Ghana ponders on European partnership pact

Three months to the deadline for West African countries to sign the European Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union, the government of Ghana says it is considering available options.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and regional Integration, Ms. Hannah Tetteh, at the weekend said the decision would be hinged on stakeholders’ resolution on whether to sign the pact or not.
Ms. Tetteh, who at the weekend hosted a stakeholders’ forum of the business community and exporters of Ghana noted that the country was at a cross road on the Interim European Partnership Agreement which elapses on October 1, 2016.
According to her, Ghanaian businesses would be adversely affected whether the country signs the pact or not, hence it was imperative for all stakeholders to deliberate on the matter to reach a decision.
“There is a number of businessmen in Ghana who depend on duty-free, quota-free access in order to be able to run businesses, there are also businessmen in Ghana who worry about the implications of EPA on their businesses. Thus we want to give the opportunity for our private sector to discuss,” she said.
The minister said failure to sign the pact would deprive Ghana of concessions such as duty-free and quota-free access to the European market under the existing market regulations.