Five Indians and 31 other foreigners were arrested in Ghana for flouting investment laws, the authorities said.
The
other foreigners arrested include 28 Chinese, two Filipinos, and one
Bangladeshi. The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) said the foreigners
were illegally engaged in business in Accra. They were arrested by the
GIS's National Enforcement Unit.
GIS spokesman Francis Palmdeti
said the foreigners were arrested for breaching the GIPC's (Ghana
Investment Promotion Centre) Act and conditions of their residence
permits.
Meanwhile, Ghanan President John Atta Mills announced
during his state of the nation address that foreign direct investment in
the country has increased, and Indian investment was the second highest
after Chinese.
Mills said: "A fortnight ago, the GIPC released
figures showing an increase in projects it had registered amounting to
over $7 billion in foreign direct investment."
"I expect the
recently established Inter Agency Task Force to ensure full compliance
of provisions of the GIPC Act especially relating to immigration and
tax," he said.
"It must be indicated that, it is an offence for
any foreign national to engage in commercial activities such as hawking,
petty trading, selling from a kiosk at any place, and operating a taxi
or car hire service except where the foreigner have provided a minimum
fleet of 10 new vehicles, among others," GIS said in a statement.
