The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) and Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to work together in creating enabling platforms that will attract foreign private investments to promote Industrial and inclusive growth to improve living conditions of both countries at the just-ended 11th CII-EXIM Bank Conclave held in New Delhi, India.

The MoU is also targetted at formalising and deepening the level of bilateral cooperation between the two Private Sector Associations, which will focus on creating common platform for credible business owners and industry leaders to meet and promote joint venture ships and partnerships in the two countries. It will also ensure transfer of human and technical skill development for wealth-creation and reduce unemployment, especially in the Ghanaian industrial sector.

Speaking after the signing ceremony, which was attended by business elites and government officials from both countries in New Delhi, Mr. James Asare-Adjei-President of the AGI, confirmed that AGI as the leading private sector advocacy group in the country and the CII have been working together on several fronts on creating the enabling platforms for networking.

“When you have investors coming to Ghana we make sure to bring really credible business owners and businesses to meet with them and also make joint-venture business arrangements.

“We have done this for a while and we think it is very appropriate that today we formalise the level of cooperation we have, so business relations between the two Institutions can be deepened.”

He added: “The India-Ghana partnership at a private sector level, with the signing of the MoU, will grow the continuous cooperation that has existed between the entities and also work in the interest of the two countries,” he said.

In an interview with B&FT after the ceremony, Mr. Asare-Adjei confirmed that “there have been situations wherein the AGI has received strong delegations from India and created an enabling environment by way of providing the networking platform to bring credible businesses, business owners and captains of industries to meet, and also arranging business partnership meetings.

“We think that we need to upscale our collaboration by deepening our cooperation between the private sectors of India and Ghana considering the huge potential that Ghana holds for foreign investments and the level of of Indian companies development in terms of technology, ICT, manufacturing , financing, agriculture and agro-processing development,” he said.

He explained that partnering with India’s private sector will provide huge leverage for the country to develop its industrial sector and deepen cooperation among the two countries.

The AGI, in focusing on industrial growth, will not hesitate to partner India’s private sector operations to leverage on its huge industrial sector, he said.

“We want to leverage on Indian technology in order to process our agricultural produce and create value chain linkages, by enhancing our agricultural produce from the farm-gate through manufacturing or processing and then to finished goods -- which will provide the country more revenue by way of exports.”

He mentioned that India’s capabilities in technical and vocational skills education for meeting industrial manpower requirements have been a success story for Ghana to emulate.

“We are looking at technical and vocational skills that industry requires, and India has done it so well by creating the required human resource for industries; so the AGI wants to leverage on this capacity-building ability of India to pass on skills development to the huge mass of teeming youth in Ghana, such that we will be able to meet modern-day industrialisation challenges.

“Another key area that the AGI is looking at in this signed MoU, is bridging the academia and industry divide,” she stated.

He cautioned foreign employers who take undue advantage of some lapses in the country’s labour laws and treat local employees in an inhumane manner to desist from that habit, saying: “As an association we are very careful of making sure we don’t leave such people or companies exposed to be dealt with by the laws of Ghana”.

Mr. Rajiv Wahi, Head of International Business Escorts of Agri-Machinery-India, signing on behalf of CII expressed excitement about the ceremony; adding that it is an important ceremony, the MoU being signed between the two Associations, as it will open up opportunities between the two countries. “We’ve been hearing of opportunities between the two countries, but sometimes lack of knowledge inhibits business executives from accessing the opportunities.

“Therefore the MoU-signing between the two entities will provide adequate knowledge about the two countries and facilitate trade and investments between them,” he remarked.