The Ghana Chamber of Commerce is expressing worry over what it says is the increasing cost of doing business in the country. The chamber says the recent increase in fuel prices will compound the already bad situation and further have a negative impact on commercial operators. President of the Ghana Chamber of Commerce, Seth Adjei Baah told Joy News high interest rates coupled with unreliable power supply puts a heavy strain on businesses. “Even though we are saying Ghana’s economy is growing at a very fast rate, industry is not growing that much. Last year it grew by 1.7 [percent] and it’s industry that creates the volume of employment that we are looking for.” He said utility bills and interest rates for loans are just going up, making it difficult for local industries to compete with those from other countries which produce at cheaper rates and export them into Ghana. Mr. Baah indicated that the only way to improve the situation is for government to get involved and create the enabling environment. “If we want to create the needed employment through industry in Ghana, there is a need for government to help to reduce the cost of doing business and by so doing, people will be attracted to go into industry.” He said there is a need to look at other alternatives to revamp the sector. As far as he is concerned, it is not enough to blame the increases of crude oil and utility bills on global prices, stressing that if the country is going to create opportunities for the youth, then industry must be taken seriously by the government. “When the ordinary man is employed, that is when we are going to get taxes also to run the economy. Those who are not employed are not paying any taxes so we’ve got to find a way to balance the situation,” he stated.