Trade with Ghana

Ghana is the most peaceful country in the West African Sub-Region and a beacon of democracy in Africa. The country enjoys more than twenty five years of uninterrupted democratic governance with well-developed governmental, economic and social structures.

In addition Ghana is undergoing continuous improvements in its infastructure base. The Ghana Standards Authority is now the national quality hub in leading the country’s National Quality Infrastructure. Thanks to international support by amongst others the Switzerland government and UNIDO testing laboratories and conformity assessment institutions were strengthened.

The country has a strong manufacturing base, several key agricultural raw materials as well as processed and finished products. Ghana is well-known as the business trading hub in the West African sub-Region where several international brands and globally accredited certification bodies are established and use as a gateway for entry into the rest of the sub-regional market and beyond.

Ghana’s economy has been strengthened by at least twenty five years of relatively sound economic management and a competitive business environment. The country’s economic indicators have been relatively strong and robust in recent years and the economy has been able to withstand several external shocks, including falling prices of its main export products on the international market.

The country has an attractive and liberal investment regime as well as a robust, transparent and business-friendly legal system which has attracted a growing number of FDIs from countries such as the United States, Japan, Germany, India and more recently China.

Ghana’s financial landscape is populated by regional and international banks, as well as other non-bank financial institutions. These banks have established their presence in the country due to favorable policies by governments over the years. The stability in the sector has been largely attributed to strong supervisory role played by the Bank of Ghana. There are currently 33 commercial banks operating in the country with products for SMEs and conglomerates.

Ghana has deliberate policies in place aimed at promoting trade. These include:

- Import duty waivers: Ghana is part of ECOWAS and therefore a buyer can obtain import duty waivers if it buys manufactured products from companies in Ghana that have ETLS certification.
- Vibrant free zone regime.
- Business friendly investment laws.
- Favorable incentives in the export sector.
- A signatory to a number of additional international trade treaties and protocols.

Indeed, Ghana has a good transportation (air, land and sea) system which greatly facilitates international business between Ghana and its trading partners globally. Many well-known airlines such as Emirates, British Airways, Turkish Airlines and South African Airways have a strong presence in Ghana, making air traffic in terms of passengers and cargo the busiest in the sub-Region.

There are two main sea ports in Ghana, which are located in Takoradi and Tema. A lot of large shipping lines (such as Maersk, Grimaldi, NileDutch) regularly call and depart from these ports. The Tema port is undergoing massive expansion that should make it the largest sea port in West Africa. Historically, Tema is the preferred sea port for all land-locked neighbouring countries.