The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana International Trade Committee, Frank Agyekum, has welcomed proposals by ECOWAS to reopen all Land borders within the Sub-Region by January 1, 2022.
Among factors informing the proposal are the loss incurred by the Economies of Member States which amounts to 50 Billion Dollars between 2020 and 2021 following the closure of land borders as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Speaking to GBC News, Mr. Agyekum admitted genuine concerns over the timing of the proposal at a time the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has been detected in Ghana and other African countries.
He was however of the view that Ghana can build on her resilience in dealing with the pandemic to overcome challenges when the borders are opened.
He told Nathaniel Nartey that the purpose of hosting the Africa Continental Free Trade Area will be defeated if the land borders remain closed.
”The concerns are legitimate but you have to look at it against the broader interest of the whole sub-region. We can try to make our situation better because now we have the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat in Ghana, we cannot continue in this vein otherwise the purpose of the Free Trade Agreement will be defeated”, he said.
