A brief on what GVCs are and how they could be beneficial to developing economies and Ghana especially.

1. The Changing Phase of
GVCs, International Trade
and Role of Governments
Leveraging the advantages of GVCs for Ghana’s Development
By Prosper Abuanor

2. Outline
• Objectives of Presentation
• Target audience
• Concept and Definition of GVCs
• Importance of GVCs
• Ghana’s Challenge
• Proposed solutions

3. Objective
This presentation seeks to call on all stakeholders in the
Ghanaian trade environment to shift attention from traditional
trade to efforts that positions the country to leverage GVCs for
development.
Target Audience
The Ghana Government, Ghana Investment Promotion Center, Ghana
Chamber of Commerce, GUTA, GPHA, Private businessmen, Ghana
Importers and Exporters Association and all other stakeholders

4. Concept and
Definition of GVCs
• GVCs are global
production and
distribution systems,
which bring together
diverse constellations of
economic actors
through an increasingly
complex regime of
global corporate
governance, widespread
outsourcing of
productive functions
and new international
divisions of our - Gary
Gereffi.
• Production of goods,
from raw materials to
finished products, is
increasingly carried out
wherever the necessary
skills and materials are
available at competitive
cost and quality

5. The concept of GVC is
explained by the source
of the parts needed to
manufacture this bicycle.
Firms outsource these
parts from cross boarder
countries in order to
produce the product for
their market

6. Concept and Definition of GVCs
It involves fragmenting in a manner that some specific production
processes are carried out at cross border locations that provide the
required human resource, skills and materials at relatively competitive
cost and quality.

7. Importance of GVCs
• Provides opportunities for export diversification and intensify
integration into the global economy.
• Increased job creation
• Increased standard of living
• Can lead to expansion of economy
• Reduces poverty
• Boosts industrialization

8. Ghana’s
Challenge
• Ghana has limited participation in the global value chain.
There is very little transformation to exports and imports
implying minimal value addition and hence limited
participation along the chain.
• In addition, Ghana mainly exports primary products and
imports mainly finished products indicating that Ghana’s
participation takes place at the initial part of the GVC.
•Source: wp_2017_05.pdf (wti.org)
• For a developing nation, there must be a conscious effort to
industrialize, improve trade and create sustainable create
jobs for its youth.

9. Proposal for Ghana
• Implement policy that requires some level of value addition in the country’s
exportable products such as Cocoa, gold, crude, cashew etc.
• Promote production of non-traditional export products
• Leverage the benefits of Preferential Access to markets
• Strengthen participation in Multilateral Trade negotiations
• Ensure that the country’s trade policy reflects ECOWAS and AU protocols
• Strengthen trade relations with other regional blocks and markets
• Promote new areas of competitive Advantage
• Policy to ensure transition from the export of commodities such as cocoa
and gold in their raw states.
• Educational policy that creates specialized workforce or a specialty in the
production of good or part of a good.

10. How can Developing Countries Benefit
• Reduce trade costs by
providing required
infrastructure, reduction in
tariff, deregulation.
• Open up foreign trade and
investment in services.
• Foster trade agreements with
more advanced economies.
• Implement policy to develop
skilled local labour

11. Thank you