A high-powered business delegation of representatives of German companies visited Ghana from January 19 – 20, 2011. The delegation was lead by Dr. Bernd Pfaffenbach, the Deputy Minister of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. During the visit, the German Delegate Office for Industry and Commerce in Ghana was opened.

Dr. Pfaffenbach was accompanied by four high-ranking state officials and several members of the Germany-based “Afrika-Verein”, the largest association of German companies active in Africa.

Enlarge image In total, the group was the largest ever business delegation to visit the country,  consisting of approximately 50 representatives of Germany's top companies. They included members representing the industrial sectors of finance, energy (including renewable energy), security, commercial automotive, building and construction, oil & gas, ICT, water treatment, as well as the pharmaceutical industry.  Heavy weights such as MAN, Roche, RWE and SIEMENS took part along with numerous other industry leaders.

Currently, there are 70 German companies with representations in Ghana.

On January 19, the delegation graced the opening ceremony of the German Delegate Office for Industry and Commerce in Ghana. The Delegate Office, which is under the auspices of the German Ministry of Economics and Technology, is the fourth in sub-Saharan Africa and within two years will become a bilateral Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

Enlarge image The German-Ghanaian Business Summit was held during the delegation's visit (© AHK Ghana/GGEA) There was also a one-day investment symposium in Accra, the German-Ghanaian Business Summit, which the delegation attended. At this event, featuring many Ghanaian government officials as well as local business representatives, policy makers and private sector representatives had the opportunity to discuss various economic topics in an intimate atmosphere.

The Deputy Minister Dr. Pfaffenbach also seized the opportunity to pay a courtesy visit to H.E. Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, as well as various other Ministers and the former Head of State H.E. John A. Kufour. The Deputy Minister highlighted the flourishing bilateral ties between Ghana and Germany. He emphasized Germany's confidence in the country, primarily due to its performance in terms of democracy, governance and trade.

In 1998 a bilateral Agreement to support and secure investments in Ghana was signed. The Agreement was supplemented in 2007 by a double tax agreement.