Seventy-two Free Zone Enterprises registered.

Market activities slow down

Baatsonaa (Greater Accra) 30 Nov. '99

The Ghana Free Zone Board (GFZB) has registered 72 enterprises within three years of the implementation of the programme.

They are in furniture, metal fabrication, dress making, petroleum products, food processing, beauty products, telecommunications, warehousing and fibreglass manufacturing.

Out of these projects, 45 are operating whilst the rest are starting up or building up. Mr George Aboagye, Executive Secretary of the GFZB, announced this in a speech read on his behalf at a seminar organised by the Tema Municipal Assembly at the on-going second Tema Trade and Industrial Exposition (TEXPO' 99) fair at Baatsonaa on Monday.

The seminar, which was on "Benefits to be derived out of the Free Zones concept", was organised for workers leaders drawn from industrial establishments in Tema.

Mr Aboagye said out of the 72 licensed projects, 26 including the Business Focus Group (BFG) of Malaysia, which is a Free Zone developer are located in Tema.

The BFG is expected to develop 284 hectares out of the 500 hectares Export Processing Zone (EPZ) to make Tema the modern industrial hub of Ghana with facilities readily available for investors.

Mr Aboagye said Free Zone Enterprises are employing over 4,500 people.

The inflow of foreign firms in the Free Zones would create managerial and technical opportunities for the local labour force and foster skills development.

Answering questions from the participants, Miss Patience Agbleze, Marketing, Promotion and Publicity Officer of GFZB, urged the participants to discard the idea that the Free Zone Enterprises are in to milk the nation dry looking at the exemptions granted them.

She said with regard to foreign exchange earnings, Free Zone Enterprises are primarily engaged in export manufacturing and generate foreign exchange from the sales of goods and services.

Miss Agbleze said although these enterprises can generally repatriate foreign exchange, substantial portion of their earnings are converted into local currency to pay for cost such as labour, raw materials, rent, rates, utilities and transportation.

She said backward linkages of these enterprises in Ghana's economy are stimulating domestic industry through the use of local products and services.

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Accra (Greater Accra) 30 Nov. '99

Market activities slowed again on Monday bringing the All-Share Index down to 747.53 from 747.66 points.

The All-Share Index declined by 0.13 points on the loss of 10 cedis by Unilever, Ghana, Limited (UNIL) despite gains in the share prices of Accra Brewery Limited (ABL) and Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB).

Total shares traded finished the day lower at 21,600 shares from 103,900 shares, last Friday, and market capitalisation was slightly down at 3,220.57 billion cedis from 3,220.78 billion cedis.

Offers were down from 753,200 to 609,220 with bids closing far lower at 96,100 shares from 201,800 shares.

On the broader market, two equities made gains while one lost.

ABL and GCB gained five cedis and one cedi to close trading at 440 cedis and 750 cedis respectively.

UNIL lost 10 cedis at 1,860 cedis.

The following are the last prices of listed equities in cedis:

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