President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday rallied German investors and industrialists to invest in Ghana because of the conducive and vibrant business atmosphere in the country.

Addressing the Ghana-Germany Business Forum in Dusseldorf, as part of his working visit to Germany, he asserted that Ghana was a safe and lucrative business destination, a country that protects legitimate investment.

The President who is in that country at the behest of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, told the German business community that his government, since assuming office in 2017, had instituted measures to reduce the cost of doing business and improve the business environment.

As a result, the Ghanaian economy is one of the most business-friendly in Africa, and one of the fastest growing economies in the world between 2017 and 2020, averaging annual GDP growth rates of 7 per cent for those years, up from the 3.4 per cent GDP growth rate in 2016.

“Indeed, with the economies of many countries around the world in recession, having recorded negative growth in 2020, largely as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ghana’s economy was one of the very few that still managed to record a positive GDP growth, albeit a very modest 0.9 per cent.

“And in spite of the ravages of the pandemic, we are working to grow the economy at a much faster rate this year, our target being a five percent GDP growth rate, which will enhance the prospects of a win-win environment for both private sector and country; an environment where companies do not just survive, but actually thrive. In the first quarter of this year, the GDP of the economy grew at 3.1 per cent; in the second, at 8.9 per cent,” he said.

Heartened that more German companies are looking to invest in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo assured the German business leaders and investors that their investments were safe, and urged them to participate in the exceptional investment opportunities in the country.

With a foreign direct investment value of US$83.92 million, registered from Germany within the last decade, he said: “We will continue to create and maintain the conducive investment environment that not only guarantees the safety of investments, but good returns as well.

“We will continue to protect legitimate investments, and preserve the atmosphere of peace, stability and security that has been an important contributor to the increasing presence of German businesses in Ghana,” he assured.

With the opening of representations of German industry giant, ThyssenKrupp, and the German logistics global player, Kühne & Nagel, in the country, and the establishment of the Volkswagen Assembly Plant in Ghana, the President said “It continues to be an exciting time to be in Ghana, and to do business in the country.

“Already, other global car manufacturing giants, Toyota and Nissan of Japan, Sinotruk of China, have also established assembly plants in the country. Twitter is establishing its African Headquarters in Ghana, Google’s first African Artificial Intelligence Centre is located in Ghana, and the well-known Norwegian energy company, Aker, is much established in Ghana,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo recommended to the Forum government’s flagship policies such as the “One District, One Factory”, “One Village, One Dam”, and the programme for “Planting for Food and Jobs”, as well as in areas in the water, health, housing, road and rail infrastructure, transport, industry, manufacturing, agriculture, petroleum and gas, the exploitation of our mineral wealth of bauxite, iron ore and gold, renewable energy and ICT growth sectors.

“We are hopeful that, with solid private sector participation, we can develop a modern railway network with strong production centre linkages and with the potential to connect us to our neighbours. Indeed, Ralf Blankenbach and Havellandische Eisenbahn of Germany are part of a European consortium engaged in the $1.8 billion rehabilitation of the existing Eastern Railway line from Accra to Kumasi,” he added.