Government asked to support local industries

Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - A call has gone to Government to come up with policy pronouncements that will stimulate and encourage the growth of local production by Small and Medium Enterprises. The Managing Director of Omatek Computers Ghana Ltd., Mrs Florence Seriki, who made the call, said such government policies would help to foster a better investment climate and guarantee better returns on investment.

She was speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency after the launch of the Omatek e-Xpress scheme in collaboration with government under which individuals, especially public servants, could acquire computers through instalment payment. Mrs Seriki said the prices of computers could be reduced when government reviewed duties and reduced VAT charges on ICT consumables, especially on Completely Knocked Down (CKD) parts. She said: "The Ghanaian Government can also do more by policy pronouncements that serve to encourage patronage of locally assembled computers by government parastatals. "It was done in Nigeria and it served to improve production turnover while impacting on job creation as well as developing the critical mass of IT engineers and technicians required in driving the industry." She noted that the zero-duty regime for all CKD parts introduced by the Nigerian government helped to drastically reduce production cost, which ultimately reflected on the cost of acquisition by the end user. Mrs Seriki said with government's support, job opportunities would be enhanced, as Small and Medium Enterprises would also flourish through the outsourcing of several services like packaging, cable ties, nails, power cables, screws, and polyfoam pertinent to the production process thereby making these raw materials available locally and contributing to economic development. 30 Oct. 08