Speaking at a round-table discussion with German businesses in Ghana in Accra yesterday, he said fair and transparent procedures, including a reliable legal framework, were important for businesses to succeed in the country.

To ensure that, Mr Ofori-Atta said the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) was developing an Investment Code to expand domestic and foreign strategic investment incentives.

“This will also serve as a strong signal to potential investors that Ghana remains a predictable and favourable environment for investment,” he said.

Event

The event was part of the Ghana Mutual Prosperity Partnership Dialogue series initiated by the Ministry of Finance as part of the government’s effort to engage with businesses that will be at the forefront of championing the country’s economic recovery.

Present at the event were a Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr John Kumah; the Deputy German Ambassador to Ghana, Sivine Jansen, and the Board Chairman of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Tony Oteng-Gyasi.

The rest were the Commissioner-General of the GRA, Rev. Dr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah; the Chief Executive Officer of Development Bank Ghana, Kwamina Duker, and the Chief Executive of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), Yofi Grant. 

Rebound

Mr Ofori-Atta expressed optimism that the country would rebound this year following what he described as a remarkable economic turnaround.

“It has become increasingly clear that our long-term economic plan is working but the job is not done yet, what we have achieved so far is just the beginning.

“Economic growth has rebounded after a few difficult years, and according to the IMF's latest press release, "reforms are bearing fruit, and signs of economic stabilisation are emerging,” the minister added.

He said the most striking indicator of the resurgence was the significant drop in inflation from 54.1 per cent in December 2022, to 23.2 per cent by December 2023.

Reforms  

The Deputy German Ambassador to Ghana, Ms Jansen, said building mutual prosperity between Ghana and Germany was important as the two countries shared a long- standing business relationship that spanned a wide variety of products and services across different sectors.

“We strongly value our close partnership with Ghana across the different areas of cooperation, and both countries also enjoy fruitful engagements at the political level,” she said. 

Ms Jansen said to enable the business relationship to grow even faster and reach its potential, Germany believed that a number of measures must be adopted and implemented by the government.

For starters, she said the GRA could adopt a more business-friendly approach in its dealings with businesses and be more transparent with its processes.

“The regulator should ensure that all companies play by the rules to guarantee a level playing field,” Ms Jansen added.

She said the government must also accelerate its investment in infrastructure to provide the needed environment for businesses to prosper in the country.

Ms Jensen further mentioned a high investment threshold which she said hampered foreign direct investment, and a legal framework, including issues of human rights which foreign investors often considered before establishing businesses.