The 4th Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference (GITFIC) will focus on the potential of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) in boosting intra-regional trade and development of the African continent.
Speaking in an interview with the media, ahead of the conference, to whip up interest in the AfCFTA, the chief executive officer of the Rescue Shipping and Investment Agency Limited, Mr Selassie Koffi Ackom, said the deal is a “game changer” to boost trade and investment on the continent.
“We believe that this couldn’t have happened at any right time and moment in the journey of our dear continent than this very time. Our continent was at its peak of regional trade distortion and disobedience,” he said.
“Our call to Africa in the midst of all these is proper engagement, further deliberations and the removal of gross self and ally interest. The interest of Africa must be put first. The African Continental Free Trade Area is a must,” he added.
Poised for benefits
The chief executive officer of Accra Metropolitan Authority (AMA), Mr Mohamed Adjei Sowah, who hosted the press conference, described the agreement as undoubtedly the single most unifying trade agreement ever to be witnessed on the African continent.
“This exciting news, which has been in the public domain for a while now, does not only add additional responsibilities on us at the metropolitan authorities, but it also offers us the opportunity to strategically align with equal minds to position ourselves in order to harness the full benefit that this brings to Accra,” he said.
He said by virtue of the fact that the secretariat is situated in Ghana, what it means is that all policies, business activities, among others, will be centered in Accra.
The AMA boss further said that his outfit is partnering the organisers of GITFIC, and will unveil a new name tag for Accra which reads “Accra – Commercial Capital of Africa.”
The event
The 4th Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference (GITFIC) will be held from April 9-10, 2020 on the theme “Optimizing AfCFTA for Africans; The role of Logistics Infrastructure – AfCFTA Edition.”
It is expected to bring together players in the trade and finance sectors spanning across agriculture to manufacturing, insurance, construction, importers and exporters, foreign businesses and a host of others from across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas to discuss how to improve international trade.
