GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Ghana Monday launched an office of its chamber of commerce here. The African country hopes to become a significant trading partner with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), now regarded as a major oil producer.
“This is commerce; this is trade. We are talking about industrialization, we are talking about the development of our respective countries, but you cannot produce, you cannot industrialize, and keep all of the products that are produced in your country; there have to be some trading relationships between countries,” said Ghana’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Kobina Hammond.
“The goods have to be sent to other countries; that’s the essence of trading, that’s the essence of commerce, and it is important that you get an established based where the two countries, their entrepreneurs, the traders, the businessmen within the countries can concentrate some attention,” he added.
Hammond said establishing the Ghanaian Chamber of Commerce – the first of its kind in the Caribbean – augurs well for the two countries that share many similarities and expressed confidence that with time, Guyana and Ghana will have a “seamless” trading relationship.
The chief executive officer of Ghana’s Freezones Authority, Ambassador Michael Oquaye, said there are opportunities for pharmaceutical partnerships. The country is also best known for its services, particularly in the oil and gas sector and manufacturing.
Public Works Minister, Juan Edghill. Who is also responsible for the Aviation Sector, said that Guyana and Ghana have signed an Air Services Agreement. It is now for the private sector to operationalize that agreement.
“We have signed an air service agreement with Ghana, and it’s now up to the private sector, and I am glad that this chamber is being launched; it is now left up to the Private Sector both here in Guyana and in Ghana to operationalize an airline in keeping with those terms of conditions and freedoms that exist in that Air Services Agreement. So, if there is anything that could bring our people together faster, it is air transport.”
Edghill said a direct flight from Ghana to Guyana takes approximately six hours. However, an interconnected flight usually takes about 25-30 hours, sometimes 38 hours.
Further, he said the entrepreneurial spirit of the Ghanaian and Guyanese people must be maximized. However, he said common barriers must be addressed.
“And I think if I can say this as a brother and a friend, one of the greatest barriers we have to deal with is to reduce the level of suspicion, especially with past experiences of what people perceived business in Africa to be like,” Edghill said.
Chief Executive Officer of GO-Invest Peter Ramsaroop said the Ghanaian Chamber is a plus for Guyana and Ghana.
“Apart from agriculture, there is tourism…but also, they are leaders in manufacturing; although they can help us to support the Oil and Gas Industry, we are very interested in what they have done in manufacturing, even manufacturing cars.
“Guyana, with our President’s initiative, transformation project, reducing energy cost by 50 percent, we are going to be ready for manufacturing very quickly. So, the more we can learn, the more we can partner with global leaders in manufacturing, and I believe this is one way Ghana and Guyana could come together very quickly,” said Ramsaroop.
Guyana and Ghana established diplomatic relations on May 14, 1979. However, those ties were strengthened in 2019.
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