The Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, has called for a bold rethink of Ghana’s trade strategy to drive sustainable growth, industrial transformation and job creation.

Speaking at the joint World Bank–ACET–ISSER seminar, the Minister disclosed that Ghana has reached a critical moment in its economic recovery and must now focus on building a resilient, value-driven economy.

Hon. Ofosu-Adjare noted that while Ghana has recorded significant macroeconomic gains including a historic trade surplus of US$13.6 billion in 2025 and record international reserves the country must not become complacent.

She explained that these impressive figures reflect deliberate reforms and disciplined economic management under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama.

However, she stressed that true prosperity will come only through industrialisation, value addition and export diversification.

The Minister highlighted the government’s commitment to transforming Ghana from a raw material exporter into a self-reliant, import-substituting and export-led economy.

She added that Ghana is already making strides in this direction, particularly through increased processing of cocoa and reforms in the gold sector, among others.

She further revealed that Ghana’s non-traditional exports has reached a record $5 billion in 2025 representing a 30.7% increase over the previous year while processed and semi-processed goods contributed more than $3 billion.

"Cocoa derivatives, including paste, butter and powder, emerged as the highest earners, reinforcing the importance of value addition before export," she stated.

Hon. Ofosu-Adjare also stated that Ghana has set a target to process at least 50% of its cocoa domestically and has already installed grinding capacity exceeding 500,000 metric tonnes to support that ambition.

Similar efforts, she said, are underway in the gold sector to ensure more value is retained within the country.