The New Patriotic Party’s Asia Pacific Caucus has petitioned President Akufo-Addo to intervene in a planned Ashaiman Central Business Market Redevelopment Project.

According to the group, although the investors, Foshan Chamber have come to Ghana to start the project, they have encountered challenges.

“The land for the project, payments of which payments have been made by the Foshan Chamber, has come under contention. This has delayed the smooth start of the project.

“There is Chinese company, we believe, with the clear intention of sabotaging the project, the Investors and their local partners, contending with the investors over the land. This has brought uncertainty to the start of the projection,” a statement copied to Joy News said.

The group fears if no intervention is made, the investment will be lost completely.

Below is a copy of the full petition:

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

REPUBLIC OF GHANA

ACCRA

Your Excellency,

NPP ASIA PACIFIC CAUCUS’ INVESTMENT PROMOTIONS, CHALLENGES AND REQUESTS.

Mr President, as part of our activities to promote Foreign Direct Investment into Ghana, the NPP Asia Pacific Caucus, which is a caucus made up of 4 NPP External branches in the Asia- Pacific Region (NPP Australia, NPP China, NPP Japan and NPP Korea), has undertaken some initiatives that have resulted in major projects in Ghana. The group is currently undertaking vigorous investment promotion activities to woo investors into the country. Our efforts are yielding results as we have successfully brought major investments into the country. These include the investment into the development of the Ghana International Mall and the Foshan Chamber of Commerce collaboration with the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly to redevelop the Ashaiman Central Business Market.

GHANA INTERNATIONAL MALL             

The Asia-Pacific Caucus has succeeded in bringing investors into Ghana who are currently developing the Ghana International Mall. The five (5) storey Mall is expected to be the largest mall in the country and the West African sub-region. The project is located on the intersection between the Spintex Road and the Agblezaa-Manet road. It is about 5km to the Kotoka International Airport. $150 million has been invested in Phase 1 of the Mall which is about 70% complete and scheduled to be fully completed in March 2020. You granted audience to the group, on your visit to the Shandong Province, China, last year.

FOSHAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Through our investment drive, we have also established relations with the Foshan City Chamber of Commerce, China. The Chamber comprises about 1,500 businessmen in Foshan in manufacturing, real estate, energy and other industries. The Foshan Chamber of Commerce have shown interest in investing in Ghana following our interaction and presentations to them.

The Caucus through the collective efforts of Dr Charles Dwamena, your Deputy Ambassador to China, Mr Michael Awuah, 1st Vice Chairman of NPP-Japan and an Executive Council member of the Asia-Pacific Caucus, and Mr Kofi Kwain, a member of the Council of Elders of NPP-China and the Chief Executive Officer of Joemat Real Estate Development Limited (Local Rep of Foshan), has invited a number of people including the Municipal Chief Executive of Ashiaman to China to meet with the Foshan Chamber of Commerce concerning the Ashaiman Central Business Market Redevelopment Project that proposes an investment into the development of an Industrial Park, International Car Terminal, International Automobile Services and High Rise Buildings in the Ashaiman Municipality. An interesting part of this project is the fact that, the base will serve as a hub for many of the members of the Foshan Chamber to set up related industries within the same industrial Park. Over 241 medium to large scale manufacturing companies are ready to set up their manufacturing bases under the existing MoU.

Following up, Foshan Chamber of Commerce, through their local representative, Joemat Real Estate Development Limited, has had a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly signed in the presence of Dr Charles Dwamena, the Ghana’s Deputy Ambassador to China, for the Assembly to release a piece of land for the development of an Industrial Park, International Car Terminal, and other auxilliary in the Ashaiman Municipality.

Mr President, if you would recall, the said investors visited you on your visit to China. During the visit, you gave your blessings to the project and assured the investors of your support to make the project a reality.

CHALLENGES INVESTORS ARE FACING

The Foshan investors on the Ashaiman Project have gone to Ghana ready to start the project. However, they have encountered challenges that they have been brought to the notice of the Asia-Pacific Caucus of NPP. The land for the project, payments of which payments have been made by the Foshan Chamber, has come under contention. This has delayed the smooth start of the project. There is Chinese company, we believe, with the clear intention of sabotaging the project, the Investors and their local partners, contending with the investors over the land. This has brought uncertainty to the start of the projection. There is also the additional risks of losing the investment completely.

OUR HUMBLE RESQUESTS

Mr President, the above-mentioned projects are just the beginning of the many opportunities that may come the way of our country from our continuous drive to bring investment to support your vision for the country.

Your Excellency, we humbly request your good offices to intervene in the Foshan Chamber of Commerce-Ashaiman Central Business Market Redevelopment Project’s land issue to bring to life the laudable project, which will go a long way go to support your vision and far-reaching policies to the people of Ghana.

The successful start of the project would be a reference point to pull other investors we have been engaging into the country and make our investment drive here easier. We humbly petition you to intervene in the Ashaiman project to get the land issue resolved for the project to start as scheduled. Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

Chairman, NPP Asia Pacific Caucus.