Omatek tasks gov`t on pledge

The Government has been urged to make good its pledge of ensuring that State institutions rely on locally manufactured goods for their operational requirements as part of moves to stimulate and encourage the growth of local companies.

The Managing Director of Omatek Computers, Mrs. Florence Seriki, who made the call, said such deliberate government policies would help to foster a better investment climate and guarantee better returns for the companies.

Her call came at time of the ongoing debate about one computer per child programme being pursued by government to accelerate growth in ICT use for all school-going children.

Mrs. Seriki said offering local computer companies the opportunity to participate in the programme would go a long way to enhance technology transfer, build skills for local technicians and enhance job creation.

She asked government not to consider the initial cost of procuring the computers for the programme as the overall gain to the national economy far outweighs the cost. Besides, such equipment would also be well adapted to local conditions and thereby prolong its life span.

Mrs. Seriki said the high prices of computers locally could be addressed through government review of duties and a reduction in the rate of Value Added Tax charged on ICT consumables, especially on Completely Knocked Down (CKD) parts.

Citing the Nigerian government example, she noted that the zero-duty regime for all CKD parts helped to drastically reduce production cost, which ultimately reflected on the cost of acquisition by the end user.

“With government support, job opportunities will be enhanced, Small and Medium Enterprises flourish through outsourcing of services such as packaging, cable ties, nails, power cables, screws, and polyfoam pertinent to the production process thereby making these raw materials available locally and contributing to economic development,” she added.

Omatek Ghana in partnership with government last year launched an express consumer initiative to make computer acquisition easy and affordable to consumers, especially civil servants, corporate executives, educational institution and students through a structured payment plan with partnering banks.