Speaking at the signing ceremony, President Akufo-Addo noted that "the Development Bank Ghana is going to play a very important part in the rapid economic transformation of Ghana, following the onset of COVID-19." According to him, "We want to restructure the economy and move it from being a mere producer and exporter of raw materials to one that places much greater emphasis on value addition activities. We see this Bank (DBG) as one that will play a pivotal role in this." The President indicated that the design and operation of the Bank, "which has been on the drawing board for the last two years", will satisfy the highest standards, scrutiny and best practices of Development Banks across the world, assuring further that the €170 million facilities from the EIB will be used for the purposes for which it was sought."