The 2017 edition of the “Melcom Made in Ghana Festival” has opened in Accra with a call on the public to patronise and promote made-in-Ghana goods.
An annual event, organised by the Melcom Group of Companies, it is designed to support the national campaign for made-in-Ghana goods aimed at reducing importation to boost the local economy.
The 2017 edition is the fifth in a series to showcase over 1,500 products selected from 100 Ghanaian manufacturing companies in all 36 branches of Melcom stores nationwide.
Melcom Made in Ghana Festival is expected to rekindle the interest of Ghanaians to patronise home-grown products to help boost the local manufacturing sector.
Developmental platform
Speaking at the opening ceremony in Accra yesterday, the Director of Communications of Melcom Group, Mr Godwin Avenorgbo, said for the past five
years, the initiative had become a developmental platform to showcase local manufacturers whose products had been certified.
He explained that the idea was to focus on the sale and promotion of locally manufactured products by Ghanaian businesses and companies to help boost the economy.
Mr Avenorgbo said the Melcom Group believed that local manufacturers were producing quality goods and,therefore, needed to be supported to increase their capacity to become internationally competitive.
“Let us make a determination, therefore, as a country to support local industries by putting in place policies that make the business environment favourable for the injection of capital for expansion and employment,” he said
Mr Avenorgbo said the project was also to reassure Ghanaians that Melcom patronised a lot of goods from local manufacturers who met the standards of the Food and Drugs Authority( FDA) for sale in their shops.
Festival yielding results
He expressed excitement over the fact that the festival had been yielding the intended results over the years, adding that “ all the goods we displayed in the previous editions were purchased and people even came to make orders.” He said he was optimistic that the 2017 edition would be bigger in terms of patronage because more products had been brought on board.
Mr Avenorgbo said since 2013, when the first edition was held, many more manufacturers had come on board, which had increased the number of locally made products on sale.
He explained that in 2013, the festival registered 35 companies with 250 products; in 2014, it registered 55 companies with 600 products, and in 2015, it recorded 80 companies with 1,000 products.
The Director of Communications said special areas in the Melcom Plus Shop in Accra had been designated for the exhibition, promotion and sale of locally manufactured products.
He also advised start-up companies in the country to do their best to build strong brands, adding that the company had the vision of going beyond the current number of exhibitors to involve almost every Ghanaian company.
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