A total of 800 foreign and local exhibitors are expected to participate in the 14th Ghana International Trade Fair 2010. The Fair organizer is collaborating with the Association of Ghana Industries and the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry to showcase Ghanaian products with export potentials. Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Trade fair Company (GTFC), Kwame Ofori-Amanfo, says small-scale producers of Made-in-Ghana goods are being offered special packages at the Fair to support the growth of the sector. He was speaking at the media launch of the Fair in Kumasi. The event would be held between February 24 and March 14, 2010 on the theme “Accelerating Ghana Trade and Industrial Growth”. The International trade fair is the flagship of the GTFC’s primary functions. It is general and consumer in nature and creates a platform for all economic operators to interact with customers. Mr. Ofori-Amanfo noted “the successful organization of the international fair has over the years helped increase and expand Ghana’s export base, increased the tax revenue through the payment of import duties and VAT, promoted tourism and created short-term employment opportunities”. He added the fair has helped to create awareness and revived the exhibition industry in the country, as trade associations and industrial groups organize their own specialized events, to expose the economic potentials of their sectors. He emphasized “the exhibition industry in Ghana is very potent as an effective means to promote goods and services”. The 14th Ghana International Trade Fair would place emphasis on the promotion of agriculture and agro-processing, industrial and production machinery, oil and gas, mining and energy, healthcare, safety equipment and ICT”. The Acting CEO of the GTFC said efforts are being made to promote and publicize the Fair to attract good quality exhibitors, trade visitors and the general public. He however notes that trade fairs are not for buying and selling but an exhibition for match-making, business meetings and joint-venture discussions. “The Fair should be seen and assessed as a platform for cross-fertilization of ideas which leads to increased knowledge in product display, labeling, marketing strategies and competition in the market”, Mr. Ofori-Amanfo observed. Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh