Rising production costs may compel more businesses to relocate – AGI

The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has raised concerns that the escalating cost of production in Ghana may drive more businesses to relocate to neighbouring countries.

This follows the recent 3.02% increase in electricity tariffs and a 1.86% hike in water tariffs for the third quarter of 2024.

Speaking in an interview, Tsonam Akpeloo, the Greater Accra Regional Chairman of AGI, urged the government to consider annual tariff adjustments instead of quarterly reviews.

He noted that this change would allow businesses to better plan and manage their operations amid rising costs.

“Most of the products that we have all known to be produced in Ghana, most of them are actually relocating. I am talking about the factory even though you still see the brands in our markets the reality is that the production is not happening here or they are minimizing production over time and you can’t fault them because the production conditions in the economy are really tough for all businesses.

“We in the industry are looking forward to having the government do something about the quarterly increment in utility prices. We feel that that approach is not helping the industry. At best we do plan annually,” he added