SA, Ghana engage in trade talks

Business people in South Africa and Ghana are set to engage in trade and investment talks that get underway today.

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) is today hosting a South Africa-Ghana Trade and Investment webinar.

The aim of the two-day webinar is to reinvigorate and rekindle bilateral economic relations between the two countries post the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s session, Deputy Minister Fikile Majola said the webinar will afford South African and Ghanaian businesspeople the chance to exchange ideas and information on how to increase trade and investment between the two countries.

”It is important that we continue the conversation and interaction between South African businesspeople and their counterparts from other African countries, despite the Coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown.

“This is to ensure that we continue to work with our businesses to identify new opportunities that we can explore in order to increase bilateral trade and investment between South Africa and other African countries,” said the Deputy Minister.

Majola said the session is also part of South Africa’s economic strategy for Africa, which is premised on the development integration approach focusing on advancing the priorities for Africa as set out in the country’s Re-imagined Industrialisation Strategy, and the Integrated National Export Strategy (INES).

“This is also part of South Africa’s commitment to increasing intra-African trade and investment in line with the spirit and letter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).”

Bilateral trade between South Africa and Ghana was on an upward growth trajectory before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown in South Africa.

Two-way trade between the two countries increased considerably from almost R4 billion in 2014 to R14 billion in 2019.

The webinar which will conclude on Wednesday, is being held under the theme “Developing Afrocentric Solutions and Forging Partnership in Response to Covid-19”.

Companies operating in agro-processing and agricultural equipment, pharmaceutical, mining, rail, textile, energy and infrastructure will participate in the sessions.

SAnews.gov.za