SECOND NORTHERN BUSINESS FAIR OPENS IN TAMALE (BACK PAGE, NOV 20, 2010)

THE second edition of the Northern Business and Investment Fair has opened in Tamale with a call on investors to take advantage of the investment opportunities in the north.
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh, who made the call in a speech read on her behalf, said the north abounded in various investment opportunities yet to be fully tapped.
She noted that the government was seeking strategic investors to exploit those areas as part of measures to ensure the accelerated development of the north.
She mentioned some of the areas earmarked for investments as the cotton industry, sugar production, quarry and mining, Boankra Inland Port Project, mechanised farming and the revamping of neglected industries.
Ms Tetteh also hinted of the establishment of a leather industry and a modern technology and innovation centre for the manufacture of capital goods.
The four-day fair, which is taking place at the Tamale Sports Stadium, is being organised by the Business and Financial Times (B&FT) newspaper, with sponsorship from StarLife Assurance Company, Zenith Bank and Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB).
Over 65 exhibitors are participating in the fair. They include food and beverage providers, manufacturing companies, handicraft dealers, heavy machinery companies, dealers in clothing, construction companies and service providers such as banks, insurance companies and management training consultants.
She described the fair as an important event in the socio-economic life of the people of the north as it opened up the area to new investments.
Ms Tetteh said in order to promote investments in every part of the country, the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) was expanding its operations to all parts of the country, adding that an office had been established in Tamale to cater for the three northern regions.
The Northern Regional Minister, Mr Bukari Moses Mabengba, noted that even though trade and investment activities were low in the north, the area could compete favourably if given enough support.
He identified opportunities in the hospitality, tourism, transport, agriculture, education, mining and construction areas in the three northern regions.
The General Manager of the B&FT, Mr Abdulai Salifu, lauded the level of collaboration between the B&FT and other institutions, including the Trade Ministry, GIPC, Association of Ghana Industries and United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
He also commended the government for its drive to accelerate the development of the north and called for more efforts towards job creation so as to curb the rural-urban drift.