Service sector has highest number as investors register 109 projects in Ghana valued at $378m
The Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) says it has recorded 109 businesses with an estimated value of $378.44 million for the first quarter of 2011.
The service sector recorded the highest number of companies registered. There were 37 service sector projects with an estimated value of $83 million. The general trading sector registered 29 companies with an estimated value of $19 million.
The manufacturing sector registered 12 companies with an estimated value of $113.44 million, followed by the export trade sector with 10 projects and an estimated value of $3.07 million. The liaison industry registered seven projects with an estimated value of $1.65 million. With an estimated value of $1.45 million, seven projects registered in the tourism sector. The building and construction industry had the highest estimated value of $157.04 million with six projects registered. However agriculture, which is the mainstay of the Ghanaian economy had only one project registered with an estimated value of $330,000.
The estimated value of registered projects for the first quarter of 2011- $378.44 million is an increase of 101.13% above that of the same period in 2010 which was $188.16 million, the GIPC says. In the same period in 2010 however, 108 projects were registered, giving an increase of 0.93% on the 2011 total of 109 projects.
According to the GIPC, the initial capital transfers for the newly registered projects for first quarter of 2011 amounted to $68.90 million which is an increase of over 390% as compared to that of the same period for 2010. The total for first quarter 2010 was $14.86 million.
The foreign direct investment (FDI) component of the estimated value of the projects for 2011, the GIPC says was $351.75 million, which is 118.02% above the 2010 total of $161.34 million.
The GIPC therefore projects that the expected number of jobs to be created for Ghanaians from the registered projects is 6,497.
By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi