Hundreds of Business-Savvy Diasporans Set to Attend Ghana Homecoming Summit

Hundreds of business-savvy Ghanaians across the diaspora are expected to attend the highly anticipated Ghana Diaspora Homecoming Summit, which launched in Accra and London earlier this month.

The Ghana Diaspora Homecoming Summit, which stems from President Nana Akufo-Addo’s pledge to involve Ghanaians living abroad in the development of the country, will be held at the International Conference Centre in Accra from 5-8 July 2017.

The four-day event aims to provide a platform to set-out the opportunities for business investment and employment in Ghana, as well as the political inclusion of first, second and third generation Ghanaians based outside of the country.

At the launch in Accra (above), which AB2020 founder Akosua Annobil helped to co-ordinate, Ghana’s Minister for Information Mustapha Abdul-Hamid (below) said the diaspora’s skills and resources were a central component of the government’s development plans: ’Any government making its political, developmental or economic calculation without the diaspora automatically gives up 40-50 per cent of its economic strength,’ he pointed out.

‘We are therefore determining that there will be diaspora inclusion in our development agenda, and it will be at the heart of our projects and programmes.’

The four-day summit will include an exhibition for companies, SMEs, entrepreneurs and corporate bodies to showcase employment opportunities and business projects which require special talent or resources that the diaspora may be able to provide. Standard Chartered Bank, Tullow Oil, Ghana Home Loans, Broll, Forewin, Zoomlion, and Ghana Gas are among a number of organisations aligning with the event.

Clifford Mpare, CEO of Frontline Capital – a key sponsor – says: ‘We see this initiative as a potential shot-in-the-arm for the economy and future prosperity of this country at a time when there is much work to do. Work equates to opportunity whether in employment or business building and Ghana needs proven talent and a strong work ethic to create viable and competitive industries across a broad swathe of market sectors.’

The Ghana Diaspora Homecoming Summit was initiated by Ghana’s Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta; and is being led by entrepreneur and Chairman of the summit Alex Dadey (lead picture, left). Official partners include the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, Ministries of Foreign Affairs & Regional Integration, Business Development and the Diaspora Relations Office, headed by director Akwesi Awua Ababio (lead picture, right).

Visit GhanaDiasporaHS.org