RESTRICTED  
  
WT/TPR/G/427  
17 May 2022 
(22-3769) Page: 1/14 
Trade Policy Review Body   Original: English  
 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW  
REPORT BY  
GHANA 
Pursuant to the Agreement Establishing the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (Annex 3 of the 
Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization), the policy statement by Ghana  is 
attached.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Note: This report is subject to restricted circulation and press embargo until the end of the first 
session of the meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body on Ghana . WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  Contents  
1   INTRODUCTION  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  3 
2   MACROECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE  ...........................  4 
2.1   Fiscal Policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...............  4 
2.2   Monetary Policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..........  5 
2.3   Inflation Development  ................................ ................................ ................................ . 6 
2.4   Interest Rate Development  ................................ ................................ ..........................  6 
2.5   Exchange Rate Development  ................................ ................................ ........................  6 
2.6   External Sector Policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ . 6 
2.7   External and Domestic Debt  ................................ ................................ .........................  7 
3   GHANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE RELATIONS  ................................ ...........................  7 
3.1   The Multilateral Trading System  ................................ ................................ ...................  7 
3.2   Regional Integration  ................................ ................................ ................................ ... 9 
3.2.1    African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA)  ................................ .....................  9 
3.2.2    Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)  ................................ ...............  9 
3.2.3    Economic Partnership Agreement ( EPA) with the EU  ................................ ...................  10 
3.3   Bilateral Trade  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  10 
3.3.1    Ghana –EU iEPA  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 10 
3.3.2    Ghana -UK Trade Partnership Agreement  ................................ ................................ ... 11 
3.3.3    The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)  ................................ .......................  11 
4   GHANA'S SECTORAL POLICY FRAMEWORK  ................................ ...............................  11 
4.1   The Industrial Transformation Agenda  ................................ ................................ .........  11 
4.1.1    Strategic Anchor Industries  ................................ ................................ .....................  11 
4.1.2    One District One Factory  ................................ ................................ .........................  12 
4.1.3    National MSME and Entrepreneurship Policy  ................................ ..............................  13 
4.2   The National Export Development Strategy (NEDS)  ................................ ......................  13 
4.3   Business Regulatory Reforms  ................................ ................................ .....................  13 
5   TRADE -RELATED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  ................................ ...............................  14 
6   CONCLUSION ................................ ................................ ................................ ............  14 
 
 
  WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  Ghana is located on the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa with a population of approximately 
31 million people growing at an annual rate of 2.1%. Ghana has a total land surfac e area of  
238,540  square kilometres and lies on the Atlantic with 540 kilometres coastline.  
1.2.  Ghana joined the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in October 1957 after 
attaining independence in March 1957 and became a founding member of the World  Trade 
Organization (WTO) in 1995. Ghana is a firm believer in the tenets of the Multilateral Trading System 
(MTS) and continues to take steps to implement WTO -consistent policies.  
1.3.  Far-reaching reform measures, including reforms in the banking sector and s trong 
disinflationary policies undertaken between 2017 and 2019 placed Ghana 's economy on a sound 
footing. The economy recorded strong GDP growth, averaging 7% and driven mainly by the service 
and industrial sectors, single -digit inflation at 7.9% (in 2019 ) along with declining interest rates, 
unwinding fiscal deficits which ended at 4.8% of GDP in 2019 alongside three consecutive years of 
primary surpluses, enhanced public debt management policies which restructured the debt profile 
from short to medium -to-longer term instruments to lessen the repayment burden and create some 
fiscal space for growth enhancing policy initiatives. In addition, the Central Bank had successfully 
completed comprehensive banking sector reforms in 2019 which resulted in well -capitalized, strong 
and liquid banks, well -positioned to support the country 's growth and development agenda. On the 
external front, the current account improved substantially with three consecutive years of trade 
surpluses and lower deficits, as well as strong  foreign exchange reserve buffers, boosted by strong 
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)  inflows and relative stability in the exchange rate.  
1.4.  Based on these indicators, the year 2020 started with strong optimism to further consolidate 
the gains achieved over the preceding years. This was founded on strong and complementary 
monetary and fiscal policies programmed for the year, which included:  
• Prudent monetary policies to steer inflation towards the central target of 8 %, with stable 
exchange rate. The successfu l completion of the financial sector clean -up had improved 
prudential regulations, strengthened efficiency, and refocused the sector to its 
intermediary role to finance the growth needs of the country;  
• Fiscal Policy was geared towards aggressive tax reforms and pro -growth initiatives in the 
agriculture and industrial sectors to expand the productive capacity of the economy;  
• Other Structural Reforms were initiated to increase efficiency in the public sector, 
supported by digiti zation to formalize the e conomy and improve the ease of doing 
business.   
1.5.  As in other countries, the onset of Corona virus pandemic towards the end of 2019 (COVID -19) 
posed some challenges to the Ghanaian economy in 2020. These include job losses, unanticipated 
shortfalls in reven ue alongside increased public spending geared towards lessening the 
socio-economic  impact of the Covid -19 pandemic, culminating in rising fiscal financing gap and 
elevated debt levels. The unprecedented impact imposed by the Covid -19 pandemic led to the 
suspension of the fiscal responsibility rules in accordance with section 3(1) of the Fiscal responsibility 
Act, 2018 (Act 982).  
1.6.  Timely policy interventions and measures were put in place to contain the spread of the 
coronavirus and protect lives and livelih oods, support businesses and preserve jobs that would 
otherwise have been lost. Recent data shows signs of strong economic recovery in 2021. Inflation, 
which, at the height of the pandemic, surged to 11.4%, dropped to 7.5% in May 2021 before inching 
up to 10.6% in September 2021 due to food price pressures. In addition, the local currency, the 
Ghana cedi has been relatively stable over the past four years, even in the midst of the pandemic 
year.  
1.7.  In the medium -term, the Bank of Ghana will continue to implem ent sound monetary policy to 
maintain inflation within the target of 8±2%. In addition, implementation of policies to unwind the 
COVID -related fiscal excesses and lower the public debt to sustainable levels are underway.  WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  2  MACROECONOMIC  ENVIRONMENT  AND ECON OMIC PERFORMANCE  
2.1  Fiscal Policy  
2.1.  Ghana's overall growth and relatively stable macroeconomic environment facilitated its 
transition from a low -income economy to a lower -middle -income economy, with a robust services 
and industry base driving growth.  
2.2.  The rebasi ng of the GDP from 2006 base year to 2013 in 2018 led to adjustments in the size 
of the economy, GDP growth rates, sector contributions and all related economic indicators as a ratio 
of GDP. The most significant features of the rebasing were the 26% increa se in the size of the GDP 
in the base year  2013, with the services sector as the largest contributor to the GDP. Ghana 's rapid 
growth over the years was halted by the COVID ‑19 pandemic. The partial lockdown in March 2020 
to contain the spread of the virus resulted in the sudden stop in economic activity, amid a sharp 
decline in commodity exports. The economy had grown at an average of 7% in 2017 -19, before the 
sharp contraction in the second and third quarters of 2020 due to the pandemic. The annual GDP 
growth was 0.4% in 2020. The principal sectors of the economy – agriculture, services and industry 
(including oil) – grew by 7.4%, 1.5% and – 3.6% of GDP in 2020, respectively. Ghana had a per 
capita income of USD 2,213.0 with a GDP value of USD 66.1 billion in 2020, indicating a 1% decline 
from USD 2,257 per capita income with a GDP value of USD 64.2 billion in 2019.  
2.3.  Ghana's fiscal policy objectives since 2017 have been in line with the overall macroeconomic 
goals of stability for accelerated growth and devel opment. In this regard, fiscal policy was geared 
towards formalizing the economy, aggressive tax reforms and pro -growth initiatives in the 
agriculture and industrial sectors to expand the productive capacity of the economy.  
2.4.  The budget deficit, which stood  at 7.8% of GDP in 2016, fell to 4.8% in 2019 mainly due to 
the government's fiscal consolidation measures, as well as adherence to the Fiscal Responsibility 
Act, which set the annual deficit ceiling at 5% of GDP. In  2020, however, the fiscal deficit incre ased 
to 11.7% of GDP, due to the Covid -19 pandemic which resulted in unanticipated shortfalls in revenue 
and increased spending geared towards moderating the social and economic impact of the pandemic.  
Total Revenue and Grants for the fiscal year 2020 was GHS 55,132 million, equivalent to 14.4% of 
GDP, against a revised target of GHS 53,667 million, equivalent to 13.9% of GDP. Higher than 
expected spending due to Covid -19 pandemic -total Expenditure (including arrears clearance) for the 
period was GHS 100,05 3 million, equivalent to 26.1% of GDP, against a target of 
GHS 97,740  million, equivalent to 25.4% of GDP.  
2.5.  Over the medium -term, the fiscal policy aims at achieving macro -fiscal prudence that restore 
economic stability and growth, foster a resilient financ ial ecosystem and seize the opportunity that 
the crisis presented to transform the structure of the economy. The 2021 Budget reset the fiscal 
policy on a consolidation path with the deficit projected to decline to 9.5% of GDP by the end of 
2021 and then un wind to 5% by 2024. This would ensure medium -term debt sustainability. The 
provisional fiscal data for the first half of 2021 show that Total Revenue and Grants amounted to 
GHS 28.3 billion, equivalent to 6.5% of GDP, against a programmed target of GHS 32.4 billion (or 
7.5% of GDP). For the same period, Total Expenditure, including the clearance of arrears, amounted 
to GHS 50.6 billion, equivalent to 11.7% of GDP, against a programmed target of GHS 55.1 billion 
(12.7% of GDP). The fiscal deficit for the period was financed from both foreign and domestic 
sources.  
2.6.  The Government has put in place the following measures to revitalize the economy in the 
medium -term:  
• The implementation of the Ghana Covid -19 Alleviation and Revitalization of Enterprises 
Support (Ghana CARES) programme. The programme aims at supporting the private 
sector to accelerate industrialization, deepen o ur competitive import substitution and to 
leverage digitization to raise productivity and create jobs. The Ghana CARES is a two -
phased programme to be implemented over three and half years. The Phase I of the 
programme is the Stabilization Phase, built on the immediate life -saving measures that 
Government had taken to respond to the pandemic. The Phase II of the programme, which 
began in 2021, is expected to be completed in 2023 and it focuses on revitalization and 
transformation of the economy.  WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  • Pursuing me dium-term debt strategy that focuses on appropriate financing mix to mitigate 
the cost and risks that could adversely impact the debt portfolio as well as lengthening the 
maturity profile of domestic stock to reduce refinancing risk.  
2.7.  Over the past four ye ars, Government has embarked on several initiatives to drive Ghana 's 
development agenda based on the conviction that leveraging technology improves efficiency, 
traceability of transactions, delivery of public services, and will considerably bolster the 
transformation. Some major milestones in formalizing the domestic economy include:  
• The implementation of the Integrated Customs Management System, aimed at increasing 
efficiency at the port, reducing cost and time of doing business at the port and increase 
tax revenue . 
• The development of a digital address system, National ID system, interoperability of 
payment system and the Ghana.Gov platform. The introduction of the Ghana Card which 
is linked to Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) has expanded the tax base.  
• The introduction of a Universal QR code which enables consumers to make instant 
payments for goods and services from different sources including bank accounts, mobile 
wallets and cards.  
• Establishment of the Revenue Assurance and Compliance Enforcement (RACE)  Initiative 
to complement the transformative efforts of the Ghana revenue Authority. The RACE 
initiative is aimed at identifying and eliminating revenue leakages in areas such as 
petroleum bunkering, gold and mineral exports, port operations, transit goods , 
warehousing, border controls and free zones operations. It is thus expected to increase 
domestic revenue mobilization, widen the tax net, and ensure compliance with tax 
obligations.  
2.2  Monetary Policy  
2.8.  Like other countries, monetary policy in Ghana has unde rgone a number of phases. These are: 
Control regime; Monetary Targeting and Inflation Targeting.  
2.9.  The focus of monetary policy since the year 2007 has been on achieving price and exchange 
rate stability as key elements in creating an environment conducive t o the achievement of 
sustainable economic growth.  
2.10.   To strengthen the Central Bank in the conduct of monetary policy, Parliament passed into law 
a Bank of Ghana Act 2002 (Act 612) and amended by Act 918. This Act has:  
• refocused the primary objective of monet ary policy as "stability in the general level of 
prices";  
• provided for the establishment of the monetary policy committee;  
• granted the Central Bank operational independence; and  
• the Act also enjoined the Central Bank to promote economic growth and ensure financial 
stability without prejudice to the price stability objective and independent of instructions 
from the Government or any other authority.  
2.11.   Monetary policy under the current inflation  targeting regime has played a key role in stabili zing 
the economy  and significantly reducing the level of volatility in inflation and inflationary expectations.  
2.12.   The statutory mandate of the Central Bank is firmly rooted in a renewal of public interest in 
economic policy and a heightened aversion for inflation and awaren ess of how much stability 
contributes to raising the standard of living of Ghanaians.  WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  2.13.   As part of the broader objectives of macroeconomic policy, the thrust of monetary policy in 
2021 was to steer inflation towards the medium -term target band of 8.2 % following the surge in 
inflation at onset of the Covid -19 pandemic.  
2.14.   Growth in broad money supply, including foreign currency deposits (M2+) declined 
from 42.4% in 2008 to 20.2% in August 2021 compared with 24.8% in August 2020. Growth in M2+ 
in August 2021 was driven by Net Domestic Assets (NDA) of the banking system, which went up by 
28.1% while Net Foreign Assets (NFA) declined 11.2%. This development broadly reflected the 
supportive monetary and fiscal policies implemented to mitigate the impact of the COVID ‑19 
pandemic.  
2.3  Inflation Development  
2.15.   Headline inflation generally trended downwards after peaking at 19.2% in March 2016, and 
ended the year 2017 at 11.8%. The Government achieved its medium -term inflation target band 
from February 2018 to March 2020 as inf lation level declined further and broadly stayed below 8% 
over the period. Inflation however rose abruptly in April 2020 and peaked at 11.4% in July 2020, 
primarily due to the panic buying linked to the three weeks partial lockdown in Accra and Kumasi to 
reduce the spread of the Covid -19 infection. Thereafter, inflation dropped sharply from 10.4% in 
December 2020 to 7.5% in May 2021, on the back of a well -anchored monetary policy stance, 
exchange rate stability and favorable  food base drifts from a year ago . Subsequently, inflation picked 
up abruptly to 10.6% in September 2021 on account of rising food prices arising partly from delayed 
harvests, inputs supply bottlenecks and rising world food prices as well as fuel price adjustments.   
2.4  Interest Rate Developm ent 
2.16.   Generally, money market rates have trended downwards over the past three years due to 
prudent monetary and fiscal measures. However, the fiscal pressures occasioned by the onset of the 
Covid -19 pandemic led to a slight upward trend in interest rate dur ing the first quarter of 2020. 
Thereafter, interest rate has resumed its downward trends through to August 2021. The 91 -day 
Treasury bill rate declined from 14.5% in 2018 to  12.5% at the end of August 2020, while the 
182-day Treasury bill rate also decline d from 14.9% to  13.3% over the same period. The weighted 
average interbank rate declined from 16.1% to 12.6% over the same period, largely reflecting 
improved liquidity conditions on the inter bank market which had transmitted to lending rates.  
2.5  Exchange Rat e Development  
2.17.   Ghana still maintains a flexible exchange rate regime even though the possible impact of any 
volatility in the foreign exchange market on inflation is carefully monitored. From 2017, the cedi has 
remained relatively stable even in the pandemi c period in light of the prudent monetary and fiscal 
policies and strong reserves build -up on the back of significant inflows of foreign direct investments 
(FDIs)  and increased earnings of some of Ghana's commodity exports. Over the period, the Ghana 
cedi moved from a depreciation of  15.7% against the US dollar in 2016 to a depreciation of 3.9% 
on the interbank market in  2020. The cumulative depreciation of the cedi against the US dollar 
further slowed down in the first nine months of 2021 to  1.8%.  
2.6  External  Sector Policy  
2.18.   Prior to 2020, the country 's external sector was characteri zed by substantial improvement in 
the current account with three consecutive years of trade surpluses, strong foreign exchange reserve 
buffers, and relative stability in the exchange rate.  The Covid -19 pandemic however posed serious 
challenges to the country's external sector position. The current account deficit widened slightly to 
3.1% of GDP in 2020 as the decline in oil exports was partially offset by higher gold prices, r esilient 
private remittances and weaker imports. The relatively strong performance of the external sector 
led to an increase in the reserves position to USD 11.4 billion, equivalent to 5.2 months of imports 
in August 2021, one of the highest on record. Thi s compares with a reserved position of 
USD 9.2 billion, equivalent to 4.0 months imports cover, in the same period of last year. The strong 
reserves build -up was linked to significant inflows of foreign direct investments, resilient 
remittances, successful  floatation of Eurobond in 2019 and 2021, and the USD 1 billion post  Covid-19 
recovery fund from the IMF. But the reserve position continues to be threatened by softening WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  commodity export prices, especially gold, alongside rising imports as many economies are gradually 
reopening, as well as sovereign risk concerns on the heels of increasing debt stock.  
2.7  External and Domestic Debt  
2.19.   The public debt management was enhanced and restructured prior to 2020, by shifting debt 
from short to medium -to-longer term instruments to lessen the repayment burden and create some 
fiscal space for growth enhancing policy initiatives.  The advent of the Covid -19 pandemic, however, 
generated a substantial fiscal financing gap in 2020 owing to unanticipated  revenue shortfalls 
alongside increased spending geared towards containing the social and economic impact of the 
pandemic.  At the end of July 2021, Ghana's external debt stood at USD 28.0 billion, up from 
USD 24.7 billion at the end of 2020 and from USD 20.3 billion at the end of 2019. This constituted 
48.4% of total public debt. The increase in external debt stock was mainly accounted for by the 
Eurobond issuance in 2019 and 2021, the Covid -19 pandemic effects, and contingent liabilities. The 
external debt  as a percentage of GDP increased from 32.1% in December 2019 to 37.0% 
in December 2020 and as at end -July 2021.  
Table 2.1 Selected economic indicators  
Selected economic indicators as at the dates indicated  
  2015  2016  2017  2018  2019  2020  
Real GDP growth (%)  2.1 3.4 8.1 6.2 6.5 0.4 
Inflation              
Year-on-year; end period (%)  17.7 15.4 11.8 5.8 7.8 10.5 
Annual average (%)  17.1 17.5 12.4 7.8 7.1 9.9 
Exchange rate (end -period transaction rates)  
GHS/USD 3.8 3.9 4.4 4.6 5.2 5.6 
GHS/Pound Sterling  5.6 5.2 6.0 6.2 7.3 7.9 
GHS/euro  4.2 4.4 5.3 5.5 6.2 7.0 
Commodity prices              
Cocoa ( USD/tonne)  3,093.1  2,892.0  2,029.4  2,293.8  2,340.8  2,370.0  
Gold ( USD/fine ounce)  1,159.3  1,248.3  1,257.6  1,269.2  1,392.2  1,771.0  
OIL, IPE Brent Crude ( USD/barrel)  52.4 44.0 54.4 71.1 63.2 43.9 
External sector  
Exports of goods and services (USD million ) 10,321.2  11,138.3  13,834.8  14,942.7  15,667.5  14,471.5  
Imports of goods and services (USD million ) 13,465.1  12,920.1  12,647.8  13,134.1  13,410.7  12,428.6  
Current account balance ( USD million ) -2,823.60  -2,840.70  -2,003.70  -2,043.90  -1,864.00  -2,134.20  
Overall balance of payments ( USD million ) 15.89  -247.43  -1,091.44  671.52  -1,341.31  367.50  
Terms of trade index (2015 = 100)  100.00  99.34  91.36  94.19  95.60  102.58  
Gross international reserves (end period, in 
USD million ) 5,884.7  6,161.8  7,554.8  7,024.8  8,418.1  8,624.4  
Months of imports of goods and services  3.5 3.5 4.3 3.6 3.9 4.0 
External debt ( USD million ) 15,781.90  16,461.00  17,157.00  17,868.50  20,349.40  24,715.80  
Interest rates (%)              
Bank of Ghana prime rate  26.9 26.7 20 17 16 14.5 
91-day Treasury bill  21.86  16.14  13.3 14.6 14.7 14.1 
182-day Treasury bill  24.4 18.5 10.4 15 15.1 14.1 
1-year note  22.7 21.5 15.0 15.5 17.3 15.9 
2-year note  23.3 22.5 17.5 19.5 21 18.5 
Monetary aggregates growth (year -on-year)  
Reserve money  24.2 29.6 7.0 29.5 34.4 25.0 
Total Liquidity (M2+)  22.40  23.38  15.57  15.4 21.7 29.6 
Broad money (M2)  22.2 24.4 17.9 15.7 16.1 35.0 
Nominal GDP ( GHS million)  183,526  219,595  262,798  308,587  356,544  383,486  
Government budget (% of GDP)              
Domestic revenue  16.0 14.8 15.2 15.1 14.6 14.1 
Grants  0.9 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.3 0.3 
Total expenditure  20.3 23.3 19.8 18.9 19.0 25.6 
Overall balance (including grants)  -5.1 -6.0 -4.7 -3.8 -4.7 -11.7 
  Domestic primary balance  3.0 0.4 2.6 2.2 1.8 -3.3 
Source:  The Bank of Ghana (BOG).  
3  GHANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE RELATIONS   
3.1  The Multilateral Trading System  
3.1.  Ghana is interested in the sustenance of a well -functioning multilateral trading system that 
delivers pro -development outcomes. The recent global pandemic  has reinforced the importance of WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  the WTO and the role it could play in ensuring a faster post -pandemic recovery. Accordingly, Ghana 
will continue to engage with all Members of the WTO with a view to ensuring that the WTO makes a 
positive contribution to t he global economic recovery efforts including by ensuring that policies 
adopted by members are development friendly. In line with Target  14.6 of the Sustainable 
Development Goals (SDGs), members of the WTO are to conclude an agreement on Fisheries 
Subsidie s that seek to reduce overfishing, overcapacity and Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated 
(IUU) fishing. Ghana commits to continue engaging positively in these negotiations with a view to 
ensuring that members meet the expectations of Target  14.6 of the SDGs  whilst ensuring that 
Special and Differential Treatment remains a cardinal element of any negotiated outcomes.  
3.2.  Again, to ensure that the WTO delivers on pro -development outcomes, Ghana will continue to 
engage with members to ensure that matters pertainin g to the reform of the WTO are expedited. To 
achieve this, a well -functioning two -tier dispute settlement system is a pre -requisite. Further to 
ensuring that the WTO remains the pre -eminent global organi zation responsible for the negotiation 
of global trad e rules, with a specific contribution to the post -COVID Agenda, Ghana would support 
the negotiations and conclusion of a trade and health agreement as a response to the pandemic. 
Ghana believes that a strengthened multilateral trading system has the potent ial of delivering new 
trading opportunities that can help all Members especially, the developing and least -developed 
amongst them to alleviate poverty and put their economies on the path of sustainable growth and 
development.  
3.3.  Ghana is of the considered vie w that the WTO has to remain the pre -eminent forum for global 
trade negotiations and would continue to actively engage members to deliver outcomes that are 
development -oriented:  
i. Non-Agricultural  Market Access (NAMA): The NAMA negotiations have hit a snag a nd 
members have not been able to agree on making progress. However, its importance 
to Ghana 's industrialization agenda remains a priority. Ghana bound only 1.2% of its 
industrial tariffs in the Uruguay Round. Ghana is currently implementing a 
comprehensive  Industrial Transformation Agenda which seeks to take advantage of 
the global market space. To achieve this, restrictive market practices such as tariff 
escalation and tariff peaks should be properly disciplined within the multilateral trading 
system. Kick -starting the NAMA negotiations, therefore, holds a lot of promise for 
Ghana. Should the negotiations commence, Ghana in the spirit of compromise, will be 
prepared to increase its tariff binding to assure business people and investors of the 
stability, sec urity, certainty and predictability of its business environment. Since Ghana 
depends heavily on customs duties as a source of government revenue for 
development, it would require some policy space for revenue purposes and also for 
the protection of its inf ant industries for rapid industrialization and diversification of its 
industrial base.  
ii. Agriculture: In the Uruguay  Round, Ghana bound all its agricultural tariffs. About 99% 
of its agricultural tariffs were bound at a ceiling level of 99% effective 2004. L ower 
bound rates of 40% and 50% were set for a few agricultural products to apply from 
1995. However, Ghana has for all these years maintained a standard maximum applied 
rate of 20% on all agricultural products, with lower rates of 0%, 5%, or 10% applying 
to a quarter of these products. Ghana has now adopted the E conomic Community of 
West African States (ECOWAS)  Common External Tariff (CET) which has a five -band 
tariff structure of 0%, 5%, 10%, 20% and 35%. Ghana does not maintain any export 
subsidies nor d oes it maintain any trade -distorting domestic support. However, Ghana 
is not immune from the deleterious effects of export subsidies and trade -distorting 
domestic support of some WTO members. Against this backdrop, the complete 
elimination of export subsid ies within the context of the Bali and Nairobi Ministerial 
Decisions  should be fully implemented. Substantial reduction in domestic support by 
Members also remains a priority to Ghana. Other areas of the agriculture negotiations 
of special interest to Ghan a include the reduction or elimination of tariff peaks and 
tariff escalation on products of export interest to Ghana, the self -designation of Special 
Products by developing countries to be treated flexibly in the negotiations, and a 
Special Safeguard Mecha nism (SSM) to deal with import surges. Preference erosion is 
also a matter of concern to Ghana. It is Ghana's expectation that negotiations on these 
issues would be concluded in a manner that would give true meaning to the concept 
of Special and Differenti al Treatment.  WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  iii. Rules: Although minimal activity has taken place in this area in the last few years, as 
a country engaged in the negotiation of Free Trade Agreements with developed 
countries compatible with Article  XXIV of GATT, 1994, Ghana has a profound in terest 
in the amendment of Article  XXIV to introduce into it, flexibilities in favour of 
developing countries concluding Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with developed 
countries. Ghana, therefore, urges the Group on Rules to seriously and expeditiously 
address  proposals submitted in the last few years by the ACP Group and others on 
Regional Trade Agreements.  
iv. Services: In the Uruguay Round  negotiations on services, Ghana made commitments 
in basic telecommunications services; financial services (banking and insur ance); 
transport services (maritime transport); educational services (secondary and 
specialist); construction and related engineering services; and tourism and travel 
related services.  
3.4.  These areas were carefully selected because of the desire of the Gover nment to attract 
investments  as well as technological innovations into the sectors to facilitate development. The 
objective was to allow suppliers of these services to compete more effectively and lower costs to 
consumers as well as enable efficient develo pment of the other sectors of the economy, which 
require those services as inputs.  
3.5.  Should the negotiations gain traction , Ghana will be prepared to make new offers within the 
context of Special and Differential Treatment. In preparing these offers, as in the past, consideration 
will be given to those services whose efficient delivery or supply could contribute to the efficient 
operation of other sectors of the economy. The offers will mostly be improvements on the Uruguay 
Round offers, reflecting a more li beralized environment. Ghana's primary objective in the services 
sector is to build and strengthen its domestic supply capacity, efficiency and competitiveness to 
enable it take better advantage of the market access opportunities in sectors and modes in wh ich it 
has supply capacity.  
3.6.  Ghana expects its developed country partners to open up sectors and modes of supply of export 
interest to developing countries, particularly mode four. Developed country members' offers should 
take cogni zance of Article  IV paragraph 1 of GATS. Should the negotiations  gain traction, Ghana 
would like the general architecture of the GATS to be maintained. Ghana, like many other African 
countries, also favours the maintenance of the "positive list" "bottom up" approach, which enables 
it to select the sectors an d sub -sectors and modes of supply of interest to it.  
3.2  Regional Integration  
3.2.1   African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA)  
3.7.  Ghana hosts the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Fifty -four 
(54)1 out of the Fifty -five (55) Afric an Union member states are signatories to the AfCFTA. As of 
December 2021, over 40 member states had ratified the Agreement in preparation for 
implementation. Official trading under the AfCFTA commenced on 1 January  2021 and has since 
continued.  
3.8.  Phase II of the AfCFTA negotiations which is currently on going  is focused on Investment, 
Competition, Intellectual Property Rights, Digital Trade; and Women and Youth in Trade.  
3.9.  A robust Dispute Settlement Body has been established under the AfCFTA to take care of t rade 
disputes and other related matters.  
3.2.2   Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)  
3.10.   Ghana is committed to deepening its regional economic cooperation and integration agenda 
especially as it currently Chairs the Summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government. Ghana 
actively participates in ECOWAS activities at all levels, including the statutory Assembly of Heads of 
 
1 Eritrea has so far not signed the Agreement  WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  State and Government; Council of Ministers; Senior Officials meetings and the Community 
Parliament, inter alia . 
3.11.   With regard to the impl ementation of ECOWAS protocols, integration programmes and 
activities to promote trade and investment in the sub -region, Ghana has aligned its policies to the 
regionally adopted policies and is fully compliant in administering the following:  
i. Free Movement of Persons:  Ghana has abolished entry visas and permits for 
ECOWAS nationals, and adopted the ECOWAS community passports for travels and 
implemented the ECOWAS Brown Card scheme.  
ii. ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS): Ghana is fully implementing the 
ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) under which goods from the sub -region 
enter Ghana duty -free. In line with the harmonization of customs documents by 
ECOWAS Member States, G hana has adopted the ECOWAS certificate of origin, 
customs nomenclature (HS) and the customs declaration form. Ghana is charging the 
Community levy of 0.5% on imported goods from countries outside the region. To 
benefit from the from the ETLS, the eligibil ity criteria for industrial products is based 
on satisfying ECOWAS rules of origin and other certification conditions.  
iii. Common External Tariff (CET):  The ECOWAS Common External Tariff was adopted 
by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Dakar, Se negal in October 2013 
making ECOWAS a Customs Union. The implementation of the CET started in 2015 
and has harmonized the tariff structures of all ECOWAS Member States.  
3.2.3   Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the EU  
3.12.   The West African (ECOWAS + Mauritania)  – EU negotiations on the EPA were concluded on 
30 June 2014 with the initialling of an agreed text by Chief Negotiators. The Heads of State endorsed 
the Agreement in July 2014 and opened it up for signature by the Member States. To date, 15 out 
of the 16 West African countries have signed the Agreement, leaving Nigeria as the only country yet 
to sign. The Agreement would enable West Africa to take full advantage of market access 
opportunities offered by the EU and integrate into the global economy.  
3.3  Bilate ral Trade  
3.13.   In our efforts to deepen our trade and investment cooperation, Ghana is embarking on an 
aggressive programme of establishing Joint Business Councils with its key bilateral trade parties. Its 
purpose is to deepen our trade and investment cooperati on with strategic partners.  
3.14.   In addition to the above, Ghana has signed Bilateral Agreements and Memorandum of 
Understanding on Trade and Economic Cooperation to explore opportunities offered in key strategic 
markets, foster business cooperation and technol ogy transfer, and encourage Foreign Direct 
Investment (FDI). These include the Ghana – United Kingdom (UK) Trade Partnership Agreement 
(TPA), as well as the Ghana – Germany and Ghana – Rwanda Agreements.  
3.15.   On Preferential Trade Arrangements, Ghana benefits f rom the Generalized System of 
Preferences (GSP) offered by industrialized countries other than the EU and the United  States  of 
America.  
3.3.1   Ghana–EU iEPA  
3.16.   As a precautionary measure to safeguard duty -free market access to the EU against any 
possible delay to t he implementation of the WA EPA, Ghana initialled an interim EPA (iEPA) on 
28 July 2016 which was subsequently ratified by Parliament on 3  August  2016. The Ghana – EU iEPA 
retains the EPA principle of maintaining duty -free access to the EU in exchange for a gradual opening 
of the Ghanaian market but foregoes the benefits of a harmoni zed regional agreement. The tariff 
liberali zation under the new regime officially commenced on 1  July 2021 with the issuance of a joint 
communique by the Government of Ghana and  the European  Union .   WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  3.3.2   Ghana -UK Trade Partnership Agreement  
3.17.   Negotiations of the Interim UK -Ghana Trade Partnership Agreement were concluded on 
4 February  2021 and the Agreement signed on 2  March  2021. The Agreement, which has now been 
ratified by the Parli ament of Ghana had previously been applied on a provisional basis since 
5 March  2021.  
3.3.3   The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)  
3.18.   The United  States  offers a number of African countries, including Ghana, special access to its 
market under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Under AGOA, over 6,000  products 
from the beneficiary countries enter the USA market duty -free and quota -free. Apparel made from 
U.S. fabric, yarn or thread also enter the U.S. market duty -free and quota -free.  
4  GHANA'S SECTORAL POLICY FRAMEWORK  
4.1  The Industrial Transformation Agenda  
4.1.  Since 2017, Ghana's Sector al Policy Framework is focus ed on the implementation of 
Government's Ten -Point Industrial Transformation Agenda. The Ten -Point Plan is designed to pursue 
industriali zation, harness the benefits of market access opportunities, create job opportunities and 
ensure prosperity for all Ghana ians. The under listed are the various components of the Agenda:  
i. National Industrial Revitalization Programme  
ii. One District One Factory  
iii. Strategic Anchor Industries  
iv. Industrial Parks and Special Economic Zones  
v. Development of small and medium -scale Enterprises  (SMEs)  
vi. Export Development Programme  
vii. Enhancing Domestic Retail Infrastructure  
viii. Business Regulatory Reforms  
ix. Industrial sub -contracting Exchange  
x. Improving Public -Private sector Dialogue  
4.1.1   Strategic Anchor Industries  
4.2.  Government as part of its comprehensive plan to develop new growth poles for economic 
transformation has identified a number of Strategic Anchor Initiatives as new pillars of growth for 
the Ghanaian economy. These include the Vehicle Assembly and Automotive Industry;  Garments 
and Textiles  Industry ; Pharmaceuticals  Industry ; Vegetable Oils and Fats; Industrial Starch; 
Industrial Chemicals (incl. Industrial Salt); Machinery and Equipment Manufacture; Integrated 
Bauxite and Aluminum; Iron and Steel; and Petrochemical  Industry.  
Ghana Automotive Development Policy  
4.3.  The Government of Ghana, as part of its transformational agenda has identified Vehicle 
Assembly and Automotive Components Manufacturing as a strategic anchor industry to be facilitated 
and supported as part of the  Ten-Point Plan for industrial development. Consequently, in 2019, the 
Ghana Automotive Development Policy outlining was approved by Cabinet a s a result of this positive 
signal, Ghana is attracting investment in vehicle assembly from leading Original Equip ment WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  Manufacturers (OEMs) and investment partners, with positive projections of spill -overs into local 
manufacturing.  
4.4.  The Strategic Objectives of the Ghana Automotive Development Policy include:  
• To establish a fully integrated and competitive industrial h ub for automotive assembling 
in collaboration with the private sector – global, regional and domestic;  
• To generate highly skilled jobs in automotive assembly and the manufacture of 
components and parts, with spill over effects into other sectors of the eco nomy;  
• To establish an asset -based vehicle financing scheme for locally manufactured vehicles to 
ensure affordability for vehicle buyers;  
• To improve balance of payments through competitive import substitution and export 
market development;  
• To improve vehic le safety and environmental standards;  
National Sugar Policy  
4.5.  To provide a predictable  and consistent  policy and incentive framework for the development 
an integrated sugar industry in Ghana as part of Government's industrial transformation agenda, 
the National Sugar Policy was approved in November, 2019. The Policy outlines various incentives 
to attract investment into Ghana's sugar industry. It also assures sugar producers of a level playing 
field where their rights and obligations are fully protected and respected. The prescriptions and 
targeted interventions in the Sugar Policy are designed to achieve the following specific strategic 
objectives:  
i. To develop and establish a globally competitive and sustainable sugar industry in 
Ghana that delivers self -sufficiency in sugar production by the year 2025.  
ii. To generate highly skilled, well paid agricultural a nd industrial jobs (direct and indirect) 
from extensive private sector investment in modern sugar mills and labour -intensive 
sugarcane estates.  
iii. To pursue import competition and exports of raw and refined sugar to improve the 
balance of payments  
iv. viii. To attract additional investments in the development of sub -industries such as 
fertilizer and animal feed from the by -products of the sugar industry.  
4.1.2    One District One Factory  
4.6.  The "One District One Factory " (1D1F) initiative is one of the key components of the Ten Point 
Industrial Transformation Agenda of the Government of Ghana. The initiative is designed to support 
the establishment of at least one industrial enterprise in each of the 260 districts, and is  private 
sector led but facilitated by the Government.  
4.7.  The primary goal underpinning the industrial transformation agenda is to produce locally to 
meet domestic demand, expand export and move Ghana Beyond Aid.  
4.8.  The intervention seeks to create business opp ortunities at the district level by harnessing the 
strengths and resources of the intervention areas using efficient technology and demand driven 
value chain. The 1D1F programme is geared towards creating an enabling environment and support 
for the growth and industrialization of the Metropolitan, Municipal and District territories of the 
country through the provision of investment opportunities which will lead to increased employment 
and standards of living; remove regional disparities; and promote gender inclusion, income 
distribution and sustainable development.  WT/TPR/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  4.1.3   National MSME and Entrepreneurship Policy   
4.9.  To provide the necessary regulatory, institutional, legal and administrative framework for the 
growth and development of  the MSME sector and Entrepreneurship a National MSME and 
Entrepreneurship Policy was approved.  
4.10.   The overall objective of this policy is to foster job creation and income generation through 
promotion of new and existing MSMEs and improving their competitiv eness to enhance their 
participation and contribution to the Ghanaian economy.   
4.11.   More specifically, it is to : 
i. Facilitate the building and promotion of a dynamic, viable and promising MSME sector 
that encourages an innovative entrepreneurial culture and sup ports high growth start -
ups;   
ii. Drive the formalization of the informal sector;  
iii. Enhance Local Economic Development by strengthening NBSSI and other relevant 
institutions towards job creation;  
iv. Promote enterprises with high value addition, export oriented or import substitution 
focus and encourage the use of local raw materials;  
v. Improve Access to finance . 
4.12.   To ensure the successful implementation of this Policy and enhance the operations of the 
National Board for Small Scale Industries, an Act transforming the N BSSI into the Ghana Enterprises 
Agency was approved.  
4.13.   The Agency is to among others  lead, oversee and coordinate the promotion and development 
of micro, small and medium enterprise sectors in Ghana. it is also to strengthen the capacity and 
competitiveness  of micro, small and medium enterprises to compete in domestic and international 
markets.  
4.2  The National Export Development Strategy (NEDS)   
4.14.   In October  2020 the National Export Development Strategy (NEDS) was launched. The 
Strategy was developed to align with the Government 's Ten -Point Industrial Transformation Plan. It 
is also to build synergies with emphasis on developing the Non -Traditional Export sector to: Promote 
export diversification; Promote value addition; Enhance jo b creation opportunities countrywide; 
Provide a solid and sustainable ground for generating sufficient foreign exchange; Enhance and 
consolidate Ghana 's middle -income status; and support the realization of the vision of a Ghana 
Beyond Aid (GBA).  
4.15.   The NEDS is envisaged to consolidate the gains of the One District One Factory Programme, 
an initiative aimed at establishing at least one medium to large factory in each of the districts of the 
country to enable government to realize  its development objectives of ensuring spatial distribution 
of industries, job creation, value addition to local raw materials and improving revenue.  
4.16.   It is also expected to address supply -side constraints and improve the competitiveness of 
goods and services produced in Ghana to take a dvantage of the market to be created by AfCFTA.  
4.3  Business Regulatory Reforms  
4.17.   The Business Regulatory Reform Programme (BRR) is an initiative of the Ghana Government 
coordinated by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and implemented in partnership with various 
Ministries, Departments and Agencies as well a stakeholders in the privat e sector. The initiative 
consists of seven key components aimed at making Ghana the most transparent and efficiently 
regulated business environment in Africa.  WT/TP R/G/427 • Ghana  
 
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  4.18.   The seven components are: (i) Targeted Regulatory Reform Initiatives, (ii) One-stop 
Electronic R egistry of all Business Regulations, (iii) Centralized Public Consultation Portal, 
(iv) Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA), (v) Rolling Review of Business Regulations, using 
Regulatory Guillotine Principles, (vi) Targeted Regulatory Relief, (vii) Permanent Public -Private 
Dialogue (PPD) mechanisms.  
5   TRADE -RELATED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  
5.1.  Ghana very much appreciates the technical assistance it has been receiving from the WTO 
since its establishment in 1995. A number of trade officers have benefited from the Geneva -based 
and Regional Trade Policy courses as well as the national and regional workshops and se minars. 
Another area that Ghana has benefit ed from is the Netherlands Trainee programme and more 
recently, the Young Professionals Programme (YPP). The on -line courses have also been beneficial. 
These have contributed immensely to increased awareness and t he understanding of the 
WTO Agreement s and, thus, the capacity -building of officers. More trade -related technical assistance 
is still needed in the two priority areas of improving institutional capacity for trade policy negotiations 
and implementation:  and supporting the reform of trade -related legislation and regulations.  
5.2.   It has also been observed that the knowledge and understanding of the WTO  Agreement s and 
the acquisition of negotiating skills alone do not necessarily translate into enabling developing  
countries to overcome  their supply -side constraints to be able to take advantage of the market 
access opportunities offered by the multilateral trading system. There is, therefore, the need to 
assist developing countries like Ghana with limited competitiv e supply capacity to address their 
supply -side constraints through, in particular, the Aid -for-Trade Initiative. In this respect, Ghana 
would like to appeal to its trading partners to also support the implementation of its National Export 
Development Strat egy (NEDS) and its comprehensive Industrial Transformation Plan.    
6  CONCLUSION  
6.1.  Ghana is committed to adhering to the tenets of the Multilateral Trading System (MTS). Ghana 
therefore supports freer trade and liberal economic reforms globally. With the busine ss environment 
improving in the country and its reputation as one of the African continent 's most stable 
democracies , Ghana is now more than ever ready to do business with the rest of the world. Besides 
the improved economic environment as a result of prud ent fiscal policies which was driving growth 
and development until the advent of the COVID ‑19 pandemic, Ghana continues to offer various forms 
of investment incentives, benefits and guarantees. Foreign investors are urged to take advantage of 
these incenti ves to invest in Ghana, especially in the areas of agriculture and agro – processing; 
cotton and textiles; mineral processing; oil and gas; tourism; energy; infrastructure; utilities; and 
health and other strategic sectors of the economy.  
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