Business24 Newspaper 11 April 2022

EU fisheries head urges increased efforts in the fight against “saiko” 03

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Coca-Cola adjudged ultimate winner at Ghana Beverage Awards

NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

BUSINESS24.COM.GH | MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

E-Levy implementation commences May 1 - GRA

AGI woos Indian investors to agroprocessing sector

02 The implementation of the Electronic Transfer Levy Act 2022 (Act 1075) which imposes a 1.5 per cent tax on all electronic transactions and money transfers will commence on May 1, 2022, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Mr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah has announced A public notice issued by the GRA said following the passage of Act 1075, implementation of the levy will commence on May 1.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo assented the Electronic Transfer Levy Bill (E-Levy) Bill into law just before the start of the Cabinet meeting at

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he Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) has called for strategic action from the government to help grow the country’s agro-processing sector including the banning the export of agro-products in their raw state.

According to the president of the association, Dr. Humphrey Kwesi Ayim-Darke, adding value to local exportable products would create jobs along the manufacturing chain to drive national development.

“This could be a provocative statement but why should paddy rice be exported in its raw state whiles we have

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factories that can process and export it as a finished product? We are proposing that such exportable products should be taxed; same for cashew nuts.”

“Ghana’s exports structure has not changed significantly due to our over-reliance on the export of primary products with little value addition. We should deepen Contact: editor@business24.com.gh Newsroom: 030 296 5315.

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MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Let’s walk the talk in the fight against ‘saiko’

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Wash your hands

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Cover your cough

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EJF research on the saiko trade in 2017 indicated that saiko alone took around 100,000 tonnes of fish, worth over US$ 50 million when sold at the landing site. The practice of saiko, which is illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing, is costing Ghanaians millions of dollars annually, and threatening coastal livelihoods.

‘Saiko’ is a severely destructive form of illegal fishing, where trawlers target the staple catch of canoe fishers and sell it back to local communities at a profit. It is one disturbing challenge of the fisheries sector that steals jobs, threatens food security and endangers Ghana’s economy.

The continual abuses of the state’s marine resources are destroying Ghana’s fisheries, ruining lives and livelihoods, and breaking national laws, and there is the urgent need for stakeholder action on this menace.

Ghana still needs an immediate and effective enforcement of its fisheries laws as the illegality continues to cause havoc along the fisheries value chain despite the numerous legislations that’ve been enacted to curtail the problem.

Perhaps, we will need some tougher sanctions for perpetrators to serve as a deterrent to others and prove that this government means to stop saiko.

There have been several interventions from both national and regional actors in the fisheries space in the fight against saiko. While a strong crackdown last year has stopped the landings of saiko canoes, there is now evidence that the trade may be taking a different form.

Under this new method, saiko catches – including juvenile fish – are being landed directly by trawlers at Tema port and brought to communities by road, undercutting small-scale fishers, according to EFJ. We cannot give up now neither can we relent on our quest to secure the nation’s marine resources and the livelihoods that depend on them and the time to act is now!

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Continued from page 1 the Jubilee House in Accra on March 31.

Parliament had approved the bill on March 29, 2022, after the Minority had walked out in protest.

The bill initially imposed a 1.75 per cent tax on all electronic transactions and money transfers, but the rate was reduced to 1.5 per cent before its passage.

AGI woos Indian investors to agro-processing sector Continued from page 1 collaborations both in technology and funding for our mutual benefit,” he told a gathering of Ghanaian and Indian manufacturers in Accra.

To this end, he appealed to the Indian business community to explore existing opportunities in the country’s agro-processing sector by leveraging the numerous incentives that are being extended under the Free Zones system.

He added: “Our collaborations should facilitate innovations and partnerships to propel growth for wealth creation and employment. I believe there could be a lot to learn from our Indian colleagues in our quest to become an export-driven economy.”

We have vast arable land for agriculture but we’ve not done enough to add value to our raw materials over the past decades and that make agro-processing a major investment area. The declining contribution of agriculture to the economy is a reflection of the situation and this has serious implications on our macroeconomic fundamentals and job creation.

We are of the view that agriculture is one serious intervention that should be given strong focus in our quest to transform the nation and the 1D1F is a laudable innovation and policy direction in that regard.

The AGI says it has forged a strong relationship with the Confederation of Indian industries over the last

few years and signed an agreement on the enhancement of economic and technical cooperation which is a positive development for collaboration and potential growth.

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Coca-Cola adjudged ultimate winner at Ghana Beverage Awards The star -studded event of the 6th edition of the Ghana Beverage Awards (GBA) successfully held at the Kempinksi Gold Coast City Hotel last Friday left patrons wanting more with Coca-Cola carrying the night as winner of the coveted Product of the Year Category.

Coca-Cola beat compelling beverage brands such as Vitamilk, Alomo Bitters, Blue Skies Fruit, Bel Aqua Active and Verna Natural Mineral Water to emerge winner in the keenly contested Product of the Year category.

Other companies and beverages awarded on the night included Liberty Industries Ventures’ Kpoo Keke and Twellium Industrial Company’s Rush Energy Drink.

Receiving the award, Corporate Affairs Director for West Africa Equatorial Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Bethel Yeboah, expressed gratitude to the organizers and the GBA Committee for recognizing their hardwork for the year under review and according them the needed recognition whiles thanking consumers for their loyalty.

“It is truly a great honour to receive this award. We are excited about this achievement. On behalf of the management of The CocaCola Bottling Company of Ghana Limited, I say ‘thank you to all whose contribution have made this possible.

To our cherished consumers, we are especially grateful for your loyalty and patronage which has brought us this far.”

He added, “The beverage industry has over the years undergone a lot of dynamism in terms of consumer preferences. For us at The CocaCola Bottling Company of Ghana Limited, this is a clarion call for us in many ways as the awards goes to fan aflame the spirit of innovation within us so we can continue to stand tall in providing Ghanaians with the needed refreshment and nutrition.”

Taking his turn, Ernest Boateng, Chief Executive Officer for Global Media Alliance, congratulated The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Ghana Limited for grabbing the topmost award while lauding all stakeholders for supporting the awards scheme.

“It truly feels like yesterday when the first edition of the Ghana Beverage Awards was held in 2016.

Being in the sixth year, we believe as organizers that Ghana Beverage Awards has indeed come a long way.

Undoubtedly, the successes chalked over the years could not have been possible without the support of our stakeholders and industry players whose participation and interest in seeing that GBA grows to the level where it will be widely known locally, in the sub-region and internationally knows no boundaries.

“Permit me to also congratulate The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Ghana Limited, producers of Coca-Cola for coming tops in the keenly-contested Product of the Year category. It is well-deserved,’’ he said.

Ghana Beverages Awards is organized under the theme ‘Inspiring Excellence in Ghana’s Beverage Industry’. In the last six years, the awards scheme has been instrumental in shining a spotlight on the local beverage industry, while promoting both local and foreign beverages as well as the participation of smallscale beverage enterprises in Ghana.

It has remained a force to reckon with through its contribution to ensuring that beverage-manufacturing companies are compliant with the highest standards of practice in the production and delivery of their products.

GBA is proudly supported by the Food and Beverage Association of Ghana (FABAG), Consumer Protection Agency (CPA), Food Research Institute (FRI) under CSIR, Perception Management International (PMI), Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture, and the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA). Its media partners are Citi FM, Happy FM, YFM, Akonoba FM, Neesim FM, Bolga Neesim FMTamale, ETV Ghana, Net 2 TV, Oman FM, Mx 24, Business and Financial

Times, Daily Guide and Ghanaweb.

Below is the full list of winners • Energy Drink of the Year: Rush Energy Drink • Bitters of the Year: Alomo Bitters • Carbonated Soft Drink of the Year: Coca-Cola • Dairy Product of the Year: Hollandia Yoghurt • Fruit Drink of the Year: Ceres Fruit Juice • International Liquer of the Year: Seagram’s Imperial Blue Whisky • International Beer of the Year: Heineken • International Spirit of the Year: Jameson Irish Whisky • New Beverage of the Year: Sahara Solace • RTD of the Year: Django Ginger Ale • Cocoa/Chocolate Product of the Year: Vitamilk Choco • Liquer of the Year: Kpoo Keke • Spirit of the Year: Darling Lemon Drink • CSR Company of the Year: Coca Cola Bottling Company of Ghana • Manufacturing Company of the Year: Twellium Industrial Company • Water of the Year: Verna Mineral Water • Beer of the Year: Guinness Foreign Extra Stout • Product of the Year: Coca-Cola

EU fisheries head urges increased efforts in the fight against “saiko” Director-General of the DirectorateGeneral for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the European Commission, Ms. Charlina Vitcheva, has called for more commitment from the Ghanaian government and fisheries sector stakeholders to tackle a harmful practice of illegal, unreported and unreported (IUU) fishing, popularly termed “saiko”.

Speaking to journalists after a visit to the Regional MCS Centre of the Secretariat of the Fisheries Committee of West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) in Tema, she said that the menace of IUU fishing is a damaging practice that leads to overfishing, which depletes the fish stock, and places the livelihoods of coastal dwellers at risk.

“IUU fishing destroys the marine ecosystem because the illegal practice is done with gears and methods that are very harmful and destructive.

It also plays against normal competition in the fisheries sector and undermines the livelihoods of coastal communities; so, the practice has dire effect on the various stakeholders within the value chain,”

she indicated.

Ghana has received “yellow card” from the European Union (EU) for persistent IUU fishing activities within its waters due largely to the perceived lack of willingness to steer the its fisheries sector processes towards improvement. However, according to Ms. Vitcheva, there is now increasing commitment on the part of government to do something to reverse the situation.

The EU fisheries head admitted that there have been some brave actions from the government since the start of this year, and added that the yellow card will be revoked when the various conditions that prompted its application have been duly addressed.

“We want to give the government and fisheries stakeholders some space to act [and] the EU will be looking very diligently into achieving progress […] to offer the needed assistance to accompany those reforms or necessary changes,” she further stated.

She however explained that the idea behind the yellow card is not to

place sanctions but to rather promote prevention and to offer help towards the fight against the IUU menace.

“We want to provoke reforms where it is needed and steer the decisionmaking process in the fight against IUU fishing. There should be fisheries management measures that will protect juvenile fish and keep them in a healthy state,” she stressed.

Ms. Vitcheva indicated that the EU was very much in favour of clams fishing which has high economic importance in terms of revenue generation and job creation in the

fisheries sector aside being a source of healthy diets.

“We find clams fishing very important from our experts and we consider that co-management is actually the right way forward,” she noted.

The purposes of the visit to the FCWC were to discuss bilateral cooperation and to review the achievements of the FCWC in its implementation of the EU-funded Improved Regional Fisheries Governance (PESCAO) project.

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MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Africa must use its vast natural resources to the benefit of its people-AfCFTA Sec-Gen To foster the development of the continent, Africa must use its vast natural resources to the benefit of its countries and people, Mr Wakele Mene, the Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat has said.

He said this would enable these countries to strengthen intra-Africa trade and economic integration; to diversify economies and industrialise; to build continental, regional and country infrastructure and to invest in education, health, science, and innovation.

Mr Mene speaking at the 8th Annual London School of Economics (LSE) Africa Summit said that “the development we talk about must be inclusive and must ensure people’s participation in their own development.”

The Summit is on theme: “: “African Prosperity Through Peace, Health,

and Development.”

He said this was where the AfCFTA was a game changer, and it presented an opportunity to accelerate intraAfrican trade and use trade more effectively as an engine for growth and sustainable development.

“Through the AfCFTA, Africa is reshaping her small and fragmented markets to create one integrated market with large economies of scale and scope,” he added.

According to the World Bank, if fully implemented, the AfCFTA will significantly reduce poverty on the continent.

The agreement will boost regional income by 7 per cent or $450 billion, speed up wage growth for women, and lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty by 2035.

He said wages for both skilled and unskilled workers would also be boosted by 10.3 per cent for unskilled

workers, and 9.8 per cent for skilled workers.

Mr Mene said as promising and hopeful as these projections were, as Africans “we shall have to take concrete steps to ensure that these promising projections do become a reality.”

He said the continent had to expedite the implementation of trade facilitation measures that were foreseen in the AfCFTA Agreement in areas such as soft infrastructure at the borders.

Beyond trade in goods, the AfCFTA covers other trade-related issues that are critical to foreign direct investment strategies and activities including trade in services, competition policy, intellectual property rights, investment, dispute settlement and digital trade.

He said the finalisation of all these protocols would greatly

contribute to deepening economic integration in Africa, with these additional protocols, “we are further transforming the continent by removing physical and commercial barriers that have hitherto hindered trade among our countries.”

The Secretary-General said the continent was, therefore, poised to develop a harmonized market space which will in turn promote the development of regional value chains that will be linked competitively to global value chains.

He said Africa must strategically transform itself from agriculture to agribusiness; from being mere growers of cocoa beans to manufacturers of world-class chocolate products and from miningto-mining beneficiation.

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Changing your mindset about money: How to win the currency war

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iligence of a currency is a learnable skill that combines creative persistence, a smart-working effect rightly planned and rightly performed in a timely, efficient and effective manner.

This is intended to attain a result that is pure and of the highest quality of excellence.

Printing currency has not been all bad. Printing currency has done a lot of good. Billions of people working for currency have produced a functioning economy, new inventions, better housing, advances in medicine, travel, consumer products and technology.

The problem is that printing currency has never worked for Ghana, Africa.

This currency heist that began in 1971 will eventually fail. The party caused by printing currency is about to end because it makes only one per cent of the world’s population very rich, whilst billions of people are poor.

Previous gold-based systems To give a sense of the similarities with the gold standard and the Bretton Woods system, let me draw a historical parallel. The UK’s Coinage Act of 1816 fixed the value of the pound sterling to 113 grammes of pure gold, while the US Gold Standard Act of 1900 determined that the dollar should maintain a value of 23.22 grammes of pure gold.

Taken together, the two acts implied an official gold parity exchange rate of £1 = US$4.87.

It was similar during the post-war Bretton Woods era: one ounce of gold was said to be worth US$35, and all other currencies were fixed to and convertible into the US dollar. Gold (God’s money) was at the centre of the system as a way of making cash credible.

At that time currency was not in circulation. Until 1971 President Nixon’s unilateral decision to end convertibility was for fear that the US would run out of gold, which would have destroyed the credibility of the dollar.

This was what the US did during the Bretton Woods era, and it led to the system’s demise. With US expenditure rising as it waged the Vietnam war, dollar holders became increasingly nervous about the dollar’s value and sought to exchange it for gold.

Strongest currencies Here’s a quick overview of the five strongest currencies in the world: 1.Kuwaiti Dinar – (1 KWD = 3.29 USD) - It has been pegged to an unnamed basket valued at 1 KWD to 3.29 USD. 2.Bahraini Dinar – (1 BHD = 2.65 USD) - Exporting its petroleum products.

Pegged by the U.S. dollar 3.Omani Rial – (1 OMR = 2.60 USD) Oil supply and being pegged to the U.S dollar 4.Jordanian Dinar – (1 JOD = 1.41 USD)

- Pegged by the United States dollar for the past 20 years.

5.Pound Sterling – (1 GBP = 1.26 USD) - Oldest independent currency in the world, being first used in the United Kingdom in 1489 The Guggisberg economy Any economy with strong fundamentals is one that is resilient, has a well-developed exports base, is industrialised, and creates jobs.

That kind of economy can mobilise resources domestically without much reliance on external support, and can even borrow at a lower cost.

The citizens of this kind of economy have good roads, good transportation, good health and good educational systems. They are well-resourced and free from civil unrest.

For decades, African countries have chalked up successes but these have not been significant enough to transform their economies. Most countries on the continent are still far from achieving these indicators of an economy with strong fundamentals. They often export primary commodities and import finished products.

The Ghanaian economy is no exception. It is still very much the Guggisberg economy. Sir Gordon Guggisberg was a British empire colonial administrator in what was then the Gold Coast (1919-1927). He designed an economy to focus on the export of raw materials and the importation of finished goods.

A century later, cocoa and gold are still Ghana’s major exports. Ghana (Gold

Coast) is Africa’s top Gold (Money) exporter at 138.7 tonnes as at 2020 and it has since added oil and gas, and some non-traditional commodities.

“The educational system from the West made African (Ghanaian) elites believe in the above but are all misconceptions,” Kokroko Kwasi Kokuro Oppong-Agyare, Thursday April 7, 2022.

When one dives deep into all these top five countries with the strongest currencies in the world, I feel depressed and sorry for the unborn generation. Poverty is deliberately created by the West. Oh! They robbed us of our money (Gold) and replaced it with currency, and any government, corporation, private firm and individual who will try to reverse the currency back to Gold standard, the West will sanction unfairly!

“The purpose of the ongoing Currency War III (2010-date) is not to push the dollar down. This should not be regarded as some sort of chapter in currency war”, Janet Yellen, Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve, commenting on quantitative easing - November 16, 2010.

“Quantitative easing also works through exchange rates. The Fed could engage in much more aggressive quantitative easing to further lower the dollar”, Christina D. Romer, former Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, February 27, 2011.

Japan in 2001, Swiss 2008, UK August 2016-June 2018 and US March 15th, 2020 used the quantitative easing

programme which originated from Japan in 1997 to print trillions of dollars backed with nothing but debt without any interest rate, in order to curb deflation and stimulate their economy.

Interestingly, when an African country like Ghana needs to stimulate her economy, we need to borrow dollars at extremely high interest rates and back it with our money (Gold, resources and internally generated funds).

What do we do?

The path to prosperity is now based on unelected Central Banks conjuring printing of currency (Seigniorage trillions of dollars) out of thin air and yet this is the world we live in. Our people need help.

The solution is in our past and our societies must create wealth and stop building expensive executive housing, financing gambling and the likes and instead, build small and medium scale businesses, enterprises, educational systems based on craft and machine tools, manufacturing, investing in innovation and research and development.

Government can actually gather substantial revenue from all these, rather than collecting high taxes for her development. High taxes only cripple the citizens. The good people of Ghana do not seem to be interested in solving our currency problems with these systems, because productivity takes time and real hard work! Are we ready to go through the mill for a stable future?

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MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

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Dr. Jospong advocates continuity in governance…to help sustain gains in environmental sanitation

Business magnate, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, has advocated continuity in governance irrespective of which party was elected into power.

He explained that such an approach will help put the country on a sustainable development path which benefits and gains will inure to the citizenry.

Delivering a lecture to commemorate the 6th University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) Leadership Lecture Series in memory of late President John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills at Ho in the Volta Region on Friday, April 8, 2022, Dr. Siaw Agyepong, who is the Executive Chairman of the Jospong Group of Companies ( JGC), stated that this system will also help a great deal to sustain and further improve upon the gains made in the sanitation environmental space.

He said the practice where “our governments truncate and in some cases abolish completely national development projects” was not helping the development course of this nation.

“This practice is rather retarding the progress of our country which obviously is not in our best interest,” he bemoaned.

He spoke on the topic “Sustaining Environmental Sanitation Gains Through Specialised Education.”

The public lecture was chaired by the Vice Chancellor of UHAS,

Professor John Owusu Gyapong, Key personalities such as the UHAS Council Chair, His Lordship Justice Jones M. Doste, Justice of the Supreme Court; the Volta Regional Minister, Hon. Dr. Archibald Yao Letsa the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Hon. Samuel OkudzetoAblakwa; and some leading NDC members and MPs in the region were present at the lecture.

The UHAS leadership lecture was instituted by the university in 2016 in memory of the late President Prof.

Mills due to his instrumentality in the establishment of the UHAS and his general leadership qualities.

Among its goals are to inculcate leadership skills into the university community, build mentorship, develop the capacities of health professionals, stir intellectual debate and innovation.To achieve sustainable results in the sanitation sector, Dr. Siaw Agyepong called for an integrated waste management system.

This, he explained, must include the collection, treatment, recovery, recycling, disposal systems, financing models, operational models, technologies, and citizen engagement programmes.

He admitted that societal and organisational perception of waste has always informed policies and investments in the waste management

space.

However, he said in recent times that appears to be changing, adding that “society is progressively moving away from simply considering waste as an end-product for disposal toward considering it as a resource.”

In this wise, Dr. Siaw Agyepong said the entry of the JGC has injected high-quality leadership in waste management in the country, hence the introduction of modern technology to revolutionise waste management in the country.

This, he noted, has shifted the paradigm of carting waste for burning to the use of simple modern collection processes to dumping at landfill sites.

He mentioned research and development; capacity building and training; conferences and seminars, and; continuous provision of environmental sanitation services during the Covid-19 pandemic as some of his group’s accomplishments in the drive to sustain and improve upon the gains made in environmental sanitation.

On the role of specialised universities in national development, he underscored that UHAS occupied an enviable position of a specialised university, dedicated to tackling health development in Ghana by training health professionals.

“The establishment of UHAS is, therefore, timely and critical in

improving healthcare delivery in Ghana. Health is understandably the core of all aspects of human development. And it is my hope that UHAS sticks to this focus, especially since the health delivery system is being comprehensively expanded, thanks to AGENDA 111,” he said.

Dr. Siaw Agyepong was full of praise for what he described as “significant strides” made

by UHAS in the last decade.

“I must say that I have been very pleased with the impressive works done so far. In the short years of its establishment, I am very impressed that UHAS is making significant strides at the national, continental, and global levels,” he said.

While commending UHAS for organising the lecture, the executive chairman of JGC eulogised Prof.

Mills, describing him as a President “whose leadership philosophy cohered strongly around humility and service to the people.”

The Vice Chancellor of the UHAS, Professor John Owusu Gyapong, said it was most unfortunate that people with good ideas turn to sit on them.

He stressed the need for people with ideas to be up and doing, calling on them to make use of what they have and can do.

He said success was tied to initiative, stating that “we are all potential leaders.”

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Malian airspace closure disrupts BA flight bound for Accra Ghana’s airport authorities have clarified that British Airways (BA) flight bound for Accra from London was unable to land at the specified destination on Friday night (April 8, 2022) due to the airspace restrictions in Bamako, Mali.

As a result, Flight BA 081 had to return to London.

A joint press statement dated April 9, 2022, issued by the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) in Accra said: “GCAA and GACL wish to inform the general public that British Airways has reported that its Flight BA 081 outbound flight (LondonAccra), was unable to land in Accra on Friday, April 8, 2022 due to the Airspace Restrictions in Bamako, Mali.

“Consequently, the BA flight had to return to London. British Airways has informed its passengers accordingly.”

The statement said BA will operate two flights on Saturday, April 9, 2022.

“Details of the additional flights are to be communicated to passengers.

British Airways Passenger handling and Ticketing staff will be available this evening [Saturday], to offer assistance to affected passengers and also direct those who have been rebooked onto other carriers.

“Managements of GCAA and GACL would like to assure the travelling public that it will provide British Airways with the needed assistance for the smooth facilitation of affected passengers,” the statement added.

GRIDCo begins re-construction of transmission lines from Achimota to Mallam substations The Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) has announced that it has commenced work on the reconstruction of transmission lines from the Achimota substation through Avenor to the Mallam substation.

According to a press statement from the Corporate Communications of GRIDCo, it noted that the work involves taking out of service, two 161kV transmission lines (i.e., Achimota - Accra Central and Achimota – Mallam) from Saturday April 9, 2022, to Thursday June 30, 2022. The outage is to enable GRIDCo to upgrade the transmission capacity on each Line.

This important exercise is to meet the growing demand for electricity in Accra and its environs.

The outage will affect customers served by the Electricity Company of Ghana’s (ECG) distribution systems crossing these transmission lines (between the Achimota Substation at Dzorwulu and Avenor in Accra) during the day, for the stated period.

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MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Making students honest about dishonesty Corruption here, corruption there, corruption everywhere. A practice that has become ubiquitous in all sectors in Ghana and Africa. It is a canker that is eating the development of society and making people miserable. To address this canker, a small group of committed people led

by Dr Patrick Awuah (AW) started a crusade 20 years ago to bring about an unprecedented change in Africa, which affirms Margaret Mead’s assertion that “never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world”.

Our contributor, Dr Enyonam Canice Kudonoo (ECK), caught up with Dr Awuah, who is the President of Ashesi University, to share some perspectives on the strategies Ashesi University adopted to address the fight against corruption among students and how it would inure to the larger society.

ECK: You embarked on a crusade 20 years ago to produce entrepreneurial and ethical leaders to transform Africa. How successful has it been?

PA: Still work in progress. It is an ongoing journey. To a large extent, there has been great success.

You know, when our students signed on to an honour code system —to do the right thing even when no one is watching, it was the first on the continent, and it was a very big step for them and for the institution.

When you have conversations with students at Ashesi University (AU), there is a certain maturity and authenticity in the way they present their views. It's something that we're very proud of. Most of the students tell me how Ashesi has really changed them. I asked their views about some top universities in Africa. They told me which ones were good and which were not good. They went on further to say that even the good ones did not have the same focus on ethics and integrity that Ashesi did. The fact that they have these thoughts and feelings tells me that we are making progress. Also, we see our alumni starting businesses on their own.

Most of our students get jobs right after graduation.

As I said, it is an ongoing journey, and I am joyful that we are making strides.

ECK: What challenges did you encounter when you embarked on your crusade to transform Africa?

PA: I encountered different challenges because I was trying to start something new. My biggest challenge was credibility. I had a lot of credibility with my colleagues from Microsoft who have worked with me closely and have seen me perform – as a result some of them were ready to contribute towards funding this university. On the other hand, those outside Microsoft circles didn’t know me. I was young, I left Microsoft at

age 35, and at 37, I was starting Ashesi and so you can imagine how people in Ghana perceived this 37-year-old man who returned from the US with the notion of starting a university.

A lot of questions cropped up about my credibility. Would I be successful in starting a university given my inexperience? I wasn’t a professor.

Also, a lot of people did not believe that a university could really drive ethics. So, in Ghana, what I heard people say was that teaching ethics was a business of the Church, not an educational institution.

The second challenge was that when we started the university,

most of our students did not think the university’s focus was possible, feasible or appropriate to try. Hence, students often told me that there was so much cheating in the country. They started cheating in junior high and senior high school. Their teachers and parents encouraged them to cheat in the BECE and WASSCE, and so to come to a university that was saying something contrary to what was being practised was unbelievable.

Moreover, it was heartbreaking to acknowledge the fact that cheating was going on in Ashesi at that time.

For instance, an incident happened in 2006 when a professor gave an

assignment to his class, and one-third of them copied from one another.

To me, one-third of a class copying from one another instead of doing independent work was a very big deal. As a result, at our annual staff and faculty meeting off-site that year, I asked that we address the issue by first acknowledging that we had a problem, without which there would be no tailored solution. And so that was an important challenge. Yes, we had our mission, we talked about ethics, we had leadership seminars and all that, but we still had students cheating, and so we should accept it and discuss how we could solve it.

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MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

How SMEs can access lending or bank support for their businesses

BY JESREAL NII KOTEY DSANE

T

he Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) defines Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as non-subsidiary, independent firms which employ fewer than a given number of employees. Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) also considers firms with less than 10 employees as Small Scale Enterprises and firms with more than 10 employees are classified as Medium and Large Size Enterprises (Kayanula and Quartey, 2000).

Generally, SMEs are characterized based on size, structure, capital, labour among others. In Ghana, most SMEs are characterized by the following: 1.Small number of employees: SMEs employ fewer employees as compared to corporate entities in Ghana.

2.SMEs in Ghana have lower capital cost: Huge capital is not required to set up a business. Most of these businesses in Ghana can be done at the comfort of one’s home similar to some online businesses which are rampant these days in the Ghanaian economy or renting of shops or offices among others.

3.SMEs in Ghana are also laborintensive: Large number of businesses in the SME sector in Ghana rely heavily on labour to drive its operations. That is to say, there is little or no existence of advanced technology in this sector.

4.SMEs in Ghana are not properly structured: Most businesses operating under SMEs do not have the requisite structure. In most cases, the proprietor of the business acts as the Managing Director, Human Resource Manager, Accountant among others and in most cases, there are no structured policies to ensure seamless operations.

5.Small Medium Enterprises in Ghana are mostly women owned: According to the 2020 MasterCard Index of Women’s Entrepreneurship (MIWE), Ghana is one of the world’s three leading economies having the most women business owners with Uganda (39.6%) and Botswana (38.5%) leading.

The importance of SMEs to the Ghanaian economy cannot be underemphasized. SMEs in Ghana have contributed immensely to Ghana’s economic growth over the years. This includes contributing to Ghana’s overall GDP accounting for about 60%. SMEs have also contributed to several developmental projects like construction of roads, schools, hospitals and other social interventions which have been made

possible through enhanced tax and revenue collection channels under the auspices of the Ghana Revenue Authority.

SMEs in Ghana have also created numerous employment opportunities. These employment opportunities cut across the creative economy, merchandise, general trading, import and export among others.

Despite the enormous contributions of SMEs to the Ghanaian economy, one major problems SMEs face in Ghana is financing. Most businesses have collapsed or failed to expand their businesses because of inadequate lending or access to funding opportunities. Most SMEs are unable to access funding opportunities for several reasons including: 1.Inadequate record keeping: Most Ghanaian businesses do not have proper recordkeeping/bookkeeping of their sales and expenditure. This makes it very difficult for businesses of such nature to obtain to access funding through traditional financing.

2.Poor banking practices: Most SMEs keep their daily sales at work which is not a good practice. Opening a bank account and making regular deposits into your business account can help a business owner to access a facility when the need arises. Banks in Ghana take keen interest in account activity of their customers especially their credit turnovers.

3.

Indecisiveness on the part of SMEs: Most SMEs approach banks for help yet they do not know the exact amount to borrow to help them scale their business. Most business owners of SMEs approach banks and ask questions like “how much can your bank lend to me, xyz amount can support my money but if I get more it will be a breakthrough for my business.” Such indecisive statements do not put SMEs as favourable bank partners.

4.Character: Some SMEs are not able to acquire bank support because they are overly ambitious. Banks are very careful with businesses of this nature and will not want to do business with them. Another challenge is that some SMEs do not have their books in order. One key trait the bank looks at before lending is integrity (character).

Recent studies have shown that some SMEs present fake documentation to acquire loans. When these SMEs are exposed, the banks blacklist them and would not want to lend to them.

Banks in Ghana recognize the immense contributions of SMEs to the Ghanaian economy and are willing to support them with funding. However, in order for SMEs to access funding opportunities they need to adopt and implement the right strategies which

include: 1.Proper record keeping: SMEs can employ Management Information Systems like accounting software to keep track of all sales, inventory among others. This makes it easy for accountants to prepare financial statements for bankers to access your business and grant you the necessary funding for your business. Most SMEs that have adopted this practice have been able to access funding from banks.

2.

Proper banking: SMEs must bank their money. This helps contribute to the account activity (banking term) of the business. SMEs can also opt for bank collection services from their respective banks so that their daily sales can be deposited. Ghanaian banks have also adopted advanced technologies and digital platforms that SMEs can sign up for to help improve their account activity. These services include mobile money payments direct to banks and vice versa, QR codes, point of sales terminals (POS), internet banking among others.

3.Planning: SMEs must strategize and coordinate their operations effectively. This will help SMEs take decisive steps in securing funding from the banks. Planning will help keep the business on track and know the adequate funding needed to support the business and when to apply for it.

4.Character: SMEs must be of good character. Be honest to your Relationship Manager and to your bankers. Be candid about your challenges so your bankers can support with the right amount of funding. Over-funding and underfunding can have dire consequences for SMEs so be honest.

5.

Avoid falsifying documentation: The banking industry has evolved tremendously over the past few years through rapid technological advancement and verification of documents are not as cumbersome as it was some years ago. Providing falsified documented will jeopardize your credit score and your chances of securing facilities from other banks as well.

6.Appreciate the importance of growth: As a business, it is good to think of the future and expansion plans at the right time. Build the needed experience to help you grow and scale up.

Most banks in Ghana continue to develop tailor-made and innovative products for SMEs. Acquiring funding should not be much of a problem if the above steps are heeded to.

Universal banks recognize the impact of SMEs in the Ghanaian economy hence a lot lies on these SMEs to position themselves well to take advantage of it.

Jesreal Nii Kotey Dsane works with one of the leading universal banks in Ghana as a Zonal SME Officer with 8+ years’ experience in Relationship Management, SME Lending, Equipment Financing, Corporate Financing & Contract Financing. Jesreal is passionate about socio-economic issues on the African continent. He holds a BSc. Mathematics with Economics & MSc. Development Finance from University of Cape Coast and University of Ghana respectively. Connect with Jesreal via LinkedIn; Jesreal Dsane Twitter; Instagram; Email; jesrealdsane@yahoo.com

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| F E AT U R E

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

MultiChoice Talent Factory: Meet the future of Africa’s creative film and TV industry

A

ccording to UNESCO, Africa’s film and audiovisual sector is estimated to account for roughly five billion USD in revenue on the African continent and employs millions in various capacities and skills.

Stories on the continent are abundant and over the years, perceptions of Africa’s creative film industry have changed. There’s now an even hungrier market for films made in Africa and about the continent, homegrown film academies all over the continent have stepped forward to train the next generation of African filmmakers in response.

Access to the very best while learning behind the scenes For Zambian filmmaker and producer Masuzyo Mwale, the idea of making films started in 2014 while in India, hospital-bound after heart surgery. It was in the birth country of Bollywood that the spark to become a filmmaker was ignited. He quickly faced an obvious challenge he had no idea of how and where to begin.

Despite Zambia’s established film industry, film and training academies are few, and the pipeline that should be channeling trained film graduates towards local film and TV opportunities isn’t working as well as it should be. So, it was by chance that Masuzyo came across the pan-African MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) film training programme’s call to entry in 2020. He was then accepted to join 19 other young filmmakers at the programme’s Lusaka hub for the full-year and all-expenses-paid training programme.

Founded in 2018, the MTF sharedvalue initiative was born to provide world-class training to young creative professionals in Africa’s film and TV space. To date, the initiative, through its MTF Academies in Johannesburg, Lusaka, Lagos & Nairobi, has trained over 200 filmmakers and to date they have produced 30 movies for M-Net local channels and Showmax. Its three MTF Academy hubs in Lusaka, Nairobi and Lagos can altogether accommodate 60 emerging film and TV creatives each year from Southern, East and West Africa.

With zero skin in the game, Masuzyo had an opportunity to work at SuperSport, the continent’s top sports channel during the MTF Class of 2020’s immersions and additionally shot TV commercials, music videos and short films. This kind of access to world-class industry producers and technicians is extremely rare, and the additional experience gained is unparalleled.

As part of the Class of 2020, Masuzyo

and his classmates have now been absorbed into their local film and TV industry and work as technicallyskilled filmmakers. This is thanks to MTF’s focus on empowering students with the necessary skills to be economically active in the industry once they graduate.

“The world of film saved my life,” says Masuzyo. “As I kept watching TV from my hospital bed, I longed to get better to one day make a movie or a documentary that people would watch. I began to have hope in my healing so that Icould become a filmmaker.”

Establishing a multidisciplinary spirit Like Masuzyo, Ugandan filmmaker Cissy Nalumansi’s career in film and TV was also a result of MTF’s empowerment of students to be economically active in the industry.

She won a paid internship experience at Africa Magic studios in Nigeria after graduating from the MTF Academy in 2019. Cissy has taken her skills even further as an MTF alumnus by establishing her own film production company Jungle Rains Productions.

She now sits front and centre when it comes to telling homegrown stories, and her skills as a multidisciplinary have been paying off since graduation: her documentary Creatives Under Quarantine, which she shot during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, has received international funding and was nominated at the Uganda Film Festival, and her other film Namuddu currently airs on DStv’s Maisha Magic Movies. Her short film Kela, which she also wrote and directed, is currently competing at several international film festivals and is backed by Hollywood executive producers.

The funding, international film

festival mileage and hefty backing are part of the major head start that the MTF initiative provides through its Academy partnerships, which include the New York Film Academy of Visual and Performing Arts (NYFA), the Henley Business School, Dolby and Canon among others.

What’s more, is that Cissy is one of many African women filmmakers who received their big break from MultiChoice, the biggest commissioner and licensor of local content. Advancing the agenda of women has always been at the heart of what we do as MultiChoice and we are proud that the MTF initiative has ushered in a new era of filmmakers who are eager to sway the narrative and engage in a dialogue that tells original African stories. Women have a harder time breaking into the industry as a result of the film and TV industry’s significant gender divide, where men outnumber women 2 to 1 in films, according to a 2021 report by the San Diego State’s Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film in America.

The gender divide is also why the MTF initiative always aims for 50% and above split in favour of women.

From the start, the MTF Academy’s curriculum makes a point of equipping students towards becoming multidisciplinary creatives through its tailored masterclasses, which are a core part of the MTF Academy’s tailored curriculum.

All MTF Academy alumni have since been exposed to the initiative’s industry masterclasses in Documentary, Lighting, Sound, Casting, Acting, Production Management, and the Business of Film, among others.

These masterclasses have been taught by some of the best in the industry, including celebrated Nigerian film, TV and storytelling multidisciplinary

Tunde Kelani, Kenyan film and TV producer Appie Matere, and Christian Epps, international lighting expert for productions like the 2014 American film Selma, and American TV series Lovecraft Country.

It’s no wonder then that come graduation, multidisciplinary visual creatives like Cissy can hit the ground running with connections already formed during their training at the Academy, due to MTF’s curriculum partnerships. All MTF alumni can therefore begin their careers as highly-skilled creatives that can keep up with the production demands of world-class film and TV storytelling.

Africa’s film future is safe in skilled hands In a mere three years, the MTF Academy’s alumni have collectively produced 30 full-length films, 16 short films for broadcast, and eight public service announcements for the United Nation’s Verified #PledgetoPause and #OnlyTogether campaigns.

Many alumni are still rooted in producing local content. Ghanaian filmmaker and TV producer Godfred Dela Duvi, for example, is pulling the strings as a producer for one of Ghana’s most-loved shows Showbiz 360.

In Tanzania, alumni from the inaugural MTF Academy year Wilson Nkya and Jane Moshi respectively produced the 2021 Maisha Magic Movies film FRIDA under their digital media production company Four Creations Entertainment.

As time goes by, the MTF Academy alumni will be the fuel behind the continent’s ability to take Africa’s films to the world stage.

The alumni are young, vibrant and have sharp talent and expertise that will continue to sustain authentic African stories through video entertainment.

12

| AGRIBUSINESS

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

The dollar’s reserves of strength

BY GENE FRIEDA

T

he freezing of much of Russia’s official foreign reserves has inevitably led some again to predict the imminent demise of the dollar’s “exorbitant privilege” as the world’s reserve currency of choice. But we should not write the greenback’s obituary just yet.

On its own, the sanctioning of Russia’s reserves will likely reinforce the primacy of the dollar as the backbone of the fiat currency system. Only if the United States were regularly to use such financial sanctions as an offensive foreign-policy weapon might a more rapid erosion in the dollar’s status occur.

True, in the past four years – a period marked by a US-China trade war and the COVID-19 pandemic – the dollar has accounted for only 40% of new reserve accumulation, compared to 23% for the euro. The Chinese renminbi’s share of new reserves has jumped to 10%, while the Japanese yen and British pound have gained ground as well.

Despite this, it is far from clear that confidence in the dollar is waning. First, global reserve growth over the past four years was a fraction of the rapid growth seen in the five years before and after the 2008 global financial crisis, reflecting reduced global imbalances.

The dollar’s share of reserves has fallen from 73% in 2001 to 59% last year. But most of this decline took place in the 2000s, when reserves surged by $8.1 trillion (compared to $2.6 trillion in the last decade).

Second, the International Monetary Fund’s new allocation last year of $650 billion in special drawing rights (SDRs, the IMF’s reserve asset) artificially deflated the dollar’s share of global reserve growth during the pandemic.

SDRs are based on a currency basket in which the dollar’s share is only 42%, while those of the euro, renminbi, yen, and pound are 31%, 11%, 8%, and 8%, respectively. As SDRs accrue principally to advanced economies that never use them, these shares effectively inflate the shares of non-dollar foreign reserves.

Finally, countries with strong security relationships with the US – including the vast majority of states with the largest holdings of foreign-exchange reserves – typically maintain a larger-than-average share of their reserves in dollars. As long as America’s Asian and European allies deem US security guarantees to be credible, these countries have little incentive to shift away from the dollar.

Reserve freezes are not new, but the measures against Russia mark the first time that they have been applied to a G20 country with a high degree of global trade and financial integration.

For foreign investors, reserve freezes that aim to create a financial panic pose an existential threat, in terms of the potential for capital to be either lost or trapped onshore.

The potency of the sanctions imposed on Russia’s reserves stemmed not from US actions alone, but rather from the concordant

steps taken by Europe and Japan. Their participation ensured de facto nearunanimity, because Chinese banks became reluctant to deal with Russia for fear of being sanctioned in turn.

But for now, the sanctions risk premium on foreign-exchange reserves realistically applies only to countries at high risk of globally coordinated measures – namely China. For the vast majority of other countries, sanctions risk should remain low.

Reserve diversification will continue to make sense, but it is likely to benefit currencies of countries deemed to be “sanctions-remote.”

And while the US trade war with China and the freeze of Russia’s reserves have again raised fears of an exodus from the dollar, the question is “where to?” Strong network effects underpin the dollar’s “exorbitant privilege,” and the Russia sanctions have arguably reinforced its anchor status. All things considered, a 60/40 reserve split between the dollar and other currencies looks appropriate.

While the renminbi should continue to benefit from China’s strong trade linkages with smaller countries and commodity exporters, its challenge to the dollar is likely to suffer from greater uncertainty regarding the rule of law and the sanctions risk premium. Larger central banks may be more reluctant to hold renminbi due to Western sanctions risk and the corresponding risk that China would be forced to reimpose capital controls on foreigners. The Chinese currency should therefore remain a fractional share of global reserves.

The euro’s share of global reserves should rebound if yields return to positive territory.

Recent progress in reducing the risk of a eurozone breakup is the precondition for both higher rates and a larger share in global reserves. Nonetheless, Europe still must address the issues that kept the euro’s share of reserves below 30% prior to the eurozone crisis: fragmented domestic capital markets and flawed countercyclical stabilization mechanisms.

Other countries have some riskdiversification value. But they are both individually and collectively too small to offer a credible alternative to the US, China, and Europe as a destination for reserves.

That said, one can expect lingering fallout from the freezing of Russia’s reserves. China will seek to insulate its existing reserves from potential sanctions. Commodity exporters will consider how to invest freshly minted foreign-exchange reserves stemming from the current commodity boom. And foreign investors, both public and private, will assess possible collateral damage from financial sanctions that might affect the convertibility of renminbi assets onshore.

What might eventually upend the dollar’s continued dominance? If history were to rhyme with the United Kingdom’s experience of a century ago, it would involve some combination of US financial sanctions overreach, further economic stagnation at home, and an erosion of credible security guarantees abroad. Such a scenario looks less remote than it did five years ago. But don’t bet on it happening anytime soon.

Gene Frieda, a global strategist at PIMCO, is a senior visiting fellow at the London School of Ec

| F E AT U R E

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

13

Parliament in the eyes of the Constitution: The twists and turns

I

n March 2022, the Supreme Court struck down Order 109 (3) of the Standing Orders of Parliament as being unconstitutional. The Justice Abdulai v The Attorney-General decision drew a lot of reaction. The “controversial E-Levy” was at the heart of it all – if deputy speakers could cast their votes while presiding in the absence of the Speaker, some argued, then the Standing Orders, which provided otherwise, had effectively been “disrespected” by the Court. Some sought to remind the Supreme Court that “Parliament is a master of its own rules.”

Having been colonised by the British, it is not surprising that, at independence, a lot of Ghana’s constitutional doctrines, concepts, principles and practices were understood in the light of the colonial master’s prescriptions notwithstanding the fact that the newly independent state had a written constitution. Practically all the estimated 350 lawyers in the nation were trained in England, the citadel of Parliamentary supremacy.

In 1957, Lardan v Attorney-General (No. 2), presented the Supreme Court (the Privy Council in London was still

the highest court of law in Ghana until 1960) with the opportunity to assess a deportation order as passed

by Parliament. The court held that only Parliament itself could question the order. Some argue that the court seemed to have shackled itself with the notion of British parliamentary supremacy and had failed to allow itself the available constitutional leeway to review parliamentary action.

Re-Akoto Under the 1960 Constitution, the seminal case of Re Akoto was decided by the Supreme Court. The Preventive Detention Act (PDA), passed by Parliament in 1958 and continued in force under the new Constitution, gave President Kwame Nkrumah the power, if he was so satisfied, to detain a person without trial. Dr J.B. Danquah argued, among others, on behalf of Baffour Osei Akoto and 7 others that the PDA had been passed in excess of the powers conferred on Parliament by the Constitution.

The court held that under Article 20 of the Constitution, Parliament was sovereign and only the entrenched provisions of the constitution limited such sovereignty and upheld the PDA as not being contrary to the

constitution.

The drafting process of the 1969 Constitution was viewed as an attempt to rein in Parliament and to prevent another Re Akoto type judgement.

The Constitutional Commission which drafted the constitution proposed: “That the Judiciary should keep ward and watch over the Constitution. As the guardian of the Constitution, the Supreme Court, the highest court in Ghana, will have the power to adjudicate on the constitutionality or legality of all laws passed in Parliament.”

The 1969 Constitution pronounced itself the supreme law of Ghana and vested final judicial authority in the judiciary. That notwithstanding, Prof. Kumado, in an academic article, believes that the fact that Article 102(1) stated that no organ or agency of the Executive shall be given final judicial power, without saying so about Parliament raised a perplexing enquiry – Did it imply that final judicial power could have validly been vested in an agency or organ of Parliament?

Judicial Review The 1979 Constitution restored much of Parliament’s shield against judicial review. Article 96 gave

Parliament freedom of speech, of debate and of proceedings of Parliament. It provided in addition: “that freedom shall not be impeached or questioned in any Court or place out of Parliament.”

In Tuffour v Attorney-General, Sowah JSC, in delivering the judgement of the Court of Appeal, sitting as the Supreme Court, wrote: “The courts cannot therefore inquire into the legality or illegality of what happened in Parliament. In so far as Parliament has acted by virtue of the powers conferred upon it by the provisions of article 91(1), its actions within Parliament are a closed book.”

This “closed book” viewpoint seems to have become engraved in the minds of some Ghanaians from all walks of life.

However, the provision under the 1979 Constitution, which formed the warp and woof of this conclusion, is not to be found under the extant 1992 Constitution.

Under the 1992 Constitution, Article 125(3) vests judicial power in the Judiciary and specifically provides that, “neither the President nor Parliament nor any organ or agency of the President or Parliament shall have or be given final judicial power.”

Thus the “closed book” conclusion under the 1979 Constitution is not supportable under the 1992 Constitution.

Parliamentary supremacy In the UK, the Supreme Court has replaced the House of Lords as the highest court of law since October 1, 2009. However, in the face of Parliamentary supremacy it cannot declare primary legislation as unconstitutional. It can do so for only secondary legislation. On the contrary, the sovereign nation of Ghana has decided that the Supreme Court can declare acts of Parliament including the Standing Orders of Parliament as unconstitutional when they “sin” against the Constitution.

This is where we are on the twists and turns of our constitutional journey.

The author is the Managing Partner at Nii Arday Clegg & Co. and holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree from Harvard Law School. He passed the New York Bar Exam in July 2021.

He is a member of the Ghana Bar Association.

14

| NEWS

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

New global payment platform in the offing A payment platform to facilitate money transfers at affordable rates in all currencies will soon be launched.

A media release from ‘GenioPay’ issued in Accra said the platform would provide multiple and flexible pay-out channels, including mobile money transfers; an array of payment tools for merchants and SMEs; utility services; escrow and school fees services; migrant transfers and much more.

The Founder and CEO of the company, James Reinhold, said the company’s flagship product, SMSPay, would bring financial services to over 1.5 billion people around the world without a stable Internet.

He said with GenioPay’s technology, clients could actually perform crossborder payments without the Internet but powered by A.I technology.

“The foundation of GenioPay is built on the premise that transactions continue to be high, and according to the World Bank over $30 billion is lost a year by migrants alone in ridiculous fees.

“We consider ourselves as a company that understands customer pay points built around the singular idea of localising international transactions,” Mr Reinhold said.

Therefore, the company looked extensively at a lot of payment solutions but none addressed the ultimate needs of forward-thinking global clients.

Thus, the creation of GenioPay — a distinctive alternative to redefine how cross-border payments are done.

A secured link is sent to the recipient, and based on their location they can withdraw the received funds through the 50+ pay-out channels, including mobile money.

The fast and secure cross-border payments cover different payment schemes: European Payments (sending

money to recipients in European and most especially for Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) regions; and International Payments (sending payments through SWIFT, among others).

Commenting on how safe and secure the GenioPay payment platform is, Mr Reinhold said all relevant security requirements had been met using modern technology.

“Our team has relevant experience in financial security requirements, using the latest techniques and approaches in data security. We have a well-designed architecture that ensures reliability and security,” he said.

He further stated that plans were advanced to establish offices across Africa, with Ghana set to be the headquarters of the continental branches.

Prudential Life partners 3 institutions to support vulnerable Prudential Life Insurance Ghana, in collaboration with Prudence Foundation, the community investment arm of Prudential Plc in Africa and Asia, has entered into a partnership with three institutions to fund projects that will impact the lives of vulnerable groups especially women in Ghana.

The institutions are the Ghana Office of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the National Cardiothoracic Centre (NCC) and the Ghana Infectious Disease Centre (GIDC).

In lie with the partnership, Prudential Life has presented a total of GH¢700,000 to three institutions to support the fight against COVID-19.

The funds are to be used on projects to support the vulnerable and needy in society to fight against COVID-19.

Under the partnership, the UNFPA will use its expertise to fill existing gaps in addressing the needs of kayayei.

Prudential’s fund will provide 100 kayayei in the Tema Station area with access to basic healthcare services, personal development and reproductive health education, provision of food supplies and care kits.

The project will see the GIDC cater for six months’ worth of medical consumables in the provision of critical care to people suffering from COVID-19.

Besides, the NCC will cover the operating costs for 10 paediatric patients, who are unable to pay for their surgeries due to the financial constraints brought about by the pandemic.

At a ceremony in Accra to hand over the funds and sign the corresponding agreements, the Executive Director of Prudence Foundation, Marc Fancy, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on people’s health, livelihoods and economies highlight the important role that we can play in providing safety nets for citizens, businesses and governments.

He added: “Through the new groupwide Prudence Foundation COVID-19 Relief Fund, we are pleased to collaborate with our business units across Asia and Africa to contribute through a wide range of initiatives,” he added.

The Regional Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Prudential West Africa, Emmanuel Mokobi Aryee, said Prudential was passionate about

providing relief in these trying times.

“We believe in helping people get the most out of life and our position remains resolute particularly in these unusual times.

“Now, we are happy to be associated with these institutions to provide some much needed relief for many

more Ghanaians through these projects,” he stated.

Representatives of the various institutions hailed Prudential Life Ghana for its unflinching support to Ghanaians affected by the pandemic and recognised the donation as a demonstration of that support

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

| AFRICAN BUSINESS

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16

| NEWS

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

17

| F E AT U R E

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Making e-commerce greener through Jumia’s partnership with SolarTaxi in Ghana

The convenience of having goods delivered to your doorstep is a very attractive aspect of e-commerce for Africa’s consumers. The current reality, however, is that the cost of delivering goods is on the rise in many countries in Africa, partly due to the price of petrol amongst other factors.

Unfortunately, the increased number of motorised fleets required to meet the ever-growing demand from online shoppers has negative effects on the environment. Mounting evidence suggests that there is a need to shift to cleaner energy sources for delivering goods if we are to achieve sustainable e-commerce growth. The need for change is clear.

How Jumia is tackling these problems

During our continuous search for logistics partners, we were introduced to SolarTaxi and learned about their efforts to introduce solar motorbikes and vehicles to the Ghanaian market.

We embarked on a 3-month pilot program.

As usual, our team conducts robust analysis on data generated by our e-commerce platform. Using a smart capacity planning tool, we are able to juxtapose our projected increase in order volumes with SolarTaxi’s forecasted availability of bikes, over a period of up to six months.

We are then able to set milestones and plan on how to deploy these bikes while staying on track to meet our targets. At the moment, we have taken steps with Solar Taxi to have

solar-powered bikes comprise at least 40% of our entire delivery fleet between 2022 and the beginning of 2023.

SolarTaxi is able to provide a comprehensive service that spans bike manufacturing, rider recruitment and training, and bike maintenance.

By partnering with them, our team is able to focus on acquainting riders with our order delivery procedures.

The journey so far Benefits of partnering with SolarTaxi By getting more of our deliveries handled by solar-powered bikes, we are able to: ●Significantly lower our carbon

footprint. ●Reduce the cost of delivery. Since our reliance on petrol has decreased, in the Ghanaian market alone, there has been a 70% increase in the cost of petrol within the last financial year Solar bikes cost much less to recharge and therefore have a much lower impact on transportation costs over time.

At Jumia, we are always looking for more cost-effective and eco-friendly solutions to deliveries and other facets of our e-commerce operations.

Our team will continue working towards innovating, discovering, and deploying these solutions at a much bigger scale.

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| MARKET REVIEW

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Weekly Market Review For Week April 1, 2022 MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS

Trend in Market Indices - 2022

Best 5 Traded Equities by Volume for the Week Ending 1/04/2022

3,000

Q3, 2021 GDP Growth

6.6%

Average GDP Growth for 2021

5.3%

CAL, 0.27%

EGL, 0.27%

SOGEGH, 0.22%

2,500

ETI, 0.21%

2,000 1,500

2021 Projected GDP Growth

5.0%

BoG Policy Rate

17.0%

1,000 500 MTN, 98.80%

Inflation for February, 2022

15.7%

End Period Inflation Target – 2021

8.0%

Budget Deficit (% GDP) – Dec, 2021

9.7%

2022 Budget Deficit Target (%GDP)

7.4%

Public Debt (billion GH¢) – Dec, 2021

351.8

GSE CI

29/03/22

22/03/22

15/03/22

08/03/22

01/03/22

15/02/22

22/02/22

01/02/22

08/02/22

25/01/22

11/01/22

15.47%

18/01/22

Weekly Interbank Interest Rate

04/01/22

0 MTN

CAL

EGL

SOGEGH

ETI

Best 5 Traded Equities by Value for the Week Ending 1/04/2022

GSE FSI

EGH, 0.78%

SOGEGH, 0.24%

YTD Performance of GSE Market Indices

EGL, 0.82%

CAL, 0.22%

1.50% 1.00% 0.50%

Debt to GDP Ratio – Dec, 2021

80.1%

29/03/22

22/03/22

15/03/22

08/03/22

01/03/22

22/02/22

15/02/22

08/02/22

01/02/22

25/01/22

18/01/22

11/01/22

-1.00%

04/01/22

0.00% -0.50%

MTN, 97.82%

-1.50% -2.00%

MTN

-3.00%

MTN dominated both volume and value of trades for the week, accounting for 98.80% and 97.82% of volume and value of shares traded respectively .

The market ended the week with 2 advancers and no decliner as indicated on the table below.

Price Movers for the Week Opening Price

Closing Price

Gain/Loss (%)

0.21

0.22

▲4.76%

Cal Bank PLC

0.85

0.86

`▲1.18%

SIC Insurance Company Ltd.

0.2

0.21

▲5.00%

Cal Bank PLC

0.84

0.85

▲1.19%

GCB Bank PLC

5.18

5.16

▼0.39%

GSE CI

SOGEGH

CAL

200.00%175.00%

GSE FSI

150.00%

Volume and Value of Trades for Week Ending 1/04/2022

46.04% 25.00%

100.00%

-33.65% -33.33% -25.00%

21.43%

100,000,000 90,000,000 80,000,000 70,000,000 60,000,000 50,000,000 40,000,000 30,000,000 20,000,000 10,000,000 -

50.00%

18.28%

BL ET I EG M L TN GH BO PP FM L PB C AC CE SS

D

GG

SI C -50.00%

-9.77%

-4.50%

0.00%

VOLUME

01 /0 4/ 22

31 /0 3/ 22

30 /0 3/ 22

CURRENCY MARKET 29 /0 3/ 22

28 /0 3/ 22

Market capitalization inched up marginally by 0.01% to close the week at GH¢64,029.79 million, from GH¢64,021.57 million at the close of the previous week.

This reflects YTD decrease of 0.72%.

Trading activity recorded a total of 83,028,224 shares valued at GH¢88,889,722.36 changing hands, compared with 70,271,365 shares, valued at GH¢78,490,246.30 in the preceding week.

-4.00%

VALUE

Market Capitalization for Week Ending 1/04/2022 70,000.00

0.00%

60,000.00

-0.10% -0.20%

50,000.00

-0.30%

40,000.00

-0.40%

30,000.00

-0.50%

20,000.00

-0.60%

10,000.00

-0.70%

-

-0.80%

28 /0 3/ 22 29 /0 3/ 22 30 /0 3/ 22 31 /0 3/ 22 01 /0 4/ 22

The Ghana Stock Exchange strengthened marginally for the week on the back of gains by 2 counters.

The GSE Composite Index (GSE CI) gained 0.79 points (+0.03%) to close at 2,742.85 points, reflecting year-todate (YTD) loss of 1.67%. The GSE Financial Stocks Index (GSE FI) also, gained 1.43 points (+0.07%) to close at 2,174.96 points, reflecting year-to-date (YTD) gain of 1.07%.

SIC Insurance Company Ltd.

EGH

5 Best & 5 Worst Performing Stocks YTD Return

-3.50%

GL

STOCK MARKET REVIEW

Equity

EGL

-2.50%

MARKET CAP

YTD%

The Cedi recorded no price change against the USD after declines in nine consecutive weeks. It traded at GH¢7.1120/$ on Friday, compared to GH¢7.1121/$ at week open, reflecting w/w appreciation and YTD depreciation of 0.00% and 15.55% respectively. This compares with YTD appreciation of 0.53% a year ago.

The Cedi however appreciated against the GBP for the week. It traded at GH¢9.3217/£, compared with GH¢9.3827/£ at week open, reflecting w/w appreciation and YTD depreciation of 0.65% and 12.81% respectively. This compares with YTD depreciation of 0.58% a year ago.

The Cedi weakened against the Euro for the week. It traded at GH¢7.8515/€, compared with GH¢7.8134/€ at week open, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciations of 0.49% and 13.03% respectively. This compares with YTD appreciation of 4.86% a year ago.

The Cedi lost grounds against the Canadian Dollar for the week. It opened at GH¢5.6837/C$ but closed at GH¢5.6864/C$, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciations of 0.05% and 16.62% respectively. This compares with YTD depreciation of 0.63% a year ago.

Weekly Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates

01/04/22

USD/GHS

6.0061

7.1121

7.1120

■0.00

▼15.55

GBP/GHS

8.1272

9.3827

9.3217

▲0.65

▼12.81

EUR/GHS

6.8281

7.8134

7.8515

▼0.49

▼13.03

CAD/GHS

4.7416

5.6837

5.6864

▼0.05

▼16.62

60%

19.00 18.10

18

50%

17.11 16 14.85

40%

15.46

30%

14

20% 10%

12

Source: Bank of Ghana

0%

10

10.0000 9.0000 8.0000 7.0000 6.0000 5.0000 4.0000 3.0000 2.0000 1.0000 0.0000

EUR

26/03/22

19/03/22

12/03/22

05/03/22

26/02/22

19/02/22

12/02/22

05/02/22

29/01/22

15/01/22

08/01/22

01/01/22

22/01/22

GBP

Crude Oil prices settled lower on Friday as members of the International Energy Agency (IEA) agreed to join in the largest ever U.S. oil reserves release. Both Brent and U.S. crude benchmarks settled down around 13% in their biggest weekly falls in two years, after U.S. President Joe Biden announced the release on Thursday. Brent futures traded at US$104.39 a barrel on Friday, compared to US$120.65 at week open. This reflects w/w loss and YTD gains of 13.48% and 34.21% respectively.

CAD

Gold retreated on Friday and was set to post a weekly decline after robust U.S. jobs data drove the dollar higher and bolstered bets that the Federal Reserve would aggressively raise rates. Gold settled at US$1,919.10 from US$1,954.20 last week, reflecting w/w loss and YTD appreciation of 1.80% and 4.95% respectively.

YTD Performance of the Ghana Cedi against Selected Currencies

26/03/22

19/03/22

12/03/22

05/03/22

26/02/22

19/02/22

12/02/22

05/02/22

29/01/22

22/01/22

15/01/22

08/01/22

01/01/22

5.00

-5.00

Gold

COMMODITY MARKET

USD

0.00

-10%

91 Da y 18 2D ay 36 4D ay 2 yr 3 yr 5 yr 6 yr 7 yr 10 yr 15 yr 20 yr

Exchange Rates: Ghana Cedi vs Selected Currencies

Prices of Cocoa advanced for the week. The commodity traded at US$2,599.00 per tonne on Friday, from US$2,562.00 last week, reflecting w/w and YTD appreciations of 1.44% and 3.13% respectively.

-10.00

International Commodity Prices -20.00 GBP

EUR

CAD

GOVERNMENT SECURITIES MARKET Government raised a sum of GH¢463.65 million for the week across the 91-Day and 182-Day Treasury bills, compared to GH¢733.21 million raised in the previous week.

The 91-Day Bill settled at 14.85% p.a., from 14.14% p.a. last week whilst the 182-Day Bill settled at 15.46% p.a., from 14.51% p.a. last week. The table and graph below highlight primary market yields at close of the week.

Year Open

Previous Yield %

Current Yield %

01/01/22

14/03/22

18/03/22

WoW Chg (%)

YTD Chg (%)

▲1.22

▲7.10

▲0.42

▲3.01

12.53

13.25

13.42

182 Day TB

13.21

13.55

13.61

364 Day TB

16.64

6.96

16.96

0.00

▲1.88

2-Yr FXR TN

19.75

19.75

19.75

0.00

0.00

3-Yr Bond

20.50

20.50

20.50

0.00

0.00

5-Yr Bond

21.00

20.75

20.75

0.00

▼1.19

6-Yr Bond

18.80

21.75

21.75

0.00

15.69

7-Yr Bond

18.10

18.10

18.10

0.00

0.00

10-Yr Bond

19.75

19.75

19.75

0.00

0.00

15-Yr Bond

9.75

19.75

19.75

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

20.20

20.20

Year Open

Week Open

Brent crude oil (USD/ bbl)

77.78

107.93

Week Close

Chg %

YTD %

20.65 ▲11.79 ▲55.12

Gold (USD/t oz.)

1,828.60 1,929.30

,954.20

▲1.29

▲6.87

Cocoa (USD/MT)

2,520.00 2,537.00

2,562.00

▲0.99

▲1.67

Cocoa (USD/MT)

2,520.00 2,580.00

,537.00

▼1.67

▲0.67

BUSINESS TERM OF THE WEEK Monetary Base: The monetary base (or M0) is the total amount of a currency that is either in general circulation in the hands of the public or in the form of commercial bank deposits held in the central bank’s reserves. This measure of the money supply is not often cited since it excludes other forms of non-currency money that are prevalent in a modern economy.

Source: https://www.investopedia.com/ terms/m/monetarybase.asp

International Commodity Prices 2022 C 3,000 O C 2,500 O 2,000 A & G O L D

140 120 100 80

1,500

60

1,000

40

500

20

0

0

Gold

Cocoa

CIDAN Investments Limited is an investment and fund management company licensed by the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) and the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA).

RESEARCH TEAM Name: Ernest Tannor Email:etannor@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 20 881 8957 Name: Audrey Asiedua Wiafe Email:aaudrey@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 57 840 2700 Name: Moses Nana Osei-Yeboah Email:moyeboah@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 24 499 0069

Source: www.investing.com

91 Day TB

20.20

Commodities

01/01/22 08/01/22 15/01/22 22/01/22 29/01/22 05/02/22 12/02/22 19/02/22 26/02/22 05/03/22 12/03/22 19/03/22 26/03/22

USD

20-Yr Bond

Brent Crude

ABOUT CIDAN

-15.00

Security

Cocoa

26/03/22

28/03/22

▼15.55

19/03/22

01/01/22

▲0.01

12/03/22

7.1121

05/03/22

7.1125

70%

20.20 19.7519.75

19.75

26/02/22

6.0061

20

19/02/22

25/03/22

21.75 20.75

12/02/22

21/03/22

22

05/02/22

YTD

YTD Performance of Selected Commodity Prices

Treasury Yield Curve

YTD %

29/01/22

Change%

W/W

22/01/22

Week Close

15/01/22

Week Open

08/01/22

Year Open

01/01/22

Currency Pair %

19

| MARKET REVIEW

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

Brent Crude

B R E N T C R U D E

CORPORATE INFORMATION CIDAN Investments Limited CIDAN House Plot No. 169 Block 6 Haatso, North Legon – Accra Tel: +233 (0) 26171 7001/ 26 300 3917 Fax: +233 (0)30 254 4351 Email: info@cidaninvestmens.com Website: www.cidaninvestments.com Disclaimer: The contents of this report have been prepared to provide you with general information only. Information provided on and available from this report does not constitute any investment recommendation.

The information contained herein has been obtained from sources that we believe to be reliable, but its accuracy and completeness are not guaranteed.

20

WWW.BUSINESS24.COM.GH

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

NO. B24 / 316| NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

MONDAY, APRIL 11, 2022

UCC School of Business organises CEOs’ Engagement and Signed Internship Agreement

The University of Cape Coast School of Business has organized its maiden CEOs’ engagement with faculty and students on Tuesday 5th April , 2022 with more than thousands students in attendance. The heads of department and lecturers were all present at the engagement.

The CEO of Weave Ghana Limited , Mr. Roni Chako was the Guest Speaker on the topic the life journey of an entrepreneur. He explained the strategies being used by the company to remain a leader in the hair products market in Ghana. The CEO explained how acquisition strategy and strong brand proposition have helped the company to be doing well at all levels

as a market leader in this industry.

He told both students and lecturers that it is important to continue to build technical skills for the students, but must create avenue for students to participate in internships to build leadership, confidence and develop the right attitude needed in industry.

He said without the right attitude and confidence , even the most brilliant student cannot succeed.

Mr. Chako explained that about 85% of the work force are females.

When he was asked the greatest challenge of operating in Ghana? He replied controlling cost because of depreciation as major raw materials and facilities such as warehouses are

quoted in dollars which is a key cost element.

The Dean of the School, Prof.John Gatsi told the gathering that the programs being delivered reflect the requirements of key skills required in Business Schools curriculum. He said the leadership of the School are conscious of the need for the 21st century skills development for students to close the skills gap. Prof.

John Gatsi who quoted John Reed who asked Business School academics at an awards ceremony in 1999“ do you teach these students the skills that will serve them well in their careers ?”, said this question remains critical as the school is doing its best to answer it with innovation and providing the environment to promote skills development for the students. Prof Gatsi explained that most of the faculty members are fellows, chartered and associate members of various professional bodies and are guided by the core values of the School such as reliability, integrity, good governance , honesty and teamwork.

Prof. Gatsi said “we have made internship at the School compulsory at levels 200 and 300 because we want them to have enough experience

with industry before they leave so that the technical skills we are building for them will be augmented with some of the critical skills they need at the industry level and be ready to take up global responsibilities .”

He said this engagement helps both faculty and students to adapt to what is required to fit for industry responsibilities.

Weave Ghana Limited producers of darling hair products signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of Cape Coast to accept 100 student on internship during the long vacation.

The Provost of the College of Humanities and Legal Studies, Prof.

Francis Eric Amanquandoh who also represented the Pro Vice Chancellor. ,Prof(Mrs) Rosemond Boohene, asked students to take advantage of the internship opportunities . He advised students that to become an industry leader calls for a number of sacrifices, humility and good attitude.

He expressed his gratitude to Weave Ghana for the opportunity. He was particularly happy about the positive feedback from management of the company about three young graduates working with the company.

‘Gold Coast Refinery undergoing certification programme’ The Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah, has confirmed that Gold Coast Refinery is currently undergoing the certification programme with Responsible Jewelry Council, an affiliate of London Bullion Market Association (LBMA).

Gold Coast Refinery is the first state of the art Gold Refinery in West Africa and the second largest in Africa, with the capacity of refining up to 480 Kg of gold a day.

It affords varied opportunities to Ghana and sub-region including putting Ghana on the gold map of precious metal refineries. Promoting government policy initiatives in value addition and industrialization. Providing skill enhancement to employees and job opportunities.

Further, it ensures reliability and reducing the time in assaying and refining to release income from sales.

Speaking at the opening of the 2022 Ghana Mining Week in Takoradi last week, he stated the Mining Week (like the two previous editions) is a call to investors in the areas of exploration, mining, processing, refinery, jewelry, mining-tourism,

financing, infrastructure development, environmental management.

According to him, all the sixteen (16) mineral resources of the nation; majority of which, are found in the Western Region in addition to our agricultural, tourism, oil and gas endowments and reckons it is time to tap into the economic potential of these unsung minerals.

He also indicated that as an outcome of the Ghana Gold Expo/ Mining Week project, Gold Fields Ghana Limited is currently advancing discussions with University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) for both entities to train community mining companies in the Western Region.

The Western Regional minister and Member of Parliament for Takoradi, also adds consequently, in line with the theme for this year- “The Potential of Mining For Sustainable Development”, the 2022 Ghana Mining Week seeks “togetherness in mining” and so, in the next two days, accredited representatives of our stakeholders (local, national and international) will be offered a formal dialogue on tackling the most critical environmental issues,

adopting the evolving Government policies on mineral resources extraction, boosting investor interest and promoting responsible and safe mining among others. Views will be collated and Action Plans produced to drive a regional-based commitment towards an accelerated mine tailing development and sustainability of the mineral resources via risk mitigation and turning challenges into opportunities.

As part of the programme outline,it was expected that organisers will undertake a diplomatic mining tour to Adamus Resources Limited to acquaint ourselves with their operations i.e., Tailings Dump, and to share in their successes regarding reclamation and water treatment technologies.

Mr. Okyere Darko-Mensah, further commended the coming on board of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) as “a complementary step to what we have been advocating for over the period. The MIIF, through its SmallScale Mining Incubation Programme is building capacities of small scale and community mining ventures and offering financial models (for equipment financing) which traditionally are

difficult for the small- scale miners to access.”

“With all these investments and commitment on the part of Government, I can confidently say that, in the nearest future, size will be the only criterion to differentiate between large- and small-scale mines, and that, all other things such as Mining Practices, Safety, Recovery, Sale and Sourcing of Minerals will be the same for both.

In this regard, I wish to state that, the Western Region is better placed to serve as the headquarters for responsible mining and mining related activities. We therefore hope to see this realized through increased private sector involvement in the form of direct investment, exploration financing, research and technology transfer.”

PUBLISHED BY BUSINESS24 LTD. TEL: 030 296 5297 030 296 5315.

EDITOR: BENSON AFFUL editor@business24.com.gh. +233 545 516 133.