Africa-Press – Ghana. The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana (CAG) has demanded urgent policy intervention to address the competitive crisis facing the manufacturing sector, warning “Ghana is already losing ground” to regional competitors.
The Chamber said Ghana risked losing up to $21.3 billion in economic value and 435,000 jobs over the next five years if immediate action was not taken, noting major companies like Unilever, Nestlé, and Guinness had started scaling down operations in the country while expanding in Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria.
A press statement issued and signed by Mr Anthony Kofituo Morrison, Chief Executive Officer of CAG and made available to Ghana News Agency, attributed this trend to West African neighbour, Benin’s aggressive investor attraction strategy, offering significantly superior business incentives.
The Benin Republic has launched an aggressive investor-attraction strategy early this year, focusing on lower taxes, cheaper electricity and improved business processes to draw manufacturing and agro-processing firms particularly from Ghana and Nigeria, aimed at positioning the nation as a regional investment hub.
To address the crisis, the statement put forward a five-point emergency action plan, calling for immediate implementation of measures to restore Ghana’s tax competitiveness, establish special economic zones, reduce electricity costs, overhaul transport and logistics infrastructure, and develop national skills.
It said, “Ghana stands at a critical crossroads. Benin’s aggressive strategy, combined with existing competitive pressures from Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire, poses an existential threat to our industrial development. We are not talking about future risks; we are experiencing factory closures and skills migration right now.”
“The good news is that Ghana retains significant competitive advantages: democratic stability, rule of law, English language, strategic location, and AfCFTA headquarters. What we lack is competitive policy. This can be fixed with political will and urgent action.
We call on the Government of Ghana to treat this as a national emergency. Every week of delay means more factories lost, more jobs eliminated, and more skilled professionals leaving our shores. The time for action is now,” the statement concluded.
