Some private sector players have showed interest in partnering government to begin the process of renovating the trade fair complex at La in Accra, owned and managed by Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited (GTFC).
With government’s support, the company has already secured a master plan to rebuild the facility into an international standard complex. The five-year strategic plan, which is expected to begin next year has already undergone planning and preparatory stages.
Currently, there are no hotels in the facility that can accommodate people who travel from far and near to participate in trading and exhibition activities.
As a result of the company’s quest to making the premises a trading hub in Ghana for both domestic and international trade, there are plans to build hotels and modern convention centres that will host high numbers of participants during trade promotion events.
Speaking to the Goldstreet Business, during the launch of the 23rd Ghana International Trade Fair 2019 at the Trade Fair Centre in Accra, the Chief Executive Officer of GTFC, Dr. Agnes Adu said the company has engaged the private sector as government is unable to solely fund the project.
“In the next stage, we will go through the Public Procurement Processes to select the solid companies that have approached us and also open doors for new ones to put in bids and finalise it”, she affirmed.
Last month, the CEO ofthe Public Procurement Authority (PPA), Mr. Agyenim Boateng Adjei, launched the integrated web-based Ghana Electronic Procurement System (GHANEPS), a platform established to digitize the procurement process and ensure transparency in the procurement process.
This is an opportunity for companies and industry players who have showed interest in there-development of the facility to follow the due process as required to ensure transparency.
Cost of project
Early this year, Dr. Adu revealed that the centre needs about US$1 billion to give it the required facelift to meet international standards. However, speaking to the Goldstreet Business, she stated the total cost of the project is impossible to determine.
“You don’t put a dollar or cedi amount on a project of this size. We have been planning to build this facility into a modern one. We have identified six key projects. Each of the projects will have its own cost. To say the entire project will cost X amount is almost next to impossible to determine”, Dr. Adu said.
By Dundas Whigham