GHANA’S Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr. Ekow Spio-Gabrah has warned that the move to drive out foreigners engaged in petty trading may have a negative impact on the country’s economy.
If likewise measures are enforced in other Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), many Ghanaians who engaged in pretty trading risk losing their livelihoods.
He made this known when he met with the heads of agencies under his ministry.
Dr. Spio Grabrah added that Ghana must be cautious in dealing with the matter since it could trigger a reciprocal action in neighboring countries.
He stated:“Even as we point out to the non Ghanaians that are infringing our laws and to the Ghanaians who may be accommodating them, let us also be mindful of the potential impact from a reciprocity point of view when it comes to international relations”.
The former Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Telecommunication Organisations (CTO) noted that it was important to be mindful of the laws of neighboring countries.
“There may be Ghanaians also involved in all kinds of petty trading, shop keeping activities in neighbouring countries and if so happens these countries have similar laws and if they choose to enforce them then we could have some very interesting situations.
And that is not what we are looking for, where we have tit for tat type activity in the ECOWAS region”, Dr. Spio-Grabrah stressed.
In a bid to enforce the directive a new court is being set up by the Chief Justice, Mrs. Justice Georgina Theodora Wood to prosecute foreigners who engaged in petty trading in the country.
Earlier, the ministry had issued a 30-day ultimatum to foreigners in Ghana’s petty trade sector to leave some 35 short listed markets across the country.
It further warned that the “non-Ghanaians who further contravene the provisions of the Act 865 in the GIPC Law 2013 shall be prosecuted.”
In June this year, thousands of traders belonging to the Ghana Union of Traders’ Association (GUTA) in Accra and Kumasi closed down their shops in protest against government’s inability to eject the foreign traders from their markets.
African Eye News
