R ARIVANANTHAM
CHENNAI, AUG 13
Aiming to help the Tamil Nadu businessmen to tap the potential of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the India Africa Trade Council launched the Ecowas Trade Centre at India ECOWAS Trade Conference in Chennai on Saturday.
The President of Indian Economic Trade Organization Dr Asif Iqbal welcomed the High Commissioner of Ghana in India Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh and pledged the commitment of support between the two nations for a robust partnership.
There is a huge interest in India for Ghana, a country with great scope for bilateral trading opportunities in pharma, medicines, IT development, textiles, garments and industrial development by Indian companies. Counsellor from the Ghana High Commission in New Delhi Ernest Nana Adjei presented the latest reformed business policy of Ghana that is very prospective for investors.
- During the conference, the letter of Appointment was given to Jinnah Rafiq as the Trade commissioner for the India Africa Trade Council-ECOWAS Trade Commission
- Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu is pushing foreign relations to a new reformed policy in the state: Jinnah Rafiq
- Indian Economic Trade Organization President Dr Asif Iqbal welcomed the High Commissioner of Ghana in India Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh
- Ernest Nana Adjei, Counsellor from the Ghana High Commission presented the latest reformed business policy of Ghana that is very prospective for investors.
The Head of Ministry of External Affairs in Chennai Dr Venkatachalam Murugan graced the opening ceremony of the ECOWAS Trade Commission to be headed by Jinnah Rafiq, who in his address read out the commitment of the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu who is pushing foreign relations to a new reformed policy in the state.
During the Event the Ambassador presented the Ghana Coffee to the MEA official and will explore the option of formally launching the coffee during the visit of the Investment Council of Ghana in October. The ECOWAS delegation will be headed to Ghana Accra in October 2022 at the World Trade to cover the opportunities and invite prospective businessmen to invest in Ghana in sectors of pharmaceutical, garments, textiles, agro processing.
Dr Venkatachalam Murugan also spoke about accelerating India’s relationship with the African region and welcomed delegates from Tamil Nadu state to pledge support for the various other nations around the African region. Jinnah Rafiq spoke about India’s efforts in strengthening relations especially when India is celebrating 75 years of India’s Independence. India has also in the past extended various credit lines to Ghana through the Exim Bank, including a line of credit of USD 75 million (over Rs 500 crore) for financing Industrial parks.
During the conference, the Letter of Appointment was given to Jinnah Rafiq as the Trade commissioner for the India Africa Trade Council-ECOWAS Trade Commission. He will drive the relationships between India and the ECOWAS countries. “Tamil Nadu being a hub for many GCC countries can be a great destination for Ghana due to its proximity and its past linkages to India, We welcome investments for Ghana and will act as a catalyst to connect this country with our state of Tamil nadu” said Jinnah Rafiq who will be opening the trade office soon.
The ongoing Government of India assistance in developmental projects in Ghana continued with sanctioned Lines of Credit worth more than US$1 billion to the Government of Ghana for construction of Infrastructure and power transmission lines. Ghana is one of the largest recipient of long term concessional credit from India in Africa.
The High Commissioner also presented the opportunities to the main guests from Tamil Nadu and also expressed great interest in supporting the trade relations between the two countries and invited the trade community to explore all the available choices for investors.
