The President of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Dr. Humphrey Ayim-Darke, has warned that the recent 10% tariff imposed on Ghanaian exports by the U.S. is a stark reminder of the country’s structural economic vulnerabilities.
In an interview on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition on Friday, April 11, Dr. Ayim-Darke questioned Ghana’s ability to transform external crises into meaningful reform, arguing that political assurances of resilience rarely translate into real industrial transformation.
He described the U.S. tariff as a classic example of external factors that challenge the nation, urging policymakers and industry leaders to treat it as a moment of reckoning. “How do you manage it? How do you mitigate it?” he asked.
Dr. Ayim-Darke noted that while the Covid-19 pandemic exposed the fragility of global supply chains, Ghana failed to reposition its economy in response. He pointed to missed opportunities, such as in the power industry, where local content laws and value chain development should have been leveraged for growth.
Despite political optimism, Dr. Ayim-Darke emphasized that Ghana remains highly dependent on imports, with little structural change to show for it. “Recovery couldn’t take advantage of the situation to industrialize,” he lamented.
He cautioned that Ghana must move beyond rhetoric and complacency to build real economic resilience. “It’s full of talk that we need,” he concluded.