Business24 Newspaper 28 March 2022

New roadmap to revive timber industry almost ready -Lands Min.

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‘Time for targeted actions to cushion SMEs and startups’

02 NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

BUSINESS24.COM.GH | MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Climate risks could cost Ghana’s transport sector US$3.9 bn, but roadmap offers hope NEWS DESK REPORT

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new report estimates that by 2050 climate risks could cause damage worth US$3.9 billion in Ghana’s transport sector.

But the report also offers a roadmap that could prevent the worst from happening. It also highlights extensive efforts by the government to counter climate risks.

The potential damage of $3.9 billion is thrice the investment of $1.3 billion made in the sector in 2019, according to the study. The research was led by the national Ministry of Science, Environment, Technology and Innovation, in partnership with the Global Center on Adaptation. It reflects efforts by the government of Ghana to assess the threat that climate change poses to infrastructure assets.

It also mentions government efforts to prioritize adaptation investments to mitigate the climate risks facing Ghana’s infrastructure in the energy, transport, and water sectors.

“Extreme weather and rapid changes to Ghana’s climate present a profound risk to key sectors of Ghana’s socio-economic development.

Infrastructure in these sectors are the bedrock of the country’s economic growth and development,” said Dr. Kwaku Afriyie, Ghanaian

The potential damage of $3.9 billion is thrice the investment of $1.3 billion made in the sector in 2019, according to the study.

Minister of Science, Environment, Technology and Innovation, at the launch of the report.

“Ghana: Roadmap for Resilient Infrastructure in a Changing Climate” was carried out under the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, a partnership of the African Development Bank Group and the Global Center on Adaptation, with support from the United Nations Office for Project Services, the United Nations Environment Program, and the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute.

The report estimates that increased drought threatens the future energy availability of about a quarter of a million people in rural Ghana, owing to a reliance on wood fuel for household use.

Equally, climate risks threaten major components of electricity generation and transmission due to droughts and flooding.

To avert a climate crisis, the national assessment proposes 35 adaptation options for funders and investors to invest in Ghana’s future, offering impactful, evidence-based adaptation projects and enabling environment interventions.

“Given how we know the climate crisis is evolving, these are very alarming statistics. But this is not the full story.

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Bawumia asks businesses to adopt tech-based innovations for growth …as he scoops “Digital Transformation Leader of the Year” award

BY PATRICK PAINTSIL

Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has said that the tide of the moment requires of businesses to be digitally-ready to thrive, urging them to leverage the numerous tech-based innovations and solutions provided by the government to drive their expansion and profitability.

“In our bid to reset the economy, digitization has an enormous role to play amid the resurging pandemic and businesses will have to integrate appropriate tech-based innovations in the operations and service delivery to spur productivity and output,” he said in a speech read on his behalf at the 12th Ghana Entrepreneur and Corporate Executive Awards (GECEA 2022) in Accra.

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| EDITORIAL/NEWS

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In AfCFTA lies the prospects of a fast-rising continent

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ne obvious outcome of an integrated or single market for the continent is the promotion of manufacturing and agroprocessing across Africa which will give significant impetus to the diversification agenda of most economies within the

Wash your hands 2

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MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

block.

Africa is now charting a new course for its industrialisation and economic development, using the momentum of continental and regional integration.

The AfCFTA is the start point of Africa’s long-term development strategy for transforming the continent into the global powerhouse of the future.

By reshaping her small and fragmented markets to create one integrated market with large economies of scale and scope, the continent is in global trade broker.

Currently, the countries of the continent survive mainly on exports of a very narrow range of primary commodities to traditional markets of the North while being heavily reliant on the import of capital goods.

Experts and trade stakeholders have been apt about the prospects of the AfCFTA with the expected surge in jobs and wealth creation across the continent.

Africa’s teeming unemployed youth have largely been described

as its ticking time bomb amid the recent spate of political insecurities across the subregion and it is only through such sustainable and forwardlooking economic projects that we could offer the right levels of hope and focus to them.

It is for this and many others that this paper shares in the assertions of Mr. Wamkele Mene that the offerings of the single continental market are enormous and far-reaching and it behoves party states to put in place the right support systems and measures for it’s key trade actors, especially private sector businesses, so as to make the most out of this laudable project.

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Continued from page 1

For us, at the Global Center on Adaptation, the real story on climate adaptation in Africa is a story of resilience, of responsibility, of solidarity, of opportunities for a safer, greener, more prosperous continent. It is this story that is captured in the roadmap we are launching today,” said Professor Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation.

The assessment provides a roadmap for addressing risks through targeted

adaptation options in the built and natural environments, including nature-based solutions. It also defines institutional interventions required to ensure the optimum effectiveness of adaptation measures in the country.

“This report will further enrich our dialogue and enhance the overall impact of investments in resilient, green infrastructure that are central to tackling the damaging effects of climate change,” said Eyerusalem Fasika, the African Development Bank’s Country Manager in Ghana. She said the report would inform the Bank’s next country strategy for Ghana.

Ghana has experienced severe droughts and flooding in the last two decades, some

of which have had severe economic and social impacts. The projected impacts of climate change are likely to intensify pressure on the country’s existing dam infrastructure, yielding severe consequences for river runoff, which could affect over 1.3 million people, mostly women and children, the report indicates.

“Climate impacts are projected to lead to increased investment for infrastructure, particularly water storage, flood defenses, and water supply and sanitation, but, in the long run, investment in adaptation will reduce the need for costly retrofitting while reducing upfront costs,” said Anthony Nyong, Senior Regional Director for Africa at the Global Center on Adaptation.

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| NEWS

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Bawumia asks businesses to adopt tech-based innovations for growth … as he scoops “Digital Transformation Leader of the Year” award Continued from page 1

The annual awards event celebrates successful entrepreneurs and corporate leaders who are making significant impact in their various fields of work, building lasting legacies with demonstrable entrepreneurial and corporate leadership and constantly driving innovation.

“It is very appropriate that we recognize and inspire these men and women who are pushing the nation’s development through the creation of the much-needed jobs and wealth for the youth of this country whilst serving as the pillar of the Ghanaian economy,” Dr. Bawumia stated.

The vice president was recognised with the “Outstanding Digital Transformation Leader of the Year” award for championing the nation’s aggressive digitalization drive.

The citation accompanying the award emphasized “his priceless contribution to the digitalization of the Ghanaian economy and efforts to leverage on technology to improve service delivery in both the public and private sectors and to facilitate rapid economic growth”.

He added: “The business landscape has embraced this wave of digitalization with a steady rise in the uptake of digital products and a thriving e-commerce industry which I encourage entrepreneurs and forward-looking businesses to explore for enhanced productivity and sustainable growth.”

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia also tasked the nation’s top business leaders and serial entrepreneurs to mentor and groom a new breed of entrepreneurs and wealth creators for the nation and the African continent.

He stressed that government’s efforts at resetting the economy from the harms of the virus pandemic are built around entrepreneurship.

“Coming out of the pandemic, entrepreneurship will play a critical role in resetting the economy to normal levels and we can only achieve this with the right policies and interventions that prioritise the private sector, especially for youth and women-led businesses,” he said.

‘Time for targeted actions to cushion SMEs and startups’

BY PATRICK PAINTSIL

Government must take special interest in startups and small-sized businesses that make up the bulk of Ghana’s private sector and create deliberate support systems to save them from folding up as a result of the presently harsh business environment, says

Solomon Adjei, Executive Director of the Ghana Startups Network.

Having the policy rate at 17.5percent will definitely deepen the woes of small and medium enterprises and startups in the country even though we may have to accept it because of certain economic issues at play,” he told Business24.

As small businesses struggle their way out of the harsh impact of the pandemic, the burden of inflation and high cost of credit could throw their revival efforts in disarrays and cause them to fold up, he added.

The central bank on Monday raised its policy rate by 250 basis points from 15.7percent to 17.5percent in response

to speeding inflation and the resulting impact on the fast depreciating cedi.

The bank justified the raise with the uncertainty surrounding price developments and its impact on economic activity which it says was weighing down business and consumer confidence.

The risks in the outlook for inflation are on the upside and include petroleum price adjustments and transportation costs, and exchange rate depreciation, it further explained.

But according to Mr. Adjei, the new rate takes everything up with an expected surge in lending rates at a time that most businesses in that SME bracket are having difficulty with access to finance.

“Borrowing will be high and it will affect pricing of basic consumables, costing of raw materials and ultimately push up cost of production and the question is whether people will like to purchase highly priced goods from SMEs and startups,” he indicated.

With consumers not keenly interested in the cost of production, the GSN boss fears that any boycott highly-priced goods of local producers, specifically startups will affect their operations and may cause them to fold up.

“We’ve already seen a number of them going down due to the harms of the pandemic. There must a deliberate action from the government and related stakeholders to cushion startups and small-sized businesses to make them competitive to trade both locally and for the AfCFTA market,” he advised.

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| NEWS

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

New roadmap to revive timber industry almost ready -Lands Min.

BY EUGENE DAVIS

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has announced to Parliament that a roadmap meant to overhaul the timber industry to become more profitable and viable for the state has been developed and nearing completion.

According to him, a committee, he constituted, made up of industry players and experts from the Forestry Commission to develop a comprehensive strategy to revamp the timber industry has presented its report, with recommendations for short- medium- and long-term measures to make the industry more viable and vibrant.

Appearing before Parliament to answer a question on plans and policies being implemented or being developed to generate value adding employment in the timber industry.

He indicated that the roadmap for its implementation is being developed, and is almost complete.

Among the recommendations the committee proposed includes: improving raw material and inputs supply base including investing in commercial plantation development; increasing manpower development and training for the timber industry to move into value added processing or downstream processing; financing for industrial development and retooling to be able to process small diameter logs, like teak, which is currently being exported without value addition.

Furthermore, it also recommended

that technology, innovation, research and development for industry processing and use of lesser used timber species, and the development of standards for wood processing; and improve law enforcement.

“The Ministry has reviewed these recommendations, and a roadmap for its implementation is being developed, and is almost complete. Already, the Forestry Commission has launched two online applications, the digitalised property mark registration and renewal process, to enable loggers register and renew their property marks online, and the electronic wood tracking system, to track our timber, from harvesting to final disposal.

We have also transformed the Wood Industry Training Centre (WITC) at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region, into Forestry Commission Training Centre (FCTC), to provide specialised training and apprenticeship schemes for wood processing operators and produce timber graders to improve productivity and quality. Through these policies and interventions, we will revamp the domestic timber market and ensure value-addition to our timber resources.” he said The minister further indicated that the country’s forests continue to be the mainstay of the bulk of the rural population, supporting over two million people nationwide.

The timber industry, specifically, contributes significantly to both the domestic and international markets.

Between 2019 and 2020, for example,

a total of Five Hundred and TwentySix Thousand, Six Hundred and Thirteen point Two Nine cubic metres (526,613.29m3) of timber, worth over Two Hundred and Sixty-Six Million Euros (€266,000,000.00) was exported from Ghana, while the domestic market accounted for Six Hundred and SeventyEight Thousand, Four Hundred and Six point nine cubic metres (678,406.90m3),within the same time frame.

As at October, 2021, Two Hundred and Forty-Eight Thousand, Six Hundred and Fifty-Seven point nine zero nine cubic metres (248,657.909m3) of timber, worth over One Hundred and Thirteen Million Euros (€113,000,000.00) had been exported, with domestic trade in the wood species being Three

Hundred and Ninety-Two Thousand, One Hundred and Seventeen point Seven Five cubic metres (392,117.75m3).

The huge volumes of timber exports are the result of decline in value addition over the years. For example, the number of large scale timber processing companies dropped from sixty (60) in the year 2000 to ten (10) in 2016,and has remained same till date. But there are enormous opportunities for investment in value-additionin the timber industry, including furniture manufacturing, moulding, doors, parquet flooring, and other related tertiary products for both the domestic and export markets, especially for the ECOWAS sub-regional marketsand the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Akufo-Addo leads Ghana CEO Vision Project President Nana Addo Dankwa AkufoAddo, is expected to be the keynote speaker the maiden Ghana CEO Vision Project that seeks to pitch Ghana to the rest of the world.

The event, which would take place on Friday, April 29, 2022 at the Kempinski Gold Coast Hotel in Accra, seeks to recognise and reward leadership excellence across all industry and business sectors in Ghana while celebrating achievement, innovation and leadership brilliance within the business environment.

It is also aimed at providing the biggest pitching platforms for CEOs who have used the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the country.

The Project Lead at the Ghana CEO Vision, Latif Abubakar, who gave details of the project in Accra, said the Ghana CEO Vision, sought to provide a thriving platform for CEOs to stay connected, relevant, and ahead of the game and to be celebrated while creating opportunities and celebrating visionaries.

"The Ghana CEO Vision will pitch

Ghana and its various business sectors to the world, document and share innovative successes chalked up by CEOs and celebrate those who have transformed lives and the country," he said.

Mr Abubakar said the President had been chosen as the keynote speaker to lead the project because of his role as the CEO of the country.

"The President doubles as the CEO of our country, and it just sits right that you have no other person lead this

kind of project than the CEO of CEOs," he said.

Themed “Leadership worth celebrating,” the Ghana CEO Vision has been divided into three platforms which include a documentary film production, awards and dinner, and the Ghana CEO Magazine.

Mr Abubakar said the CEO vision project would have a 15-minute episodic documentary film of the CEOs. These CEOs will be top personalities from each industry in the country who would unravel their innovations, vision and experience that made them deserving of an award from the Ghana CEO Awards.

The awards ceremony will provide a platform to celebrate CEOs who have transformed lives and played significant roles in the growth and development of their business sector.

Describing the awards as the benchmark of excellence, the project lead said the benchmarks for individual leadership performance would be based on some key performance indicators (KPIs) that

define the standards of excellence.

"Key among the standards would be innovation, sustainability, corporate social responsibility, job creation and profits," he said.

As part of measures to connect investors across the globe to Ghana, the CEO Magazine would document investment opportunities in the country and CEOs pitches of their respective industries and companies.

The magazine would be strategically placed at all Ghana diplomatic missions abroad and all diplomatic missions in Ghana, trade missions across the globe and also made available to relevant stakeholders.

The Ghana CEO Vision Project is in partnership with the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), the Ministry of Information, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration with support from the Graphic Communications Group Limited and the Multimedia Group.

Nominations for the Ghana CEO Vision are open till Wednesday, March 30, 2022.

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| BANKING &FINANCE

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

FBNBank’s Abossey Okai branch opens for business FBNBank has officially opened for business its newest branch situated at Abossey Okai, within the spare parts enclave, set to meet the banking needs of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and residents within the area.

The FBNBank Abossey Okai Branch, the 23rd in the Bank’s network in Ghana, is a specially positioned SME touchpoint and will offer retail and commercial banking services to the Bank’s clients and customers as well as prospects in the immediate environs.

In addition to its exciting external design, the FBNBank Abossey Okai Branch has a very customer-friendly interior which is ergonomically set-out to enhance customer interaction and experience. Customers and visitors to FBNBank’s Abossey Okai Branch will have all-time access to their funds through use of the ATM provided as well as the Bank’s excellent range of services available digitally and also inbranch.

Commenting on the opening of the branch, Mr. William Amon Neequaye, Head of Commercial Banking at FBNBank said, “Our agenda is to contribute in very significant ways towards Ghana’s development and we reckon that we can do this by supporting SMEs who are described as the engine of growth of economies.

Our selection of the Abossey Okai Spare Parts enclave for a branch is a confirmation of our belief that the SMEs play a great role in Ghana’s drive towards economic growth.

Through our products and services, we aim to attend to the needs of the SMEs, traders and personal account holders by always delivering the gold standard of value and excellence our brand is known for. Our staff are primed to offer the best service and are passionate about engaging our customers. As always we will place customers at the heart of what we do and we would work together with them to achieve success.”

In very recent times, FBNBank has invested in extending services to its customers and clients. This has been through a combination of new

branches, alternate channels and unique product offerings. SME and retail customers in particular can enjoy products like the FBNBank’s First Trader Solution, the Temporary Overdraft, Auto Loan and Personal Loan. These products are available in all the Bank’s branches.

Commenting, Mr. Victor Yaw Asante, Managing Director/CEO of FBNBank said, “We remain focused on keeping our customers and other stakeholders at the heart of what we do. This is one of the reasons for ensuring that our actions deliver multiple benefits. By opening a branch in Abossey Okai,

we have moved closer to one of our key segments, SMEs, extended our network for all clients and customers, contributed to the effort to make banking services accessible to all Ghanaians and positioned ourselves to be able to support Ghanaian businesses. As a regional banking brand with a rich pedigree stretching over 127 years, we are leveraging our experience to the benefit of our customers, clients and Ghana. Placing a branch in Abossey Okai is a great step forward towards increasing our contribution on several fronts and we are pleased with our efforts.”

Akweley Laryea is First National Bank’s new Head of Retail Banking First National Bank Ghana has announced the appointment of Akweley Laryea as Head of Retail Banking. This comes at a time when the bank is devoting significant time and effort to pursuing new and innovative opportunities that have tremendous opportunity for value creation for the retail business.

Mrs. Laryea has over 21 years’ experience in banking across retail, service delivery strategy, talent development, change management, risk management and governance.

She will be leading the bank’s market selection and customer propositions.

Her role will also involve the development of a service-based sales force for the bank.

Prior to joining First National Bank, Mrs. Laryea was Head of Consumer, Private and Business Banking at Standard Chartered Bank Gambia, where she led the transformation of the retail business by enhancing the client value proposition and implementing new products and platforms.

She had previously worked with Standard Chartered Bank Ghana (SCB Ghana) for over 17 years. She joined SCB Ghana as a Management Trainee and rose through the ranks in various

capacities within the Technology & Operations and Organization Learning functions. She then moved into Retail Banking where she held various senior management roles within Ghana and the West African cluster. She also served as Chairperson of the bank’s Diversity and Inclusion Council from 2011 to 2016 where she championed a number of inclusion initiatives, including the launch of the Future Leaders Employee Network. Another key achievement was her leadership in the successful partnership between the bank, the Ghana Federation of the Disabled and Sightsavers Ghana that led to an increase in employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.

Dominic Adu, Chief Executive of First National Bank believes Akweley Laryea is the best person to lead the bank’s retail unit as she has a proven track record in managing and growing result-oriented teams that have achieved growth, profit and operational efficiency.

“We believe the bank is wellpositioned during these tough economic conditions, and we are looking forward to Akweley's leadership in the retail function to

help grow our market share while maintaining the highest level of service and best-in-class customer experience at all our touchpoints,” Mr. Adu says.

Akweley Laryea holds an Executive MBA from the Ghana Institute of Management & Public Administration (GIMPA) and a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Economics from the University of Ghana.

Commenting on her appointment as

First National Bank’s Head of Retail Banking, she said: “I have inherited a high functioning team that has progressively implemented a lot of the retail banking strategy of First National Bank over the last year and have achieved over-the-edge results.

I believe I can spur them on to even greater successes for the offerings on our retail banking portfolio.”

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MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

| AFRICAN BUSINESS

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Why Africa prints money in Europe At least 40 African countries print their money in the UK, France and Germany — decades after independence, raising questions about self-sufficiency. DW examines what prompts them to outsource their currency production.

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ast July, a delegation from The Gambia visiting the Nigerian Central Bank asked if the Gambian dalasi could be ordered from its West African neighbour.

The Gambia's central bank governor, Buah Saidy, said the country was running low on its national currency.

The tiny West African country had to redesign its currency after the defeat of former President Yahya Jammeh, who ruled The Gambia from 1994 until he was forced into exile after refusing to accept defeat in the 2016 elections.

Jammeh, who is accused of human rights violations and killings of political opponents during his 22-year reign, had images of himself on the nation's banknotes.

After his ouster, the Gambian Central Bank set about destroying those images.

Now, the dalasi notes have images of a fisherman pushing his canoe out to sea, a farmer tending to his rice paddy, and a spattering of colourful, indigenous birds.

Outsourcing the cash One issue remains, however: The Gambia doesn't print its own currency. It places orders with UK companies, resulting in a shortage of liquid money.

And The Gambia is not alone in having its money printed in another country.

More than two-thirds of Africa's 54 countries print their money overseas, mostly in Europe and in North America. It comes at a time when the African Union is trying to usher in a golden, made-in-Africa age that should see Africa beef up production and enjoy greater profits.

Among the top firms that African central banks partner with are British banknote printing giant De La Rue, Sweden-based Crane, and Germany's Giesecke+Devrient.

How transparent is the process?

It is perhaps surprising that almost all African countries import their currencies.

The practice could even raise questions of national pride and national security.

For richer countries, like Angola and Ghana, there's also the issue of real autonomy and economic sufficiency.

Most countries are tight-lipped about their currency-printing processes — likely for security reasons. The printing firms are even less transparent.

None of the firms DW contacted responded to requests for a list of African countries that print with them.

Counting the cost Ethiopia, Libya and Angola — along with 14 other countries — place orders from De La Rue, writes Ilyes Zouari, who studies African countries.

Six or seven other nations including South Sudan, Tanzania and Mauritania are said to print theirs in Germany, while most Frenchspeaking African countries are known to print their money with France's central bank and with the French printing company Oberthur Fiduciaire.

It's not clear how much it costs to print African currencies like the dalasi, although the US dollar costs between 6 and 14 cents.

But it is likely that the cost of printing for over 40 African currencies is significant.

In 2018, a central bank official in Ghana complained to local journalists that the country spends huge amounts for its UK orders of the Ghanaian cedi.

And since countries usually order millions of notes to be carted in containers, they usually have to pay hefty shipping fees. In The Gambia's case, officials say shipping costs rack up a bill of £70,000 (€84,000, $92,000).

High demand Still, while it may sound odd, analysts say that African countries printing much of their currency abroad is not unusual.

Many countries around the world do it. For example, Finland and Denmark outsource their money-making, as do hundreds of central banks around the world.

Just a handful of countries, like the US and India, produce their own currencies.

Mma Amara Ekeruche from the African Center for Economics Research told DW that when a country's currency is not in high demand — and not used globally like the US dollar or the British pound — it makes little financial sense to print it at home due to the high cost involved.

Money printing machines usually churn out millions of notes at a time. Countries with smaller populations, like The Gambia or Somaliland, would have more money than they needed if they printed their own.

"If a country prints one banknote for €10 at home and sees that it can print it for about €8 abroad, then why would they incur more costs to do that?

It won't make sense," Ekeruche explained.

Some countries — like Liberia — don't attempt to print their own money because they don't even have a printing press — it is costly to set up and requires special technical capabilities.

Only a handful of African countries, like Nigeria, Morocco, and Kenya have enough resources to print their own currencies or mint their own coins, and even they sometimes supplement production with imports.

Is third-party printing secure?

Ekeruche said some individual countries attempting to produce their own currencies could fall victim to corrupt officials or hackers who might attempt to forge or manipulate them.

In many cases, outsourcing is more secure.

Even with importing, there can be challenges.

Containers of Liberian dollars shipped from Sweden disappeared in 2018, although the government later accounted for it.

Meanwhile, firms like De La Rue have existed for hundreds of years, mass-producing for central banks across the world.

They have the tools and experience to keep up to date with currency innovations, such as polymer which is considered cleaner, more durable and more secure than paper, with the plastic material allowing the inclusion of more sophisticated features to protect against counterfeits.

But outsourcing is not without disadvantages.

Some countries could find themselves on the receiving end of economic sanctions. In 2011, for example, the UK withheld orders for Libya's dinar from De La Rue, after the UN-sanctioned the late leader, Moammar Gadhafi.

Why not print the notes in Africa?

African countries have been formulating plans to boost intra-African trade. There is currently more trade with Western and Eastern countries than there is within the continent.

Printing banknotes in Africa would boost profits on the continent and, at least theoretically, African countries could choose those with printing capabilities since there's likely some idle capacity.

But that is not happening in practice. "That’s due to trust issues between the countries," said Emmanuel Asiedu-Mante, a former deputy chief with the Ghanian central bank, and because many have been printing with overseas firms for years.

And there's the complicated case of Francophone Africa — the countries using the Central African CFA franc and the West African CFA franc. The currencies are tightly pegged to the euro because of colonial relations and are produced in France.

Still, there's hope that change could be on the horizon. With The Gambia's central bank, officials proposing a possible partnership with Nigeria, countries could start to look inwards for their currency orders. If that happens at scale, it could cut shipping costs drastically.

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| F E AT U R E

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Youth and creativity; spotlight on Morocco’s the emerging business factory

B

eing an aspirational young global citizen, you get excited anytime you come across young people in the creative industry making valuable impact in their communities and the society as a whole. For me, it has become more critical to empower young people through the social and economic opportunities that the cultural and creative industries can offer.

This is captured as the heart of the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

Connecting with young people is always exceptional and it becomes more useful and important when you get in contact with young creative brains around the globe finding innovative solutions to the world’s problems and exploring alternative ways of making life easier in all aspects.

As a necessity, other special groups of young people we do not have to forget about are young creators and cultural professionals.

Beyond empowerment, youth and creativity requires the building of the capacity of young people, which includes helping young entrepreneurs gain access to professional training in strategic areas such as management and marketing, equipping them with the skills and techniques needed to run successful creative enterprises and enhancing artistic and creative skills. This certainly will lead to fostering more dynamism in the creative sectors.

In addition, strengthening the development of professional associations of creatives is much needed, leveraging on their networks

beyond the sector to create a social capital is necessary. Besides building alliances for young cultural and creative professionals, it is becoming equally important to raise awareness among young people about the contribution culture makes to development.

It was a matter of delight when I arrived in Morocco’s “red city”, Marrakech, and learnt about a creative space managed by a group of young Moroccans with groundbreaking initiatives to primarily strategically position their city in addition to offering a platform for people to realize their dreams in an unusual fashion. For starters, Marrakech is a very popular African city known around the world as an ultimate tourist destination, attracting millions of visitors on a yearly basis.

The Emerging Business Factory (EBF) is the first private Information Technology and Media incubator in the Marrakech-Safi region and the only one of its kind in Morocco.

Also serving as a coworking space, the Emerging Business Factory was a former textile factory nestled in the industrial district of Sidi Ghanem, the industrial and creative culture hub of the ocher city. It was co-founded by Taoufik Aboudia and Pascal Chevalier: a serial entrepreneur and a veteran in the digital industry as well as in the world of incubation being the cofounder of 50 Partners – Paris. Pascal Chevalier is also the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Reworld Media Group, a young company that quickly rose to the top of the digital media podium with a turnover of more than 300 million euros in 2015.

The Emerging Business Factory is also the gateway to a community that brings together: entrepreneurs, creatives, startups, experts, trainers, researchers, consultants, associations and many others. Other actors working today for the reinvention of business models and for the development of innovative and sustainable ecosystems.

According to Co-founder and CEO, Taoufik Aboudia, the mission of the Emerging Business Factory is to act with entrepreneurs for the sustainable transformation of the region. The 50 Entrepreneur Program is the business creation and development support program for entrepreneurs – listening, training, guidance and support. This comes with a serious helping hand to build your project.

The numerous services offered by EBF are categorized into three, namely, Studio, Digital Transformation Kiosks (KTD) and Consulting & Strategy. The first is Studio EBF, a space exclusively dedicated to photo and video creation. The studio is fully equipped with professional photo equipment to enhance your articles, but also for more impactful portrait photos.

At Studio EBF, emphasis is placed on the details in order to offer a complete service that meets the requirements of the customers. For photographs, photo retouching, creation of institutional films or filming, the Studio EBF team, with several years of experience, will not skimp on the means to offer you a quality rendering.

Digital Transformation Kiosks (KTD) makes it possible to assist companies in search of digitalization with experts in the field. Emerging

Business Factory offers its strategic expertise in order to allow the client to have a single interlocutor who responds to several requests in terms of digital. The goal is to simplify the relationship between these two parties and provides experts for community management, branding, copywriting, graphic designing and others.

Under consultation and strategy, The Emerging Business Factory assists clients with publications, business development solutions, customer insights, partnerships and modern trends in business management. There is a wide variety of business solution tools offered by The Emerging Business Factory to its clients across the country.

A few months ago, EBF launched the Data Sidi Ghanem, a project resulting in the creation of a detailed map of the industrial district aimed at among other things listing all the businesses in the area.

Data Sidi Ghanem is a solidarity project that Taoufik Aboudia has at heart. Placing data at the center of all strategies, it was a detailed study of the neighborhood's ecosystem that finally convinced Taoufik and his team of the importance of carrying out this mapping.

According to the co-founder, “the objective is therefore that companies in the industrial district can finally be placed in the spotlight and that an inventory of their respective situations be carried out and that appropriate solutions be proposed to them. It has been several months of meticulous work and the support of emblematic partners - the Near East Foundation, the Marrakech Safi Regional Investment Center, the General Confederation of Enterprises of the Marrakech-Safi Region and the Sidi Ghanem Entrepreneurs Association - have made it possible to make the Data Sidi Ghanem project a reality”.

One will wonder why creativity is important and what it contributes to national development. Creativity engages the mind and frees the mind in a way that enables a person to absorb knowledge more easily. It makes processing learning more efficient and creativity enables alternative ways of thinking.

It unblocks old patterns or habits of thinking and allows for non-linear thinking. Creativity enables empathy, connects us to ourselves and opens our hearts and doors to our mind. It brings us to hidden parts of ourselves and allows recognition of uniqueness and identity. Creativity can help draw out what is already there within – hidden talents and inner capacities can emerge. It connects us with our passions.

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| ICT

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

ECOWAS and AfDB sign $3.5m agreement for regional pharmaceutical industry

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only impacted the economies of the world, particularly Africa, it has also exposed the inadequacies and weaknesses in the health sector.

As a consequence, African countries have seen the urgency to make efforts at strengthening their health sectors, especially the pharmaceutical industry.

The ECOWAS Commission has signed

a protocol agreement with the African Development Bank (AfDB), for a project to support the development of the pharmaceutical industry in the West African region with some $3.5 million, a press release copied to Ghana Business News has said.

During the signing in Abuja, Mr. Lamin Barrow, the DirectorGeneral of the AfBD said the agreement was for the provision of a

$3.56 million grant to support West Africa’s pharmaceutical industry.

“The bank has been a key partner of the ECOWAS Commission, providing financial and technical assistance to Member States to support the implementation of ECOWAS’ regional integration agenda.”

According to Barrow, the AfDB’s active portfolio in West Africa consists of 350 projects for a total commitment value

of $15.5 billion.

He also noted that the intervention aims to reduce the heavy reliance on imported pharmaceutical products from South-East Asia which accounts for about 70 per cent, with local vaccine production accounting for around one percent of the domestic demand.

While reaffirming the bank’s continued support to ECOWAS, he urged Wealth Africa Health Organisation, as the implementing agency of the grant, to ensure judicious use of the fund towards building a resilient healthcare system in the region.

The Commissioner for Industry and Private Sector at ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Mamadou Traore, thanked the bank for the provision of the grant and expressed deep gratitude for the cooperation between the AfDB and the various ECOWAS Institutions.

He added that the signing of the agreement has further cemented the solid relationship between these great institutions particularly towards the development of the automotive and pharmaceutical industry in the region. He promised on behalf of the ECOWAS Commission and WAHO the two implementation institutions to make good use of the grant.

ECOWAS maintains sanctions on Mali, demands immediate release of Prez Kabore The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) decided Friday that it would uphold sanctions imposed in January on Mali over the military rulers of the country delaying a return to civilian rule after a coup.

ECOWAS at the end of the Extraordinary Summit of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government on the Situation in Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso also issued warnings to the juntas that recently seized power in the three countries.

West Africa’s regional bloc demanded the finalisation of an acceptable transition timetable no later than April 25, 2022, failing which it would slap punitive measures on the government and the National Transition Council (CNT).

In a Communique, ECOWAS also stated that if Burkina Faso’s military junta did not free former president Roch Marc Christian Kabore from house arrest by Thursday next week, it would impose “individual sanctions” on the country.

The 15-nation bloc also wants Mali’s military, which seized power in 2020, to stage elections within 12-16 months.

The communique was issued after a day of talks in the Ghanaian capital Accra, three months after the bloc slapped sanctions on Mali.

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| F E AT U R E

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Changing the mindset about money (II)

BY KOKROKO KWASI KOKURO OPPONG-AGYARE

W

ho controls all of our currency? This is a simple question.

Employees do not control it; neither do the companies they work for or our government.

So, who does? It is an obvious question which is never asked or has ever been taught in schools. For some reason most people’s lives are basically dedicated to money. It is something we all talk and are worried about.

We go to school to learn basic things and attend university to learn the skills (obtain certificates) to get a good job. Interestingly, this is all in the bid to trade all our lives for this thing called currency. So, why do you not want to know where currency comes from and who issues it?

Many people are worried about our financial system, thinking something is actually wrong with it but they honestly cannot pinpoint anything.

Alan Greenspan (2007) said: “There is no agency or government in the world that can touch or overrule the activities of the small group of people who control the printing of world reserved currency for trade and commerce called the US dollars.”

So, what is currency?

Currency is ‘a system of money in general use in a particular country, which is widely accepted and circulated’, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. It is the paper and coins in circulation. All currency is money but not all money is currency.

The origins of the word give insight into its true meaning: it is derived from old French “corant” meaning ‘running, lively, eager, swift’ (the present participle of courir’ to run’) and from Latin “currer” ‘to run, move quickly’. It is also defined historically as ‘condition of flowing’.

This knowledge of the origins of the word can help us to understand the properties and behaviour of the currency in circulation. An economy only works if its currency is in constant movement and exchange. If everyone stored currency under their mattresses, there would be less in circulation and the flow and velocity of currency would decrease.

This is known as a ‘paradox of thrift’.

On the one hand it is smart to save currency but on the other hand if everyone saved hard currency, the flow of currency would dry up. For any economy to grow, its currency needs to flow.

IMF currency The Special Drawing Rights (SDR) is a basket currency sponsored by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The problem is, it is also not backed by anything but just paper and ink for its members around the world.

Its misapplication plunges developing countries into deeper debt. This is so unfair because without giving out credit, the whole system will collapse.

I can understand why Henry Ford

said, “It is well enough that people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning.”

To understand this, one must appreciate and go beyond economics and so-called expert advice on what currency is all about.

It is because the IMF and World Bank which have power make choices to create wealth and prosperity for all but have got it wrong not because of a mistake or ignorance but on purpose.

But remember our prosperity as a nation (Ghana-Africa) depends upon the personal financial know-how of each of us as individuals. Proper preparation is the key to our success by our own efforts and abilities.

This is because the West will never help us and I understand why gold (MONEY) financial intelligence has been completely left out of our school systems for 140 years and reasons why governments do not like it because it is highly impossible to print and duplicate gold Since the Federal Reserve in the USA is solely responsible for printing over 100 per cent of world reserved currency, a country like Ghana can only borrow those papers or sell her natural resources like gold (which is real MONEY), diamonds, crude oil, etc., before the country can have the reserved currency in the world, the US dollars for her development.

My humble question is, how can these angels print currency and expect us to manage our economy and our local currency which has never been printed in Ghana before, against the US dollars?

An angel of the Lord can never manage our economy under these same conditions set forth by the West for developing countries like Ghana.

Ghana currency I am not surprised at all why Ghana’s

currency has been falling all the time. Africa is managing something it has not understood for the past 140 years. It is not because Africa does not export more.

Rather, the percentage of inflation, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or mismanagement and corruption are to blame. I wonder if there is any country in the universe that mismanaged the US dollars more than the American government.

How on earth can one print currency (paper and ink) based on faith which is backed with absolutely nothing and the most painful side is, all the rules and laws that govern all currencies in the world are not the same when it comes to Africa’s currency.

The West will never stop the massive devaluation of Ghana’s currency in particular, no matter how smart and honest the management team is, for their selfish reasons. Ghana has better, honest, brilliant, educated elite than any country in Africa, yet to solve the falling of Ghana’s currency, has been like a mirage. Our educated elites have not been thinking of these rules and laws since independence.

When you realise that, the entire system is very easily controlled, one way or other, by a few powerful men at the top, you will not need to be told how periods of inflation and depression originate and whoever controls the volume of currency in any country, is absolute master of all industry and commerce.

Every 30-40 years the world has a new monetary system and it is important for us to think how to use only gold and silver coins as the real money so that the glory as our dear nation will be restored.

There is a system to turn your gold into credit card and etc. So, buy GOLD and keep it now because wealth transfer is coming! Disagree?

Read Exodus 12:36.

The writer is a consultant on money

| H E A LT H

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

11

Baby Deladem saved from Colostomy Bag through surgery

F

or the past 7 years, Dynamic United Stars Africa Foundation (DUSAF) has helped transform lives and restored hopes to many Ghanaians to whom life was an endless pain and agony. Many of such individuals would have given up and called the world a hell if not for the intervention of DUSAF with the support of passionate Ghanaians through their donations and encouragement.

Passion for the needy As part of the foundations mission towards promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the team came across another child who was born without an anus from the Volta Region and decided to raise funds to ensure the child gets the necessary healthcare needs to live a normal life. Miss Deborah Oduro, founder of DUSAF is optimistic that Baby Deladem will go through this surgery successfully without any complications as she believes that God will work his ways through the Doctors at the Korle-Bu Teaching

Hospital in the Greater Accra Region.

The multifunctional Philanthropist together with her team presented a cheque of Gh20,000 which was raised in collaboration with sister NGOs (Wennett Hope foundation, Standup UK, Concerned Heart Foundation and Associates partners) to the parents of the child at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital to aid Baby Deladem to undergo surgery.

Surgery The first surgery which was successfully carried out was to create a normal defecation path to make it possible for Deladem to pass feces as every complete human does. He is expected to undergo the second face of the surgery to close the wound on his stomach where the Doctors created a colostomy bag for him to be able to excrete waste. The amount raised will be used to pay for the child’s needs which will support his parents pay the medical bills and other essentials to keep him in a good condition after enduring such pain.

The foundation has promised to give

some undisclosed amount to aid his parents as a startup capital to start a business which will sustain them to further take care of the child as well as serve as their new source of income as the baby’s mother is an SHS graduate and the father a Driver.

Dynamic United Stars Africa Foundation (DUSAF) The foundation has also impacted and transformed lives through projects in different communities across the country. Some of its projects includes a donation to Good Shepherd Orphanage Home, Free health screening and donations of cement bags to facilitate a healthcare facility in Loum community, feeding four (4) communities during COVID-19 era, raising funds to support children undergo surgery, just to mention few.

Baby Deladem surgery will go down into the Foundations achievement record books as the third child to successfully raised funds for surgery.

The NGOs capabilities to ensure their projects and initatives to help the needy is achieved has won them recognitions and awards due to the

impact they making in society and our country. The foundation is a NonProfit making organization registered under the Companies code, 1963 (ACT 179) with the sole aim of providing meaningful hope for the needy through provision of foods, physical needs, healthcare, education and infrastructure in ensuring that every deprived child is secured and save.

We appreciate you The founder together with her amazing team wish to express their profound gratitude to their loyal donors, partners and to the general public who at all times respond to their call to support restore hope to the less privileged in society. “We also seize this opportunity thank all the health workers in KTH and across the country who are working tirelessly day and night to save lives. May God Almighty reward your labor and sacrifices.” Everyone donor is a life changer... Together, it is possible- Miss Deborah Oduro

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| GLOBAL POLITICS

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Democracy is the next identity Politics

BY ANDRÉS VELASCO

T

wenty years ago, while standing in line at a Harvard cafeteria, I overheard one student say to another, “It is the moral equivalent of the Holocaust!”

What could that be, I wondered. The Rwandan genocide? Cambodia’s killing fields?

South American juntas causing opponents to “disappear” by throwing them into the ocean from helicopters? Eventually, the answer came: Eating meat was the moral equivalent of the Holocaust, and Harvard bureaucrats the guilty party for not providing sufficient vegetarian and vegan meal options.

I found myself recalling that moment as I watched videos of Russian shells falling on Ukrainian apartment blocks, schools, and maternity wards. President Vladimir Putin’s deliberate flattening of cities in an attempt to break Ukraine’s heroic resistance is surely a war crime, though not yet on the scale of genocide. I would like to think that those university students I overheard, and their successors today, would recognize the moral chasm between Putin’s heinous actions and the petty sin of enjoying a burger with fries.

In recent years many young citizens of rich democracies have been in a funk over the virtues of democracy and liberalism. Rather than fighting for survival, they have been skirmishing over pronouns. Rather than fearing that something they said on a bus could cause armed men to drag them out of bed in the middle of the night, they have worried that misspeaking in the classroom could earn them social-media opprobrium.

But Putin’s atrocities now seem suddenly to have put everything into perspective. Yes, many Western countries have a colonial past and a racist present. And, yes, rising income inequality in some of them has hollowed out the middle class and betrayed the promise of equal opportunity for all. But while democracies frequently come up short, they do not terrorize their own people, or send tanks to subjugate democratic neighbors.

Moreover, life in liberal democracies – which today exist not only in the old West but also in Eastern Europe and South America, as well as swaths of Africa and Asia – is less nasty, brutish,

and short than ever. Liberalism has always been a “moral adventure,” in Adam Gopnik’s lovely phrase, because it aims – and, more often than not, succeeds – at making the world “less cruel” by “expanding the right to access a broader range of pleasures and possibilities for other people.”

To those of us who grew up under dictatorial regimes whose goons could drag you out of bed in the middle of the night, these truths have always seemed absurdly self-evident. Putin’s painful reminder of this – for anyone who needed reminding – is now reshaping global politics.

Former US President Donald Trump is not the only authoritarian populist embarrassed by his links to Putin. Shamefaced politicians can be found from Ankara to Zagreb. As the French far-right leader Marine Le Pen prepares to contest the first round of France’s presidential election on April 10 in an attempt to unseat incumbent Emmanuel Macron, her campaign operatives must be feverishly tracing – and are now trying to explain away – every last bit of fulsome praise their boss once directed at the Kremlin strongman.

While Chinese leaders may fantasize about a stalemate between Russia and the West that ends up weakening both, China is also a likely loser from the Ukraine conflict. Chinese leaders’ refusal to condemn Putin makes them look less credible by the day. Even more worryingly for Chinese policymakers, their country’s appeal as a development model is waning.

Some African and Asian leaders, impressed by China’s capable state bureaucracy and growing wealth, may have been willing to look the other way when President Xi Jinping persecuted the country’s ethnic and religious minorities. But do they really want to be photographed next to Xi knowing he could invade Taiwan and turn himself into another Putin?

NATO, which Macron described in 2019 as “brain-dead,” suddenly looks energized and likely to acquire new members. The European Union, seldom successful at pursuing a unified foreign policy, now speaks with a single, clear voice, ably led by Germany’s new “traffic light” coalition. And US President Joe Biden is finally acting like the kind of global leader his lifetime

of foreign-policy experience qualifies him to be.

After the debacle in Afghanistan, it was unclear whether rich democracies had any moral backbone left. Their actions since Russia’s tanks rumbled into Ukraine show that they do.

But there is another, subtler process at work. Over the past decade, the world’s autocrats – and leaders of the charitablylabeled illiberal democracies – have amassed power by exploiting identity politics. Locals against immigrants, the cultural majority against racial or religious minorities, or the people against the elite – no cleavage was too repugnant if it could be manipulated for political gain.

Today, autocrats are about to be confronted by a different kind of identity politics. Start with Ukraine, once divided between its Russianspeaking east and Ukrainian-speaking west, but now increasingly united against Putin’s aggression. Only the supremely stone-hearted can fail to be moved by the sight of Ukrainian women berating armor-clad Russian soldiers, or of slightly hunched Ukrainian pensioners learning to march and fire a weapon. Superior morale is so far enabling the defending army to contain a larger Russian force endowed with far greater firepower.

A shared identity is also emerging among citizens of other democracies. Many German, Hungarian, and Polish families that until last month were complaining about immigration are now tidying up spare bedrooms to receive displaced Ukrainians. South Koreans and Japanese may still be separated by history, but they are members of the same coalition against barbarous aggression. In Latin America, leftist leaders who are not exactly fans of US foreign policy – new Chilean President Gabriel Boric is an example – have categorically denounced Putin’s war.

Divisive blood-and-soil identity politics will now be challenged by a noble – and increasingly global – strand of identity politics based on the liberal values of freedom, dignity, and respect for human rights. In 2019, Putin claimed that “the liberal idea” had “outlived its purpose” and “become obsolete,” because it “has come into conflict with the interests of the overwhelming majority of the population.” By invading Ukraine, he has begun to prove the opposite.

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

| GLOBAL POLITICS

13

Russia meets African envoys on Russia-Ukraine crisis

BY KESTER KENN KLOMEGAH

R

ussian diplomats at the Foreign Ministry have been stepping efforts to get first-hand blistering information on the Russia-Ukraine crisis, its primary causes and implications to African governments.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a special military operation, after both the Federation Council and the State Duma (legislative chambers) approved the implementation of the presidential decision that has since sparked debates throughout the world. It has also pushed for the United States and Canada, European Union members and many other external countries to impose sanctions against Russia.

Long before the special military operation started February 24 aimed at “demilitarization and denazification” in the former Soviet republic of Ukraine, there have been information disseminated, either fabricated or the absolute truth about Russia’s intentions using the power of social media. As seen in practice, Western and European media have strong operational networks throughout Africa.

Russian Foreign Ministry is worried about antiRussia publications, the policy of propaganda and misinformation in some African media outlets.

Obviously, Russian media is extremely weak on the African continent, and consequently local African media replicate information from western sources.

Over these past years, Russian diplomats claim to have a common understanding, expressions of solidarity and trusty position with African friends on global questions at international platforms, especially at the United Nations.

Nevertheless, the African Union, Regional Economic Organizations and the African governments are still and distinctively, divided over the Russia-Ukraine crisis due to divergent views and worse, afraid of contradictions and conQfrontations posed by the seemingly endless crisis and its effects on future relations.

Some policy experts say this Africans’ voting scenario at the UN opens a theme for a complete geopolitical study and analysis. It is necessary to understand its specific policy implications. As a new world is awakening, African leaders still believe that all countries have to respect and operate within the confines of international law. The circumstances demand settling disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice are not endangered. All countries must be guided profoundly by the principles of noninterference in internal matters, respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

There is much of disinformation spreading around, including inside Africa, and consequently the Russian

Foreign Ministry’s special meetings with African diplomatic representatives was to use the diplomatic channels to send down the official situational truth about the Russia-Ukraine crisis to various African governments.

According to reports, Russia and Africa have a close relationship and it becomes necessary to update with substantial information for geopolitical reasons. It was intended to provide explicit understanding into the genesis of the crisis. With the African diplomatic missions, the Russian Foreign Ministry has held two briefings, and one other special briefing with the Arab countries that included North Africa and Arab world.

Bot on March 10 and 22, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Mikhail Bogdanov held special briefings for the heads of diplomatic missions of the African and Arab countries accredited in Russian Federation. It was fully devoted to the entire situation around Ukraine.

The diplomats were informed the reasons, goals and objectives of the ongoing special military operation, including those to ensure the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine, protect the long-suffering people of Donbass, and eliminate the threat to Russia’s national security emanating from Ukrainian territory. There were also significant issues related to ensuring the security of the civilian population in Ukraine, the organization and operation of humanitarian corridors, and the provision of assistance to refugees.

The Foreign Ministry further explained to the representatives of African embassies questions relating with requests for assistance in providing safe exit (evacuations), including their citizens, from crisisridden Ukraine. During the meetings, questions from African diplomats about the activities of embassies in Moscow under the conditions of illegitimate sanctions imposed by Western, European and other countries on the Russian Federation were answered.

In addition to these special briefings, Deputy Minister Bogdanov held bilateral discussions with Ambassadors from Benin, Djibouti, Egypt, Libya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Africa and Tanzania. Interesting to recall here that at the UN on March 2, Nigeria and Egypt were among the 28 African countries that voted to condemn Russia.

On March 22, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Vershinin also held meetings with representatives of African states in the UN Security Council – Ambassador of the Gabonese Republic to the Russian Federation, Johanna Rose Mamiaka; Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to the Russian Federation, Oheneba Dr. Lesley Akyaa OpokuWare and Ambassador of the Republic of Kenya in the Russian Federation, Benson Ogutu.

Topical issues of Russia’s interaction with the African “troika” in the UN Security Council were discussed, incl. the humanitarian situation in Ukraine, the state

of affairs in Libya, Somalia, and the reform of the Security Council. While briefing the African representatives, Minister Bogdanov indicated and reaffirmed Russia’s long-term intention to strengthen and develop traditionally friendly ties with African states was reaffirmed.

For their part, the heads of diplomatic missions thanked the Russian side for the detailed coverage of events in Ukraine and the opportunity to exchange views on topical aspects of the Russia-African agenda.

Earlier on February 28, Bogdanov received Ambassador of the Republic of South Africa, Mzuvukile Jeff Maketuka, exchanged messages on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and South Africa.

During the conversation, both discussed issues of further development of traditionally friendly Russia-South African relations, with an emphasis on strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation in the trade, economic, scientific and humanitarian spheres. Moscow and Pretoria eternally hope to deepen political dialogue and maintain effective coordination of positions in the UN, BRICS, the G20 and other international platforms. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has also spoken with his African counterparts, including Equitorial Guinea, Morocco and South Africa.

Russia and South Africa are members of BRICS group. Soviet Union (now Russia) has maintained ties dating back from apartheid times and during the struggle for political independence. South Africa was one of 17 African nations to abstain on the UN resolution demanding that Russia immediately withdraw from Ukraine.

It took a similar stance during Putin’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has come under fierce criticisms over the official stand on Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Prior to the February 24 crisis which unfolded in Ukraine, Russia indicated strong preparedness and high interests to broaden cooperation in trade and in the economic sectors in Africa. With an invariable commitment to strengthen and develop relations in a positive and constructive manner, and especially in these challenging circumstances, Moscow is still planning for the second Russia-African summit. The question of state support and business facilitation have been on the agenda these several years and was discussed during the panel session in Sochi.

Now Russia plans to open trade missions in a number of African countries, and of course, looking forward to exploring several opportunities in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which provides a unique and valuable access to an integrated African market of over 1.3 billion people. In practical reality, it aims at creating a single continental market for goods and services, with free movement of business people and investments in Africa.

That however, it has been, oftentimes trumpeted that Russian business community lacks awareness regarding the current fastchanging state of African market, along with trade and investment opportunities. There is an insufficient level of trust towards potential partners. It is necessary to establish an effective system of communication to guarantee reliability and integrity, sharing business information, between business associations in Russia and Africa.

According to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, preparations for the Russia-Africa summit are in the active stage. The dates of the summit have not been determined yet. The first Russia-Africa summit took place in October 2019, and it was co-chaired by Russian and Egyptian Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Abdel Fattah elSisi. The next summit is scheduled for autumn 2022.

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| R E A L E S TAT E B R O K E R AG E 1 0 1

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

LAND GUARDISM- A Menace That Must be Confronted Head On

BY CHRIS NII ABBOSEY

I

n contemporary Ghana, everyone wants to buy a land in order to build an edifice for their own use, public gain or for commercial purpose. This desire although may seem new to the current generation has remained with Ghanaians for generations. Only that it is at a high level today.

This desire to acquire a landed property irrespective of how great it, is not easy to achieve. The loops that one has to go through to achieve can be easy or herculean depending on the circumstances surrounding the said land or property.

The value and access to land in urban centres, especially the national capital of Accra is challenging; due to high demand of land stemming from rural-urban migration. The migration has also been largely due to the centralization of opportunities at the urban centres.

The country has made some hugs strides in decentralization, yet about half of the estimated 38 million Ghanaians live in the few urban areas as compared to the greater rural and periurban parts of the country. Comparatively, there are more people in the few urban areas as compared to the greater part of the country which is largely rural.

This puts pressure on the urban areas, leading to over population and scrambling for spaces and opportunities which will be readily available in rural areas should there be enough investments there. This cycle of pressure on urban centres may continue to increase if key measures are not put in place to stem the rural urban migration, says Statistica.

The ripple effect of this vicious cycle has increased the value of lands in urban areas like Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi, Sunyani, Koforidua, Cape Coast and Ho. These areas are largely closer to the south, where there is more development.

Lands in Accra The high value placed on these lands has limited the access to lands, thereby making it a difficult exercise in acquiring one. The huge value of land especially in Accra which ranges between GHc50,000 at the outskirts to 100s of thousands of Ghana cedis per plot in city centres has increased interest in lands.

Since most lands in Accra are either owned by stools, families, clans and individuals through inheritance, the value a land brings can lead to disagreements between owners.

Which in turn leads to multiple sale of the same plot or plots of land and disputes over ownership.

The land tenure system in the past did not encourage many owners to document their land. The boundaries of lands were determined by natural means, like the use of boundary trees, water bodies, farm lands among others. Land boundaries were inherently respected however civilization reduced the quantum of land and increased the value, hence the lack of documentation led to most of the disputes.

The sluggish justice system, coupled with other bad encroachment and adverse claim of land gave birth to people employing private security to protect their lands.

Today, this measure, which began as simple solution to protecting lands evolved into what is now known as the ‘Land Guard’ syndrome. While land owners were waiting to have a good land administration system, the unregulated land security system evolved into a sophisticated venture with the contracted parties (land guards) wielding injurious weapons like machete and guns.

Simply put, the attempt to protect lands carved a place for ‘land guards’ who exist mainly to meet a demand for land protection services in urban Ghana. It is no news in urban areas, especially in Accra where everyone knows that litigation can be lengthy and might cause financial and property loss in the end.

Who Are Land Guards?

Land guards are illegal persons hired by land owners to “scare” people off the lands they have acquired. They are more like vigilante groups who perpetrate assault and vandalism against land developers and their projects. Although it started as a genuine intention to protect the property of actual owners, they currently work for the highest bidder regardless of whether the person is the rightful owner or not.

They are hired by people who want to avoid land issues in a system where records can be hard to keep. The phenomenon of land guards took hold after Ghana returned to constitutional rule in 1992. This period ushered in the liberalization of markets and an increase in economic growth

opportunities and credit access.

This led to increase in the acquisition of property as potential investors sought out investment opportunities in real estate and ordinary citizens felt relatively secure to invest in land.

Increased interest in land acquisition led to an appreciation of land value, especially in Accra where land owners sold particular lands to many people.

Many buyers become victims of multiple sale and had to turn to the courts of law to seek redress. However, the long and costly processes of accessing justice in general and land litigation in particular deterred people from the formal processes of the judiciary. Some also employed the two system side by side, thus while pursuing their land through the formal justice systems, they still maintained the land guards to ward off contestations and encroachers through physical surveillance.

How the Land Guards Operate These land guards were initially youths of a particular area where the land of interest was located. If it were a clan, stool or family land, the land guards will involve the young men in those associations. In the case of individual lands, it was anyone who could help protect the land.

Their job was to prevent anyone except the contracting party from entering the land. Over time, contesting parties of a particular land had their own land guards, these two groups in discharging their duties fought with each other. To gain the upper hand, they resorted to wielding weapons. As the community youth grew faint hearted, land owners had to employ hardened persons, including criminals and ruthless gangs to maintain the higher ground.

These land guards sometimes without being commissioned

The writer is the CEO of CBC Properties Limited, a member of Ghana Association of Real Estate Brokers (GAR) and Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA); Email: ceo@cbcghanaltd. com Cell: +233-20-422-5002

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

by anyone can inhabit a land and extort money from the lawful owner before he or she can develop the land.

They also demolish properties as directed by whoever hired them irrespective of whether the person is the right owner or not.

The era of estate developers also gave their activities a boom, as they were largely used to protect the boundaries of very large acres of land. Although administration system has been improved over time, the services of these land guards are still prevalent.

In some cases, some have a temporal abode on the property while in other instances, they only undertake periodic surveillance and call for back-up when necessary.

In many places of Accra, there have been a lot of injuries over some of these land guard clashes. Including the killing of two top police officers, Owusu Sekyere (Kweku Ninja) and Jerry Wornu (Taller) in the country in the 1998. They were killed at Ablekuma in Accra, which used be notorious for land guard activities.

The State’s Response To This Menace In as much as there were several reforms to make the land guard phenomenon dormant, the death of the two officers raised a national call to action. The incident reiterated the fact that the activities of land guards threatened the lives of the Ghanaian people on one hand and undermined the state on the other.

Their use of illegitimate force to threaten, intimidate, and, in extreme instances, kill their victims became unwelcomed.

Several attempts were undertaken by the state through

| R E A L E S TAT E B R O K E R AG E 1 0 1

the Police and Military to curb the prevalence of land guard in the country. There were periodic swoops and arrests based on intelligence and surveillance, but usually the culprits had to be released because they were not caught in the act. It reduced the prevalence for a period, but it picked up as expansion to new development areas ensued.

The state reiterated its resolve to end the menace by disbanding the activity and making it a prohibited act in Section 12 of the Lands Act, 2020 (Act 1036). It says “A person who unlawfully exercises or purports to exercise supervision or control of land development in the a location which he has no interest in the land, extorts money or other benefits from the person who has an interest in the land or prevents a developer from developing the land or personally or through another person unlawfully uses force or violence to prevent the person with interest from having access to the land or drives away that person with an interest in the land from the land commits an offence and is liable to a summary conviction to a term of imprisonment of not less than 5 years and not more than 15 years.

Thus, anyone arrested in relation to land guard activities can be imprisoned up to 15 years. Apart from this, the state had undertaken lots of land administration reforms including developing an online system of checking the validity of lands and other landed properties and streamlining registration processes. There is also the Real Estate Agency Act which regulates the real estate sector which goes to improve land transaction and hence reduce the use of land guards.

15

The Ghana Police Service has also set-up an anti-land guard task force that fends off and arrests land guards as and when they receive reports or investigations discovers such persons. These notwithstanding a lot needs to be done to totally rid the country of land guards.

Economic Cost Employing land guards comes at a cost which goes to affect the value of a land in many urban areas even more. Because, when all is said and done the cost invested in maintaining them will be passed on to whoever is acquiring the land or the property.

The fear of land guards has held many people back from acquiring lands in order to build or undertake projects. Thus, it has made the acquisition of land and properties the reserve of the highest bidder. This to some extent limits opportunities to acquire properties and even the opportunity to reduce housing deficit in the country, which is over 2 million according to the Ghana statistical service. It also limits infrastructure development as a whole in other areas other than housing.

People who could hitherto acquire a land and build, have resorted to renting or mortgages which is still expensive, but comes without the headache of land guards. Those who could also venture into Real Estate which has huge potential in the country are looking elsewhere.

The activities of these land guards have impeded infrastructural developments because their activities make it hard for one to acquire a land to build an infrastructure that will help develop the society through other businesses and job creation. Their activities have also impeded the development of social amenities in communities. Recently, land guards set ablaze a new police station in Tebibiano near Obom in the Ga South Municipality; an edifice which is to benefit the larger community and ensure law and order in the society.

The value of lives lost due to land guard activities cannot be quantified. Kweku Ninja and Taller were national assets in relation to the nation’s security. There are many skilled and impactful persons who lost their lives through same means. Most of these people, including entrepreneurs, teachers, doctors, and politicians among others could be contributing significantly to national development but are no mores.

I am personally aware of multi-million-dollar projects that were cancelled because the investors were chased at gun point by land guards when they went to visit the proposed land for the projects.

The cost of weeding out the land guards is in itself an economic lost. Funds that could have been used to improve security in less endowed communities must be committed to chasing illegal land overseers.

Conclusion A lot has been done by the state to turn the situation around, but there is still more room for improvement. If the justice system can be equipped to fast track land disputes, there may not be the need for land guards, because people don’t have to wait for up to 20 years to get a verdict. Citizens must also learn to do their due diligence, before entering a land transaction. If they are incapacitated, they should employ the services of professionals, like Lawyers, Surveyors and Real Estate Brokers. Citizens must provide prompt and adequate information of these criminals for prompt action by the Police. The state must invest in massive sensitization of the public against the menace of land guards to deter people from engaging them.

16

| NEWS

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Agric Minister inaugurates 2 boards The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has inaugurated two boards of agencies under the ministry.

They are the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) and the Grains and Legumes Development Board.

The 29-member board of the TCDA is chaired by the President’s nominee, Stephen Sekyere-Abankwa, with members as William A. Quaitoo, Chief Executive Officer of TCDA; Michael Okyere Baafi, Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry; Dr Yaw Adu Ampomah, a representative from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture; and Gifty Nkansah Sekyere, a representative from the Ministry of Finance.

Other members of the board are Davies Narh Korboe, Bassam George Aoun, Anthony Botchway and Vida Korang representing players in the mango sector on the board whilst Simon Tetteh, Emmanuel Akwasi Owusu, Capt. James Owusu-Koranteng, and Isaac Castro Bosomtwe represent those in the rubber business on the board.

The rest are Alex Owusu Agyei, Alexander Joseph Bonsu, Ed-Malvin Nii Ayi Bontey Smith, and Chief Adam

Tampuri representing the cashew sector on the board whilst Isaac Ampofo, Paul Amaning, Maxwell Nii Commey, Samuel Avaala Awonnea serve the interest of oil palm players on the board.

Those in the coconut sector are represented by Patrick Arlloo Ndabiah, Saaka Ahmed Shuaib, Kwaku Boateng and James Andy Kojo Nunoo while Dora Haborsutei Torwiseh, Valerie Obaze, Kwame Agyarko Boaitey Wiafte, and Ophelia Nubabaare represent the interest of players in the shea sector on the board.

The board for the GLDB is chaired by a President nominee, Alexander Akwasi Acquah, with the Acting Executive Director of the GLDB Samuel Boadu, a representative of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture Seth Osei-Akoto, a representative of Seed Growers Association Francis Kwasi Adzalo and a representative of farmers' representative Peter Oteng Darko as members.

The rest are President's nominee (farming), Dr Robert Agyeibi Asuboah, President's nominee (finance), Samuel Danquah Arkhurst, President's nominee (consumer) ,Monica Boakye-

Kutin, and a President's nominee (business), William Oppong Bio. Inaugurating the board of the TCDA, Dr Akoto charged the new board to help diversify the country’s tree crop economy in order to generate more foreign exchange from agricultural exports.

He said for a very long time, the country had remained a mono-tree

crop economy, depending mainly on cocoa to generate huge chunk of its foreign exchange from agricultural exports.

That, he noted, was about time that the country worked to improve its foreign export revenues from the agricultural sector by providing alternative cash crops that could generate more foreign revenues than cocoa.

Government will support Ghana Post - Bawumia

The Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has reiterated the government’s commitment to support Ghana Post to discharge its core mandate as the country's designated postal service operator.

According to him, when Ghana Post was well resourced, the company could be more profitable, considering the current global drive towards e-commerce and digitalisation.

Dr Bawumia gave the assurance last Tuesday when the board and management of Ghana Post, led by the Board Chairman, George Afedzi Hayford, paid a courtesy call on him at

the Jubilee House.

The Vice-President indicated that the development of small-and-mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) was crucial for the economic development of any country.

Meanwhile, a major constraint for SMEs was having reliable and costeffective courier service for deliveries, hence the need to support the national postal service operator to deliver that essential service to support other sectors of the economy.

The Vice-President stated that support for the company was in line with the government's agenda of supporting

state agencies to be stable and profitable.

For his part, the Board Chairman, George Afedzi Hayford, expressed the appreciation of the board, management and staff of the company to the government for reviving Ghana Post with the introduction of the National Digital Property Address System (NDPAS) and other transformational initiatives.

Mr Hayford said the government also extended a bailout to Ghana Post during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Managing Director of Ghana Post,

Bice Obour Osei Kuffour, also stated that with the successful implementation of digitalisation in Ghana Post's significant operations, the company was ready to serve Ghanaians with customercentred innovations.

The managing director said the company would continue to distinguish itself as the lifeline to everyone's deadline.

He, therefore, appealed to the government to support Ghana Post's collaboration with other state institutions to integrate government services in all its 360 networked branches to complement the government's decentralisation and digital agenda.

Mr Kuffour expressed the confidence that such a move would make Ghana Post more profitable and offer comfort to individuals and organisations.

"We have commercially positioned ourselves to run these services with speed, efficiency and security. We wish to ask for your support to lead the campaign of bringing government services to the doorstep of Ghanaians through our strategically positioned branches nationwide,” he said.

“We are efficient, diligent and costeffective," the managing director stressed.

The seven-member board of Ghana Post also has Alfred Nii-Nortey Nortey; Frederick Akuffo-Gyimah; Yiadom Boakye Kessie; Micheal Omari Wadie, and Abena Durowaa Mensah as members, in addition to the managing director.

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

TOURISM

17

The Ukraine war is reshaping development

T

he global economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic was always fragile, especially in the developing world. With Russia’s disastrous war in Ukraine, it has been all but shattered. But the invasion’s immediate consequences are just the beginning. In a world yet again defined by great-power conflict, countries will have to rethink their approach to development.

There was a time when development economists focused primarily on growth. Rapid economic expansion, it was believed, was the key to delivering broad prosperity. But, in the 1980s, social inclusivity and the environment began to feature in the policy agenda, and have become increasingly prominent over the years.

Even before Russia invaded Ukraine – and even before the pandemic took hold – emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) were struggling on all of these fronts. In March 2020, the World Bank estimated that inequality within EMDEs, and the gap between them and the advanced economies, had reached levels last seen a decade prior. Amid soaring poverty, catastrophic natural disasters, and intensifying civil strife, it should not be surprising that developing-country policymakers struggled to formulate climate policies that could fulfill international commitments.

And more challenges await. With inflation having reached 7.5% in the United States in January, the US Federal Reserve has embarked on monetary tightening, implementing the first of this year’s seven planned quarter-point interest-rate increases.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell has indicated that even bigger hikes might be needed, if inflation continues to rise. For EMDEs, this will create a difficult policy environment, characterized by less liquidity, a stronger US dollar, and rapid capital outflows.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has made matters much worse. According to the OECD, the conflict will reduce global GDP by at least one percentage point this year, owing to the deep recession in

Russia, and cause consumer prices to rise by about 2.5 percentage points. For EMDEs (not including China), this implies growth of less than 3.2% this year, less than half their average annual growth rate before the 2008 global financial crisis.

But growth is only part of the picture. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) predicts that heightened financial volatility and rising food, fuel, and trade costs could trigger a vicious cycle of asset fire sales, exchange-rate devaluations, and debt crises.

EMDEs have few options for mitigating the risks they face. With debt levels at historic highs, they lack the fiscal space to support their economies.

Furthermore, unlike countries that issue reserve currencies, they cannot turn to quantitative easing. And with the advanced economies, particularly in Europe, facing increased security risks, rising defense-spending needs, and the biggest refugee crisis since World War II, EMDEs cannot count on much external help in dealing with debt defaults or financial and governance crises.

Complicating the policy response still further, the intensity and duration of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war, the sanctions the West has imposed in response to it, and the resulting supply-chain bottlenecks remain impossible to predict. In other words, there is no telling how severe the risks will become.

But, however the war unfolds, it seems clear that countries will have to give national security a far more prominent position in their development agendas. As the OECD noted, this does not only mean increasing defense spending, though there is significant pressure to do just that. It also means diversifying energy and food sources – and preparing for global economic fragmentation.

In recent decades, “liberal globalization” has enabled the integration of EMDEs into

the global economy. But, as Harvard’s Dani Rodrik recently explained, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “nailed shut the coffin of the post1989 ‘liberal’ international order,” including the hyper-globalization it enabled.

The economic and financial sanctions Russia is facing – not least its partial exclusion from the SWIFT financial messaging system for international bank payments – will hasten the effort to develop alternative systems and structures. This could, the OECD warns, erode the US dollar’s dominance in financial markets and cross-border payments.

For EMDEs, changes to the currency composition of foreign-exchange reserves may be needed. More broadly, they will have to adapt to a world where specialization, economies of scale, and the diffusion of information and knowhow is far more difficult.

Here, EMDEs might be able to draw lessons from a recent UNCTAD report on China’s structural transformation, which highlights the country’s success in devising pragmatic, comprehensive, and cohesive policy strategies in areas including finance, industrial development, international trade, and the digital economy. As we have long argued, China’s history of learning from its mistakes and adapting to changing conditions has been essential to its success, in terms not only of growth, but also of resilience.1 “Realists” in the West insist that China’s governance model is not replicable in other countries. But Western countries, facing new challenges of their own, seem unlikely to give EMDEs the support they need to keep development on track. Given this, it is up to EMDEs to transform their approach to development. They may be well served by using China’s experience as a guide.

Project Syndicate

18

| MARKET REVIEW

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Weekly Market Review For Week Ending March 18, 2022 MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS

Best 5 Traded Equities by Volume for the Week Ending 18/03/2022

Trend in Market Indices - 2022 3,000

CAL, 2.84%

Average GDP Growth for 2021

5.3%

2021 Projected GDP Growth

5.0%

BoG Policy Rate

17.0%

1,500

13.39%

1,000

2022 Budget Deficit Target (%GDP)

7.4%

Public Debt (billion GH¢) – Dec, 2021

351.8 80.1%

MTN, 77.99%

GSE FSI

BEST 5 TRADED EQUITIES BY VALUE FOR THE WEEK ENDING 11/03/2022

YTD Performance of GSE Market Indices 0.50% 0.00%

11

-1.00%

/0

1/2 2 1/2 18 2 /0 1/ 25 22 /0 1/ 01 22 /0 2/ 08 22 /0 2/ 15 22 /0 2/ 22 22 /0 2/ 01 22 /0 3 08 /22 /0 3/ 15 22 /0 3/ 22

-0.50% -1.50% -2.00%

SCB, 15.09%

-2.50% -3.50% -4.00% GSE CI

GSE FSI

5 Best & 5 Worst Performing Stocks YTD Return 160.00%

Volume and Value of Trades for Week Ending 18/03/2022

140.00%

137.50%

120.00% 100.00%

14,000,000

80.00%

12,000,000

60.00%

18.28% 17.78%

40.00%

10,000,000

17.65%7.14%

20.00%

8,000,000

0.00% -20.00%

4,000,000

-60.00%

SI C

6,000,000

-40.00%

-3.45%

-25.00% -33.33%-39.68% -9.77%

2,000,000

▲13.33%

SIC Insurance Company Ltd.

2.12

2.25

▲6.13%

Ecobank Transnational Inc.

0.19

0.2

▲5.26%

Societe Generale Ghana PLC

5.2

5.18

▼0.38%

1.08

1.06

▼1.85%

14/03/22 15/03/22 16/03/22 17/03/22 18/03/22 VOLUME

VALUE

CURRENCY MARKET

Market Capitalization for Week Ending 18/03/2022 63,989.00 63,988.00 63,987.00 63,986.00 63,985.00 63,984.00 63,983.00 63,982.00 63,981.00 63,980.00

-0.78% -0.78% -0.78% -0.79% -0.79% -0.79% -0.79% -0.79%

15 /0 3/ 22 16 /0 3/ 22 17 /0 3/ 22 18 /0 3/ 22

0.17

3/ 22

0.15

/0

Equity

14

Price Movers for the Week

Cal Bank PLC

MTN, 40.32%

ACCESS, 12.97%

-3.00%

Market capitalization advanced by 0.42% to close the week at GH¢63,985.35 million, from GH¢63,713.16 million at the close of the previous week. This reflects YTD decrease of 0.79%.

Trading activity recorded a total of 18,582,177 shares valued at GH¢24,300,166.61 changing hands, compared with 1,892,384 shares, valued at GH¢2,142,874 in the preceding week.

MTN dominated both volume and value of trades for the week, accounting for 77.99% and 63.22% of volume and value of shares traded respectively .

The market ended the week with 3 advancers and 2 decliners as indicated on the table below

GCB, 6.14%

EGL, 9.26%

1.00%

/0

STOCK MARKET REVIEW The Ghana Stock Exchange retreated for the week on the back of declines by 2 counters. The GSE Composite Index (GSE CI) lost 6.11 points (-0.22%) to close at 2,738.63 points, reflecting year-to-date (YTD) loss of 1.82%. The GSE Financial Stocks Index (GSE FI) however, gained 24.62 points (+1.15%) to close at 2,167.29 points, reflecting year-to-date (YTD) gain of 0.72%.

GSE CI

04

Debt to GDP Ratio – Dec, 2021

0

I CA L BO PP FM L PB C AC CE SS

9.7%

L

Budget Deficit (% GDP) – Dec, 2021

500

ET

8.0%

TB

End Period Inflation Target – 2021

L

15.7%

GGBL, 10.15%

BL

Inflation for February, 2022

2,000

04 /0 1/2 11/ 2 01 /2 18 2 /0 1/2 25 2 /0 1/ 01 22 /0 2/ 08 22 /0 2/ 15 22 /0 2/ 22 22 /0 2/ 01 22 /0 3/ 08 22 /0 3/ 15 22 /0 3/ 22

Weekly Interbank Interest Rate

EGL, 1.81%

ETI, 2.37%

2,500

GG

6.6%

EG

Q3, 2021 GDP Growth

MARKET CAP

YTD%

The Cedi depreciated against the USD for the eighth conThe Cedi depreciated against the USD for the nineth consecutive week. It traded at GH¢7.1125/$ on Friday, compared to GH¢7.0250/$ at week open, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciations of 1.23% and 15.56% respectively. This compares with YTD appreciation of 0.57% a year ago.

The Cedi also depreciated against the GBP for the week.

It traded at GH¢9.3533/£, compared with GH¢9.1814/£ at week open, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciation of 1.84% and 13.11% respectively. This compares with YTD depreciation of 0.78% a year ago.

The Cedi again weakened against the Euro for the week.

It traded at GH¢7.8451/€, compared with GH¢7.6934/€ at week open, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciations of 1.93% and 12.96% respectively. This compares with YTD appreciation of 3.74% a year ago.

The Cedi further weakened against the Canadian Dollar for the week. It opened at GH¢5.5280/C$ but closed

▼12.96

GBP/GHS

4.7416

5.5280

5.6371

▼1.94

▼15.89

EUR/GHS

6.8281

7.6405

7.6934

▼0.69

▼11.25

CAD/GHS

4.7416

5.4792

5.5280

▼0.88

▼14.22

Source: Bank of Ghana

Exchange Rates: Ghana Cedi vs Selected Currencies

14

0% -10%

10

12/03/22

Prices of Cocoa dipped for the week. The commodity traded at US$2,537.00 per tonne on Friday, from US$2,580.00 last week, reflecting w/w loss and YTD appreciation of 1.67% and 0.67% respectively.

CAD

Commodities

4.00 2.00

12/03/22

05/03/22

26/02/22

19/02/22

12/02/22

05/02/22

29/01/22

22/01/22

15/01/22

08/01/22

01/01/22

0.00

-8.00 -10.00 -12.00 -14.00 -16.00 -18.00 GBP

EUR

CAD

GOVERNMENT SECURITIES MARKET Government raised a sum of GH¢1,178.22 million for the week across the 91-Day and 182-Day Treasury bills, compared to GH¢2,341.25 million raised in the previous week.

The 91-Day Bill settled at 13.42%, from 13.25% last week whiles the 182-Day Bill settled at 13.61%, from 13.55% last week.

The table and graph below highlight primary market yields at close of the week.

91 Day TB

Year Open

Previous Yield %

Current Yield %

01/01/22

14/03/22

18/03/22

12.53

13.25

13.42

182 Day TB

13.21

13.55

13.61

364 Day TB

16.64

16.96

16.96

2-Yr FXR TN

19.75

19.75

19.75

20.50

20.50

20.50

21.00

20.75

20.75

18.80

21.75

21.75

18.10

18.10

18.10

10-Yr Bond

19.75

19.75

19.75

15-Yr Bond

19.75

19.75

19.75

20-Yr Bond

20.20

20.20

20.20

3-Yr Bond 5-Yr Bond 6-Yr Bond 7-Yr Bond

Week Open

Week Close

01/01/22

14/03/22

18/03/22

112.67

107.93

1,985.00

1,929.30

Brent crude oil (USD/bbl)

-6.00

USD

Year Open

77.78

Gold (USD/t oz.)

1,828.60

Cocoa (USD/ MT)

2,520.00

2,580.00

2,537.00

Chg %

YTD %

▼4.21

▲38.76

▼2.81

▲5.51

▼1.67

▲0.67

Source: www.investing.com International Commodity Prices - 2022 3,000 C O 2,500 C O 2,000 A

WoW Chg (%)

YTD Chg (%)

▲1.22

▲7.10

▲0.42

▲3.01

&

0.00

▲1.88

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

G O L D

0.00

▼1.19

0.00

15.69

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

140 B 120 R E 100 N 80 T

1,500

60

1,000

40

500

20

0

0

Gold

Brent Crude

Cocoa

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

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

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

EUR

05/03/22

26/02/22

19/02/22

12/02/22

05/02/22

29/01/22

22/01/22

08/01/22

01/01/22

15/01/22

GBP

Cocoa

BUSINESS TERM OF THE WEEK

Gold dipped on Friday and for the week, as the dollar strengthened. Gold settled at US$1,929.30 from US$ 1,985.00 last week, reflecting w/w loss and YTD appreciation of 2.81% and 5.51% respectively.

YTD Performance of the Ghana Cedi against Selected Currencies

Security

Gold

Crude Oil prices logged a second weekly loss as the Russia-Ukraine war premium dipped from its highs of two weeks ago. Brent futures traded at US$107.93 a barrel on Friday, compared to US$112.67 at week open. This reflects w/w loss and YTD gain of 4.21% and 38.76% respectively.

USD

-4.00

10%

12

COMMODITY MARKET

10.0000 9.0000 8.0000 7.0000 6.0000 5.0000 4.0000 3.0000 2.0000 1.0000 0.0000

-2.00

20%

13.42 13.61

/0 1/ 08 22 /0 1/ 15 22 /0 1/ 22 22 /0 1/ 29 22 /0 1 05 /22 /0 2/ 12 22 /0 2/ 19 22 /0 2 26 /22 /0 2 05 /22 /0 3/ 12 22 /0 3/ 22

▼13.11

▼1.93

01

▼1.84

7.8451

yr

9.3533

7.6934

yr

9.1814

6.8281

20

8.1272 USD/GHS

30%

yr

▼15.56

15

▼1.23

yr

7.1125

10

7.0250

7

6.0061

yr

%

60%

40%

16

yr

18/03/22

70%

50%

16.96

6

14/03/22

19.75

18.10

18

yr

01/01/22

19.75 19.00

3

%

YTD %

yr

Change

20.20

19.75

2

Week Close

21.75 20.75

91 Da y 18 2D ay 36 4D ay

Week Open

22 20

Weekly Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates Year Open

YTD Performance of Selected Commodity Prices

Treasury Yield Curve

5

at GH¢5.6371/C$, reflecting w/w and YTD depreciations of 1.94% and 15.89% respectively. This compares with YTD depreciation of 1.00% a year ago.

Currency Pair

19

| MARKET REVIEW

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

Brent Crude

C R U D E

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

RESEARCH TEAM Name: Ernest Tannor Email:etannor@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 20 881 8957 Name: Audrey Asiedua Wiafe Email:aaudrey@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 57 840 2700 Name: Moses Nana Osei-Yeboah Email:moyeboah@cidaninvestments.com Tel:+233 (0) 24 499 0069 CORPORATE INFORMATION CIDAN Investments Limited CIDAN House Plot No. 169 Block 6 Haatso, North Legon – Accra Tel: +233 (0) 26171 7001/ 26 300 3917 Fax: +233 (0)30 254 4351 Email: info@cidaninvestmens.com Website: www.cidaninvestments.com Disclaimer: The contents of this report have been prepared to provide you with general information only. Information provided on and available from this report does not constitute any investment recommendation.

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

MONDAY, FEBRAURY 14, 2022

WWW.BUSINESS24.COM.GH

NO. B24 / 314 | NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

Water for the thirsty

O

n March 22 every year, the world observes World Water Day to educate us about the importance of water and about water crisis facing humanity.

This year’s World Water Day that was commemorated last Tuesday reminded me of two stories. The first happened in my forest village, and the second happened on the last day of a great festival.

Under the canopies of trees and the coolness of the forest farms, we scarcely felt thirsty. We hadn’t yet learnt that we drink water to nourish our bodies, whether we feel thirsty or not.

Neither had we yet learnt that the average African is basically malnourished due to our failure to drink water frequently.

But, even in the freshness of rural settings, when a person is thirsty, he really is. On one such occasion, I had walked quite a distance from our corn farm through the forest.

I felt thirsty, but I pushed on, carrying on my head a basket of corn. After all, I would soon arrive at the stream just ahead of me.

When I got to the stream, I put down my load, plucked a large cocoa leaf, folded it into a cup, and drank to my satisfaction from the gently flowing brook.

I didn’t have any concerns about the wholesomeness of the water, although wild animals and birds also drank from the brook.

Today, I wouldn’t dare drink from such a stream.

Why? Because it wouldn’t be clear water; neither

would it be safe. It would be creamy with mashed clay and full of deadly chemicals like cyanide.

The activities of illegal (and even “legal”) smallscale miners have turned our rivers and streams into poisonous porridge.

The king who boasts proverbially that he is the royal who drinks from River Birim must change his self-compliments, for, sadly, Birim is no longer able to nourish commoners, let alone kings.

You want to weep when you observe the manner in which our virgin and farmlands are being turned into what the Bible describes as “desolate wastes”.

Envisage the year 2050 when long queues of water tankers in convoys from neighbouring countries would be carrying imported water into Ghana! I pray such a situation never happens to us.

Since it appears no operation seems strong enough to stop the activities of small-scale miners, will our water bodies survive up to 2050 before we begin to import water or turn the Atlantic into fresh water?

I saw the commemorators of World Water Day at a conference centre observing the day. How could they sufficiently lament the water crisis in a plush venue where the bottled water is clear, chilled, and wholesome to drink?

Maybe they should have gathered at one of the dead rivers, where they could have wailed over the water body that used to be a clear river.

In the second story, there had been a great festival

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2022

where guests ate and drank to their fill. They did not know they were thirsty, for they indulged in the physical and neglected the spiritual.

On the last day of the festival, Jesus, who was there observing that the more the guests drank, the thirstier they became, stood up among them. Then in a loud voice, he proclaimed, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink . . .” ( John 7:37).

While the guests wondered what he meant, Jesus added, “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water!”

Water is life; for it is essential for earthly survival of every living organism. On the other hand, “Rivers of living water” flowing out of the heart is eternal in nature and transcends our earthly life.

When we are physically thirsty, we reach for water; how about when we are spiritually thirsty?

Jesus said, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.” Without God in our life, we are thirsty.

This is how a spiritually thirsty person described his longing for God: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” (Psalm 42:1, 2).

A restless soul must reach out to its Creator to be at rest and at peace. And that means believing in Christ, the Living Water.

What Jesus told the woman at the well who felt empty inside due to her immoral life ( John 4:13, 14), he tells all of us— “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The writer is a publisher, author, writer-trainer and CEO of Step Publishers.

E-mail: lawrence.darmani@gmail.com

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