The National Export Development Strategy (NEDS) is combining its effort of raking in a decade’s revenue of US$25.3billion by 2029, working closely and leveraging the siting of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) headquarters in Accra.

The Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) unveiled the NEDS – an initiative of the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 2020, with an aim to develop the potential of the non-traditional export (NTE) sector through industrialization and intense collaboration between private sector and government.

During an inauguration of a sector group and governance structure for the successful implementation of the strategy in Accra, Deputy Minister of Trade, Herbert Krapah, said the realization of the target in the next decade demands strong collaboration between key implementing partners and players within the NTE sector.

He said the creation of the Sector Group to lead and implement the strategy for the 17 priority product areas is timely with the full implementation of the AfCFTA.

“The Sector Group and Committee will share knowledge and experience on our ambition to add value to NTEs to rake in the US$25.3 billion. I am convinced that the successful implementation of the NEDS will quicken Ghana’s pace of taking full advantage of the AfCFTA,” he said.

GEPA’s CEO, Dr. Afua Asabea Asare, said it was important for the strategy to tap into opportunities presented by the AfCFTA, while equipping stakeholders with the needed capacity to implement the strategy.

Dr. Asare said the target Sector Group Committee will be based on the various priority area groupings, and will include non-agro products, trade and investment facilitation, agro-products, technology and innovation, services export, transport and logistics, creative and industrial arts, local government, infrastructure and utilities, and finance.

The sector groups, according to GEPA, will monitor and implement the NEDS within their relevant sectors and provide feedback from the economic operators to GEPA.

The main role of the NEDS Steering Committee is to consider and streamline project implementation technical issues, make recommendation to the Inter-Ministerial Oversight Committee, coordinate critical inputs from institutional providers, and conduct advocacy as deemed fit.

Considering the 1.2 billion potential customers with about 50 percent increase in revenue, the NEDS seeks to make the best out of intra-Africa trade opportunities by 2030.

With the US$25.3billion for the 10-year structural transformation embedded in the NEDS, Ghana will need to rake in about US$600million each year to realize the target by 2029.

GEPA, however, is optimistic that the over 400 different NTE products available to the country can push the agenda to meet the target.