Director of Domestic Trade at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Mr Ntim Donkor has said that government is prioritizing the agro-processing sector as part of efforts to develop the country's economy in its attempt to transform the agricultural sector in areas such as agricultural production, forestry, horticulture among others.

He made these remarks at the opening ceremony of the 6th International Trade Show on Agriculture, Food, Plastics, Printing and Packaging at the Accra International Conference Center.

Mr Donkor described the signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement as a major game changer in Ghana. He urged investors to take advantage of the trade agreement emphasizing that Africa's   potential market of USD 1.2 billion coupled with emerging high to middle class earners and a youthful population ‘provides an enormous market opportunity that cannot be ignored'.

He also said that the sector would among other things cut post harvest losses, increase food security, increase opportunities for export and promote employment generation in Ghana's development agenda.

Mr Donkor emphasized that agro-processing was one of the fastest growing sectors in the country in areas such as manufacturing, storage, packaging et cetera and, therefore, urged companies in these fields to invest. He pointed out government's initiatives such as the One District One Factory, Planting for Food and Jobs among other flagship programs, as part of efforts to enhance  the contribution of the sector to the economy.

The Turkish Ambassador to Ghana, Her Excellency Olem Gulsun Ergun Ulueren said that Ghana and Turkey have had a long standing partnership which has seen Ghana being ranked as their 3rd biggest partner in trade.

'Turkey is endowed with high quality manufacturing companies and food producers with products such as vegetable oil, meat processing, animal feed, plant and food packaging', she stated.

She said that Turkey was the world's 7th largest agricultural producer and accounts for about USD70.7 billion in several countries that they partner with.
She lauded flagship programs such as the One District One Factory and urged government to do more to boost the agricultural sector.

The Head of Corporation at the German Embassy, Ms Dorothee Dinkelaker said that agriculture has been a focal point of co-operation between Ghana and Germany for many years.

Agro processing, she said, was an important area with a major potential for economic growth. 'Availability of agricultural produce is a  huge opportunity for value chain expansion which leads to opportunities such as job creation' she added.

She said that Germany had the technology and expertise to enhance agricultural development in Ghana.
Mr Bram Wits said that the Kingdom Of The Netherlands was the 2nd biggest exporter of goods in the world after the United States of America. He said that this offered them a responsibility to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of helping to feed the rapidly growing global population in the face of climate change.

The Netherlands, Mr Wits said had come out with the Hortifresh initiative in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire to help private sector by giving grants to innovative projects as well as small and large industry players.

Mr Paul Marz, Managing Director at Fairtrade, organizers of the event said that the show was relevant due to West Africa's growing market for agricultural technology, food and beverage technology imports and food trade. He disclosed that West African imports of Agricultural Machinery reached EUR187 million in 2016. Food and Beverage Technology had an annual growth rate of 7.8 per cent between 2015 and 2018 and Food Trade Imports according to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2017 reached USD 16.19 billion while exports reached USD 14.38 billion. Plastics Technology also grew to 22 per cent in 2019 with Ghana, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Togo and Mali as major importers.

Dr Michael Blank from the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce (AHK Ghana), co-organizers of the event said that the trade show was good for countries such as Ghana especially as the government plans to establish itself as a trade hub. He said that Ghana's stability would help to catch the attention of the needed investors.

The trade show involved seven countries namely China, Flanders/Belgium, Germany, Morocco,   The Netherlands, Sri Lanka and Turkey. The two day event was also marked by presentations and conferences.