The Pan African Mall off-plan sales was launched recently at the Omanye Aba Auditorium, of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) Head Office in Accra.
This was under the auspices of the Nigerian High Commission and was chaired by the Deputy High Commissioner, Bakori A Usman, on behalf of the High Commissioner, Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, without whom the project would not have come this far.
The Deputy High Commissioner said: “This project is for the improvement of bilateral relations between the two countries that have traditional ties even before Ghana and Nigeria became independent. You will find out that so many people communicate in the same mother tongue like Bashir and I. So, there is really not that much difference between us. The only separation is our laws and therefore we must be law-abiding”.
The Pan African Mall is aimed at a more inclusive retail concept being introduced in Africa in furtherance of trade and socio-economic development and facilitation in alignment with the AfCFTA, considering it will accommodate businesses from several African countries and economic classes.
As Chief Calistus Elozieuwa, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation – Ghana Chapter (NIDO), said: “This is a mall to be owned by Africans, not only Nigerians and Ghanaians, because of the spirit of integration on the continent in terms of the area of trade”.
The mall is being developed and constructed by Brains and Hammers Limited (Ghana) in collaboration with NIDO. According to Mallam Bashir Patty, the Managing Director of Brains and Hammers Limited (Ghana), “the mall will have over 400 shops and over 300 workstations for those who can’t afford shops”.
The mall is functionally designed and will be replete with facilities and amenities, including but not limited to roof-top garden, 150 ground and basement parking spaces, banking halls, office spaces, restaurants, adequate supply of portable water, renewable energy supply and other environmentally sustainable features and elevators – A modern state of the art mall with eco-friendly facilities and environment.
The event was attended by various members of the Nigerian Business and Trading Community in Ghana as well as other nationals, like the Managing Director of Lease Afriq and His Royal Highness the Ezeigbo, who entreated members of the Nigerian community to promptly take advantage of this great opportunity to patronise and buy the shops.
The Pan African Mall is scheduled to be constructed over a two-year period and will be located in Achimota along the Accra-Nsawam Motorway, where the sod-cutting ceremony is slated to take place on May 4, 2023 at 2pm. The mall is aimed at contributing to sustainability and youth employment, including women and the disabled.
