Trade Minister Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare called for a major shift in Ghana’s trade strategy to accelerate industrialization, create jobs and reduce reliance on raw material exports, as the country seeks to consolidate recent macroeconomic gains.
Speaking at a joint seminar organized by the World Bank, African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET) and Institute of Statistical Social and Economic Research (ISSER), Ofosu-Adjare said Ghana had reached a critical point in its economic recovery and must now focus on building a more resilient and value-driven economy.
The seminar was held under the theme “Rethinking Trade for Growth and Jobs in Ghana.” Ofosu-Adjare said the country recorded a historic trade surplus of $13.6 billion in 2025 alongside record international reserves, attributing the gains to reforms and fiscal discipline under President John Dramani Mahama.
She warned, however, that macroeconomic stability alone would not deliver long-term prosperity unless Ghana accelerates industrialization, export diversification and domestic value addition. The minister said the government is pursuing policies aimed at transforming Ghana from a raw commodity exporter into a self-reliant, import-substituting and export-led economy.
She pointed to rising cocoa processing capacity and reforms within the gold sector as examples of efforts to retain more value domestically before export. According to Ofosu-Adjare, Ghana’s non-traditional exports rose 30.7% in 2025 to a record $5 billion, with processed and semi-processed products contributing more than $3 billion.
Cocoa derivatives, including cocoa paste, butter and powder, were the country’s top-performing export products, reinforcing the government’s push toward value addition. She noted that Ghana aims to process at least 50% of its cocoa domestically and has already installed grinding capacity exceeding 500,000 metric tons to support the target.
She added that the Trade Ministry is engaging manufacturers, exporters and trade associations to address operational bottlenecks, improve quality standards and strengthen the competitiveness of Ghanaian goods in international markets.
Ofosu-Adjare also highlighted the government’s “Feed the Industry Programme,” which is designed to ensure a stable supply of raw materials to domestic manufacturers and reduce under-capacity production within the industrial sector.
On regional trade integration, she said Ghana continues to advocate harmonized trade standards across the Economic Community of West African States to improve competitiveness under the African Continental Free Trade Area. The minister said bilateral engagements are also ongoing to address cross-border trade bottlenecks and improve trade compliance.
World Bank Regional Director Seynabou Sakho said Ghana could derive greater benefits from trade by improving logistics systems, strengthening quality certification frameworks and addressing sector-specific constraints.Trade “has the potential of substantially driving growth and job creation,” Sakho said, calling for reforms that would enable Ghana to fully leverage trade for sustainable economic growth and employment creation.
The seminar forms part of a new series jointly organized by the World Bank, ACET and ISSER to stimulate public discussion on trade policy and economic development.
