'Form Partnerships To Develop African Economies'

Industrialists in Africa have been urged to form partnerships to expand the economies of the various countries in the sub-region.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Reroy Group, Kate Quartey-Papafio made the call on Monday in Accra at the maiden edition of the African Genius Lecture Series organized by the Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah African Genius Award Board.

Mrs. Quartey-Papafio, who is also the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) Marketing Woman of the year 2014, stated that African industrialists must support each other to promote the development of the sub-region.

Presenting a paper under the topic, 'Has The African Industrialist Failed to Live Up to the Name,' the CEO indicated that the formation of partnerships by entrepreneurs would lead to the reduction of youth unemployment as well as high importation of foreign goods into the sub-region.

She said through partnerships, African industrialists would be able to harness their limited resources to produce goods that could compete favorably with international brands.

According to her, 'We are called upon to team up with governments which boost competition to deliver not only on the national front, but the international business space.'

She indicated that 'while these partnerships produce world-class industries, auxiliary yields of these partnerships would include equally first rate and world class infrastructure and public services that improve the lives of the people in these African countries.

According to her, African industrialists must do more to meet the expectations of Africans on the continent and beyond.

Value Addition
Mrs. Quartey-Papafio also called on indigenous African businesses to add value to their brands before exporting them to make them more attractive to customers overseas.

She said, 'Being predominantly agricultural mainland, we are blessed for what nature gifts us.

'But that is not what the world market expects of us. Indeed, Cote d' Ivoire and Ghana produce 53 percent of the world's cocoa, but nothing echoes the value added expectations of these cocoa-growing African countries as loud as the supermarket shelves in Abijan and Accra. These shelves are stacked with chocolates imported from Switzerland and the UK which do not produce cocoa.'

 By Melvin Tarlue