The Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has launched the 2nd AGI Industry Awards in Accra, with a call on government to accelerate effort at attracting more investors into the energy sector to take care of the country’s power deficit.
Nana Owusu-Afari, president of AGI, said wooing more independent power producers into the country would expand power supply and address the power crisis as well.
Slated for November this year, the awards are to provide a platform to help define the highest standards of excellence in business.
Specifically, the event aims to encourage and reward the achievements of businesses that have distinguished themselves over the years and to motivate other companies to climb the ladder of excellence.
The government alone, he said, could not finance new power plants and needed private firms to generate more power and even export, if it was able to produce in excess of national demand to earn more foreign exchange.
Nana owusu-Afari praised the government for showing its willingness to solve the energy challenges, citing the recent addition of 133 mega watts of power from the Bui Dam to the national grid as an example, saying it was a big boost to industry.
Touching on the awards, he said it was meant to challenge member companies to remain competitive and aspire to be at the top.
The president of AGI said some Ghanaian companies has been able to excel despite th e challenges suc as unreliable power supply, weak infrastructure and high cost of production, adding that it was appropriate to recognize such companies.
While Nana Owusu-Afari urged local companies not to compromise on the quality of their products so as to be able to compete on the international market, he urged the government to deal with the influx of fake foreign goods on the Ghanaian market to make a the local industries competitive.
Six awards categories – Overall Best Industrial Company of the Year, Best Corporate Social Responsibility; Environmental Project Company of the Year, Fastest Growing Company; Young Enterprise Company (Innovation and Entrepreneurship); and Best Practices in Sustainable Manufacturing Company – will be up for grabs.
There would also be 20 sector award categories of AGI, including Agric-Business; Automotive and Transport; Chemicals, Electrical and Electronics; Energy; Food and Beverages; Financial Services; Garments, Textiles and Leather; Hospitality and Tourism; and Information and Communication and Technology.
The rest are Metals, Building and Construction; Oil and Gas Service; Pharmaceuticals; Printing Stationary and Packaging; Rubber and Plastics; Toiletries and Cosmetics; Wood Processing; Business Promotion and Consultancy; Timber Miller; and Advertising.
The Awards Committee, chaired by Mrs. Awurabena Okrah, disclosed that an independent technical committee would be responsible for review and evaluation of nominations, leading to final selection of winners for the various categories.
Some of the key criteria would be growth, tax responsibility, corporate social responsibility and employment generation, the Committee said.
As part of the launch, companies which emerged winners in last year’s awards were presented with their certificates. They include Fan Milk Limited, which emerged the overall winner, GOIL, Duraplast and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation.
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