KMA woos Italian investors to expand shoe-making industry
Hon. Osei Assibey Antwi, Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), is optimistic the shoe-making industry had the potential to expand the local economy if it was given the needed attention.
The metropolis, he said, currently boasts of over 4, 000 workforce in the industry, one of the largest in the West African sub-region, and had over the years seen some of their products being exported to neighbouring countries.
This ranges from simple leather slippers to sophisticated shoes.
Hon. Assibey Antwi, who was interacting with the Italian Ambassador to Ghana, His Excellency Giovanni Favilli, during a working visit by the latter to Kumasi, appealed to the Ambassador to use his good offices in assisting the KMA to achieve its mission.
The Ambassador was accompanied by Mr. Stefano Ramella, the Italian Embassyâ??s Vice-Consular in-charge of the Northern Sector of the country.
The MCE said Italy had a treasured record in shoe-making, adding that, it would not be out of place for corporate entities and businesses in that country to begin the processes of investing massively in the Ghanaian shoe-making industry for the mutual benefit of the two countries.
Such strategic partnership was vital to improve the expertise of the local shoe-makers, as state-of-the-art equipment and technology would be introduced in the sector to create the needed jobs, create wealth and also alleviate poverty amongst the people.
Hon. Assibey Antwi, briefing the Ambassador on the general vision of the Assembly to uplift socio-economic growth of Kumasi, touched on moves by the authorities to search for partners to construct a high rise car park on a property near the Kumasi Central Prisons.
Plans were further afoot to develop a property near the Parks and Gardens, off the Santasi-Obuasi road into an ultra modern car terminal.
The MCE whose main vision is to restore Kumasi to its â??Garden Cityâ?? status, said the government cherished its long-standing relationship with its Italian counterparts, and assured the Ambassador of the Assemblyâ??s determination to sustain this through joint development initiatives which would benefit the masses.
He stressed the need to harness potentials in the tourism industry, particularly cultural and heritage tourism, citing other tourist attraction sites in the metropolis, which even had competitive investor advantage over some well-known sites in Dubai and Kenya.
On sanitation, Mr. Assibey Antwi announced that the city authorities was embarking on plans to turn waste generated into energy, and, therefore, invited the Italian community to critically look at the feasibility of this project, saying the Assembly had plans to advance clean energy.
He said the initiative fed into the â??Keep the City Clean (KCC)â?? project, which would be launched soon, and involving various stakeholders such as traditional authorities, security agencies, corporate bodies, civil society organizations and other identifiable groups
H.E.Favilli said Kumasi had been resilient in meeting the aspirations of the people since time immemorial, especially its socio-cultural diversity, and assured that the Italian community would not relent in partnering the KMA to meet its development objectives.
He lauded the MCE for his visionary leadership.