The Ghana Standards Authority has pledged its commitment to making sure that standards for vehicle assembly and production in Ghana are not compromised.
To achieve this, the Authority is doing all it can to ensure that the vehicles assembled in Ghana are of the highest standards to be able to compete on the African market through the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement.
“In moving the auto policy and developing the auto standards, Ghana was minded by the fact that the AfCFTA Secretariat is here and there’s a huge market for vehicles. So we worked with the African Association of Automobile Manufacturers headquartered in South Africa together to ensure that our standards are highest across the continent,” said the Director-General of the Authority, Prof Alex Dodoo.
He continued by advising players in the automotive industry to begin to tap into the markets of other African countries to be able to expand the industry.
“An assembled in Ghana vehicle will sell in any market in Africa. We have also given room to give export certification for all vehicles mono-gated in Ghana. We are encouraging the industry to let government help them to reach the markets in other African countries.”
Prof. Dodoo also disclosed that his outfit is set to introduce a policy to create opportunities for Ghanaian artisans to be able to manufacture auto components for vehicle assembling companies in the country.
He believes this will go a long way in achieving technical excellence and retaining skilled labour pools in the country.
“The Ghana Automotive Development Policy realized that assembling vehicles creates jobs, but the real job creation is vehicle components. The GSA is set to launch a national technical standard for precision quality so that people in Suame can produce precision parts for the auto industry. Our artisans are world-class and are capable of producing them,” Prof. Dodoo added.
