Ghana in Focus: Economy Special - Why Ghana DOES NOT need investment from Pakistan and Japan

This week's edition of Ghana in Focus takes a critical analytical eye on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)  This is centered around two significant recent events: the Pakistan Rice Roadshow in Accra and President Mahama's visit to Japan to court investment in energy, agribusiness, and manufacturing.

The Pakistan Rice Roadshow, facilitated by Ghana's Ministry of Agriculture, ostensibly aimed to foster collaboration in rice production through technology transfer and knowledge sharing around premium rice varieties like basmati. 

What's particularly troubling about this partnership is the historical context. Pakistan has a documented history of discrimination against its own African population, the Siddi people, who have resided there for over 600 years yet face severe marginalization. This raises legitimate concerns about whether such a country would genuinely pursue an equitable trading relationship with Ghana or simply view it as a market to exploit.

We state this is a missed opportunity for Ghana  to engage with African Americans who possess deep ancestral knowledge of rice cultivation. During the transatlantic slave trade, Africans from regions including present-day Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone were specifically targeted for enslavement due to their expertise in rice cultivation. 

African Americans collectively represent an economic powerhouse with a net worth of approximately $3 trillion - equivalent to the fifth richest country globally if they were an independent nation. This economic strength, presents an ideal opportunity for meaningful partnership rather than depending on countries with questionable motivations toward African development.

Similarly, President Mahama's recent visit to Japan to promote his "Big Push" initiative at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) follows the same problematic pattern. Japan, like many Asian and Western nations, views Africa as a "final frontier" for market expansion as their domestic growth slows and population ages. By 2040, half of Japan's population will be over 65, creating urgent pressure to secure external markets and resources.

The fundamental problem with these foreign partnerships is that profits generated in Ghana ultimately flow back to investor countries, enriching their economies rather than building sustainable wealth within Ghana. Instead of courting foreign investors, the Ghanaian government could support local entrepreneurs like Papa Kwesi Nduom, who has built a multi-sector empire including banking, media, real estate, and hospitality. Supporting Ghanaian businesses would create jobs, generate wealth that remains in the country, and provide tax revenue that can be reinvested.

Chapters

• 0:05 Introduction to Ghanaian Focus
• 1:11 Pakistan Rice Roadshow Concerns
• 6:21 African-American Rice Cultivation Heritage
• 12:45 Benefits of Diaspora Partnerships
• 20:09 Mahama's Japan Investment Push
• 29:05 The Case for African Self-Determination

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:05

Welcome to this week's edition of Ghanaian Focus with myself Kwame, ghanaian writer, broadcaster, journalist, entrepreneur and podcaster. And this week's edition of Ghanaian Focus is Development in Ghana whose agenda? So we're basing this because of two instances that's happened in Ghana over the last two weeks about the developmental agenda that this government of Ghana, government of Ghana under John Jamani Muhammad is pursuing. All right, so before we get into the show, just to make aware, if you like what you hear, please subscribe to Ghana African Focus on Spotify. Click the follow bell and meaning that Spotify will upload will notify you, rather, every time we upload a new podcast. You can also sign in via YouTube. So you can also sign in via YouTube so you can search for Guy and African Focus on YouTube. Hit the notification bell, subscribe, meaning that every time we upload a new podcast, spotify will notify you of that. Alright, so please share this great podcast to your friends, your family and social media networks.

Speaker 1: 1:26

All right, so in the last couple of weeks there have been a couple of interesting developments in Ghana that I'm not really happy about and that we need to discuss here on Ghana in Focus. In focus so just recently. The first issue was that there was a recent Pakistan rice roadshow in Accra, ghana, where Ghana's Ministry of Agriculture called for deeper collaboration with Pakistan in rice production. Yeah, the focus was on technology transfer, agro-industrial investment and knowledge sharing around premium rice varieties like basmati. Now, the reason for this so-called Pakistan Roadshow is that, apparently, pakistan is a global rice powerhouse, producing over 9 million metric tons annually, and the event also included business meetings between Ghanaian importers and Pakistan exporters.

Speaker 1: 2:44

Now, you know the reason why I'm against. This is for many, many problems, or many, many issues. So the first being that one you know Pakistan people do not like Africans. Yeah, and this is why it's always saying that history is important, because when you know history right, you know who your friends are. You know who your enemies are. So, in Pakistan, they don't like black people, they're not African people. And to prove that, there is an African population in Pakistan called the Sidi S-I-D-I Sidi. Yeah, they've been in Pakistan for about 500 years years, but they're treated worse than animals in Pakistan because of their caste system in Pakistan. So if that's how they treat their own black people in Pakistan, why then would you think that they want to trade with us on an equal to basis?

Speaker 1: 3:43

Because for me, as far as I'm concerned, this Circle Pakistan Rice Roadshow is a showcase for their rice. Yeah, and you know, basmati rice does not stick well with me, but I'll come to that in a minute yeah, so they've got an interest in printing their brands of rice because they need the markets. We need African markets because Asia is saturated with rice. You've got China growing its own rice. They really need their own rice. Vietnam grows its own rice, singapore grows its own rice. These Asian economies grow their own rice and, primarily, they eat their own rice. So Pakistan needs new markets, yeah, for its massive population of about 200 million. Yeah, and they need that investment. And so they come to a country like Ghana and Africa, right to you know, try to sell their products to us, whereby we don't need Pakistan rice. Yeah, like I said, one, they don't like us.

Speaker 1: 4:44

And two, you know, ask yourself why is Pakistan a global rice powerhouse producing over 9 million metric tons? You know why? Because the Pakistan government, like in Krumah back in the day, understands the importance of being physical, yeah, and, more potently, couragently subsidize farmers. So in Pakistan, just like all over Asia, they subsidize their farmers. So they get their biggest produce, which, in Pakistan case, is rice, and they subsidize their rice farmers to the tilt by offering them either interest-free loans or soft loans, yeah, and then they subsidise the rice farmers to the tilt by offering them either interest-free loans or soft loans. And then they subsidise their farmers by giving them the raw materials that they need to cultivate rice, ie possibly land, ie the harvest combined machines that they use to cultivate rice, and also the seeds and other technologies that they use to cultivate rice, and also with seeds and other technologies that they need to grow rice. So why can't we do something in ghana? So I know that the current government has got a program where it wants to make ghana for secure, but in between, that it is, in this case, rice.

Speaker 1: 6:03

We learn in pakistan because obviously, within ghana, rice is a very, very big commodity. So you know, rice is eaten very rich every day in ghana, you know, at weddings, outdoorings, funerals, parties, what have you? You know, and in ghana we make a lot, we eat a lot of rice. So rice comes in the form of emutio, which is basically rice balls that can be eaten with peanut soup. Yeah, we have obviously the world famous jollof rice. Yeah, we also have plain white rice. Yeah, that is cooked a lot in Ghana. And also we have wache yeah, wache, the popular wache which is basically, you know, similar to Jamaican rice and peas, and then obviously, you know, as a pudding, we also have rice water as well, so rice water can be cooked and eaten with milk and sugar.

Speaker 1: 6:54

Yeah, so it tells us that rice is a very, very popular, uh, a commodity in ghana, which is why the government has called upon Pakistan to help within. You know, agro-industry investment, you know knowledge, etc. But, like I said, as African people, right, we need to think outside the box and our governments need to understand that. I need to think outside the box rather than going to, you know, the Asian man or the white man, etc. Yeah, because let me give an example of why this is the wrong idea. We, you know. If you talk about the year of return, rate of return, yeah, one thing that's supposed to come back to Ghana, yeah, to invest in Ghana, etc. And also, if you're thinking about this is what the government is saying about it turns for our economy, yeah, if you're thinking about inter-African trade, which this president talked about, you know, I think, the last AU summit, he was talking about the need for Africa to be doing business with one another, so this kind of smothered the head.

Speaker 1: 8:03

When you have opportunity to call upon the diaspora or call upon expertise within the African continent, they get to Pakistan. Yeah, but, like I said, if you know history right, history informs you of what you can do and what your people love doing. So most of you are not aware that African Americans yeah, particularly the descendants of the Gullah people, right, and the Gullah people live in present day Liberia and Sierra Leone. Yeah, they're mostly based in the south eastern states of United States. They have got deep ancestral knowledge of rice cultivation and this expertise goes all the way back to West Africa rice growing traditions that were brought over during enslavement. Yeah, and in fact, these people were deliberately selected. The Gullah people of modern day Liberia and Sierra Leone were deliberately chosen by the slave owners for their rice growing skills in areas like present day Sierra Leone, liberia and Kusugana.

Speaker 1: 9:18

And so, rather than inviting Pakistan, you should invite African American agriculturalists, entrepreneurs and researchers to invest in Ghana's rice sector. Yeah, so the so-called arrangements or sweeteners or incentives that you are giving to Pakistan rice producers or Pakistan entrepreneurs or Pakistan rice cultivators, that same incentive should be given to our African-American brothers and sisters Because, like I say, they're family. This is what the year return is supposed to be about Not just about tourism, but about doing business with ourselves, doing business with our kids and kin in the diaspora, who have got that knowledge, who have got the expertise, and also they've got the money to invest. So what the government should have done yeah, by inviting our king from America and Canada right, this is what the government should do or could do, right, by inviting people right is keep the profits here and intellectual capital circulating within the African diaspora, because these Pakistan people, right, when they come to Ghana and invest their money in rice cultivation and technology and what have you? That profit that they make in Ghana is going to go back to Pakistan to invest in Pakistan wherever. However, if we invite African Americans, a lot of them want to come back home anyway, because they're thinking tired of of them, want to come back home anyway, because they're sick and tired of America. They want to come back home. So, if the government of Ghana was smart, yeah, and gave incentives to our African American cousins who are specialised in agriculture, who are specialised in farming, rice cultivation, yeah, giving them incentive that they province will stay in Ghana and the intellectual capital will pass to other Ghanaian, local Ghanaian farmers, who may not be that specialised yet in rice cultivation. But Ghana, we've got the people because, don't forget, in Nkrumah's time, nkrumah, you know, had a massive rice factory in the Volta Basin Ayavime rice factory in the Volta Basin because the Volta Basin is the third largest man-made river on the planet and Nkrumah understood that. That's why he purposely, deliberately, built rice factories or rice plantations in the Volta area. So if our government had common sense and understood dynamics, you wouldn't call them Pakistan.

Speaker 1: 12:13

People don't like you. People call you Kalia in their country, which is which is the n-word in in Odoo Kalia, kalia. Yeah, why would you invite people into a country that don't like you? Yeah, because they pretend. They pretend that they want to do business. Right, but they're looking after their own interests, yeah, and, like I said, the profits will go back to pakistan and you're giving jobs to pakistan people, pakistan farmers, other than your own people.

Speaker 1: 12:42

Why are we doing this? Right, also by inviting african americans? Right, we are, and and that knowledge and expertise that they've got, they could, you know, transpose those skills to our own people, who have forgotten how to cultivate rice. So that would be to reclaim and honour ancestral knowledge systems that can be used for greater good. Again, by inviting our African-American brothers and sisters right in rice cultivation. That builds transformative partnerships rooted in a shared history and empowerment. So we would empower ourselves as Ghanaians, ghanaian farmers, as well as empowering African Americans who want to come back home and build businesses. This is a prime opportunity that the government of Ghana has missed by not inviting African American rice farmers, rice producers, etc.

Speaker 1: 13:42

Again, by inviting African Americans with that knowledge that they've got, because all the rice that's grown in America, particularly in Texas, has come from African Americans. African Americans were the original rice farmers in America. They gave the white man the technology and the ability to grow rice in America. A lot of the American rice is grown in the deep south. Who do you think grows? Who do you think is responsible for growing it and passing on the technology to the white farmers? African Americans, yeah. So they've got the technology right and if we invited them into Ghana, we could develop local agro-processing infrastructure with their investment, with their money.

Speaker 1: 14:22

So, the government of Ghana, if they had any sense I keep on saying the sense, it's not insulting, but use your brain, use your dark matter, because African Americans got a lot of money. This money that Pakistanis invested is nothing, nothing beloved. You know African Americans, what the net worth is? Their net worth is three trillion dollars. There are 50 million African Americans that live in America, right, their GDP is equivalent to their fifth richest country on the planet. So if African in America, if they were a country, if they were a nation, right, that would equal. They would make them the fifth richest people on the planet Because of their GDP. The GDP of African Americans is about $3 trillion. So they've got the capital that they could come to Ghana as rice farmers and create all the infrastructure that we need to develop sustainable rice growing factories and production.

Speaker 1: 15:23

And Mohammed talked about you know your 24 hour economy. This is a prime example of engaging with the diaspora. Yeah, to come to Ghana and build those factories that you want to project as part of the 24 hour economy and build those factories that you want to project as part of the 24-hour economy Rice processing, rice agriculture, rice producing, rice production, rice cultivation that alone could create a lot of jobs in Ghana. The money stays in Ghana and the opportunity also stays in Ghana, and the technology also stays in Ghana and the technology also stays in Ghana. So you know, for me, you know, I don't think the government is thinking right when inviting Pakistan to showcase their rice.

Speaker 1: 16:13

And we don't necessarily need Basmati rice, because that's one of the rice that Pakistan is famous for. We have the only strands of rice, and this is where the technology comes into place, this is where the knowledge, this is where the science of rice cultivation comes into place, because in Ghana we don't necessarily have to eat basmati rice and that's white rice. You could eat red rice that is cultivated in the Volta region, right. Or we could develop our own strains based on the natural soil fertilization that we have in Ghana, based on the richness of our soil, based on the varieties of our soil. We will cultivate different strands of rice, which is for our own environment.

Speaker 1: 16:51

One and, more importantly, right for our own DNA. That Pakistani rice right is for them, it's for their DNA and their DNA. They're from our DNA as Ghanaians and Africans. Yeah, so we could cultivate. We could cultivate instead of their basmati white rice. We could cultivate our own red rice, our own Ghana. You know brown rice, our own Ghana. Even black rice, yeah, and if you google black rice, black rice is very, very nutritious and healthy. In actual fact, black rice is the most nutritious form of rice because of the power of the black grain.

Speaker 1: 17:28

Yeah, so we're not. We're missing a trick here by not inviting African Americans, who have got this in their DNA because their ancestors were from Africa. Their ancestors were from modern day Ghana, in the coastal areas of Ghana, like Cape Coast, sekundi, takrade, like modern day present day Liberia, sierra Leone, the Gullah people. Yeah, now let me tell you what you know this partnership between African-Americans and governments of Ghana could look like in practice. So you could have, with the capital that African-Americans have got, you could have diaspora rice cooperatives in the Volta region, which is a basin of Ghana for cultivating rice, but also in the northern, or as, which is a basin of Ghana for cultivating rice, but also in the northern or ascentic regions of Ghana. Yeah, and, like I said, also how this will manifest itself. Right is that you can give incentives for African American agro businesses to set up training homes in Ghana to train local Guyanese about rice cultivation, rice methodologies, the science of growing rice and also rice production. Also, how this will look in practice, this venture between Guyanese and African-Americans. You could have joint ventures in rice milling, in packaging and exports, based in Ghana, owned by Africans and, like I said, the money and the profits that are generated by this kind of ventures stays in Ghana as opposed to going to Pakistan and enriching their economy and their farmers. And, lastly, right, you know how this partnership could also be dynamic in terms of cultural and educational exchanges could emanate from this.

Speaker 1: 19:27

Yeah, which, then, which then would be able to, you know, develop partnerships, right with local, you know, with local people, and also reconnect those people, particularly youth, with their ancestral farming knowledge that they've lost, because in Ghana today, we've lost our knowledge, the ancient knowledge that we had as Ghanaians, whether you're Akan, ewe, fante, whatever, we've lost that ancient knowledge, right, because of colonialism and so-called modernisation. Right, this? By inviting African Americans skilled in this area, we could train our youth to reconnect with their ancient knowledge of rice cultivation, because no white man come to Ghana and teach us how to grow rice. We were growing rice ourselves, even in in criminal day, so all you got to do is just learn or relearn what you, what you already knew in the first place about how to grow rice and the science behind growing rice.

Speaker 1: 20:45

So this issue of me not liking Pakistan people coming right to town and grow rice. It's not being bigoted, it's not being racist, right? And it's not just about economics, right it? And it's not just about economics, right, it's about sovereignty, sovereignty. I keep on using this term sovereignty. What was the point of gaining independence, right, if you know you're just going to run to every town that they can hurry? Sovereignty this is what it's about Dignity and building a future. Right, where African knowledge and capital work, so we can work amongst ourselves, as Africans from the diaspora and Africans in Africa who have got the expertise and encourage the notion of self-determination. Self-determination and sovereignty, which are two ingredients in terms of emancipation From white domination and Asian domination. Because, if we're talking about being too secure, we should grow what we eat and eat what we grow. It's a simple formula. It's not rocket science, simple formula. So this is what the government of Ghana should be doing For me, instead of calling Pakistan rights developers or rights growers, but to call our people African-Americans, whose ancestors came from Ghana and whose ancestors actually built America.

Speaker 1: 22:13

It's not white men built America. The black man, african man, built America. Look at Washington DC. That was not built by a white man. All the plans and the architecture drawings for Washington DC, that great capital of America, was done by a black man, african man, called Benjamin Banneker, and he was commissioned by George Washington in 1791 to lay the plans for that city that you see today called Washington DC. So George Washington knew that the black man was the original mathematician. George Washington, he knew that the black man was the original architect. He knew the black man was the original designer. That's why he called upon a black man, an African, to design and lay the plans for Washington DC. He didn't call a China man, he didn't call an Indian man, he didn't call a Pakistani man, he didn't call a Muslim man, he didn't call a China man, he didn't call a European, a German, italian, french. No, he called a black man. Because he knew Washington's DNA told him that the black man is the original builder, is the original mason, is the original architect, is the original planner.

Speaker 1: 23:25

Yeah, so what history should inform us? And even before I go there, the White House where all the American presidents lived, including Donald Trump, you know, was built by Africans. Even Michelle Obama said it when she was first lady. She said that I wake up every morning in the house that was built by enslaved Africans. Yeah, so that tells you why that without African labor, african know-how, african technology, technology, african labour, you will not see America, the great country you see today. And this is why it's important that the government of Ghana engages with the African American diaspora, particularly African Americans, right, and let me tell you why.

Speaker 1: 24:16

Why today, even though black people in America have been treated really badly, you know there are still rice producers in America, and I can name you three of those rice producers that the government of Ghana can call upon. So the first one is PJ Haney, right, who owned Haney Farms in Virginia and Arkansas. So they're fifth generation black farmer and chairman of the National Black Growers Council. Yeah, and they operate the only black-owned rice mill in the US, located in Pine Bluff, arkansas. Yeah, you also got Jubilee Justice, right, that's the Black Rice Project in America. So this was founded by Condon Mason.

Speaker 1: 25:04

This initiative supports black farmers in the southeastern states to grow rice using using now check this, now using sustainable methods like system of rice intensification. Let me say that again. So these black farmers in the south interstate of United States, right, they grow rice by using sustainable methods like system of rice intensification, sri. You don't think we can use that technology in Ghana, using our soil, which is very rich, fertile. So this Jubilee Justice in America, right, they've got farms, like Roy, mostly in Georgia, who are cultivating Her Loom Rice varieties On land that once belonged to their ancestors, yeah, so this is just examples of rice farmers in America who are producing, using technology, yeah, under the system of rice intensification program, different varieties of rice. So these people for example, the Black Rice Project you know, if we can have them in Ghana and we can, you know and they've got money as well, and we can give them incentives to teach our people in Ghana how to grow sustainable methods of rice like this one here that they've got. We can't do that.

Speaker 1: 26:42

This is why it's important to know your black history, yeah. So for me, this is why it's important that we, you know, when we look about so-called foreign investment in the right, that we understand that foreign investment is about sovereignty, sovereignty, sovereignty and self-determination, yeah, and not giving your rights and dignity away to people that don't like you. So the government of Ghana, you know they should have a diaspora office they claim they have one and they should partner with other kids, americans in, you know, in this rice cultivation and rice production, because in the long term, that has great benefits for Ghana and it tells us that there's a gap in Ghana's, you know, diaspora engagement. So it's okay having the right of return and beyond the return, right. But you know, part of the right of return should be to engage our people in sustainable business developments. It's not about tourism, it's not about tourism and getting them to invest in in a buying house or buying a property. No, it's about real, tangible building developments. Right, in this case, rice production. Yeah, and that, that, for me, is should be the purpose, right, or is or should be the purpose of the year of return and beyond the return yeah, to get our people from the diaspora who have the money, who have the know-how, who have the technical expertise, yeah, to engage within our development, national development of ghana and in this particular one example, rice production or agribusiness. So for me, you know, ghana has has missed a big opportunity to engage with our diaspora who are excelling in rice cultivation.

Speaker 1: 28:48

Now, the other issue that is also troublesome is that recently, president Mahama went to Japan to court Japanese businessmen to invest in Ghana. So Mahama's got this big push agenda whereby he wants Japanese business people to invest in energy, agribusiness and manufacturing. Now, again, this falls into the you know, for me, falls into the Euro, return beyond return. Because, rather than have Japan invest in energy, agribusiness and manufacturing yeah, as part of your 24-hour economy, why again aren't you inviting our own people, african Americans, particularly African Americans, who are specialized in energy, renewable energy, as I mentioned, agribusiness and manufacturing? Yeah, so when Muhammad has gone to Japan yeah, recently he went to Japan. Now Hamas has gone to Japan. Recently he went to Japan towards the end of August, I think last week or the week before, to propose his big push initiative when he was speaking at the Ghana Presidential Investment Forum on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development.

Speaker 1: 30:18

Now, check that T-I-C-A-D Now. Think about it. Now, think about this critically and rationally. Japan have got this thing that they call Tokyo International Conference on African Development. Now, when did Japan have an interest in African Development? Think about it now. Or, what is their interest in African Development? Again, like Pakistan, japan do not like black people, not African people.

Speaker 1: 30:48

A famous tennis player that they've got is Naomi Osaka. She's part of the African father and Japanese mother and because, in Japan, of the racist, of the anti-African racist day, right, she can't play. She, because, and because in Japan, of the racist, of the anti-african racist day, white, she can't play, she can't live in Japan. So her mum or father had to leave Japan, white, and they live in America, yeah, because in America, you know, there's a lot of mixed relationships, yeah, but in Japan, you know, they didn't even view her as Japanese because she's black, because she's got a black or African father, yeah, so these are people that they view us.

Speaker 1: 31:22

Yeah, and if you go to Japan, speak to Africans In Japan right, we know Japan is very, very mono monocultural Society. Yeah, speak to Africans who live in Japan and they will tell you if they've been honest With themselves of the anti Black, anti-african racism in Japan. So again, I ask myself, why would you, knowing this, you probably don't know, but why would you want Japan to come to a country and invest who don't like African people, to come to a country and invest who don't like african people? And again, as in pakistan, the money is staying, is going to go to pakistan, to japan, to support japanese businesses, yeah, and, and to support further, support the japanese economy.

Speaker 1: 32:15

But, like I said, you know, and the reason why Ghana is inviting Pakistan and Japan, particularly Japan, is because Ghana's post-independence development model has leaned on so-called bilateral aid and foreign direct investments. So Japan, through JICA, which is their equivalent of USAID and equivalent of DID UK, yeah. So through JICA and private firms, they built roads in Ghana. They built power plants and industrial zones yeah, but whatever. But Borchardt has to ask himself, right. And industrial zones, but whatever. But Bojaf has to ask himself. They built this version, for example, the Tama, the new Tama Bypass or interchange that you see in Tama. That was built primarily With Japanese money Via JICA and also some Japanese firms.

Speaker 1: 33:16

But ask yourself, what Benefit is Japan getting from this? You know, arrangement with government of Ghana? Yeah, and, like you say, you know Mahama wants them to invest 100 million US dollars into energy, agribusiness and also manufacturing. But, like I said, what is the purpose of them doing it? Yeah, and what is their agenda and motivation for them to invest in Ghana?

Speaker 1: 33:51

Do you know that Japan is actually a dying economy? You know what Japan's economy, even though it's supposedly that's why I mean the G7, right, apparently one of the richest, richest countries world, which is, which is probably a lie, because really japan has had, you know, a stagnation for about 20 years, you know that, since this is basically 2000. But japanese economies are already grown, yeah, and all the marks in asia are saturized. So they can't do a lot of business in China and that's their art trade in China. They can't do a lot of trading, you know, in Vietnam or Singapore or Malaysia, because they too, they want to keep their markets, you know, in-house Right, and also Europe and the West, and particularly with America, trump's tariffs is now making it difficult for Japanese goods and services to enter the American market, and so now they have to use Africa, because everyone sees Africa as a final frontier.

Speaker 1: 34:45

They may not tell you that in your business programs, yeah, but Africa is the final frontier. So Japan, like US, like China, like India, like Russia, like Turkey, like the European Union, are looking to Africa to sell, to sell green services to ourselves. So this is why Mohammed is courting them, but he doesn't need to court them. Mohammed does not need to court Japan, because Japan, like I say, is an alien society. Yeah, and they've now got a time bomb whereby, you know there is, you know, japan's population is actually shrinking, yeah, and it's aging very, very fast. So but now check this now by 2040 that's a mere 15 years time half the population, half of japan, half the population, half of Japan, half the population will be over 65, and you know what that means fewer workers, slower domestic growth.

Speaker 1: 35:45

If you think Japan's country stagnation already right, you ain't seen. You know what it'd be in 10 years time when they've got less workers, slower domestic growth? Yeah, and this is why they need external markets and resource access. They don't like Ghana, they're not African people and this is why, mahama you know, unfortunately, you know this is why they will probably invest in Ghana, because they see opportunity to develop their own economy, own economy. And also, you know, in Ghana because they see opportunity to develop their own economy and to also give their people jobs, because when they invest in your country and they make profit, that profit goes back into their economy. That generates wealth for Japan instead of creating wealth for Ghana.

Speaker 1: 36:37

So my thing on this Japan thing why, you know, why can't we again invite rich African Americans who have got history of manufacturing based in America, who also have history, you know, in renewable energy and energy, you know methodologies? Also, there's rich Ghanians like Papa Christine Doum. Papa Christine Doum has been sidelined by the last government. But Papa Christine Doum, right, he's one of the richest men in Ghana. He has built group in Doum, group in Doum, group in them. He has brought that into multi-sector empire that includes banking, media, real estate, hospitality. He's got he's got like three hotels, yeah, the VM what's his name if park was in domes hotel chain, coconut grove. He's got one lacroix, I'm sorry, two lacroix, I think, one in cape coast and one in the mean amina.

Speaker 1: 37:48

Yeah, so when you encourage rich ghanians like papa kusindom, who was a track record of burning banks and businesses in Ghana, right, if you encourage people like that to engage with the government in terms of energy, agribusiness and manufacturing, you know what that's going to provide opportunities for Guinean entrepreneurs. One. Two, that's going to create wealth in Ghana. Three, that's going to create wealth in Ghana. Three, that's going to create jobs in Ghana. Four, the money that is made will stay in Ghana and the government of Ghana can use that money to invest in infrastructure like roads, schools, hospitals, et cetera, rather than begging these Western and Asian NGOs like JICA, usaid well, not USAID UKAID, etc.

Speaker 1: 38:48

To give us £10 million to build a road, when, if we encourage Ghanaian entrepreneurs to invest in Ghana, we could get a lot of that money back and invest in our own you know sources of, you know infrastructure, yeah, so you know, for me, development is not about foreign direct investment, even though you know there may be a case for it, but it's about, for me, sovereignty, sovereignty, self-determination and keeping your main cause to your chest. We can't allow Pakistan to come in and dominate our rice production when we've got a rice factory in the Volta region. We can't allow Japanese investors to come to Ghana and own our energy, own our agribusiness, own our manufacturing sector. We've done that already. The Indians control a lot of the retail sector in Ghana. The Lebanese control a lot of the retail sector in Ghana. The Chinese are now wanting to move into our area Manufacturing, etc.

Speaker 1: 39:56

So why doesn't the government of Ghana, in closing, encourage Ghanaian entrepreneurship by giving them soft loans, interest-free loans, or subsidising and, particularly in terms of agriculture, subsidising farmers? By that you are encouraging entrepreneurship and you are also creating self-determination and sovereignty. More importantly, sovereignty whereby you own ownership of your resources, ownership of your you know your real estate, to speak, your infrastructure, your development, other than allowing outsiders to come into Ghana, take what they want, take what they love and then you live with nothing but crumbs. Yeah, so for me, the government of Ghana has missed opportunities by allowing Pakistan to come into Ghana and rice cultivation, and also by courting Japanese investors to come to Ghana to invest in key sectors of our economy, when we know there's rich Ghanians, and also our African American brothers and sisters, who have got by far, even more than Japan and Pakistan, the ability, the money, the capability to do what we need to do to really help, you know, develop Ghana and take Ghana on that next level.

Speaker 1: 41:25

And so I thank you for listening to this edition, this special edition of Ghana in Focus, where we're looking back development from an African-centered point of view, not from the textbook, european textbook point of view. Yeah, if you like what you hear, please share it to your friends from Musician Media Networks. Subscribe to Ghana African Focus on YouTube. Subscribe to Ghana African Focus on Spotify. Alright, so next week we're definitely going to touch into health, where we look at the prostate cancer myth. So until then, from myself, kwame, and from all the crew here on Ghana in Focus, thank you very much for listening and we will see you in the next edition of Africa in Focus.