Ghana is shifting from raw commodity exports to a value-added industrial model to capture more economic benefits and create jobs, President John Mahama said on Wednesday at the Africa Trade Summit 2026 in Accra.
Speaking at the Kempinski Gold Coast City Hotel, Mahama highlighted the country’s historical reliance on exporting raw materials, including cocoa, oil, cotton, timber, and minerals, while importing finished products at higher costs.
“Africa produces most of the world’s cocoa, yet captures only a small fraction of the value of the global chocolate market,” Mahama said. He called for domestic industries that reduce imports and increase export earnings.
Ghana is prioritising agro-processing, manufacturing, and industrial clusters aligned with national resources such as cassava, petroleum, gold, manganese, and oxides. Mahama said the government is also advancing resource sovereignty, noting that the establishment of the Ghana Gold Board in 2025 has increased exports from the small-scale mining sector from 63 tonnes in 2024 to 104 tonnes, with 100% of foreign exchange repatriated through the central bank.
New local content laws now require foreign investors to partner with local companies in mining and extractive activities. “Industrialisation cannot succeed within fragmented national markets. Africa’s future lies in regional value chains,” Mahama said, underscoring the importance of intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The two-day summit, themed “Financing Africa’s Industrialization: Developing Industrial Value Chains, Beneficiation, and Market Integration”, convenes policymakers, business leaders, trade experts, and international stakeholders. Discussions will focus on manufacturing, mining, energy, logistics, and infrastructure, with an emphasis on beneficiation, local content, and cross-border industrial value chains.
Mahama’s remarks reflect Ghana’s broader strategy to shift from commodity dependence toward a value-added, industrialised economy, leveraging AfCFTA to promote regional trade integration, strengthen domestic industries, and increase the continent’s share of global value chains.
