Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has urged Ghanaians in the Diaspora to invest in the national economy to accelerate national growth.

He said it was a well-known fact that the Ghanaian Diaspora possessed tremendous assets, knowledge, skills and talents.

He, therefore, urged them to invest these in the macro, small and medium enterprises which would be an effective way of creating jobs and generating income in the local community.

He said Ghana’s socio-economic development and Diaspora remittances were inextricably linked and, thus, called on them to support the efforts of government to achieve the objectives of the United Nations’ Agenda 2030 of Sustainable Development Goals to reduce extreme poverty and improve the standards of living of Ghanaians.

Vice President Bawumia said this in a speech read on his behalf by Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, the Minister of Information, at the closing ceremony of the 2017 Ghana Diaspora Homecoming Summit in Accra on Friday.

The three-day event was held on the theme: ‘‘Development, Opportunity, Value: Welcome Home’’, which attracted Ghanaians in the Diaspora to access the opportunities in the economy.

The summit served as an avenue for mobilising and harnessing the resources and skills of Ghanaian Diasporan Community to accelerate economic growth.

There were exhibitions by corporate entities and state institutions who demonstrated their support for the objectives of the summit aimed at showcasing the opportunities and business prospects in the country.

The Vice President noted that using Diasporan assistance was yet to be fully explored and indicated that if the Ghanaians in the Diaspora invested in the macro-economy it would strengthen the government policy for their mutual benefits.

He acknowledged the contribution of Ghanaians living abroad saying ‘you contributed significantly through remittances to your families at home that enhanced their economic life span.’

‘‘Your remittances increased household incomes and paid some basic needs such as food, education, housing and medical services and helped to improve the standards of living,’’ he explained.

He said it was part of the policy of the government to work hard through the ‘‘One district, One Factory’’ imitative aimed at industrialising the national economy.

He noted that the nation’s economic growth had been largely urban-based leaving behind rural economy and, thus, compelling rural-urban migration and believed that the policy would help to evenly develop the economy and accelerate growth.

‘‘The One district, One Factory is our attempt to catalyst broad-based and inclusive economy,’’ he noted.

Vice President Bawumia said the government would ensure that the cumbersome procedures for setting up businesses and enterprises were reduced to the barest minimum to enhance the country’s competitiveness.

‘‘In keeping with our promise to ensure that Ghanaians living abroad play positive roles in the socio-economic and political development of our country, Ghana’s diplomatic missions abroad are serving as focal points for running Ghanaian experts and attracting Ghanaian investors into the industrial sector, ’he explained.

He urged Ghanaians abroad to serve as avenues for attracting trade and tourism promotion, saying return home as investors or trade delegation from your countries of residence.

‘‘If we direct our energies to these matters, then we will be serving our nation and building a resilient economy,’’ he stressed.

Dr Bawumia noted that government was poised to address the issue of transparency and respond to their needs in a timely manner.

“The rationale for establishing the Diasporan Relation Office at the Presidency was to remove barriers that will prevent you from accessing the services of government and state institutions and create a sustainable and long-term relations for our mutual benefit”, he said.