The United States (US) Department of Commerce has projected the value of trade between Ghana and US to double in the next two years.
Currently, the value of trade between Ghana and U.S stands at $2.7 billion.
“We have a strong commercial relations. I’m hoping that we can take that $2.7 billion or somewhere around that range, and double it in just a matter of two or three years and then double it again in just a few years after that,” the Deputy Secretary of the US Department of Commerce, Don Graves said at the US-Ghana Business forum in Accra on Thursday.
The forum, organised by the US Chamber of Commerce and the American Chamber of Commerce Ghana, was the 3rd High-Level meeting between US and Ghanaian government officials and businesses on the official visit of Mr Graves.
It aimed at deepening diplomatic and commercial partnerships between Ghana and the United States for the successful implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
It was on the theme “Leveraging AfCFTA to promote US-Africa Commercial Partnerships.”
Mr Graves said the US was committed to being a strong, long-term, and stable partner to Ghana in ways that were “mutually beneficial and devoid of exploitation.”
Through this partnership, he said, the US aims to expand trade and investment between the U.S. and Ghana while creating jobs and sustainable growth in both countries.
With a globe recovering from the shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said US President Biden was committed to supporting agricultural investment, increased fertiliser, and energy production to meet the challenges of both countries.
He said there was a need for the two countries to find ways to work together and invest in more resilient supply chains and cooperate to reduce inflation as a key driver toward recovery.
Mr Graves said the US saw opportunities for further engagement in sectors of mutual priority including infrastructure, health care, healthcare systems, ICT, and climate resiliency, as well as workforce training and capacity building to stimulate the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Through the partnership, he said, the US could support Ghana’s One District/One Factory programme by engaging U.S. firms to provide technology and high-quality infrastructure that alleviate the dangers of climate change.
“This could serve as a good foundation for Ghanaian economic growth and prosperity while simultaneously combating long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns,” he said.
The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, said the longstanding Ghana-US partnership had been beneficial with Ghana getting 13 Foreign Direct Investment projects across the country last year.
He said Ghana was the best investment destination on the continent while it was ready to build economically viable partnerships as well as leverage AfCFTA for the socio-economic development of the country.
He gave the assurance that Ghana would revive its existing pact with the US government for possible improvement in areas of technology, housing, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, tourism, agribusiness, manufacturing, and services.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
