The Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has signed a Letter of Collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) West African Trade Hub and African Partners Network, in Accra on Thursday. The collaboration will help establish a framework for cooperation between the two parties in the implementation of the AGOA Trade Resource Centre, stated Mr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry.

Signatures and exchange of the letter of collaboration were done at a ceremony to launch the new African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Trade Resource Centre, which was hosted by the GCCI within the World Trade Centre in Accra.

Mr Jeffery Povolny represented the USAID Trade Hub and African Partners Network, while Mr Mark Adu Aboagye, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry, represented the GCCI.

Mr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, said that the development of a trade hub has become necessary in view of the myriad of challenges confronting the country’s export business, particularly those within the textiles sector, to maximize fully the prospects of AGOA and other trade pacts available to Ghana.

The Trade Hub would work through regional private sector associations and regional Governmental entities to help channel all partners’ efforts in a way that would address critical constraints to trade competitiveness, capture opportunities to expand trade, demonstrate West Africa’s productive potential to investors and facilitate greater investment in the region.

He also said that the Centre was expected to provide advisory services to Ghanaian companies to increase their competitiveness, and increase regional trade and value-added global exports, particularly to the United States under the AGOA.

It is expected to also facilitate strategic investments to expand exports by providing technical assistance and industry-specific best practices to government and the private sector.