As part of efforts to promote investments and safeguard jobs in the country, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, GIPC and Invest for Jobs, an initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development have signed a €762,300 financing agreement to support the growth of small and medium sized enterprises.
The cooperation between the two parties will also address investment promotion challenges reinforced by the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking to the media at the signing ceremony in Accra, Chief Executive Officer of GIPC, Yofi Grant, explained that the joint effort comes at a crucial time when governments are designing more strategic and innovative ways to promote and boost economic growth.
“The Coronavirus pandemic has made aftercare of investors particularly important and therefore the cooperation between the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, GIPC and the German Cooperation through – Invest for Jobs – will facilitate the provision of information to investors and support to relevant companies to address investment barriers,” he said.
Head of Development Cooperation at the German Embassy, Ms. Dorothee Dinkeler also stated that, “I am delighted to be a part of this initiative, which is anchored in addressing private sector needs. We look forward to the cooperation with GIPC opportunities in Ghana.”
“With a decline in foreign direct investments across the world, partly because of the Coronavirus pandemic, it has become imperative for governments to maximize developmental support to retain investment, encourage follow-on investment and achieve greater local economic impact,” she added
A further focus of the cooperation between the two parties include supporting potential investors who, due to the global pandemic, are unable to travel to Ghana to obtain relevant information. The intervention will also facilitate the design of a manufacturing platform to connect international investors to local businesses.
This investors can again obtain long-term perspective to create new jobs.
The special initiative on Training and Job Creation – the official title of invest for jobs – is implemented among others by the GIZ.
The MoU was signed by the Head of Special Initiative on Training and Job Creation at the GIZ, Ghana – Gerald Guskowski as well as the CEO of the GIPC, Yoofi Grant.
