A renowned Economist, Dr Joe Abbey, has challenged Ghana to step out from her long dependent comfort zone of raw material production country into the community of industrialized nations as the only sustainable panacea for her economic emancipation.
He observed Ghana is currently stacked in raw material production for export which has led to the loss of its timber stock among others which are not renewable.
“We must get away from the dependence on raw material production export from mineral deposits like gold, oil and Gas , timber and the rest,’’ he said.
According to him Ghana must embrace industrialization which is a more dynamic area than digging out oil and gold which are not renewable.
He challenged Ghana to accept the reality that the era of aids are no more and must therefore learn to live within its means.
Dr Abbey called for a problem solving mindset from all stakeholders against rhetoric in finding a lasting solution to the country`s economic challenges.
He urged government to return to Dr Kwame Nkrumah`s vision of industrializing Ghana based on an integrated Aluminum industry through the Volta Aluminum Company Limited (VALCO) to produce aluminum in-cuts and all manner of needs for domestic needs and foreign exchange earnings to help expand the economy.
Dr Abbey who is also the Executive Director for Centre for Policy Analysis (CEPA) expressed disappointed in the fact that Ghana still export cocoa in its raw form across its borders after fifty years since gaining independence.
He also advocated for the need for the country to develop a Beverage industry based on Ghana`s cocoa endowment and urged government to attract the needed investment for the cocoa sector for greater returns.
According to him Ghana must not wait till all its resources are depleted and ensure value addition to local produce to give Ghana competitive advantage over its peers through the exports of finished cocoa and other products.
These, he noted, will help the country to earn foreign exchange and balance import sheet thereby helping to sustain the stability of the local currency.
By CHRISTIAN KPESESE
