Local entrepreneurs asked to partner foreign investors

The Chief Executive Officer of First Sky Group, Mr Eric Seddy Kutortse, has advised local entrepreneurs  to partner international investors in order to help develop their businesses and contribute to the growth of the economy.

He gave the advice in an interview with the Graphic Business on the sidelines of the UK-Ghana Investment Summit held in Accra on October 15.

Mr Kutortse said partnership between indigenous and international investors was the surest way to attract foreign capital into the economy to help create jobs for the teeming youth.

He disagreed with the notion that partnering with international businesses would collapse indigenous ones.

“Partnering with these giants will not kill our businesses, it will rather create an enabling environment for these local businesses to learn, develop their human resources and improve upon their businesses,” he said.

He stated that the time had come for Ghanaian businesses to open up to partnerships to help grow the economy.

He mentioned South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya and Nigeria as countries whose indigenous businesses partnered foreign investors to create jobs and expand their economies.

In the case of Ghana, Mr Kutortse explained that the fruits of those partnerships would also aid in the realisation of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s vision of a Ghana Beyond Aid.

Positive policies

Mr Kutortse said the decision to engage foreign investors would ensure that the country shifted from aid to trade.

He was optimistic that successful partnerships would create the needed platforms for manufacturing that could enhance industrialisation to help reduce the country’s dependence on imports.

He said the country was blessed with talents that could be sharpened through training and capacity building to aid in national development.
He also commended the government for its positive and business friendly policies meant to boast private sector growth.

Summit’s success

The CEO of the First Sky Group which specialises in construction thanked organisers of the Ghana-UK Business Summit for creating a platform that brought investors to network.

He stated that the summit afforded participants the opportunity to exchange ideas and interact with development partners on issues that mattered to them.

He advised the organisers to follow through with the various suggestions to ensure that they were implemented.
He also urged private individuals to capitalise on the relationships developed to grow their businesses.