Speaking at the function, the Director of EKGS Culinary Institute, Mrs Efua Goode Obeng Kyei, noted that the hospitality industry had equipped young women with skills to help them fend for themselves and also compete effectively in the working environment.

She pointed out that the private sector was suffering as a result of the importation of substandard goods and equipment which affected the quality of products in the country.

She, therefore, implored the government to come up with a workable plan to deal with the unbridled importation of goods and equipment in order to sanitise the industry to make local enterprises grow.

Task force

Mrs Obeng Kyei also urged the government to revive the task force which  was used sometime ago to monitor the influx of uncustomed wax prints on the Ghanaian market to help flush out inferior imported goods, adding that: “The health of Ghanaian consumers, to a very large extent, depends on the wholesomeness of the products they produce, hence we have the duty to check what is imported into the country.”

The EKGS director called on the government to channel some of the $1.5 billion pumped into the economy yearly from the Oil Fund to support the hospitality sector where a lot of women ply their trade and many young people train to become entrepreneurs.

The Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ledzokuku Constituency, who was the special guest, advised the graduands to work hard and ensure that honesty becomes their guiding principle as they venture into the world.

He entreated them to keep reading to update their skills and broaden their horizon.