'Brexit Won't Affect Ghana-Britain Relations'

By Yaw Kyei

President Akufo-Addo delivering the keynote address at the UK-Ghana Investment Summit in Accra.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has assured businesses from the United Kingdom that the outcome of the ongoing BREXIT negotiations will not affect trade and investment relations between Ghana and Britain.

"Even though we are, understandably, anxious about the nature of the consequences of BREXIT, we are expectant that the outcome of the negotiations, contrary to the negative opinions of some so-called economic experts, will not disturb our solid trade co-operation with the UK," he said.

President Akufo-Addo made these remarks at the third UK-Ghana Investment Summit in Accra yesterday.

The Summit, organized by the UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with the Department for International Development, created the platform to facilitate increased bilateral trade and investment between the United Kingdom and Ghana across all sectors of the economy.

The President said the BREXIT rather presented new opportunities for both countries, adding, "I want us, together, to build a stronger Ghana-UK investment relationship, to the benefit of our respective shareholders."

He, therefore, urged the UK business community to leverage on the growing business-friendly climate in the country to invest in Ghana.

He said Ghana was poised to play a vanguard role in the new struggle for economic development for Africa's 1.2 billion people and indicated that the prospects for the country's development in the 21st century were immense.

President Akufo-Addo said the government had instituted a number of tax and other incentives to attract foreign investors and businesses into the country.

The incentives, he said, included exemption from payment of import duty for plant and machinery, 25 per cent tax rebate for companies located in regional capitals, and 50 per cent tax rebate for companies investing outside regional capitals in the regions.

Others were zero per cent corporate tax for ten years, and, thereafter, 8 per cent for companies in the Free Zones enclave, full repatriation of dividends and profits, transfer of funds to service foreign loans, and enforcement of laws against arbitrary confiscation of companies or investments, he said.

"I assure you that your investments will be safe and protected, not because I have said so, but, more importantly, because Ghana is a country governed in accordance with the rule of law, where separation of powers, with an independent judiciary to engender accountable governance, is real" he said.

President Akufo-Addo said his administration, within 21 months, had worked hard to put the Ghanaian economy back on track.

He indicated that the economic fundamentals which, for a long time were off target, were now beginning to point in the right direction.

"A growth rate of 8.5 per cent in 2017, likely to be repeated this year, up from 3.6 per cent in 2016, the attainment of single digit inflation, a relatively stable currency despite the challenges of a strong dollar, reduction of lending rates, and the implementation of policies such as the paperless port system, e-business registration system, and the mobile interoperability system, which are helping to formalise the Ghanaian economy, lowering the cost of doing business and cutting down excessive bureaucracy, are examples of some of the steps being taken to revive the Ghanaian economy" he said.

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