Ghana is stepping up efforts to expand value-added exports to the United States as it prepares for possible changes to preferential trade arrangements under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
The strategy involves increasing local processing of products such as cocoa, pineapple, shea butter and gold to reduce reliance on exporting raw materials and strengthen the country’s position in the US market.
Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Emmanuel Smith, said the approach would help create jobs, improve export earnings and make the economy more resilient should AGOA benefits eventually come to an end.
Speaking in an interview, Mr Smith said President John Mahama was encouraging local industries to process raw materials before exporting them, rather than continuing to depend heavily on unprocessed commodities.
He cited gold refining as one area where Ghana could retain more value from its natural resources while developing industries and creating employment opportunities.
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“If we add value to gold, if you are going to be refining gold, as we are asking everybody to do eventually, when AGOA becomes defunct at any point in time and if we have managed to create industry and create jobs, adding value to some of these raw materials, I think we will be safe as a country,” he said.
Mr Smith, however, cautioned that Ghana could suffer losses in export earnings and government revenue if the country loses preferential access to the US market without developing alternative sources of competitiveness.
He said the textile industry was not the only sector that should benefit from Ghana’s preparations, urging the country to extend value-addition efforts to other commodities with strong export potential.
The ambassador also called for stronger partnerships between members of the Ghanaian diaspora and local investors to support investment in processing industries.
He urged Ghanaians living abroad to use their resources and networks to partner with credible investors interested in developing industries such as gold refining.
Mr Smith said such partnerships could help Ghana retain more value from its resources, expand local industries and create well-paying jobs.
