President and Chief Executive Officer of B5 Plus Limited, Mukesh Thakwani, has called on Ghana to focus on value addition and industrialization, stressing that the country must move beyond exporting raw materials and begin exporting finished products to drive economic growth and create jobs.
Delivering a landmark keynote address at the 10th Ghana CEO Summit 2026 under the theme “From Potential to Production, Ghana’s Industrial Decade,” Mr. Thakwani declared that Ghana must move beyond exporting raw materials and instead focus on exporting finished products, industrial value, and skilled jobs.
“For too long, Africa has exported opportunity and imported value. Ghana must stop exporting potential and start exporting finished value,” he stated to a packed audience that included President John Dramani Mahama, ministers, diplomats, CEOs, investors, and policymakers.
The industrialist praised the Government’s economic transformation agenda and described the President’s 24-Hour Economy programme as one of the most significant opportunities in Ghana’s modern economic history.
Mr. Thakwani outlined five strategic shifts he believes are essential for Ghana’s industrial future.
The first, he said, is a transition from import dependence to production-led growth, arguing that manufacturing creates entire ecosystems of employment, innovation, and economic activity.
He highlighted B5 Plus’ recent commissioning of three new steel plants under the Government’s 24-Hour Economy initiative as evidence that Ghana can become a major production hub for West Africa.
Secondly, he called for local content to move beyond political rhetoric and become a practical framework for building Ghanaian industrial capability.
“Local content is not a slogan; it is a supply chain,” he emphasized.
The third shift focuses on transforming Ghana into a genuine 24-Hour Economy where factories, farms, warehouses, ports, logistics systems, and industrial facilities operate continuously to maximize productivity and competitiveness.
“The 24-Hour Economy is not only about longer hours; it is about fuller use of national capacity,” he stressed.
Addressing the agricultural sector, Mr. Thakwani argued that Ghana must develop complete agricultural value chains rather than exporting raw commodities.
He noted that farmers require access to markets, storage facilities, logistics systems, processing plants, packaging infrastructure, certification, finance, and export opportunities if they are to capture greater value from their production.
According to him, B5 Plus stands ready to support the development of modern agricultural infrastructure through investments in steel structures, irrigation systems, greenhouses, silos, warehouses, agro-processing facilities, logistics equipment, and agro-industrial parks.
“Our direction is clear, where Ghana grows, Ghana must process; where Ghana processes, Ghana must package; where Ghana packages, Ghana must export,” he said.
The B5 Plus President also challenged Ghanaian industries to embrace circular economy principles by transforming waste into productive economic resources.
He revealed that B5 Plus is making significant investments in renewable energy, recycling technologies, robotic manufacturing systems, automated fabrication facilities, and modern industrial processes.
Notably, he announced that upon completion of its ongoing Phase Two expansion, B5 Plus will operate a 20-megawatt rooftop solar power installation, one of the largest private-sector industrial solar projects on the African continent.
Mr. Thakwani urged Government to introduce targeted policy interventions to accelerate industrial growth.
Among his recommendations were tax exemptions on productive machinery, industrial equipment, renewable energy systems, and critical manufacturing spare parts.
He also called for stronger local content enforcement, anti-dumping protections against unfair imports, improved industrial infrastructure, cleaner industrial zones, and a performance-based incentive regime for companies that create jobs, export products, use local inputs, and invest in skills development.
He specifically identified congestion along the Tema Motorway and road networks serving the Tema and Kpone industrial corridors as major constraints affecting productivity and competitiveness.
While acknowledging the importance of government support, Mr. Thakwani challenged business leaders to take greater responsibility for driving economic transformation.
“We must move from trading to making, from short-term profit to long-term capacity, from isolated companies to value chains, and from complaints to bankable proposals,” he told fellow CEOs.
He called on every business leader attending the summit to develop a “24-Hour Readiness Plan” focused on expanding production capacity, developing local suppliers, increasing exports, training young people, and converting waste streams into productive inputs.
Concluding his address, the B5 Plus CEO reaffirmed his company’s commitment to supporting President Mahama’s economic vision and Ghana’s industrial transformation agenda.
He pledged continued investment in manufacturing, agricultural value chains, infrastructure development, skills training, recycling, renewable energy, and export-oriented production.
“Let us build a Ghana where every hour creates value, every raw material moves up the chain, every factory creates dignity, and every CEO becomes a builder of national transformation,” he declared.
The address was widely regarded as one of the strongest private-sector endorsements of Ghana’s industrialization agenda and the Government’s 24-Hour Economy programme, positioning manufacturing, value addition, and industrial competitiveness at the centre of Ghana’s next phase of economic development.
