Business News of Friday, 6 December 2013

Source: GNA

Veep calls for more investor support for agric

Vice President Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur has called for more investor support for the agricultural sector for increased yield and reduction in post harvest losses.

According to him the agricultural sector forms a chunk of the private sector and financial assistance which has been a tussle in some instances, would ensure growth in agribusiness with multiplier effects on the economy.

The Vice President made the call when Madam Elizabeth Littlefield, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), led a delegation from the business entity to pay a courtesy call on him at the Flagstaff House, in Accra, on Thursday.

Madam Littlefield said Africa has been the largest partner of the OPIC, with portfolio financing, loans and guarantees. OPIC has an $ 840 million investment, with $ 108 million in water project, which involves 38 water treatment plants, and further supports investment in agriculture, health systems and institutions, and cold storage systems.

She described Ghana as leading in OPIC assisted projects in Africa, which is expected to double in the next few years. The delegation is in Ghana to inspect OPIC assisted projects, has so far visited the Korle Bu Hospital in Accra and the Pwalugu Tomato Factory in the Upper East Region.

The OPIC is a US Development Finance Institution that operates in 105 countries, which manages a $ 16 billion portfolio of financing and insurance to support private investment, especially in the world’s poorest countries.