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Kristo Asafo Mission of Ghana (KOSA) has held its 33rd annual technology exhibition in Accra with a call on Africans to embrace locally manufactured products. According to the founder and leader of KOSA, Apostle Dr Kwadwo Safo, the major problem that had halted the economic development of Ghana and progress of the African continent �is the negative perception that foreign inventions are better and of better quality than those manufactured in the country�. Speaking on the theme: �Religion, Science and Technology, Tools for Economic Transformation�, Apostle Safo attributed the stagnation of the continent�s industrial development to �the reliance on foreign materials to teach the youth. If we are really serious about working together for the economic advancement of Ghana, then the school curriculum must be changed to address the current issues confronting the country. Ghanaians must also change their perceptions and support their own people,� Apostle Safo said. Some of the inventions at this year�s exhibition included the Kantanka saloon car, which has no engine but is moved by an electrical mechanism; Kantanka Otumfuo 4�4 cross-country vehicle, which is ignited by touching it with a specially designed wooden stick; a robot riding a bicycle and two prototype helicopters. According to Apostle Safo, the rationale behind the annual exhibition is to emphasise the significant role that science and technology play in the development of every nation. �This is also to motivate and inspire the youth to know that they can do anything that the white man has the capacity to do,� he added. Plans for 2014 Apostle Safo said plans were far advanced for the completion of a mini vehicle assembly plant at Gomoa Mpota which would ensure the manufacturing of vehicles in commercial quantities. �All the machinery have already been procured and the engineers from the suppliers are expected to come and do the installations on January 15, 2014. Test operations are expected to begin by March and full operation would begin by May ending, 2014,� he said. Apostle Safo, therefore, appealed for the government�s collaboration in the area of capacity building, purchase and supply agreement for government departments and agencies to ensure the rapid expansion and sustenance of the facility. Importation of foreign products The Minister of Education, Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, expressed concern about the high rate of importation of foreign products which was detrimental to local industries. She said in order for Ghana to attain its development targets, there was the need for Ghanaians to reduce their imports and support their own producers. The Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Joe Oteng-Adjei, also commended Apostle Safo for his consistent commitment and contribution to the industrial development of Ghana. He, however, urged him to find ways of empowering the youth to take up the challenge of using science and technology to develop the country.