According to VDMA-The German Engineering Association, the imports of plastics, printing and packaging machinery and equipment to West Africa in 2011 increased by up to 75 per cent. Against this backdrop the Accra International Conference Centre in Accra, Ghana will open its gates from 3 to 5 December 2013 the 1st plastprintpack West Africa. The International Trade Show on Plastics, Composites, Chemistry and Printing & Packaging Solutions and Material is organised by the trade fair specialist fairtrade Messe from Germany.Among the ECOWAS-The Economic Community of West African States as a regional group of 15 West African countries, Ghana has developed into a "Donor darling" of the international giver community. This success is founded on political and economic stability. Further on Ghana belongs to the out-performers in Subsahara-Africa, with gdp-growth rates of considerably more than 7 per cent (ECOWAS average: 5%). This growth is driven by divert industry sectors. Private investments into the branches of oil and gas, mining, agriculture, food processing industry, retailing and energy as well as public investments into infrastructural projects made Ghana an important hub for business with West Africa. (Source: GTAI – Wirtschaftstrends Ghana 2012/13, January 2013). According to Martin März, managing director with fairtrade, Ghana is the ideal venue for this leading cross-border trade show.
As stated in the study of GTAI, growing population, increase in consumer consumption as well as the great distance between West Africa and the major consumer goods industries in Europe and South Africa, make a local production certainly worthwhile. These tendencies are supported by the import figures of VDMA for plastics, printing and packaging machinery and equipment into the ECOWAS countries. Compared to the year 2010 the imports in the plastics sector grew by 37.7 per cent from 96.9 up to 133.5 million Euros. A rise from 36.7 to 64.5 million Euros represents an increase of 75.7 per cent in imports of printing machinery and equipment. And in the same period, the imports in the packaging sector to the ECOWAS states increased by 52.1 per cent up to 223.3 million Euros.
