry. The introduction of new technology in this sector will enhance Ghana’s skill based labour and will facilitate production of tools for export.

Floriculture

Opportunities exist for the exportation of cut tropical flowers for export. There is also availability of land in the cool mountainous areas of the Eastern and Volta regions where a wider variety of flowers can be cultivated. The country can boast of cool storage at both sea and airports for the provision of a seamless chain of reliable cool storage. There is also reliable cool storage transportation to ensure fresh delivery of the flowers to the international market.

Light Industry/Assembling Plantat an appreciable rate.

The economy of Ghana is developing and the emphasis on small-scale agriculture is gradually shifting to large scale farming and manufacturing. There is therefore the opportunity for investment in assembling plants and light industry to assemble semi finished imported goods for the sub-regional market.

Ceramic Tiles Manufacturing

Opportunities exist in the ceramics sector for the production of building and household ceramic products. There is ready supply of raw materials for this industry.

Pharmaceuticals

The current trend for low cost and effective drugs poses a great opportunity for pharmaceutical companies to locate in Ghana and take advantage of the competitive cost of labour to produce drugs at a relatively lower cost for the sub-region and other developing economies

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