Ghana's new president, John Atta Mills, said on Wednesday he will promote business and economic growth and pursue national reconciliation after a close and divisive election. Following are key quotes from Mills's speech on taking office after elections in which his center-left National Democratic Congress (NDC) wrested power from the right-of-center New Patriotic Party (NPP) of outgoing President John Kufuor. Economy and Trade "I want to assure the business community that we mean well, and on the local front we intend to resuscitate local businesses hand in hand with foreign ones. However, we will not allow local products to suffer unfair competition from cheap imports. My government will work hard to accelerate the process toward accelerated development." Job creation, good governance and growth "Our success or failure in government should be measured by the extent to which we achieve these goals." International affairs "We will be active on the international front, especially in the African Union, to participate in efforts in forging unity on the continent." National reconciliation "This is the dawn of a new era for change, for a better Ghana. But it will not be a change for the sake of change, it will be a change in a new direction to improve the livelihoods of our people. We intend to pursue a consensus-building agenda and my government will give due recognition to everybody including my compatriots in the minority parties. I will be president for all Ghanaians, whether they voted for me or not. I will heal wounds to ensure unity among our people. No Ghanaians should live in fear of armed robbery, so protection of our people will be one of our priorities. We will ensure that we listen to the people and address their concerns. There will be no room for political vendettas, and there will be no room for witchhunting, but we will make sure justice is administered. "The elections are behind us, and now there is no NDC Ghana and there is no NPP Ghana. We are one people with a common destiny." "I want to urge all Ghanaians to respond to the call to be part of this new era." Source: Reuters