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12.05.2012 General News

Canadians To Invest More In Ghana

12.05.2012 LISTEN
By Benjamin Mensah - Daily Graphic

President Mills chatting with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Joseph HarperA number of Canadian investors and companies have pledged their commitment to increase their investment portfolios in Ghana, in view of the country’s stable economic and political environment, the President of the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC), Mr Marc Whittingham, has indicated.

Different Canadian companies, under the umbrella of the corporation, are engaged in a number of projects in Ghana, at a total cost of more than two billion dollars, in the areas of energy, hospital infrastructure, rail expansion, mining, technology transfer and power generation.

Some of the specific areas are construction projects at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, the Tema General Hospital Housing Project, the Aboadze Thermal Plant, among others, with more utilisation of local content in the projects.

Mr Whittingham, at a meeting with visiting President John Evans Atta Mills in Ottawa, Canada, lauded the government for providing an enabling environment for the flow of investment and promised a strong participation of the CCC in the Ghanaian economy.

He praised the government for the sound investment climate and mentioned the rule of law, democratic governance and political stability, adding, “Opportunities exist for a win-win situation.”

He lauded Ghana’s role within the Commonwealth and its peacekeeping initiatives around the world and renewed the commitment of the CCC to keep a lasting relationship with Ghana.

He described the visit of President Mills as rare and announced that the CCC’s involvement with the Aboadze project would be renewed next year.

President Mills commended Canada for its show of love to Ghana and mentioned the northern sector and other deprived areas of Ghana as areas where Canadian volunteerism in projects was much felt.

He said Ghana would maintain its relationship with Canada, where he had taught at the University of British Columbia for some time.

He urged investors to take advantage of the sound investment climate in Ghana, which had a vibrant judicial system and good returns on investment.

Meanwhile, the President at the weekend reiterated his commitment to peaceful polls, stressing that violence and bloodshed did not have a place in Ghana.

He cautioned war mongers and troublemakers to take a cue from the sordid events of post-election violence in neighbouring West African nations and elsewhere in Africa and commit themselves to making next year’s polls peaceful.

President Mills called on Ghanaians to co-operate with the government and the Electoral Commission (EC) and respect the Constitution for free, fair and transparent polls.

The President made the appeal at a Town Hall meeting with the Ghanaian community in Ottawa, where he ended a four-day working visit to Canada yesterday.

He said the Ghanaian electorate had to co-operate with the EC to make the polls peaceful to protect Ghana’s already enviable democratic credentials.

Likening the polls to a contest, President Mills stressed respect for the rules of the game, so that no one individual but Ghana would be the ultimate winner.

He explained that the electorate belonged to different political parties with freedom of choice and different political strategies but all must converge at the centre of the territory called Ghana and make life better for the people.

The President expressed the conviction that Ghanaians, no matter where they were, wanted the best for their nation.

He commended Ghanaians resident in Canada and others in the Diaspora for supporting the Motherland through remittances, visits and phone calls and conveyed his appreciation to the people for their time with him.

“We cherish the moment to meet with you and see how you are,” President Mills said, and called for constant prayers so that leaders and the citizens would continue to do what was right in the sight of the Lord for His continuous blessings.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Alhaji Mohamed Mumuni, said the government had tremendous respect for Ghanaians in the Diaspora, for which reason the President had consequently made it a practice to interact with Ghanaians wherever he travelled in the world.

Remittances from Ghanaians abroad, according to the minister, had shot up in recent years, helping individuals and families to meet crucial financial obligations.

He urged the people to take advantage of the improved macro-economic indicators, coupled with the recent projection of the International Monetary Fund of Ghana being the fastest growing economy, to invest heavily in the economy back home.

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