"Ghana - Japan Investment Seminar: Business Opportunities and SDG Impact Areas" will be held online on 13 July

UNIDO ITPO Tokyo will organize the online seminar “Ghana – Japan Investment Seminar: Business Opportunities and SDG Impact Areas” on 13 July 2021, jointly with Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) and UNDP.

The seminar consists of three session. In the first session, business opportunities in general and related policies and regulations will be introduced by GIPC, followed by the presentation by UNDP on the SDG Investment Opportunities.

The SDG Investment Opportunities have been articulated with the launch of the SDG Investor Map for Ghana, following and capitalizing on the experience in the same exercise in Brazil, Colombia, Turkey and South Africa, under the global initiative “SDG Impact”, which identifies five sectors (agriculture, infrastructure, healthcare, ICT, and manufacturing) as SDG-enabling investment areas with compelling business gains.

In the second part, Japanese and Ghanaian organizations/corporations will demonstrate their cases of social business/business in the sectors of IT, Agriculture, and Manufacturing.

The last panel session will explore entry points for business and investment by Japanese corporations in Ghana with inviting Ministry of Finance and Private Enterprise Federation of Ghana and Japanese organization/corporation which presented in the second session.

Online individual meeting with GPIC will also be organized.

Outline

Date:	Tuesday, July 13, 2021
Time:	17:35-20:05 (JST)/ 8:35-11:05 (GMT)
Organizers:	Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), UNDP, UNIDO ITPO Tokyo,
Language:	Japanese/English (Simultaneous interpretation)
Registration fee:	Free of charge
MC:	Ms. Yuki ONOZAKI, UNIDO ITPO Tokyo
Registration:	Please fill the form by 12th of July
	*URL to join the seminar will be sent to the registered e-mail address.

Programme

17:35/8:35 Opening remarks 　
　　　　　　　　　Mr. Yuko YASUNAGA, Head, UNIDO ITPO Tokyo

17:40/8:40 Welcome Remarks　
　　　　　　　　　H.E. Mr HIMENO Tsutomu, Japanese Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana

17:45/8:45 Welcome Remarks　
　　　　　　　　　H. E. Mr. Frank OKYERE, Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to Japan

17:50/8:50 Session I: Public Sector
17:50/8:50 Presentation on the regulation and Investment Opportunities in Ghana　　
　　　　　　　　　Mr. Yofi GRANT, Chief Executive Officer, GIPC

18:05/9:05 Presentation on highlights of the SDG Investor Map in Ghana　　
　　　　　　　　　Dr. Angela LUSIGI, Resident Representative, UNDP Ghana

18:20/9:20 　Q and A Session

18:35/9:35 Break

18:40/9:40 Session II: Private Sector
18:40/9:40 Presentation by KOKO Plus Foundation/ Ajinomoto Foundation
Mr. Yusuke TAKAHASHI, Country Director, KOKO Plus Foundation

18:47/9:47 Presentation by Degas Ltd
Mr. Doga MAKIURA, CEO, Degas Ltd.

18:54/9:54 Presentation by IT Consortium
　　　　　　　　　Mr. Romeo BUGYEI, Managing Director, IT Consortium

19:01/10:01 Presentation by Esoko
　　　　　　　　　Dr. Daniel ASARE-KYEI, CEO, Esoko

19:08/10:08 Presentation by Glofert Limited
　　　　　　　　　Mr. Foster Mawuli BENSON, CEO, Glofert Limited

19:15/10:15 Q and A Session

19:30/10:30 Session III: Panel Discussion
Moderator: Mr. Emmanuel FORSON, Principal Investment Promotion Officer, GIPC
Panelists:
Mr. Louis AMO, Chief Economic Officer & Head of Asia Unit, Ministry of Finance
Mr. Nana OSEI-BONSU, Chief Executive Officer, Private Enterprise Federation (PEF)
Mr. Yusuke TAKAHASHI, Country Director, KOKO Plus Foundation
Mr. Doga MAKIURA, CEO, Degas Ltd.

20:00/11:00 Closing remarks
Ms. Afua Ntiriwa TEKYI-MILLS, Head, Corporate Affairs, GIPC

Speakers and panelists (information will be updated)

	Mr. Yuko YASUNAGA, Head, UNIDO ITPO Tokyo Mr. Yasunaga has had an extensive career with Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), with expertise in the areas of Natural Resources and Technology. Dr. Yasunaga was Vice-President and later Councilor of Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) from 2013 – 2017 and held key managerial posts within METI from 2002 – 2013. Dr. Yasunaga holds a Ph.D. in Engineering, from the University of Tokyo.
	H.E. Mr HIMENO Tsutomu, Japanese Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana H.E. Mr. Tsutomu HIMENO is Ambassador of Japan to Ghana since 2017, with accreditation to Liberia and Sierra Leone. Previously, he assumed various posts such as Deputy Permanent Representative and Minister at Permanent Delegation of Japan to the OECD and Consul-General of Japan in Boston. He has also served as Executive Officer of Nippon Automated Cargo and Port Consolidated System, Inc. (NACCS Center). H.E. Mr. HIMENO is a graduate of the Osaka University (BA Law) and he holds Special Diploma in Social Studies (Distinction) from Oxford University.
	H. E. Mr. Frank OKYERE, Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to Japan H.E. Mr. Frank Okyere is Ambassador of Ghana to Japan since June, 2018. He was born in Kumasi, Ghana, in 1948, and graduated from City of London College, UK, in 1976, majoring in Economics. After joining his family business, Oyoko Europarts Limited, he became a general managing director in 1999 and remained in the position until 2018. He is particularly passionate about value-added products produced in Ghana, and he believes that there is a lot to learn from Japan in this regard.
	Mr. Yofi GRANT, Chief Executive Officer, GIPC Mr. Grant draws from over three decades of a successful career and experience in investment banking and finance as he heads the GIPC, under the Office of the President of Ghana. He is recognized in the fields of financial Markets and Investment and has co-founded a number of companies, besides being a key financial policy adviser. On the continent, he led a number of advisory mandates both equity and debt transactions including the development and implementation of AAF SME Fund LLC, one of the largest agriculture funds in Sub-Saharan Africa.
	Dr. Angela LUSIGI, Resident Representative, UNDP Ghana She has over 20 years of experience in developing national development strategies, socio-economic analysis, partnerships building, inclusive and sustainable development. Prior to her current appointment, Dr. Lusigi was a Strategic Advisor in the UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa in New York. She previously served as Regional Program Advisor of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and as Assistant Resident Representative (Strategy and Policy) with UNDP in Nigeria.
	Mr. Yusuke TAKAHASHI, Country Director of KOKO Plus Foundation Mr. Takahashi joined Ajinomoto Co. After working in research laboratories, factories, and business divisions, Mr. Takahashi was seconded to the Ajinomoto Foundation in 2018. The foundation has been building systems producing nutritious food that is delicious, nutritious, affordable, and local where he is in charge of Ghana Nutrition Improvement Project (GNIP) and trying to establish a social business model for addressing malnutrition (stunting) by selling nutritious supplement, KOKO Plus.
	Mr. Doga MAKIURA, Degas Ltd./Degas Ghana Ltd. Founder & CEO With the vision of “Changing people’s lives dramatically”, Degas provides production and digitisation support to smallholder farmers in Ghana. In February 2017, proposed a Regulatory Sandbox framework (approved at the House of Councilors in May, 2018) to Prime Minister Abe (then) at the advisory council for deregulated zones. Received a letter of appreciation by the President. Akufo-Addo of Ghana to Degas in July, 2020.
	Mr. Romeo BUGYEI, Managing Director, IT Consortium Mr. Bugyei joined IT Consortium, a Financial Services Technology Provider with integrations in the banking and mobile money space, in 2015. He has over 20 years of executive leadership experience in consulting, insurance and technology, where he contributed to the technology transformation of many companies. He currently chairs the Governing Council of the Technology Chamber of Ghana. Mr. Romeo holds an MPhil in computer science and application from the Shanghai University of Science and Technology, China.
	Dr. Daniel ASARE-KYEI, CEO, Esoko Dr. Asare-Kyei is an agricultural economist, technologist, geo-information scientist and entrepreneur. As CEO of ESOKO, he has led one of Africa’s largest Agritech providers to develop several innovations for the African agricultural sector by creating a closed ecosystem to digitize rural supply chains and build rural digital and financial inclusion. He has over 17 years of experience working with aid agencies and private sector in several technological driven development initiatives. He holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Bonn, Germany.
	Mr. Foster Mawuli BENSON (CEO of Glofert Limited) Mr. Foster is a chartered Accountant (FCCA, ICAG) and has over 18 years of experience mostly in the mining industry especially in various multinational companies including Newmont Ghana Gold Limited, BCM Mining. He is currently the President & Chief Executive of Glofert Limited, the largest fertilizer blending company in Ghana. Mr. Foster holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Ghana, MSc in Accounting from the University of London.
	Mr. Emmanuel FORSON, Principal Investment Promotion Officer, GIPC Mr. Emmanuel has over a decade of experience as an Investment Promotion Professional. He has served in various functions including business development, investor aftercare, and marketing and is currently the team lead for the Missions Team within the Corporate Affairs Division of the GIPC. He has worked with several business executives across different industry sectors and cultures to provide solutions to legal and regulatory requirements for doing business in Ghana. Mr. Emmanuel holds an MSc. Supply Chain Management degree from Coventry University, UK.
	Mr. NANA OSEI BONSU, Chief Executive Officer, Private Enterprise Federation (PEF) After more than 30 years of extensive banking experience in New York, he joined the investment banking division of JP Morgan Chase & Co. He then worked in Ghana as a Technical Assistant to the Economic Management Team at the Senior Minister’s Office and as a Technical Advisor to the Minister of State for Economic Planning. Since 2011, he has served as CEO of the PEF. He holds a Master’s degree in International Finance from Fordham University Graduate Arts and Sciences.
	Ms. Afua Ntiriwa TEKYI-MILLS, Head, Corporate Affairs, GIPC Ms. Tekyi-Mills has been responsible for marketing, communications and event management in GIPC since 2008, leading the Ghana Club 100 Awards and a number of investment promotion missions. She also builds effective collaboration with relevant government agencies and private sector to increase FDI. Previously, she provided consulting services in brand promotion for international companies as a Senior Executive at Perfect Relations Pvt in India. She holds a Master’s degree in Finance and Marketing Management from Jamia Hamdard University, India.