THE Managing Director of Ecobank Ghana, Mr Samuel Ashitey
Adjei, is upbeat that the partnership between Ecobank Ghana and the Bank of
China will create a platform to support trade between China and Africa.
This, he said,
presents an un-paralleled coverage of both regions that is expected to create a
powerful platform for trade and investment in the two regions.
Speaking at the 2012 Ghana-China Trade Forum which was
co-hosted by Ecobank, in collaboration with the Ministry of Trade and Industry,
Mr Ashitey stressed the impact of previous relationships with Chinese
investors.
He said, “the strength of these relationships was evident in
the increased level of Chinese related transactions going through Ecobank.”
“The number of
Chinese businesses, the quantum of inflows, and deposits and facilities to
Chinese companies with local presence have increased by nearly 15 per cent
while FX inflows and deposits virtually non-existent a few years back are
currently in excess of US$ 110 million,” he said.
Mr Ashitey also observed that as trade corridors expanded,
Ecobank Ghana had taken a number of initiatives to position them, their clients
as well as their businesses to respond proactively to the increasing pace of
activity.
He said that was part of the bank’s commitment to remain
steadfast and dedicated to trade and investment development agenda in Ghana.
“One of China’s
leading commercial banks, Bank of China, is currently operating a Bank of China
desk in Ecobank Ghana,” he said.
He noted that sustaining international trade and investment
involved constant dialogue and as such it was important for all stakeholders to
get involved in the dialogue process.
“International trade and investment is a constant work in
progress. It is, therefore, important that interest groups and stakeholders
dialogue throughout that process to continually identify areas of common
interest and collaboration while collectively addressing any constraint that
may arise in the bilateral relations,” he said.
He thus said the forum which it co- hosted and sponsored
would be the first of a series of business forums on bilateral trade in Ghana
which it will hold in collaboration with the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
He added, “this forum will be one of the many forums that we
intend to organise in consultation with the Ministry of Trade and Industry to
encourage this important dialogue.”
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Miss Hannah Tetteh, in
her address, said foreign investments into the country were welcome so long as
investors operated within the regulatory framework governing trade in the
country.
She said the relationship between Ghana and China dated back
to 50 years and as such there was the need to understand the challenges
confronting the two countries, discuss them and develop workout means to
address the challenges.
Miss Tetteh also urged the Chinese investors to maintain
their quality of services and products in doing business in Ghana.
The Economic and Commercial Counsellor of Chinese Embassy in
Ghana, Mr Gao Wenzhi, lauded the relationship between Ghana and China which had
culminated in the development of a smooth bilateral economic and trade
collaboration.
“In 2011, 79 Chinese investment projects were registered in
GIPC, with total value of US$ 145 million. Three billion Chinese financial
facilities to Ghana has made practical progress and the relevant projects are
under the process of bidding,” he said.
He said bilateral trade volume reached US$ 3.47 billion with
a growth of 69.04 per cent while China-grant projects had increased largely and
were being smoothly carried on.
He also urged Ghanaian merchants to attend some trade fairs
organised in China for them to find more business opportunities while Chinese
investors should equally take good advantage of fairs organised in Ghana.
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