IATF 2021: Dr. Fareed Arthur advises Ghanaian exhibitors to leverage linkages for growth

Senior Technical Advisor and AfCFTA Coordinator at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI), Dr. Fareed Arthur, says the platform that was provided by the Intra Africa Trade Fair 2021 could be a gamechanger for most of the Ghanaian businesses that were present if they could leverage and build on the connections and partnerships that they made at the event.

The essence of IATF 2021 was for participants to identify markets and opportunities across the continent, he added.

“Having the opportunity to access markets is always a gamechanger for business and it’s good for young entrepreneurs and producers to identify such fairs to exhibit their goods, either physically or virtually,” he shares with Single African Market in an interview.Harmonization of standards was one of the key concerns that came up from the fair and most Ghanaian businesses see this as a major hindrance to their expansion to other markets under the AfCFTA.

But according to Dr. Fareed Arthur, observation was a notable objective of IATF 2021 to identify the various conditions under which trading could be carried out.“Currently, a lot of work is being done on standardization and other components that need to be in place for trading to take place seamlessly. We have the Africa Standards Organization which will soon be headed by Ghana from next year.

So, there is already that movement to get an African standard that every member state will comply with. However, countries will still do checks and balances to ensure the wholesomeness of goods that enter their market,” he indicates. Dr. Arthur says Ghana’s position as the commercial hub of Africa and host of the AfCFTA Secretariat challenges the country to be able to lead the process of continental integration, adding that it holds several advantages that must be leveraged by Ghanaian businesses.

“Ghana is in the position to lead this AfCFTA agenda; our bid to host the Secretariat was open with open eyes. There’s increasing recognition that, in terms of preparation and other things, we are quite ahead,” he adds.