The outgoing minister for Trade and Industry, Mr. Alan Kyerematen instituted the Automotive Industry Development Council on Thursday, 12 January 2022, in Accra.
The Automotive Industry Development Council is a stakeholder council for the country’s automobile industry.
Speaking at a ceremony, Mr. Kyerematen acknowledged the skepticism that greeted the government’s announcement to establish the automobile industry in Ghana, indicating that the sector has thrived regardless.
However, he indicated that he was pleased that the skepticism has given way to optimism. He said “we have not gotten here by chance. There are a number of critical success factors that have made today possible,”
Enumerating the success factors that have culminated in the thriving of the country’s automobile sector despite the initial skepticism, Mr. Kyeremanten stressed the Akufo-Addo-led government’s commitment and vision.
“The vision of the political commitment of the current government. It is not by accident that the most advanced economies in the world also happen to be the leading countries in the automobile assembling and manufacturing sector and you can count them. From the United States to China, to Japan to Germany to France, India, and Brazil. So, there must be a correlation between economic growth and development and the development of the auto industry.
“So we in Ghana have made a decision that we want to follow that path because we want to play in the big league and that is why as part of the government’s industrial transformation agenda, we identified a number of strategic anchor industries that will diversify our economy away from cocoa and gold and one of these strategic anchor industries are the automotive industry. So political commitment and vision is the foundation of the success of this particular enterprise and initiative,” he revealed.
Mr. Kyerematen further noted that the government also developed a comprehensive automotive policy that drew global auto companies into the country to ensure the success of the industry.
“That commitment and the vision must be accompanied by policy infrastructure. Without a policy, your vision cannot be realised and so right at the beginning of our first term in office we, developed a very comprehensive automotive policy and it is this policy that has attracted most of the global auto companies into Ghana.
“The policy has also been reinforced by the legislative framework which is what allows the incentives that come with being part of this industry to be possible,” he said.
The aspiring presidential candidate also highlighted how the automobile industry is one of the most difficult ones to develop.
“Your capacity to engage stakeholders. This is probably one of the most difficult and sensitive industries to develop all over the world. Because we have so many players, so many stakeholders and it is a very delicate balancing act to ensure that you keep the interest of all these stakeholders aligned to enable you to have a vibrant and dynamic industry.”
He also disclosed that the government has been able to create an enabling environment for the automobile industry to thrive in Ghana.
“We’re pleased that we’ve had the cooperation and collaboration of the varied stakeholders and that’s why in fact we’re here today.
“As government, we have put in place the standards and the regulatory framework to ensure that we compete with the best in the world,” Mr. Kyerematen stated.
