A former Managing Director of Stanbic Bank, Naa Alhassan Andani, has called for the need to create economic clusters that will provide the required infrastructure and financing to explore the industriousness of people, particularly, in Zongo communities.
He expressed his disappointment at the fact that foreigners had invested and taken away all the benefits of businesses that Ghanaians were so good at to the detriment of the indigenous people as a result of the country’s seeming inaction.
“We need to all work together to achieve the solutions to tackling poverty in our communities,” he stated.
Naa Andani was speaking at a Business Forum organised by Maxwell Investment Group (MIG) on the theme: “Avenues to Manoeuvre During an Economic Downturn”.
He said it was unthinkable that despite the industrious nature of indigenous Zongo communities, the country was yet to see a competitive business originating from such communities.
Using the production of meat as an example, he said, individual meat producers needed to come together to form groups to enhance their production capability and be able to compete globally.
He therefore called for the establishment of trade groups in Zongo communities which could be resourced to be able to explore opportunities in various sectors.
“We can aggregate and resource indigenes with employable skills. Let’s work in groups and in clusters and we will derive the maximum benefits,” he said.
Business clusters
The former banker emphasised the need to create business clusters in Zongo communities to enhance efforts to address poverty in those communities.
He said the presence of business clusters in such communities would increase productivity and returns on investment and enable the creation of national and global competitive companies.
He explained that such a move was the only way to generate wealth and provide indigenes with employable skills and opportunities to earn their livelihoods.
Agric cluster
The Chief Executive Officer of MIG, Dr Maxwell Ampong, for his part, said the company had commenced work with all stakeholders to build the nee) and other ded clusters in the agricultural sector.
He said agriculture provided the perfect opportunity to transform Zongo communities and the country as a whole, adding that MIG was engaging all stakeholders on the plans and projects being undertaken to maximise returns on investment in the sector.
He said the MIG which was made up of a group of professionals who all come from the Zongo and inner communities had already engaged the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in that regard.
“It will be better if we move forward as one business cluster than one company working with one person. This is the first of a series of conversations that we are having with stakeholders so that we can make the most out of the opportunities that are available to us,” he stated.
