“We know Ghana is currently going through some challenges, we’ve seen ups and downs. But the EU, including Germany, will not let Ghana go down,” Mr Rudiger said last Friday at the Ghanaian-German Economic Association (GGEA) annual member dinner in Accra.
The GGEA is a business association of German and European companies which operate in the country and other West African business entities with German and European links.
The secretariat provides business advisory services to members on how to do businesses in Europe and West Africa and also organises seminars on burning economic, trade and industry issues and regulatory provisions in order to contribute to a healthy discourse to cause a positive change in the business environment.
Mr Rudiger said with the long-awaited Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) expected to be signed before the end of the year, the new trade agreement would enable the EU and its member countries to offer better conditions for businesses in the country.
The EPAs are a new trade agreement under which products entering the European Union from Ghana and other West African countries that sign the treaty, will enter without duties or limits on the quantity of exports. In return, West African countries can impose duties on 80 per cent of all imports from the EU. The preferential treaty will not affect rice and sugar.
The EU has supported Ghana’s budget with over GH¢1 billion between 2008 and 2013 in the areas of decentralisation, politics, gender and women and social services, among others.
Mr Rudiger said it was the objective of Germany to see more of its companies invest in the country to help create employment, saying, “We are working on it and pushing for a long-term sustainability of Ghana’s economy”.
The German ambassador called for the support of all businesses in the country and from the EU, saying, “The basis for this future development rests on you all”.
The President of the GGEA, Mr Stephen Antwi, said the year started on a bright note with the launch of the GGEA Lenz Finance, but it took a nose dive by the second quarter when the economy started experiencing some challenges that affected the operations of member companies.
“Then in the third quarter, we had this stingy, biting energy issue, which has just got worse with the expansion to industrial areas. But we look at 2015 with a lot of hope and vigour and believe that once we are able to nip the energy challenge in the bud, the country will be open to a lot of opportunities,” Mr Antwi said.
The GGEA members are banking their hope on the assurance that the energy crisis would be over by January and there will be stability in the cedi’s value. They also hope the government would be able to seal a deal with the IMF, which would make the currency more stable.
Mr Antwi said Ghana still continued to be attractive in spite of the challenges.
“We want to leverage our relationship with EU and German partners and focus on agriculture and agro-processing, which we believe is the way to go for export to Germany and Europe,” the GGEA president said.l
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