The Ho Municipal Assembly will hold its first trade and investment exposition this year to stimulate the municipality’s growth potential.
The Ho Tourism, Real Estate and Investment Expo is a two-week event expected to begin later in the month of August and bring together industry players.
Mr Divine Bosson, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), said at the media launch on Wednesday that the various stakeholders were seeking for the transform the resource-endowed Municipality from an agrarian to a fledgling multi-economic hub that would help realise growth and employment needs.
He said the fair was, therefore, being staged to converge potential and attract both local and international investment to the Municipality and the region at large.
“This event, having been carefully thought through, is aimed at changing the face of the Ho Municipality to one which focuses on growth, development, and employment creation for the youth.
“Our reliance on agriculture as the mainstay of the municipality has proven over the period that we need to diversify and delve into other economic activities to enhance income and reduce poverty among the populace.
This, therefore, calls for pragmatic measures aimed at lifting the majority of our people from the doldrums,” he stated.
The MCE pointed to the tourism potential of the Municipality and a fast-expanding real estate space providing jobs for the people, saying both would be exposed to investors during the event.
He called on industrialists to seek investments within the Municipality.
“This media launch is to set the stage for the necessary synergies to be created among Tourism, real estate and infrastructural development to propel our Municipality to higher heights.
“I am, therefore, throwing the challenge to the captains of industry, businesses, commercial farmers, hoteliers and other concerns in and outside the Municipality that the time is now to invest in ‘Ho must bounce back project’.
The Expo would be on the theme: “Positioning the Oxygen City, Ho, for Infrastructural Development and Tourism”, and over 200 exhibitors are expected at the Ho Jubilee Park where it would be held.
Stakeholders including the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the Ghana Tourism Authority, and the Volta Regional Coordinating Council are working together on the expo, with the Volta Development Forum and the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) as major partners.
Mr Benjamin Kpodo, the Member of Parliament for Ho Central Constituency, chaired the launch and said the Municipality required “concrete steps” towards ensuring its development, calling to consider widely the numerous potentials.
He said a transformed attitude towards the business environment was also crucial, while local economic investment by indigenes was required to encourage external investors.
Mr Dela Gbeve, the Treasurer of the AGI in the Eastern, Volta and Oti regions, said that the Association had faith in the growth potential of the region and the prospects of the upcoming fair.
He revealed that the Municipality had been selected to host a permanent office of the AGI and an SME incubation centre and mentioned growing partnership with the Assembly on several fronts.
Mr Gbeve said the AGI would support the successful delivery of the trade event.
Mr Emmanuel Agbaxode, the Volta and Oti Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association, urged the media to own the event, and provide the needed public support for its success and the economic development of the entire area.
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