The Deputy Minister of Trade (MOTI) and Industry, in-Charge of Trade, Murtala Mohammed urged the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to promote and patronize Made-in-Ghana goods in the country.
According to him, MDAs must encourage their staff to voluntarily wear clothes made from local fabrics to work every day, just like what his ministry is doing.
The patronage of Made in Ghana goods and services would help boost the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country, Mr. Mohammed added.
The minister lauded the erstwhile Kufour administration for introducing the programme ‘wear Made-in-Ghana clothes on Fridays across the country as part of efforts to promote the local textile industry.
Mr. Mohammed said this in Accra during the meeting with the Communications, Advertising and Marketing Thematic Group of the Made-in-Ghana Committee and the Market Research Institute.
He noted that the importation of pirated textiles had affected the performance of the local textile industry, and the government in line with Article 41 of the World Trade Organization would continue to seize and destroy pirated textiles.
Mr. Mohammed maintained that because these textiles were pirated, their standards such as chemical components could be harmful to the human body, and therefore, government would not donate such items to orphanages or the prison inmates.
He noted that in 2014, Ghana increased its local rice production by 60 per cent, while the quantity of imported rice went down by 40 per cent and urged local manufacturers and producers to abide by the Ghana Standards Authority rules and regulation so that their products would be up to international standards.
The President of the Association of Marketing Practitioners, Mr. Gordon Grant Biaku lauded the campaign but urged the government to begin by patronizing Made in Ghana goods and services to encourage other to emulate their example.
African Eye News.com
