Trade Minister calls for trade expansion, presents Ghana’s 24-hour economy to Moroccan counterparts

The Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, has called on Morocco to remove non-tariff barriers and has presented Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy policy as the foundation of its industrial growth and investment attraction strategy.

She made this call on Monday during a three-day working visit to the Kingdom of Morocco aimed at deepening trade relations and identifying new investment opportunities for both countries.

In the meeting with Morocco’s Minister of Investments, Convergence and Public Policy Evaluation, Mr Karim Zidane, she said trade barriers continued to constrain the volume and diversity of trade that was possible between Ghana and Morocco.

She said that the removal of trade barriers was a precondition for realising the full potential of the bilateral relationship.

She commended Morocco’s engagement with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), describing it as a positive development for intra-African trade.

The Minister placed Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy policy at the centre of her pitch to Moroccan counterparts, describing it as a structural shift in how Ghana was organising its economy for industrial production, employment creation and export growth.

Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, drew the attention of the Moroccan counterparts to Ghana’s revised Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) investment law, which enhances incentives and creates a more enabling environment for foreign investors.

Mr Karim Zidane called on Ghana to grow its exports to Morocco as a means of addressing the existing trade imbalance and proposed that a Business and Investment Forum be organised in Ghana without delay to foster stronger business ties.

In a separate meeting with Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Trade, Mr Omar Hejira, described Ghana as a strategic trading partner and emphasised that the Minister’s visit represents a significant opportunity to elevate trade relations.

He briefed the Ghanaian delegation on Morocco's economic growth trajectory, noting strong sectoral performances in renewable energy, port infrastructure, finance, pharmaceuticals, human capital development and the automobile and aviation industries.

The two sides agreed on the urgent need to organise a Business and Investment Forum in Ghana, which would serve as a structured platform for direct business-to-business engagement between Ghanaian and Moroccan enterprises.

The Ghanaian delegation was hosted to a formal ceremony by the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Trade, in a gesture that both sides described as a reflection of the growing strength of diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations.