Ghanaian out-going trade and industry minister, Haruna Iddrisu, has decided to reconstitute a Task Force on the Seizure of Pirated Ghanaian Textile Designs to combat recent negative effects faced by the textile industry due to trade in pirated textile designs.

Apart from this, another reason is the decline of Ghana’s textile workforce. The number of workers in the country’s garment industry has dropped from 30,000 in the 1980s and early 1990s to 3,000 presently.

President of Ghana John Dramani Mahama and Iddrisu has planned for a nationwide sensitization program to educate consumers and traders on the difference between genuine and copycat textiles. Iddrisu confirmed the government would strengthen the Ghana Revenue Authority’s Customs Division to stop pirated designs at the ports of entry, including developing a photographic catalog to help customs agents identify textiles.

The ministry will also enlist Ghana’s embassy in China and the Chinese authorities to check for pirated Ghanaian textile designs before they are imported into the China, as well as work toward preventing their citizens from becoming involved in the infringement of Ghanaian textile designs.

Iddrisu announced that the government would reward anyone who provided clues to the leaders behind the illegal activity.

The 16-member Task Force has Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Samuel Naa Musah, as Chairman while Mr Appiah Doryimu, a former Chairman of the Task Force, is to ensure the preservation of institutional memory by serving as an advisor to the Task Force.

The members of the Task Force have been cautioned against high-handedness and urged them to perform the task assigned with civility and decorum.