The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) has called on the government to immediately intervene to protect local traders against foreign dominance and eminent collapse of Ghanaian indigenous businesses.
According to Mr. Joseph Obeng, President, GUTA, currently about 60 per cent of the Ghanaian local trade has been lost to foreigners, predominantly Chinese and Nigerians, who are rapidly taking over the retail market.
Speaking with the Ghana News Agency over the weekend, he said investment laws were not being effectively enforced, allowing foreigners to get into the space of indigenous trade while local businesses struggled.
“Our market is gone. Today you realise that those who do the stationary and printing are mostly Chinese. When you go to the likes of Chinatown and China Mall, you see many people are trooping in and out to buy their wares,” he noted.
He explained that the dominance of foreign companies in the retail, coupled with the absence of retention policy which allowed them to repatriate their profit deprived Ghana of much-needed foreign earnings, contributing to foreign exchange pressures.
Having toured some markets with the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), we have come to ascertain the veracity of the problem last week, where Nigerians have taken over mobile phones and accessories market.”
The President of GUTA advocated for a revision to Ghana’s investment laws, saying “It shouldn’t only be about enhancing the laws, but most critically, effective enforcement to protect local businesses and ensure that foreign investments benefited the country.”
Mr. Obeng asked that the government created the avenue for banks to provide affordable credit for local traders, enabling them to expand their operations and compete more effectively.
“A competition law is necessary to guide market activities and prevent unfair competition,” he said, adding that such a law would help to level the playing field and ensure that local businesses were not unfairly disadvantaged.
GNA
