Kojo Oppong Nkrumah (left) and Delese Mimi Darko, FDA Boss
THE GOVERNMENT of Ghana has called on supermarkets and retail shops operating in the country to promote locally produced goods.
Government is championing the cause through the Food and Drugs Authority, and in so doing, equally encouraging high standards from local producers.
Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah made this known to the media on Sunday in Accra during the Information Ministry’s bi-weekly pressing briefings.
He stated emphatically that “the government of Ghana, through the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), has begun a campaign to encourage supermarkets and foreign retail shops in the country to promote locally produced goods dubbed ‘Made In Ghana Display’.
Consequently, he said the FDA has commenced engagements with major supermarkets and retail outlets to allocate specific sections in their supermarkets and shops for made-in-Ghana products.
According to him, “This is aimed at enhancing easy access to local products even in these shops and adding to efforts to deepen markets for made-in- Ghana products.”
The minister indicated that “in response some of these shops have already begun dedicating prime shelves to Ghanaian manufactured products.”
He added that recently the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the FDA, Delese Darko, launched the ‘Buy Ghana Love Ghana’ “at the Koala Supermarket here in Accra and we want to challenge other retail shops to replicate same.”
He added that the FDA was also poised to expedite the registration of locally manufactured products to meet international standards. “This will facilitate easy admission into global retail outlets both here and abroad,” Mr. Oppong Nkrumah mentioned.
He said, “It is worth noting at this point that, the food industry contributes hugely to the local economy and the efforts of the FDA to bring this industry to international standards and create more shelf space for it in our local supermarkets cannot be overemphasized.”
According to him, “We urge the local manufacturing companies and start-ups to take advantage of this and register their products so they can equally compete on the market.”
The CEO of FDA, Delese Darko, told DGN Online products expected to be promoted are those regulated by the FDA and these would include cosmetics, food, beverages, among others.
BY Melvin Tarlue