CEO of Dalex Finance, Joe Jackson has noted that the poor performance of local investors is creating the grounds for foreign businesses to dominate the local market.
Until the performance of Ghanaian investors improves, he said, the local economy will continue to be dominated by foreigners.
He noted that almost every aspect of the economy, including the oil sector, is dominated by foreign investors.
“Ghana’s under-performance has created conditions for foreign dominance in Ghana.
“If you don’t build the house and somebody builds the house to allow you to live as a tenant, how can you complain? We don’t build and because we don’t build others build.
“ Foreign companies are here to make profits. Foreign dominance is not the disease; it is invited by local weaknesses. Nobody is imposing it on us, it is the fact that we are weak that is why somebody can takeover,” he said while speaking during the Economic Dialogue on the theme: “Who owns the Ghanaian economy” organized by Media General in Accra on Thursday March 26.
For his part, Financial Analyst, Mr Ken Thompson spoke against over-reliance on foreign direct investment (FDIS) for development.
He makes the point that FDIs are good, noting that every country needs FIDS for its development.
However, he said, over-reliance on FDIs will hand over a country’s sovereignty into the hands of foreigners. This will be detrimental to that country, he added.
To that end, he proposed that Ghana should make economic sovereignty a national project.
He said this is the only way to ensure true economic independence.
“If we want to develop that we should make economic sovereignty a national project and proceed it with discipline.
“Let us not blame anybody for our lack of the will to develop. Nothing happens by accident, everything is contrived.”
“If you want to change behavior provide incentives. Ghanaians did not fight for independence so foreigners will own the future, we fought to own it ourselves.”
The former CEO of Dalex Finance further said that the development of every nation is the main function of indigenous investors.
He makes the point that no foreigner will develop a country. In the event that those foreigners develop the country, he said, they remain in that country and take absolute control over the investments.
Mr Thompson said “I am not against foreign investments but the truth is no foreigner will develop this country, foreigners have not developed any country.
“Anywhere foreigners have developed the country they stayed and took over everything.”
