Mr Cao Zhiqiang, Vice Governor of Hunan, hosted Ghana’s Minister of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, on bilateral discussions which centered on build­ing stronger bilateral trade, invest­ment, technical exchanges between Ghana and Hunan Province.

In her remarks in Accra yesterday, Mrs Ofosu-Adjare commended the Vice Governor and the Hunan Prov­ince for their level of industrialisation driven by innovation and underscored the need for partnership.

She indicated that the achievements of the Province was a clear indication that, “walking shoulder to shoulder, Ghana could leverage on this strategic relationship to leapfrog in its industri­alisation agenda.”

In addition, the Minister noted that Ghana’s stable business environment, rule of law, competitive returns on investment, youthful and growing middle-class as some of the key considerations not to be ignored by potential investors from the Province.

She also underscored Ghana’s stra­tegic location as a gateway to serve the region, as well as global markets.

The Minister invited more Hunan multinational companies to explore business opportunities in the man­ufacturing, garments and textiles, pharmaceutical, components manu­facturing sector and take advantage of the 24-hour economy policy.

The bilateral trade between Ghana and Hunan Province was estimated at $2.5billion as at the end of 2024 with, at least eight top multinational compa­nies, from Hunan operating in Ghana and these include Zonda, Sany, Hunan Construction and Zoomlion.

Mrs Ofosu-Adjare extended an invitation to the Vice Governor to lead a high-level delegation to explore more business opportunities in Ghana in the course of the year.

Responding, Mr Zhiqiang com­mended Mrs Ofosu-Adjare for making a strong case for investment in Africa and especially Ghana during the CEO Dialogue.

The Vice Governor said the Prov­ince was committed to partnering the government of Ghana and the private sector to enhance industrialisation for mutual benefits.

Touching on the current economic development of the Province, the Vice Governor emphasised that, it is one of the fastest growing Provinc­es in China with 2024 GDP hitting approximately 5.4 trillion yuan (about $760 billion), growing around 5.5 per cent year-on-year, slightly above the national average.

He said the tertiary sector (ser­vices) contributed significantly, while advanced manufacturing and digital economy expanded rapidly.

The Province, according to the Vice Governor, had positioned itself as the hub of industrialisation, innovation & research, aerodynamics, logistics, infra­structure development, and education.

The Vice Governor of Hunan Province agreed to the proposal by the Minister for technical exchanges be­tween Ghana and Hunan to enhance skills and expertise development of critical sectors of the economy.