Mar 20-2026

As part of her core objectives as Ghana’s Ambassador to the Swiss Confederation, H.E. Prof. Mrs. Esi Awuah has been closely observing the systems that have contributed to Switzerland’s stability, organization and economic success. She noted that one of the key pillars of this success is a well-structured taxation and regulatory system that supports national development.

Her Excellency’s vision is to identify and replicate selected industries, strategies and innovations that have helped build such a well-organized society. She emphasized that such partnerships can significantly contribute to job creation, skills development and sustainable industrialization in Ghana, particularly at a time when many developed countries are experiencing low population growth and increasing reliance on advanced technologies.

A key concern highlighted by Her Excellency is the need for robust instrumentation and automation systems to strengthen transparency across Ghana’s value chains. She observed that such technologies can help detect resource leakages, improve mineral traceability, enhance fuel monitoring systems and ensure quality control to protect consumer health.

In this context, Her Excellency’s visit to SICPA on 13 March 2026, accompanied by her Confidential Secretary, was particularly insightful. SICPA is a global company with over 3,000 employees, more than 6,000 patents across 38 countries and nearly a century of experience in providing secure identification, traceability and authentication solutions.

During the visit, Her Excellency explored how such expertise could support Ghana in strengthening value-chain monitoring systems in sectors including gold, cocoa, cement, cooking oil and shea butter, while also building local technical capacity to manage these systems.

She was encouraged to learn that SICPA places strong emphasis on training local personnel and building national capacity. Their model ensures that data generated remains sovereign to the country, while also strengthening revenue mobilization by widening the tax net. The company has successfully implemented similar systems across several African countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Morocco.

Following the discussions, Her Excellency indicated that she will initiate further engagement by inviting relevant officials from Ghana to visit SICPA in Lausanne, Switzerland, to gain deeper insight into the company’s operations and explore potential areas of collaboration. She has also reached out to colleague ambassadors in countries where SICPA operates successfully to better understand the benefits derived from such partnerships.

Her Excellency further noted that Prof. Oduro Kwarteng has already initiated skills training programs in instrumentation and automation, laying a strong foundation for future technological collaborations in Ghana.

The Mission expressed its sincere appreciation to the management of SICPA for their warm reception and their openness to exploring opportunities to support Ghana’s development.