Business24 Newspaper 11 March 2022 by Business24 Online

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

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NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

CWG Ghana partners with toCode Technologies to introduce Digid in Ghana MORE ON PG.9

82pct of Ghanaian firms upbeat about AfCFTA as public awareness soars to 53pct—Survey MORE ON PG.13

GIPS withdraws membership of embattled former PPA boss AB Adjei MORE ON PG.19

Adopt home grown policies to become a key player in economic order – Veep BY EUGENE DAVIS

The Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has underscored the value of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), insisting that the continent needs to adopt policies to vigorously

Gov’t closing in on automated fuel units -Fisheries Min BY EUGENE DAVIS

he Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Mavis Hawa Koomson, has told parliament that plans are “far advanced” to introduce automated fuel dispensing units at landing beaches to make pre-mix fuel product available for fishermen at all times. Premix fuel has been in short supply since the beginning of the year, according to the Canoe and Fishing Gear Owners Association of Ghana (CaFGOAG) and the intervention by the sector ministry to roll out the automated fuel dispensing unit is expected to offer some respite. Addressing Parliament on steps being taken

to ensure constant supply of pre-mix fuel to enhance fishing activities, she said the move will ensure ready access to the commodity and streamline the process. She noted: “The tracking system currently in place allows regulators to monitor the transportation of product from the loading depot to designated locations to ensure the availability of the product at the landing beaches,” she said. “Plans are also far advanced to roll out the automated fuel dispensing units at the landing beaches to make the product available for fishermen at all times,” she added. According to the minister, “the pre-mix fuel will not end up at the fuel station because we will be using condensate from Ghana Gas to prepare the pre-mix fuel, and I am not sure it can used in the vehicles.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Let’s consciously perk up local interest in oil industry

PIAC analysis has shown that the discovery of oil wealth in the country has largely not impacted its economic fortunes with the state garnering a little over US$6.5bn of an estimated US$31.22bn of total revenue from the exploration of the commodity over the past decade. In 2010, the government unveiled the local content and local participation policy which sought to achieve a 90percent Ghanaian content and participation across the value chain of the petroleum sector within a space of 10 years. The state has also reviewed, updated and improved its institutional framework for the upstream oil and gas sector over the last decade to improve governance outcomes as well as to promote transparency and accountability. This has been done with a view towards managing the technical, environmental and social risks within the sector as well as maximising the fiscal revenues and local content, supply chain and wider industrial development benefits to the country. However, according to the oil revenue watchdog, 10 years after the country started producing oil in commercial quantities, not much has been done towards getting its people in an industry the requires a high technical expertise.

It is a fact that the non-active participation of Ghanaian firms and oil and gas professionals in the lucrative hydrocarbons sector is robbing the nation of millions of dollars as most of the sector’s revenue are shipped off the shores of this country. A country in dire need of revenue for developmental projects and other social interventions can no longer leave its highly-resourced and gainful sectors, specifically the extractives, in the hands of foreign investors. There must be that conscious effort to build local capital armed with the requisite expertise and competence to thrive in the oil and gas business and the time is now.

Gov’t closing in on automated fuel units -Fisheries Min continued from page 1

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She also said that “ has given approval, so the preparation is complete and very soon they will start using and by the time we start with the automation, this will also be rolled out”. Available data reveal that in

2018, a total of 72,738,000 litres of pre-mix fuel was lifted from the Tema Oil Refinery. Government, in November last year, announced plans to automate the distribution of premix fuel across all landing beaches in the

country, to eliminate middlemen who hijack the distribution of the highly subsidized product. Government has from 2014 to 2021, reportedly spent GHc 1.2bn as subsidy on premix fuel to cushion fishermen across the country.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Adopt home grown policies to become a key player in economic order – Veep promote trade among itself, and to take its rightful place as a key player in world economic order. Speaking on behalf of the president in Accra at the 82nd Executive Committee Meeting of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association -Africa Region, he said: “It is in this regard that I consider the opportunity offered by the AfCFTA very unique for us to begin to adopt policies to vigorously promote trade among ourselves. This agenda if well perceived will not only boost Africa’s trading position in the global market but also strengthen Africa’s common voice and policy space in the global trade negotiations, a key factor which appears to be missing in our engagement with world trade and economic order”.

He called on the CPA to depart from its current make-up as a charity organization and take steps to review its constitution to position the organization as an entity that champions international diplomacy, strengthening partnership and promote human rights in member countries. Further, he went on to acknowledge the composition of the 8th Parliament in Ghana which he hoped would consolidate, if not entrench, the enviable democratic culture of the country, adding that Ghana’s current near hung parliament proves that the legislature can be independent from Executive. He observed with concern the seeming lack of progress in democracy in Africa which can be

attributable to reasons including poor economic capacity of the people, poor planning and low investments in public goods which could help provide social safety net to its citizens. Ghana’s First Deputy Speaker, Joseph Osei-Owusu, who read a speech on behalf of Speaker, maintained that legislatures has to depart from perceived notion as a “rubber stamp “of the Executive branch and assert authority as an equal branch of government. He added that gender equality has been a buzzword shaping society for a long time and continue to get mention however on occasion of International Women’s Day 2022, it is imperative to have an introspection and take stock on how much women have been

empowered, “Failure wouldn’t affect the glass ceiling”. Speaker of Sierra Leone Parliament, Dr. Abass Bundu urged member countries to implement existing international commitments towards gender parity and not to sign new ones. Vice chair of CPA, Osei KyeiMensah-Bonsu bemoaned effects of COVID-19 which has affected the ability of CPA to hold meetings, however, remains resolute in championing democracy across Africa. Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu emphasized the need for reforms within the Commonwealth of Nations. CPA-Africa’s focus includes democracy, multilateralism, women and youth empowerment.

FBNBank reaffirms its commitment to support gender parity This was communicated by the Bank as part of its celebration of this year’s International Women’s Day (IWD 2022) under the theme “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow” and callto-action, “#BreakTheBais”, at a forum organised by the FBNBank Women Network (FWN). Delivering the welcome address, Grace Isaac-Aryee, the Chairperson of the FWN said, “for us at FBNBank, the celebration of International Women’s Day is the acknowledgement of the challenges that women face at the workplace and the society in general and our commitment to contribute in a very significant way to break down the barriers that so undermine us. Today’s event is key for our agenda and is a core part of our objectives and we are taking this opportunity to reflect, pause and renew our efforts in driving the agenda.” Over the years, FBNBank has through its FWN, a platform driven an agenda of promoting access to equal opportunities for women at the workplace. The FWN offers female employees capacity building and personal development through its six pillars; Career Management, Network Programmes/Projects & Events, Counselling-SupportWelfare, Financial Planning & Empowerment, MentoringCoaching-Sponsoring and Personal Branding. In line with these, the FWN invited two guest speakers to share their experiences with the employees in order to help them build their capabilities. Speaking on the topic, “How

women can leverage the changing organisational culture and overcome what holds us back,” Isabel Boaten, Managing Partner at AB & David, advised the female employees of the Bank to take advantage of the growing empowerment culture for women in corporate organisations by responding positively to opportunities that come their way. She mentioned the need for competence,goodknowledgeoftheir industry and general professional environment in addition to being commercially aware and to have an entrepreneurial mindset as very important. She also advised the ladies to be “trustworthy, credible and visible.” The second speaker, Akua OwusuNartey, Managing Director of Ogilvy Africa spoke on the topic, “Breaking the bias, changing the narrative.” Akua shared her experiences with the audience and stressed the need for the ladies to do away with biases which she explained were mostly founded on the personal experiences of other people. She explained that cultural and media stereotypes have played a key role in mounting barriers to the advancement of women and urged the ladies to focus on developing themselves in order to take advantage of opportunities available. The Bank’s Managing Director, Victor Yaw Asante stated in the keynote address that, “What we need to focus on is doing away with discrimination against women anywhere it exists and embracing diversity, equity and inclusion.

We want to work together with our women to forge a clear path to break the bias against them. We would create more opportunities in leadership roles. The truth of the matter is that this would not be handed on a silver platter but would be response to effort made in the right direction. Support and mentorship are key here. We can only try as much, so our ladies must also want it. You must do your part of the bargain and we would give you the necessary support. That is the commitment I make together with the whole executive management team.” The activities under the event’s programme were rounded up with remarks from two female NonExecutive Directors of FBNBank, Ms. Rosie Ebe-Arthur and Mrs. Hannah Brenda Amoateng who both urged

the ladies to position themselves favourably to be able to move on up in their careers. They advised those up the corporate ladder to be willing to help the other ladies in the lower rungs to climb up. The attendees at the event were mostly the Bank’s female employees supported by executive and management staff. FBNBank Ghana Limited is a member of the First Bank of Nigeria Limited Group. The Bank has 21 branches and 2 agencies in Ghana with almost 500 staff and offers universal banking services to individuals and businesses. FBNBank Ghana Limited has been in the business of banking for over 25 years in Ghana and is part of the trade hub that has grown economies for over 127 years across Africa, Europe and China.

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MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Clement Dzidonu, Nii Narku Quaynor, others to speak at maiden Africa Technovate Awards

inister for Communications and Digitilisation, Honourable Ursula Owusu-Ekuful will be the Special Guest of Honour at the maiden edition of the African Technovate Awards and Fair organised by AIDEC Consultancies Int. Ltd. During the event slated for April 2, 2022, at the University of Professional Studies Accra, (UPSA), Hon. Owusu-Ekuful would deliver the keynote address on the crucial growth and success in Ghana and on the continent. Under the theme, ‘Information Industrial Revolution’, the event will feature goodwill messages from the Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Mr. Wamkele Mene, and the Country Director of GIZ. Ms. Regina Bauerochse Barbosa. Other distinguished speakers from that shall grace the occasion include Executive Director of e-Commerce Association of Ghana, Mr. Paul Asinor; President of the Accra Clement Dzidonu, and founder of Ghana Dot Com Ltd, Professor Nii Narku Quaynor. The awards ceremony will be cochaired by Ing. Ken Ashigbey, the CEO of the Chamber of Telecoms, and Ms. Carol Anang, Country Director of Invest in Africa. The awards ceremony, which will be preceded by an exhibition of technological products and services to recognise and reward players in the space who have distinguished themselves as well as budding young innovative tech companies charting a path for Africa in a rapidly changing digital world, the organisers have said. It also seeks to challenge and produce digital solutions to make Africa competitive, especially under the AfCFTA, and will serve as a platform to discuss strategies for further collaboration. The hybrid event will see some 150 persons in attendance with live streaming coverage across Africa. Other partners Other partners who are extending technical support to the event include Total Energies, Institute of

ICT Professionals Ghana (IIPGH), the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), and the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI). Awards Category Awards will be in three categories namely, Sector Awards (Silver Category), Regional Awards (Gold (Platinum Category). The Sector Awards will recognise of the Year, FinTech Company of the Year, eHealth/Medtech Company of the Year, Digital Agri-Business of the Year, and the Tech Insurance Company of the Year. The Regional Awards include the Digital Innovation and Creativity Award, Digital Business Transformation Award, Tech Startup Company of the Year Award, Young Tech Startup Company of the Year Award, Blossoming Tech Company of the Year Award, Mature Tech Company of the Year Award, and the Ambitious Tech Company of the Year Award. The Africa Awards category comprises of Outstanding Digital Award, Digital Excellence Awards, and the Long-Standing Service Engagement Award. For further information about Africa Technovate Awards, kindly visit the link: Africatechnovateawards.tech About AIDEC Africa Integrated Development and Communications Consultancies (AIDEC) is an innovation-driven company and is investing in digital infrastructure for skills development, jobs, and value creation services. At AIDEC, industry problems are thought through and digital solutions engineered. AIDEC is working to create a worldclass digital innovations hub for Africa and a Center of Excellence to provide digital solutions and build the associated human resource capacity. Africa is AIDEC’s strategic playregion, where it is creating custommade digital solutions with innovative and bottom-line thinking for its clients on the continent. AIDEC’s target clients are the education, retail sectors, working with network organisations to

and agricultural in collaboration institutions and drive growth in

Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Minister of Communications and Digitalization and the Special Guest of Honour

Ambrose Yennah, CEO of AIDEC

Professor Nii Narku Quaynor, Founder of Ghana Dot Com Ltd

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

| F E AT U R E

What if our economy valued what matters? By Mariana Mazzucato

are is the life-giving force that sustains health and well-being, binding together societies and ecologies. But everyday forms of care, though essential, are systematically undervalued. Most care is provided by women, whose contributions are celebrated on International Women’s Day, even though they should be marked every day of the year. The COVID-19 crisis has stretched our caring capabilities and highlighted the fundamental but underappreciated role that they play in our society. As we take stock of the pandemic’s wreckage, we must use this moment to overhaul how we measure value, and thus how we organize the global economy. The goal should be to create an economy that supports the health and well-being of every person on the planet, as well as the health of the planet itself. We currently have the inverse: a system that values health only as a means to the end of economic growth. The World Health Organization’s allwoman Council on the Economics of Health for All was established to lead this paradigm shift. We believe that this year’s International Women’s Day is the perfect occasion for launching a radical revaluation of care and the economy. Even though the pandemic is still taking lives and creating a political impetus for transforming economic governance structures, the window of opportunity is closing. We are in grave danger of returning to the old siloed approach, whereby only “formal” economic sectors are said to create value. This old system is perversely beholden to indicators like GDP, an indiscriminate measure of “progress” that ends up rewarding the destruction of people and the planet. The pathological obsession with GDP has undermined what we value most: life. In 2020, global GDP grew by $2.2 trillion as a result of governments increasing their military spending; meanwhile, the world still has not provided the mere $50 billion needed to vaccinate the global population. A society that spends 44 times more on war and destruction than on ending a pandemic can hardly be considered sane. What if we based our decision-making on what we truly value? We would start with the primary goal of Health for All, and then work backward from that end to determine our means of achieving it. In the WHO Council’s policy brief on valuing Health for All, we propose three principles for guiding this effort. The first is to value planetary health, by protecting the integrity of essential common goods such as water and air, and by respecting the ecological boundaries upon which human health and well-being ultimately depend. The second principle is to value the social foundations and activities that promote equity. This means championing diversity and investing in social and physical infrastructure to support those in need and enable communities to thrive. The third principle is to take human health seriously, by ensuring that every person can thrive both physically and emotionally, and by providing everyone with the tools to lead lives of dignity and opportunity in healthy

communities. What would it take to create an economy that served these objectives, and that measured what we really value? First, we must recognize that no single metric can encompass all the diverse components of Health for All, especially not a monolithic, highly distortive measure like GDP. We should move toward a global data-collection apparatus and analytical framework that abandon such simplistic indices. Second, alternative metrics must fit together as part of a holistic approach that allows for information to be transparently debated and replicated across diverse local contexts. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. The 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provide a robust foundation for building better metrics and indicators. With a mission-oriented approach, we can start to redesign industrial and innovation policies to meet grand societal challenges – pursuing concrete targets and encouraging sectors to work together to deliver policy solutions such as carbon-neutral cities. Another promising model is WHO Council member Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics framework, which is fast gaining traction in city governments around the world, from Amsterdam to Sydney. It encourages policymakers to aim for the sustainable ground between insufficiency (represented by the doughnut hole) and excess (represented by everything beyond the rim of the doughnut). Any such framework will need to include detailed new metrics for valuing the goods and services that are indispensable to Health for All. Most of these are currently unaccounted for, from growing food,

cooking, and cleaning to childcare and other unpaid household and neighborhood duties predominantly performed by women. As WHO Council member Marilyn Waring has long argued, time-use data can help reveal these underappreciated, unremunerated activities and begin to capture their true value. Rethinking value is the critical first step. But for new metrics to produce saner perspectives, we also need to support strategic public finance and strengthen legal and economic policy levers across the public, private, and third sectors. As a previous WHO Council brief argued, this means broadening the tax base, introducing more progressive taxation, increasing financial literacy, broadening financial inclusion, expanding the public sector’s capacity to build equitable financial frameworks, and eliminating the financial obstacles to health services. This “whole-of-society” approach to valuing Health for All would mean little if it didn’t start by empowering all stakeholders – especially the local communities most affected by health policies. Joint governance through publicprivate-common partnerships must be supported by a democratic process; only then will our new measures of progress be socially responsive and locally relevant. Economics has hitherto measured the price of everything and the value of nothing. That must change. We need to measure the value of everything so that we can account for the things that truly matter. Health and well-being – and the care that sustains them – should become our principal measures of success.

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

A look at Vodafone’s impactful interventions as the world marks International Women’s Day 2022

s the world gears up for another International Women’s Day to commemorate the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of women; challenges persist as gains in certain quarters have been eroded. This year’s theme, “Break the Bias” is apt given that women constitute a key percentage of the global population. Today, March 8 being the commemorative day, is in recognition and celebration of the women and girls who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation and response, and to honour their leadership and contribution towards a sustainable future. One of Ghana’s leading telecommunication giants, Vodafone, has shown leadership and drive for gender equality over the years. It is therefore not surprising that Vodafone Ghana was recognised as the GenderOriented Organisation of the Year (Instinct Woman Awards). Globally, the Vodafone brand has been recognized by the Bloomberg Gender Equity Index for its leadership and commitment to driving gender equality. Ahead of the celebration, Vodafone started a serialised social media campaign on the “Break the Bias” theme, where the telco giant leveraged creative artwork to drive awareness of the various gender biases and drive the need to empower women. Similar to previous years, Vodafone Ghana extends the celebration throughout the week with a number of remarkable initiatives designed to empower women and address gender challenges. Besides the internal sessions with all females, Vodafone’s female leaders dedicate their time to inspiring various groups of women and young girls in various, seminars and workshops as well as training programmes. During a quick conversation with Vodafone Ghana’s HR Director, Hannah Ashiokai Akrong, she remarked that gender equality was important because women make up almost half of Ghana’s population. She further noted that research continues to prove that gender equality is critical in creating a sustainable future and driving the economic growth and development of any economy. Embracing women at the workplace and making an intentional effort to remove barriers can be good for business too. According to McKinsey, a total of US $12 trillion could be added to the global GDP by 2025 by the advancement of women’s equality in the world.

introduce four months paid leave for employees in Ghana,” Madam Akrong disclosed. External Initiatives Girls Camp Empowers girls in STEM across second-cycle schools (15 – 18) in the country with new trends in technology, new thinking, innovation and creativity. Trains participants in digital skills including coding, online education, mentoring and entrepreneurship. Code like a Girl Provides basic knowledge of computer languages and development programmes, including HTML, CSS, GitHub and Bootstrap, enabling students to develop a website by the end of the one-week course. Health - Maternal Health (UltraSound Scan for 20,000 women)

In Vodafone’s “Inclusion for All” pillar, which is part of its “purposedriven” plan, the company is very interested in gender. “At Vodafone, we deliberately promote gender equality at every level of the organization,” Ms. Akrong noted. Females occupy five out of the nine key senior management positions within the business. “We proactively empower and mentor females for leadership roles and also give opportunities to ladies who are studying STEM related programmes,” the Human Resources Director added. The specific Initiatives include: STEM Participation – FESSP The unique programme embraces young female engineering students from various universities into Vodafone. Every year, the company gives the opportunity to promising young female students to realize their dream of becoming leaders of change in their chosen STEM careers. Presently over 40 young women under the initiative are working in various roles within the business. Over 20 of previous beneficiaries are gainfully employed in various industries across the globe. Women Mentoring Group There exist internal female groups

that continue to provide guidance, motivation, emotional support, and role modelling for younger women. These groups spanning Women in Vodafone, Women in Tech and Women in Finance are also championing initiatives out there that are driving gender equality. Recruiting Talent During recruitment, Vodafone ensures that candidates’ skills and capabilities are priority. Line managers are encouraged to give females the chance so long as they are capable. Departments that are very male dominated also have targets to recruit females when they do get vacancies. Reconnect Through the ‘Reconnect’ programme, Vodafone continues to attract talented women who have left the workplace for several years and would like to return to work on a full-time or flexible basis. Three ladies are part of staff via the programme with an eye on increasing enrollment. Gender-friendly Policies “Our maternity policy and parental leave policy have affirmed our commitment to diversity and inclusion and position us as an employer of choice. Vodafone is arguably the first organisation to

Vodafone brought relief to over 20,000 distressed pregnant women through a free community ultrasound scan project designed to provide timely maternal health care solutions to deprived communities across the country. Gender Violence – Ark Transit Shelter Vodafone completed and handedover a transit shelter to Ark Foundation, a non-governmental organization, to support and accommodate domestic violence victims in Ghana. The transit shelter project was funded by Vodafone employees and supported by the Foundation. Digital and Financial Skills for 1,500 Women Vodafone partnered the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to empower 1,500 women in the informal sector with digital and financial skills in the Upper East region. The initiative trained women, mostly found in the Agricprocessing sector, in savings, food security, business improvement; whilst equipping them with financial services through Vodafone’s mobile money platform. The project is also expected to bring indirect benefit to 10,000 households in the region. Conclusion As a global brand, Vodafone Ghana embodies inclusion in the selection and composition of its executive management and the stellar initiatives it has trumpeted over the years to entrench its position as a company remembered for being particular about inclusion.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Breaking the bias, the Old Mutual Ghana way

ias – /ˈbʌɪəs/ – A strong feeling in favour of or against one group of people, or one side in an argument, often not based on fair judgement. Different groups throughout history and across geographical divides have and continue to be subjected to unfair treatment as a result of prejudice. No group has borne the brunt of this phenomenon than women. Bias against women in the workplace manifests itself in various forms, from unequal pay to promotion disproportions, and incidents of sexual harassment and despite recent gains, biases against women, particularly in the workplace persist. Women in the workplace are often subjected to various manifestations of microaggressions including offensive statements or insensitive questions related to capability, marriage, childbirth, and age. Women are constantly subjected to: Negative Bias: This occurs when women are not given certain opportunities mainly for the fact that they are just women and do not qualify to attain that role. Benevolent Bias: This happens when a woman is treated specially or shielded because she is seen to be weak. Agentic Bias: Women who act very tough or ambitious are usually rejected as they are assumed to be taking on some characteristics of men. Motherhood bias: Some institutions usually discriminate against the inclusion of mothers; they are usually excluded from certain activities such as late-night meetings and travels. Others also prefer hiring single women to mothers for the same reasons. The Old Mutual Way- a diverse and inclusive culture As an institution with a rich history spanning more than 176 years and in 13 African Countries, Old Mutual has witnessed the rapid progress made in workplace gender equality. Across the Group’s Africa footprint, Old Mutual has demonstrated its commitment to creating inclusive environment and championing women in a multitude of ways both within and beyond the organization. Women In Leadership Positions Old Mutual company culture has seen the number of women on our Ghana management team currently stand at seven, against four men, making a total of 63 percent of women in leadership over men, which is unusually higher than Corporate Ghana’s average. Additionally, there is equal access to many coaching and mentorship opportunities for both men and women within the company. Old Mutual Ghana also conducts continuous education of employees on unconscious gender bias, ensures transparency and equality in salaries, provides development opportunities to enable women to transition to higher-skilled roles as well as resources to improve well-being and mental health.

The organization also provides a conducive support system for mothers, knowing that it is a critical part of society’s continuity. As such, the company provides a four- month maternity leave versus the usual three-month to cushion new mothers. Old Mutual Ghana also has a significant element of diversity at the Board level, with a female Board Chairperson, Mrs. Helen Amerley Opoku-Agyemang. The brand believes that successful individuals should be the best qualified for that role, however, we also seek to have an appropriate balance of skills, experience and diversity represented on the company board. Employee Experience From the Women’s Summit in 2011 to the Old Mutual Women’s Network started in 2016 and several other initiatives spanning all corners of the continent, the company has consistently worked towards fostering gender equality and women empowerment. This has been established by creating a wellstructured system that allows for the recruitment of most qualified women and by giving them the platform to grow and climb up the ladder, devoid of the aforementioned prejudices. At Old Mutual Ghana, our long-term strategy is to empower women through the Old Mutual Women’s Network initiative (OWN). This is an initiative held across all countries on the continent where Old Mutual operates. OWN is an all-female platform for Old Mutual team members to get together and support each other, to grow and empower themselves and in that way make a real difference in the communities they operate in. It is centered on 6 pillars: community, outreach, networking, and social activities, coaching and mentoring, diversity and inclusivity, care and share, as well as empowerment in business acumen. Lasting impact All these initiatives have helped in the company as there has been gender equality,

free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. This ensures a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for all to succeed. An environment where difference is valued and celebrated. The belief is that ultimately, an empowered Old Mutual woman will have an impact and add value within the Old Mutual Group first and then in the marketplace and community at large. For us at Old Mutual, on the occasion of International Women’s Day (IWD) 2022, we say to women and men alike – “Do great things every day.” “Break the bias and say no to gender inequality.” It is undeniable that the push for gender parity and balance has yielded good results, however, we are not where we should be, but we will get there. Everyone has a role to play in forging a gender-balanced world but for women living within a deeply cultural society, the onus is on everyone to push harder through actions to challenge stereotypes, broaden perceptions, break the bias, improve situations and celebrate achievements that showcase the benefits of the gender-balanced world we are trying to create. Old Mutual Ghana seeks to celebrate and uphold women who are breaking the bias in every field. We uphold these exceptional ladies and encourage them to keep up the great work. Old Mutual Ghana is part of Old Mutual Limited (OML). It is a leading financial institution with an innovative record in offering the best in insurance and pensions services. Founded in South Africa, Old Mutual has been consistent in championing mutually positive futures by offering excellent financial services to a wide range of customers across the African continent. It operates with a skilled knowledge of the Ghanaian market backed by an expertise of an international brand. In Ghana, the company is currently made up of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited and Old Mutual Pensions Trust. The Group also operates in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Namibia and Tanzania.

| NEWS

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

CWG Ghana partners with toCode Technologies to introduce Digid in Ghana Digid, a digital onboarding and identity verification system, is about to be launched in Ghana’s technology market, enabling businesses across multiple sectors, and specially in banking and financial services sector. This solution will help businesses to onboard new customers from anywhere, at any time, and via any channel. ToCode Technologies is a deep tech company specialising in the development of cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) solutions. On March 17, 2022, toCode along with CWG Ghana will host a sensitization event titled ‘Digital Customer Experience - A Profitable Journey!’. Industry professionals from throughout Africa are expected to attend and contribute. The traditional customer onboarding process, particularly in banks, requires the customer to be present in-person at the branch and provide all relevant papers along with the application form. This application will then be processed via a series of processes that validate the customer’s eligibility and complete the customer’s KYC. This manual or semi-manual procedure is not only unsustainable in an increasingly

digital age, but also limits new business opportunities too. Digid enables banks and other organisations to onboard customers remotely from the comfort of their homes using their mobile phones. Customers will no longer be required to appear in person at branch locations to apply for loans or other products and services. Ramesh Kannan, Founder and CEO of toCode Technologies said: “The timing and introduction of Digid cannot be more right, as the main theme of any business has been digitalization for a few years now, and Digid fits right in. In Ghana, the government is working to centralise the identification verification process around the Ghana National ID Card, and Digid’s capabilities perfectly complement this effort, increasing value and facilitating adoption.” stated Mr Kannan. Digid is a digital solution for onboarding new clients and verifying their identification. Using Digid, banks and businesses can process more applications and, as a result, acquire more customers too. Businesses can now offer their services more quickly by automating the whole onboarding process. “Net-net, Banks can use Digid to process 10 times more applications

Harriet Attram Yartey, Managing Director of CWG Ghana

than before with better accuracy and lesser cost. Besides, businesses will also be able to give their customers faster access to their products and services, which can only lead to one thing; a happy customer and a good brand value,” Mr. Ramesh Kannan indicated. Apart from delivering a more feature-rich solution than the competition, Digid distinguishes itself by offering a full product suite that supports the end-to-end onboarding process. Comparable solutions in the market provide

either ‘Onboarding’ or ‘Identity verification’ functionality. Howerver, Digid addresses both the requirements and provides unique advantage in places where both are required. Harriet Yartey, Managing Director of CWG Ghana, added that: “The partnership with toCode Technologies adds significant value not just in terms of the AI (artificial intelligence) and cutting-edge technology they bring to the table, but also in terms of how they solve business challenges as well. Digitilization has been a priority for companies in Ghana over the past several years, and we couldn’t be more enthusiastic about what Digid has to offer in this area.” About Digid Digid is a digital onboarding and identity verification solution that enables businesses including banking and financial service providers, insurance companies, stockbrokers, pension fund houses, non-banking financial corporations, Fintechs, crypto and healthcare to onboard their customers by instantly validating their identity. This ensures that the needed digital inclusion of clients from both immediate and remote areas are effectively safeguarded.

Hungary’s Water Retainer technology to help address drought in tree crops in Ghana A new water retainer technology to help address drought and dehydration in tree crops and cocoa has been imported into Ghana from Hungary and is to be supplied to farmer groups and co-operatives recognised by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The Hungarian technology is to help address the current challenges of drought and dehydration in Ghana and adverse effects of climate change. According to the Chairman of the Ghanaian Hungarian Business Council, Kofi Asmah, this is a positive development that will be another important milestone in bilateral relations and a timely intervention as the planting season commences across Ghana. He indicated that there are funds available from the Hungary EXIM Bank to support viable and sustainable projects that are approved in agriculture, water and sewage sectors. The development is following

the recent visit by the Hungarian President, János Áder to Ghana, who after talks with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo described Ghana as a country with a “promising economy and a stable, democratic system” which occupies a “prominent role” in Hungary’s Africa policy. The talks between the two presidents touched on two model farms built in Ghana with Hungarian assistance, using Hungarian experience in developing grains and plants that tolerate various climates. The unpredictable rainfall pattern in Ghana due to climate change means that most tree crop and cocoa farmers in the Ashanti, Bono, Ahafo and Western North regions are likely to miss production targets this year. This has severe implications for Ghana’s economy which relies heavily on returns from the export of cocoa and other tree crops. The water retainer developed by

Hungarian company, Water&Soil Kft is an organic soil conditioner that helps plants to take-up water and diminish the effects of drought and dehydration. Supply Water&Soil has pledged to supply water retainer to all farmers in

Ghana whose crops are affected by the harsh weather conditions. Water retainer has already been evaluated on cocoa, vegetables and other crops and was approved by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in 2020.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Breaking the Bias; Top 5 women in the Ghanaian tech/e-commerce space By Bennet Otoo, Jumia Ghana

March 8 all over the world is celebrated as International Women’s Day (IWD) and this year has been no exception. From event celebrations to social media posts, women have been celebrated everywhere which is encouraging. However, the entire month of March is celebrated as women’s month. This is a period where the achievements of women should be highlighted to serve as motivation and inspiration to the younger generation while reminding everyone of the importance of women in our societies. Below, we take a look at a few women who have excelled in the Ghanaian technology/ecommerce industry. They are leading the way to #BreakTheBias In no particular order, let’s celebrate these ‘’sheroes’’. 1.TOLULOPE GEORGE-YANWAH JUMIA GHANA)

(CEO,

From the e-commerce sector comes a woman who is resourceful, committed and passionate about growth. Tolu is Nigerian by birth and was educated at the Lagos State University. She leads a team of exciting young minds in Ghana and has successfully steered the company into arguably the leading e-commerce platform in Ghana at the moment. She has previously held roles such as Country Manager and VP of Jumia Logistics, Last Mile Expansion Manager, and Regional Dispatch Operations Manager. She has also served as Field Distribution Manager at MDS Logistics, Nigeria. She holds both a Bachelor’s and Master of Applied Science degrees from the University of Lagos, Nigeria. #BreakTheBias

key roles during this period. Her experience and professionalism have helped inspire many young women in Ghana and beyond. She is very passionate about promoting girls in STEM and therefore through her work with various institutions and social bodies seek to impact girls taking their place in an ever-increasing digital world. #BreakTheBias

3.ANITA WIAFE-ASINOR (FOUNDER/CEO, OML AFRICA & GWIB) A woman of many talents and endeavours, Anita is the Founder/CEO of OML Africa, the founder of Ghana Women in Business (GWIB) and the executive secretary of the E-commerce Association of Ghana (ECAG). She is a graduate of both the London Metropolitan University and the Birkbeck Univerity, London. Mrs Asinor-Wiafe aims to help break the bias for women by raising awareness on the benefits of gender equality at the workplace concerning family-friendly HR policies, pay equity and sexual harassment policies. She wants to champion economic freedom for women. #BreakTheBias

2.MRS. PATRICIA VODAFONE GHANA)

OBO-NAI

(CEO,

A self-driven professional and passionate leader with over 20 years of working experience in the telecommunication industry. Mrs Obo-Nai is a commercial business leader committed to returning value to shareholders through an engaged and motivated team. Mrs Obo-Nai has worked with multinational tech entities like Millicom Ghana and Vodafone Ghana holding many

4.MIISHE ADDY (CO-FOUNDER & CEO, JETSTREAM AFRICA) Miishe has 12 years of experience in strategy, analysis & legal transactions, including for Wachtell Lipton and Bain & Company in New York, where she was a top-ranked analyst. She has also worked for leading development organizations in the United States, South America, and Sub-Saharan Africa, including TechnoServe, ProMujer and Global Partnerships. Before Jetstream, Miishe served as a fellow for MEST Africa in Accra, Ghana, where she mentored aspiring software entrepreneurs and developed the market insights behind Jetstream. She earned an honours BA in Philosophy from Harvard College and a JD from Stanford Law School. She lives in Accra, Ghana. She believes in empowering girls and women to be leaders and game-changers in society through hard work, determination and self-belief. #BreaktheBias

5.ROSY FYNN (COUNTRY HEAD, M A S T E R C A R D FOUNDATION) Award-winning business and change leader with over a decade’s executive-level experience building and transforming organizations. Rosy’s experience spans the technology, financial services, consulting and insurance industries. She is passionate about mentoring young women to follow careers in STEM. She is currently the Ghana Country Head for the Mastercard Foundation. With diverse leadership experiences like Marketing Director at Airtel Ghana Limited, General Manager at BIMA Ghana and CEO at Busy Internet, she remains a real icon and role model to many young girls and women who aspire to such heights. #BreakTheBias There are many great women doing amazing work in the tech/e-commerce space in Ghana and should be celebrated. Women are special and there are endless possibilities for every woman. With the right support, mentoring and opportunities, there is great potential out there. Women should never be limited by gender. Women are capable. Together let’s #BreakTheBias

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Overcoming gender bias should be a fight for all By Patricia Obo-Nai, CEO of Vodafone Ghana

s the world commemorates International Women’s Day on 8th March, with several workshops, and activities, it is critical that we remember the end aim. Accelerate gender equality and empower all women and girls by 2030, which is Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5. Indeed, attaining equality will also positively affect the outcomes of several other goals. If women are empowered, we will be able to improve digital and financial inclusion, contribute to society and the economy, and help secure and preserve the environment for future generations. This is why it is unquestionably necessary to change the current trajectory in order to make the needed impact. The continuous lack of representation of women in political and economic decision-making constitutes a threat to women’s empowerment and gender equality. This should be a source of worry for males, who have an equal responsibility to play in addressing these challenges. Both men and women must step-up their efforts for equality, build on the foundation that has already been established, make the required investments, develop partnerships with the corporate sector and civil society, and hold individuals responsible for their actions. This will drive significant improvement and the changes that are desperately needed. “Break the Bias”, the theme for this year’s celebration, can be described as the propensity to favour one gender over another based on preconceived notions and attitudes. This theme could not have come at a better time for me, as gender bias and stereotype are the root cause of the imbalance. As humans, we unintentionally create these biases, which ultimately impact how we interact with others. Until recently, test books and magazines depicted women as nurses and men as doctors. Even though girls tend to excel in math and science courses through high school, the perception is that girls do well in arts and written courses while boys are great at math and science. For me, ‘’Break the Bias’’ is about leading and excelling where society expects women to fail. Women in Ghana and across the world are transforming various industries by driving change and innovation in businesses and government. Businesses in the western world, especially in Asia and the Pacific regions, have discovered that putting women in leadership positions is good for business and good for the overall economy, and are deliberately

pursuing this. So how do we break the bias and gender stereotypes? Challenge the Patriarchal Systems We live in a world where males have greater authority and women are mostly marginalized. While this is increasingly changing, we should all make that commitment, realign our thinking, and embrace the basic reality that women and men are equal and deserve equal opportunities. For every decision made, look at things objectively with a genderoriented lens. More Role Models Many young girls’ self-esteem, professional desire, and job prospects have increased as a result of seeing and engaging with women in leadership. Together with other leaders, we have been working hard to raise awareness and provide opportunities for many more women. Our fight for gender equality is on a critical path and we need more role models. Support Women into Leadership Roles Across Vodafone, our ambition is for women to hold at least 45% of management and leadership roles by 2030 and have instituted policies that support women at every stage of their professional lives. Many organisations

like Vodafone have also established gender targets for each function in order to help break the bias. Create Policies that Empower Women Create policies that enable effective evaluation of people’s genuine potential and mitigate the influence of biased judgment, particularly during recruiting. Furthermore, it is important that you establish unbiased and non-discriminatory policies that ensures employees have a proper way to comment or report on inappropriate treatment in the workplace. The whole drive for gender equality is simply to ensure that ones’ responsibilities and opportunities will not depend on whether they were born male or female. It should not be seen as a fight for supremacy or a competition between men and women. As women, we only want to be able to use our untapped ideas, innovation, and talent for the good of society, country and the world. We will only win by fighting stereotypes, discrimination and biases. As individuals, we have a duty to challenge harmful gender norms and beliefs. All in all, overcoming gender inequality is a victory for everyone.

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Inspired by Ashesi, the African Development University sets new example in the Sahel

ears before Kader Kaneye enrolled for his Master’s Degree in 2016, he had already decided what he wanted to do with the rest of his career. Having grown up in Niger, Kaneye was among less than 1% of his peers to have gained a university education; today, tertiary enrolment in Niger is approximately 4% of the country’s 24 million people. He had closely followed the work and seen the impact of another West African institution - Ashesi University and its founder. In Kaneye’s mind, the Sahel needed institutions like Ashesi, built for the unique context of the region’s needs and opportunities but committed to similar principles of educating ethical, entrepreneurial leaders. Based on his own experiences with high impact education, Kaneye understood the difference it could make in Niger. In 2017, with an old building donated to help launch the university and a dedicated group of volunteers and partners, Kaneye and his co-founder Meredith Segal decided to establish the non-profit African Development University in Niamey. Their mission is to educate young people in the Sahel to become ethical leaders with the requisite knowledge, skills, and commitment to create the future of their nations. The university has nearly 300 students, with 70% receiving scholarships and two-thirds of all students being women. In 2020, it became the first in the Sahel to join the Mastercard Foundation’s Scholars Programme network - a group of highimpact universities worldwide working with the Foundation to prepare young people to lead meaningful careers and transform the most underserved communities. In under five years, the African Development University, one of nine universities in Niger, has quickly gained a reputation for transformative education. Kaneye credits a lot of the African Development University’s success to the support he received from the Education Collaborative - a significant programme led by Ashesi University to support universities like his grow and thrive in Africa. The programme was started in 2017, around the same time as the African Development University, to harness the collective work of higher education institutions in Africa for the continent’s transformation. The African Development University:

A Case Study For Effective Collaboration in African Higher Education With Africa’s youth population continuing to snowball, high-quality universities and other educational institutions are needed more than ever to teach the skills and leadership necessary to make the most of this opportunity. At Ashesi, the consensus was resounding. Rather than replicate our model in other places, partnering with other universities to increase access to quality education would be more impactful for the teaching and learning outcomes needed across the continent. “It’s not that Sub-Saharan Africa is not working intently to scale up access to access to higher education; it is,” shared Ashesi President Patrick Awuah, speaking at a TED Conference in 2018. “What is not being done yet, is the scaling up of quality and effectiveness. The way we teach is wrong for today. It is even worse for tomorrow, given the challenges before us. And yet, the size of Africa’s educational challenges is too large for any one institution to tackle. The continent will need exemplary institutions of learning, clustered in East, West, Central, North and South Africa that serve as beacons to others; that are uncompromising in achieving quality in teaching, research and innovation; and that act as magnets for our best and brightest to stay on the continent.” Some 159 institutions have participated in Education Collaborative activities to date, with 116,000 students being the direct beneficiaries of reforms and programmes focused on strengthening learning and career outcomes. Thanks to a significant partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, the Education Collaborative aims to have reached over 1,000,000 students by 2030 - an ambitious goal for all stakeholders involved. The African Development University has been one of the early beneficiaries of the Collaborative’s mentorship programmes, focused on helping new universities find the expertise, teaching and administrative support, and funding resources needed to start strong. Reaching one million students by 2030: the future of the Education Collaborative Over the next decade, the Education Collaborative’s work will focus on supporting three outcome areas within education:

the teaching of entrepreneurship skills, ethics and leadership, and career and employability support. Member institutions in the Collaborative will include these outcome areas in their strategic priorities and contribute to developing shareable insights and expertise across the network. To engage more effectively with institutions across the continent, the Education Collaborative will also establish hubs in various regions across the continent, with West and East Africa being the first regions to launch them. Hubs will be co-led by a selected group of Education Collaborative partners in the region who will commit resources and expertise to support others in developing and improving outcomes. The Education Collaborative’s East Africa hub, started in 2021, was led by eight partner universities. University leaders present at the launch of the hub were Paul Swaga (President, Davis College, Rwanda), Prof. Robert Gateru (Vice Chancellor, Riara University, Kenya), Eric Saulo (Director, Advancement and External Relations, Strathmore University, Kenya), Prof. Samuel Gudu (Vice-Chancellor, Rongo University, Kenya), Prof. Daniel Mugendi (Vice Chancellor, University of Embu, Kenya), David Mutabanura (Executive Director, Cavendish University, Uganda), Dr. Bonn Jonyo (Principal Research Officer, United States International University – Africa (USIU), Kenya), and Prof. Baylie Yeshita (Vice Chancellor, Kepler, Rwanda). “What we have achieved in the last five years could have taken twenty years if we did not have the support of Ashesi and the Education Collaborative,” shared Kaneye during a welcome event for his university’s first class of Mastercard Foundation Scholars. “When we started, we just wanted to help solve a problem, but we didn’t have the tools and network. We kept hearing the same language from many others: we will help you; when you need anything, reach out to us. But when we did, no one answered. Ashesi and the Education Collaborative were the ones that answered. They answered, and they came here to build with us. Without imposing their learnings and ideals on us, this has helped us define our path and tailor a solution in higher education that works for the Sahel region.”

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FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

82pct of Ghanaian firms upbeat about AfCFTA as public awareness soars to 53pct—Survey A COVID-19 Business tracker survey conducted on some 4,800 local businesses in the country by the Ghana Statistical Service with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Bank has shown an increased awareness about the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with majority of them banking on the Single Continental Market to drive the rapid transformation of their ventures. The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) survey sought to determine the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Ghanaian business community and how the AfCFTA could accelerate their recovery. The exercise was conducted along the three waves of the virus pandemic with each result highlighting the significance of the AfCFTA to the growth and recovery of the local business community. According to the report, as at November 202o, about 26% of Ghanaian businesses knew about

the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with MSMEs having the least levels of awareness. But after the third wave survey that was conducted at the end of 2021 when the AfCFTA had taken off, the level of awareness about the single continental market more than doubled to about 53%. Also, optimism about the potential of the agreement to transform local businesses was very high with 82% of them very upbeat about the single market counting on the expected removal of trade barriers and customs harmonization. “In terms of disaggregation, this optimism is very high among the very large firms; and this is what we all need because it is these companies that are going to drive the GDP of the economy”. “As a country, we need to leverage on this to see how the implementation of the AfCFTA will actually lead to the transformation of businesses,” Government Statistician, Prof. Kobina Annim, told Single African Market in an

interview. The COVID-19 Business tracker survey was to establish the severity of harm caused to local businesses as a result of the virus pandemic and to ascertain the expected channels of recovery, having in mind the take-off of the AfCFTA and its expected benefits to the trading community. The survey also solicited for recommendations and support actions from the government at

both the national and regional levels. “We (Ghana Statistical Service) are glad to give implementers of the AfCFTA agreement some baseline information and clarity on the single market and we are working on the fourth wave of the tracker; what we now have to do is to sit with the implementers of the agreement to identify the areas for maximum impact and productivity,” he added.

ETLS Taskforce visits Ghana to assess alleged collection of duty on transit goods to Benin

The ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) Taskforce has organized its first mission to Benin concerning the alleged illegal imposition and charging of duties and taxes on goods transiting through the Republic of Benin. The visit was facilitated by the Borderless Alliance following the disclosure of the worrisome situation by some economic actors that their trade along the AbidjanLagos corridor to neighboring countries including landlocked countries have been made very

expensive. “We are having challenges with Benin as to the movement of export goods where they demand full payment of duties before your goods can cross their borders; they don’t usually go by the rules,” an aggrieved Secretary of the Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders, Abijah Osabutey-Ayor earlier told Single African Market. Headded:“Theytreatconsignments from the Francophone bloc preferentially than goods coming from Anglophone countries, adding

so much cost to doing business along this corridor.” Upon this and many other revelations, the taskforce, led by Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, and a delegation from the ECOWAS Commission and the Borderless Alliance held a private sector roundtable discussion that was convened by the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce. The taskforce also held a governmental dialogue with the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the National AfCFTA Coordination Office at the AfCFTA Trade House. Chairman of the ETLS Taskforce, Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, having listened to the concerns of the various trade actors, passionately suggested that the subregion considers marine transport as the viable means of cross-border trade across the bloc to tackle the numerous harassments and illegalities that are perpetuated along the road corridors. “Sometimes ago, there was an ECOWAS effort through Eco-Marine to do that so as to increase the volumes of goods that are moved across the sub-region and more importantly, reduce the incidence

of harassments and unauthorized charges associated with road transport” the Head of the ETLS Taskforce echoed. He also urged the sub-region to equally place priority on rail transportation of trade goods: “We should also be seriously looking at cross-country rail where most of the illegalities will be circumvented.” H.E. Dr. Chambas advised. The second team of the ETLS Taskforce of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was officially inaugurated on Tuesday December 14, 2021, in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. H.E. Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas, the new head of the taskforce and six other prominent team members were officially unveiled in a colourful ceremony that was attended by top leadership of the ECOWAS Commission, government officials and members of the Burkinabe government. The taskforce wrapped up their visit in Ghana with a courtesy call to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration before heading to Abuja and Cotonou for planned high-level discussions.

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Zoomlion deploys over 400 workers to clean Central Region for Independence Day Celebration Waste management giant, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, has disclosed that it deployed over 400 personnel to ensure the Central Region, which hosted the 65th Independence anniversary parade, was clean. According to the company, its personnel started work from Kasoa to Cape Coast where they engaged in painting of road kerbs, cleaning the environment as well as hoisting flags on the main roads from Kasoa to the Cape Coast stretch. Speaking to journalists during the Independence Day parade on Sunday, March 6. 2022, in Cape Coast, Central Region, the Public Jobs Manager of Zoomlion in the Central Region, Robert Kingsley Ayemi, said his team which started work before the 6th Match, will continue to work even after the event to ensure that the Cape Coast Sports Stadium, the venue of the event and its surrounding communities, were always clean. “We deployed over 400 YEA personnel on every street in the region right down from Kasoa. Even after the clean-up exercise, we were painting kerbs along the road, hoisted flags from Kasoa through to Winneba, Mfantsiman, Yamoransah and then to Cape Coast,” he said. Mr Ayemi indicated that prior to

the event, the National Committee tasked to see to the successful running of the event charged his outfit to make sure the venue and the entire region were clean, adding that the 65th Independence Day celebration was marked in a clean environment. “Before the start of the event,

the National Committee met with Zoomlion to handle waste management issues at the venue and the region. We initially began with series of clean-up exercises at the Central regional capital, Cape Coast, where our personnel were mandated to pick every liter on the floor, and this is how we achieved

success during the event,” he explained. Zoomlion will be working hand in hand with the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly to ensure that the venue is clean even after the event, Mr. Ayemi assured.

Izwe Savings & Loans earmark GHc150m for SMEs Izwe Savings & Loans Plc has earmarked GHc150m to support the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) sector this year. This commitment aims to strengthen the resilience of specific sectors and enhance their capacity to grow and create employment in the economy. SMEs remain a critical sector of the economy. Building resilience amid COVID-19 remains a challenge for most SMEs to resolve. The Government statistician Professor Samuel Kobina Annim asserts that “COVID-19 has undoubtedly had a devastating impact on households, businesses and the local economy in Ghana” As a development oriented financial institution, Izwe Savings & Loans Plc is poised to work together with SMEs in identifiable segments as such wholesalers and retailers in the building materials, beverages, frozen foods, spare parts, secondhand clothing, pharmaceuticals, stationery, healthcare, education, agriculture, and transportation subsectors. The Chief Executive Officer,

Raymond Kwakye Bismarck, reiterated that, “analysing the continuous impact of COVID-19 on SMEs, we have come to the realisation that it is important to do our bit as a business with the resources, facilities and know how

to help businesses get back on their feet because without them the economy suffers.” Izwe Savings and Loans Plc is a subsidiary of the Izwe Africa Group, which is headquartered in Mauritius and has operations in South Africa

with subsidiaries in 3 other African countries, Zambia, Kenya and Ghana. After 10 years of doing business in Ghana, Izwe has 10 retail outlets and currently seeking approval for 2 more branches in Tema and Kasoa as well as 4 sales centres in 8 regions of Ghana. The company proudly employs over 200 staff over 500 trusted agents across the country. Izwe has been able to provide educational support to 138,166 people; enhanced the home and family lives of 88,142; helped 25,421 businesses to grow in three, years and helped 21,360 people save for their future. In the past year alone, Izwe has supported 285 SMEs. The impact of this support on businesses has been great hence the need to extend this support to all SMEs who need it. With support from the Izwe Africa Group, whose successful track record remains undoubted across Africa, Izwe indeed one of the most promising, trusted, and respected financial institutions in Ghana.

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

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Africa in united affirmation to achieve sustainable development

frican countries recommitted to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by building better through investing in green growth to unlock the continent’s development opportunities. Confirming Africa’s capacity to drive sustainable development, African governments have reaffirmed commitment to meeting the SDGs at the 8th Session of the African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD), held in Kigali, Rwanda, 3-5 March 2022. The ARFSD is an annual multi-stakeholder platform organized jointly by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and host governments in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank and other entities of the United Nations system to review and catalyze actions to achieve the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted by United Nations Member States in September 2015. More than 1800 participants comprising ministers, senior officials, experts and practitioners from United Nations Member States, the private sector, civil society, academia and United Nations organizations and high-level representatives of the Governments of 54 ECA members states participated at the 8th ARFSD held under the theme, ‘Building forward better: a green, inclusive and resilient Africa poised to achieve the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063’. The two agendas provide a synergistic framework for achieving inclusive and people-centered sustainable development in the region. Opening the forum, the President of Rwanda, H.E., Paul Kagame, called on African countries to be assertive and build better using Agenda 2063 as a blueprint despite many challenges that have reversed Africa’s development gains. Covid, a springboard not set back Despite the impact of COVID-19 on the economic and health sectors in Africa, the continent can achieve sustainable development. Africa should view the pandemic not as setback but a springboard to recover and build better on its development

programmes. Africa must build multilateral partnerships and strengthen capacities in the manufacturing of vaccines and pharmaceuticals, Mr Kagame implored delegates. “Africa should prioritize domestic resource mobilisation to finance its development particularly its national health care system,” said Mr Kagame, whose country has vaccinated 70 percent of its population. “Building the Africa we want is up to us,” Kagame noted, emphasizing that strong mechanisms are needed to monitor and change the implementation of the SDGs. “We have to own and lead the process and support one another. That’s why these agendas [2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063] are important because it is about achieving the stability and sustainability of our continent.” United Nations Deputy Secretary General, Amina Mohammed noted that the pandemic had caused disappointment for global solidarity and African economies, especially in education and health systems, worsened by insufficient access to the Internet and sustainable, affordable energy. Ms Mohamed called on member States to focus on the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063, highlighting five priority areas for action: first, ending the pandemic and building resilience to future shocks; second, scaling up climate resilience, with developed countries honouring their pledges; third, just transitions in energy and food systems; fourth, recovering education losses; and fifth, supporting gender equality actions. Addressing the Forum, UN Under-SecretaryGeneral and Executive Secretary of ECA, Vera Songwe, highlighted that despite the impact of COVID -19 on Africa’s recovery efforts, the continent was poised for many wins. Citing that African countries suffered vaccine apartheid and had to look within for success. She mentioned that 53% of African countries have vaccines in country that are not being used and 7 countries on the continent have succeeded in vaccinating 70% of their population. “Our economies will not recover if we do not vaccinate,” Ms Songwe said, commending Rwanda’s vaccination success. “Rwanda has been able to get the vaccines and Rwanda has been able use the vaccines, so it is not impossibility that Africa totally can get the

vaccines and use the vaccines.” The ARFSD is also a platform for peer learning, including on voluntary national reviews and voluntary local reviews by subnational entities mandated by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and acts as one of three multi-stakeholder platform mechanisms that follow-up on reviews and consolidates actions meant to achieve the SDGs. ECA’s Director of Technology, Climate Change and Natural Resources, Jean Paul Adam, noted that current assessments of the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063 implementation progress indicate that most African nations are offtrack to achieve the targets and set goals of the two development blueprints within the set timeframe. “The unprecedented impact of COVID-19 and climate change have for the time being dented and slowed Africa’s quest to realize both agendas,” Mr Adam noted, explaining that past forums have identified gaps and areas of weaknesses in realizing the dual agendas and offered solution pathways. The 2022 forum appraised on the implementation of five of the 17 SDGs, on quality education (SDG 4); gender equality (SDG 5), life below water (SDG 14); life on land (SDG 15) and partnerships for the goals (SDG 17). While a sliver of good news against the COVID-19 pandemic reflects resilience and recovery through vaccines rollouts, health preparedness and responses, Africa has shown its willingness to overcome and prevail over its complex development challenges, Mr Adam said. Africa’s COP 27 Ms Songwe underlined that Africa must win at the forth coming Conference of Parties (COP27) negotiations to be held in Egypt by expressing a collective voice that Africa is sequestering three years of carbon emissions. “If Africa was not sequestering three years of carbon emissions, we would have passed the 1.5 mark by now. Africa is protecting the world. Africa needs to be compensated justly through market mechanisms,” she said. The ECA has undertaken analysis, which shows how African countries could multiply revenues by tapping into carbon markets. The Executive Secretary highlighted how Africa could mobilise trillions, stating “this is the victory that Africa needs to take to Sharm El Sheikh. We must put a price to carbon because we have been good, because we have protected our environment.” The Forum called for the Glasgow Climate Pact to establish an ambitious and reasonable price for carbon, aligned with the objectives of the Paris Agreement. This would allow developing countries in Africa and elsewhere to mobilize adequate financial resources. The Forum released the Kigali Declaration in which it highlighted the successful deliberation of the 8th ARFSD and mandated Rwanda to represent the continent in presenting the commitments for discussion at the High-Level Political Forum on SDGs set for New York in July 2022.

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MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2022

The Giving Capsules: Celebrate International Women’s Day knowing things that causes women pain. BY BAPTISTA S. H.GEBU (MRS.)

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” - unknown

nternational Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. Significant activity is witnessed worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women’s achievements or rally for women’s equality. Marked annually on March 8th, International Women’s Day (IWD) is one of the most important days of the year to celebrate women’s achievements, raise awareness about women’s equality, lobby for accelerated gender parity and fundraise for female focused projects and charities. This is why prioritizing projects that focus on improving the health, education, well-being, and economic security of girls across the globe must be supported. The United Nations began celebrating International Women’s Day in 1975, which had been proclaimed the International Women’s Year. In 1977, the United Nations General Assembly invited member states to proclaim March 8 as an official UN holiday for women’s rights and world peace. Women deserve to be celebrated for their amazing contribution to society, extraordinary achievements and matchless courage as women continue to thrive to beat the odds. These are some of the best things to know about women in order not to cause them pain as all women need strength to empower, motivate and inspire each other to keep up the good fight. There are things that make women cry. As I create awareness about these, be an ambassador your own way to support changing the negative narrative. Before, some women were seen to supporting the ‘pull her down’ syndrome. Thanks, some level of success is chalked on this front to changing this negative narrative to a positive one. Be a 21st century positive minded-women who will support the call to lift at least one other women up each year then rather pulling her down. The theme for the 2022 International Women’s Day (IWD 2022) is, “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow” recognizing the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the change on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response among many others, to build a more sustainable future for all as well as achieving an equal future. Careers we believe must have no gender, so is leadership. To achieve gender

equality today for a sustainable tomorrow we need to work towards an equal future where all stakeholders are aware, understand and invest in women and girls. These things cause women pain. When we do not show love and appreciation to women for all the efforts made generally in all things, it gives women pain. Appreciate women the little way you can to keep them going. Childlessness gives women pain and this is the state of not having children. Childlessness may have personal, social or political significance. Childlessness may be by choice or circumstance. In the African culture, the true meaning of marriage is only fulfilled if the couple conceives and bears children put forward by Dyer SJ et al in their study on “You are a man because you have children…” Human Reproduction 19(4): 960–967. Africans consider their child to be a source of power and pride, and children act as insurance for their parents in old age. The most important aspect of bearing children is an assurance of family continuity. Anthropological and sociological studies bear testimony to the considerable suffering associated with involuntary childlessness due to negative psychosocial consequences such as marital instability, abuse and stigmatization. A study conducted on women by Gerrity DA (2001) on the biopsychosocial theory of infertility published in the Family Journal seeking infertility treatment in Southern Ghana revealed that infertile women used their internal coping strategies by keeping their fertility problem to themselves as a result of the stigma associated with it whilst others coped by drawing on their Christian faith. This Donkor ES, Sandall J (2009) confirmed in coping strategies of women seeking infertility treatment in Southern Ghana available in the African Journal of Reproductive Health 13(4): 81–93. A study on Reproductive health found out that, Infertility or childlessness is a global reproductive issue for both sexes yet often neglected and not discussed in public. It is generally believed that more than 70 million couples suffer from infertility worldwide. In SubSaharan Africa, the prevalence differs widely from 9% in the Gambia, 21.2% in northwestern Ethiopia, between 20 and 30% in Nigeria and 11.8% among women and 15.8% among men in Ghana. There are varying opinions on the definition of infertility. The lack of consensus on the prevalence of infertility is a consequence of differing definitions of infertility, the varying periods of time over which it is studied, and a failure to differentiate analytically between voluntarily

childlessness and involuntarily childlessness. However, the Ghana Demographic Health Survey reports that voluntary childlessness is not common in Ghana, and currently married women with no live births are likely to be those in relationships with fertility problems. Infertility has been defined as failure to conceive after one year of regular unprotected sexual intercourse in the absence of known reproductive pathology. However, epidemiological studies have revealed that in a normal population of heterosexually active women who are not using birth control methods, 25% will become pregnant in the first month, 63% within 6 months, and 80% within one year. By the end of a second year, 85% to 90% will have conceived. Because some couples, who are not infertile, may not be able to conceive within the first year of unprotected sex, the World Health Organisation therefore recommends the epidemiological definition of infertility, which is the inability to conceive within two years of exposure to pregnancy. Infertility may be primary or secondary. Primary infertility refers to infertility of women who have never conceived and secondary infertility refers to infertility of women who has conceived at least once before. The use of the ability of the female to conceive as a measure to differentiate between primary and secondary infertility is however problematic as it places couple infertility on the doorsteps of the female partners the study - Understanding the Social Meaning of Infertility and Childbearing: A Qualitative Study of the Perception of Childbearing and Childlessness in Northern Ghana found out. In spite of the statistics, women still suffer the worst of the blame for infertility problems. Infertility is also a problem socially because we live in a society where womanhood and manhood are generally tied to motherhood and fatherhood respectively. Please support that woman who involuntarily has not decided not to give birth and who is suffering as a result of circumstances beyond her control. Don’t stigmatize her nor call her names. Support her. By observation we can count a number of successful entrepreneurs, men of God and many others who are occupying big positions and suffering pain because a number of their children have become deviant in society; neglecting the right path. It is every mother’s joy to see her children grow on the right path. If that doesn’t happen as a result of combination of several factors beyond their control, please support your fellow women and don’t stigmatize her. Let’s stop the name calling. In Africa where marriage is so much desired, if you see a female marriage material and of age -who is still not married, offer her support

if you can so are single parents with children. Stop the name calling and stigmatization. When women suffer abuse and violence, it causes them pain. Let’s stop the abuse, violence, and stigma as well as the name calling. Currently, I can identify so many pressing issues facing women, and that includes violence against women and girls, which is the broader subject matter. It can be broken down to embrace—child marriage issues, intimate partner violence against mostly women, sexual harassment, and rape issues, trafficking in persons, violations against displaced women and girls. There are also girls’ education and women’s rights violations. The gender pay gap is trending due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This is because men and women in the same employment performing equal work must receive equal pay unless any difference in pay can be justified; our non–adherence to equal work for equal pay creates the “gender pay gap”. Non-universal access to the internet and digital illiteracy is equally pressing. Covid-19 has moved the world online. The virtual space is booming and is the newest cash cow. Most people especially women and girls do not know how to access this virtual space and are not digitally literate to take the opportunity of this new normal. Access to the internet becomes another obstacle that needs to be addressed. Poverty and stigma, under-representation of women in decision-making and in hems of affairs appear the most pressing issues to me now. “If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman” as put forward by Margaret Thatcher. Women, lets change the narrative by getting this done. Let’s stop causing pain to ourselves. Sisters, aunties, mothers, mothers-in-law, grandmas, friends and all men it’s our call. I encourage women to step up. Let’s not wait to be asked by anyone. Join me together to also pledge to stop causing pain to other fellow women. Baptista is a Hybrid Professional and the Executive Director of ProHumane Afrique International. ProHumane is a charitable, development & think thank organization working with communities & individuals to create sustainable solutions to transform communities through diverse pro-poor initiatives. Pro-poor initiatives are initiatives that help to alleviate poverty. Baptista is a realist, affable, simple and humane. You can reach her via e-mail on prohumaneafrique@gmail.com and follow this conversation on all our social media sites: Linked-In/ Twitter/ Facebook/ Instagram: ProHumane Afrique International. Call or WhatsApp: +233(0)262213313. Hashtag: #behumane #thegivingcapsules #prohumaneafriqueint #fowc

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

| F E AT U R E

Recognising efforts of women - Backbone of Ghanaian economy BY LINDA ARYEE EBALE , COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER, STANBIC BANK

istorically, women have always been the spine that holds Ghana’s economy in place. Doubting this will be denying the reality of things, at least from the Ghanaian perspective. Regardless of the fact that women’s roles and participation in economic activity have been defined along socio-cultural lines, women continuously make huge strides in different endeavours that keep making significant contributions to the Ghanaian economy. Available data show that women account for approximately 50 per cent of the labour force and are found in almost all kinds of economic activities in agriculture, industry and services. Women are also known to be the main actors in Ghana’s micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector – a sector that is known to be the anchor on which Ghana’s economy hangs. SME sector SMEs represent about 92 per cent of businesses, largely within the private sector, and contribute about 70 per cent of Ghana’s gross domestic product (GDP). In terms of formal sector employment, they account for just over half of all fulltime employment, with the percentage likely much higher in the informal sector. Within the Ghanaian SME sector, women hold a huge sway. According to the World Bank, 44 per cent of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Ghana are owned by women. On the African continent, apart from Uganda, Ghana has the most women entrepreneurs according to the 2019 MasterCard Index of Women Entrepreneurs. This shows the significance of women within Ghana’s socio-economic development and the need to give them more support. Women-owned businesses On the basis of the immeasurable contribution of women-owned and women-led businesses, in our socioeconomic development and the role they play in our everyday lives, it stands to reason that the country will benefit significantly by equipping and supporting these businesses to scale up with good business practices, technology and technical support, and of course, access to finance. This notwithstanding, women are not given the necessary support and recognition for their efforts in developing their communities. Data about the contribution of women to GDP is clear that when the efforts of women are given the support and recognition they deserve, society will be the ultimate beneficiary. But at Stanbic Bank we appreciate and acknowledge what women mean to the socio-economic development of our

society and when we enable them, to have unforgettable experiences in their private, social and economic lives, the nation becomes the ultimate beneficiary. It is in recognition of this fact that Stanbic Bank has over the years put in place deliberate interventions to ensure that women are fully supported to realise their full potential. Business incubator programme Leveraging our flagship business incubator hub, the SBIncubator, we have impacted over 21,000 women across the country through carefully developed programmes. Our tailor-made interventions include the ‘Women Entrepreneurship Festival’, an event that brings together women entrepreneurs and professionals from across the country, hungry for the advice, proven strategies, and connections needed to start and grow a business. The event creates a space for women to learn, grow, create opportunities and foster partnerships through conversations. Beyond this, we have also partnered the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development, to host the first ever workshop on handy skills for 50 women entrepreneurs. The workshop was focused on educating women business owners in the informal sector to build structures around their businesses and practise the act of bookkeeping. The bank, through the SBIncubator, has instituted the STEM for Girls Programming Bootcamp for young girls to put their skills to test by working in teams on a product of their choice. The SBIncubator, in collaboration with UNDP-SDP, Botswana, South Africa Youth

Forum, Divaloper and a few change makers, hosted the Women Power Talk, which saw a community of women change makers and leaders relentlessly commit to changing the status quo and breaking the bias. The event hosted the Deputy Minister of Information and Technology, Nana Ama Dokua Asiama Adjei, and the Namibian Presidential Advisor, Mrs Inge Zaamwani-Kamwi, to discuss how to leverage technology for entrepreneurship, economic inclusion and empowerment. Through our nurturing culture of learning and mentorship, the SBIncubator continues to provide women-led start-ups and female entrepreneurs with exceptional soft-skills and technical knowledge. We provided a platform to share the voices and stories of female entrepreneurs. Enjoying same rights As a member of the Standard Bank Group whose purpose is to drive Africa’s growth because it is our home, we believe we can only drive this growth if we play our part in ensuring that women and girls enjoy the same rights as men and boys. In the corporate world, that also means that we must create an enabling environment, free from bias, in which women are able to advance and succeed on the basis of merit and ability. As we recognise women and their contributions to building our societies this month, we recognise the efforts of Ghanaian women and Ghanaian entrepreneurs. Their efforts, as the backbone of this country’s economy, are recognised and most appreciated. On this note, we wish all women in Ghana a happy International Women’s Day

| TOURISM

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

Heritage Month…a focus on Tetteh Quarshie and youth involvement into tourism By Philip Gebu

ast two weeks, I did a story on the importance of chocolate to our nation Ghana and how Chocolate Day must help change the perception of the youth towards Valentine Day with greater focus on the important of the things associated with the cocoa heritage. A continuous mentioning of Chocolate Day by media will help banish the evil the so the called “Valentine’s Day” inflicted on our youth which has led to so much negativity. A church member told me how a 12-yearold who was supposed to be in church ended up in someone’s room and your guess is as good as mine as to what happened. A focus on cocoa and its many end products like Chocolate should help us understand the history of cocoa and one name which comes to mind is Tetteh Quarshie. As we all know, Cocoa production has been the backbone of Ghana’s economy since the 1870s. It dominates the agricultural sector and contributes about 30% of the country’s export earnings. Cocoa employs more than 800,000 farmers directly. It also supports the livelihoods of others in the commerce, service and industrial sectors of the Ghanaian economy. This makes it an important generator of revenue. Without cocoa, one wonders what might have happened to Ghana’s economy. The story is told that in (1842-1892) Tetteh Quarshie’s travels to Fernando Po (now Bioko in today’s Equatorial Guinea), and upon his return brought with him some cocoa beans. Tetteh Quarshie was born in 1842 to a farmer from Teshie known as Mlekuboi. His mother was known as Ashong-Fio from Labadi, both hailing from the GaDangme ethnic group. Tetteh Quarshie served as an apprentice in a Blacksmith’s shop at Akropong belonging to the Basel Missionaries. Due to his hardwork he soon became a Master blacksmith. Tetteh Quarshie was in fact the first blacksmith to be established at Akwapim-Mampong. His hobby was farming. In 1870, Tetteh Quarshie undertook a voyage to Fernando Po (Bioko in Equatorial Guinea). About six years later he returned to Ghana with several cocoa beans (the Amelonado) and made history. There are different stories told about how he brought in the cocoa beans. What matters is that today the cocoa beans are here and helping the Ghanaian economy. In 1879 Tetteh Quarshie planted the seeds at Mampong with some success. Friends and relatives also undertook the planting of cocoa when pods were distributed to them. Soon other farmers followed suit. It was only at this point that the Basel Missionaries stepped into the picture by

importing large quantities of the crop into the country. From the Gold Coast (Ghana) cocoa beans or cuttings were sent to other countries like Nigeria and Sierra Leone. The export of cocoa from Ghana began in 1891, the official exported in 1893 (two bags exported). Ghana once provided almost half of world output. Between 1910 and 1980 Ghana was the world’s largest exporter. This position was ceded due to bush fires etc. However, Ghana’s cocoa is still of the highest quality and the country earns hundreds of millions of dollars annually from the export of the beans and processed materials. Tetteh Quarshie died on Christmas Day of 1892. His relatives made a petition to the Gold Coast Government on February 25th, 1925 for a grant for the upkeep of some of Tetteh Quarshie’s relatives. The then Ghanaian Vice-Principal of Achimota College, Dr. J.E.K. Aggrey strenuously took up the appeal. His friend, Sir Gordon Guggisberg set up the Tetteh Quarshie Memorial Scholarship at Achimota College. Other honors were bestowed on him. Another petition was made in 1927 and the Government gave a sum of only 250 pounds, although Nana Sir Ofori Atta, speaking in the Legislative Council asked for 2,500 pounds, supported by Kojo Thompson. As the late Ghanaian Lawyer and Anthropologist, Dr. Isaac Ephson says in his “Gallery of Gold Coast Celebrities,” (p. 64) “This took the form of a more enduring memorial, which was set up at Achimota in honour of the pioneer of Ghana’s staple crop and the principal bulwark of the country’s economy. The memorial is Tetteh Quarshie House. And since Independence (1957) the Government of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah after petitions from Dr. J.B. Danquah and the Eastern Region House of Chiefs, has built a first-class hospital and fittingly named it after him at Mampong-Akwapim - TETTEH QUARSHIE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL. There’s also the Tetteh Quarshie farm where tourist visit to see the location where the first seedlings that was planted in Ghana. Relics and important artifacts used by him is also on display at the museum located on the farm. Another important edifice named after him is the former Tetteh Quarshie

roundabout now the named Tetteh Quarshie interchange. Prior to interchange, there were claims that the roundabout was the biggest in West Africa. For a man to have such historic edifices named after him show his worth to the country. Young people should be interested in visiting such places and learning about the greatness of such people. Unfortunately, the youth seem more interested in being on their phones and social media. If nothing is done about this perplexed situation, their interest in domestic tourism will decline even further and learning about the history of the greats will be of no importance to them. This may not propel them to also aspire for greatness. As we celebrate our heritage month, its important to get the youth to appreciate the history of the great men and visit these tourism attractions. The big question is who is to lead them to these places? Who is to create the interest in them? It for us in media to highlight on these issues hoping they will hear and show interest along the way. The future of tourism relies on the youth in getting involved in domestic tourism. It looks as if the interest lies again in entertainment as well. There is still light at the end of the tunnel if only the education will begin and efforts would be made to transport these young men and women on excursions to these places.

Philip Gebu is a Tourism Lecturer/Trainer. He is the C.E.O of FoReal Destinations Ltd, a Tourism Destinations Management and Marketing Company based in Ghana and with partners in many other countries. Please contact Philip with your comments and suggestions. Write to forealdestinations@gmail.com / info@forealdestinations.com. Visit our website at www.forealdestinations.com or call or WhatsApp +233(0)244295901/0264295901. Visist our social media sites Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: FoReal Destinations

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

| C O M M E N T/A N A LY S I S

Akwaaba Magic celebrates one-year of premium Ghanaian entertainment Akwaaba Magic is celebrating its first anniversary in March, a milestone the channel is marking with the return of popular favourites, as well as brilliant new shows for our viewers to fall in love with. The channel which is exclusive to DStv (ch.150) and GOtv Supa (ch.101) has rekindled interest in the Ghanaian television production space. Since its launch on 8 March 2021, the channel has made its way into the hearts of Ghanaians by being an authentic Ghanaian storyteller, a role that MultiChoice takes seriously and a tradition that continues to propel us well into the future. Announcing the first anniversary celebration, Managing Director, MultiChoice Ghana, Alex Okyere said “we are proud of the achievements of the Akwaaba Magic channel. In the past year we have commissioned at least seven key shows to the tune of about twenty million Ghana Cedis and we project to invest a further twenty-five million Ghana Cedis in commissioned shows in the new financial The channel has directly created over 500 jobs for players in the industry and entertained Ghanaians

home and aboard with ever riveting shows like Dede, To Have and To Hold, Inside Out amongst other.” He adds, “during the yearlong celebration viewers can expect more engaging series, a regional tour of the channel with some cast of the popular shows to interact with fans and media across the country and watch events for the upcoming shows”. “It’s been an exciting year of giving our loyal viewers great content, which is 100% local content made by us for us. We’ve worked with upand-coming as well as some wellknown content curators, actors as well as actresses to create premium entertainment since our inception,” says Dankyi-Appah, Channel head for Akwaaba Magic. Leading the newcomers in the Akwaaba Magic content slate is the emotional wedding fashion reality show, Rock That Aisle Again. Premiering on Friday 1 April at 20.30pm. The riveting show follows married women as they revisit their wedding dresses from more than five years ago. With the help of renowned Ghanaian fashion designers, they update the dress, walk down the aisle again and get to create happier memories.

Tuesday 12 April at 20.30pm will see another new show joining the line-up: RSM, a comedy created by Farmhouse Productions who are also the minds behind Akwaaba Magic’s To Have and to Hold. RSM follows the post-retirement life of a Regimental Sergeant Major who may no longer be in the army, but who runs his life like he’s still in the military barracks. Rounding off the exciting new content on Akwaaba Magic is Tanko Villa, which will premiere on the Sunday night primetime slot of 8pm on 17 April. Centred around the residents of a compound house on the outskirts of Accra, the comedy features an assortment of relatable characters as they navigate co-living in a space with strict rules. The show promises to be chaotically hilarious and has been earmarked as a not-tobe-missed! Returning for new seasons soon are two of our most popular shows: the telenovela Dede and the sexy drama To Have and to Hold. With the season 1 finale airing on 4 March, fan favourite Dede will return for season 2 on Monday 4 April at 20.00pm, returning to its weekday slot. Taking place a year after the dramatic events of season

1, Dede returns to Accra a more settled woman, but her presence upsets the new balance of Michael and Patrick’s lives. Not only that, but who will be named the CEO after Rama announces her intention to step away? Drama, drama. Season 2 of To Have and to Hold will return on 20 April at 8.30pm, owning that timeslot every Wednesday and Thursday. The season premiere follows the aftermath of Kamal’s death, a tragedy that has left devastation in its wake. Akosua feels left out as Kudjoe spends more time at Aba’s side instead of hers; Kuukua, having just escaped death herself, is recovering at home; and romance seems to be on the cards for Enyonam and Nii Tetteh if no one gets in the way. From nail-biting thrills to uproarious laughter, Akwaaba Magic keeps delivering Ghanaian gems to the screen, day after day. It’s been an exciting year and we look forward to many more. This not-so-new kid on the block has plenty to offer. Join the conversation on our social media platforms on @ AkwaabaMagic to stay up to date with the riveting content and how to win amazing prizes during our birthday month.

GIPS withdraws membership of embattled former PPA boss AB Adjei

The Ghana Institute of Procurement and Supply (GIPS), the local body for procurement practitioners in the country has withdrawn the membership of

the former chief executive of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA), Adjenim Boateng Adjei for his involvement in corrupt practices that led to his dismissal

from office. “GIPS wishes to officially inform the general public that in line with the recommendations from CHRAJ coupled with the fact that Mr. A.B Adjei failed to honour an invitation to appear before the Institute’s Ethics and Professional Standards Committee to respond to the allegations levelled against him, his GIPS membership has formally been withdrawn. Thus, Mr. Adjei cannot use the title FGIPS or hold himself as a member of this professional body for the next ten years,” GIPS said in a statement issued to the media. The decision affirms the institute’s commitment to work with all stakeholders and state agencies in charting a common path in the fight against procurement-related corruption in Ghana. GIPS further pledged its support to other state institutions mandated to investigate and prosecute public and private

officials in Ghana’s procurementrelated corruption activities. According to the institute, it has carefully perused the content of the official report from the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on the matter and commends the Commission for the thoroughness of the investigations and some of the associated recommendations. As the emerging and truly local representative body for procurement professionals in the country, GIPS also indicated that it will fully support the passage of a legislation to help regulate the conduct of all procurement practitioners in the country. “The draft practising and licensing bill is being finalised and we shall submit to the relevant Institutions for their review and passage into an Act in due course,” the statement added.

MONDAY, FEBRAURY 14, 2022

WWW.BUSINESS24.COM.GH

NO. B24 / 315 | NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2022

AfricaTech Awards to spotlight the next generation of African innovators Viva Technology and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) today announced a call for applications for the first edition of the AfricaTech Awards, a pan-African initiative developed to recognize and support the most innovative and impactful tech start-ups across the continent. Entrepreneurship has been a key driver of economic growth in Africa, promoting competitiveness and fostering job creation, particularly among young people. According to reports from Briter Bridges*, investment in African tech start-ups reached $4.9 billion in 2021, marking a significant increase from the $2.4 billion invested in 2020. Despite growing interest from investors, this is still a fraction compared to the funding that start-ups received in other parts of the world – for instance, in 2021, over $100 billion was invested in European start-ups and about $330 billion in start-ups in North America. Moreover, a lack of infrastructure and inadequate regulations often present additional challenges to the

scale-up of start-ups across Africa. “Africa is buzzing with innovative tech solutions that can help address climate change, promote food security, and expand financial inclusion,” said Makhtar Diop, IFC’s Managing Director. “Yet over 80% of African start-ups report difficulties in accessing funding. Initiatives like the AfricaTech Awards, which bring together entrepreneurs, governments, and investors, are key to attracting the resources and support that tech start-ups need to scale their innovations across the continent and beyond.” The AfricaTech Awards will recognize African start-ups that are driving innovation and development impact in three main sectors - climate tech, health tech, and fintech. Participating startups will have until March 25, 2022 to submit their applications. In May, with support from Viva Technology and IFC, a panel of industry experts from our knowledge partner Deloitte will pre-select the top 45 applicants. The final winners in each category will be announced

during the 2022 edition of Viva Technology, taking place on June 1518 in Paris and online. Each of the three category winners will benefit from increased visibility and access to the networks provided by Viva Technology and IFC, including select one-on-one meetings with leaders and top executives in the tech industry. For Viva Technology CoPresidents Maurice Lévy and Pierre Louette and Managing

Director Julie Ranty: “We have been impressed by the quality of African innovations during our various onsite roadshows and in our meetings with the 1000+ African startups that have already taken part in VivaTech. With the AfricaTech Awards, our objective is to boost visibility for African innovation ecosystems and to create opportunities for African entrepreneurs within global markets.”

Be cautious about ‘Freedom coin’ cryptocurrency in Ghana - BoG The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has cautioned the public about an impending launch of a cryptocurrency named “Freedom Coin” in Ghana. “It has come to the attention of Bank of Ghana that there is an impending launch of a cryptocurrency named “Freedom Coin,” the bank said. In line with notice NO.BG/GOV/ SEC/2018/02 issued on 22nd January 2018, which can be found on the Bank’s website, Bank of Ghana wishes to reiterate that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are not regulated under any laws in Ghana, and are therefore not backed by any guarantees or safeguards, it added. Bank of Ghana advises the general public to exercise caution in respect of cryptocurrency transactions. The Bank further directs all licensed institutions including banks, specialized deposit-taking institutions, dedicated electronic money issuers and payment service providers to refrain from facilitating cryptocurrency transactions via their platforms or agent outlets.