Business24 Newspaper 26th February, 2021 by Business24 Online

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

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NO. B24 / 164 | NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

New mining local content law lacks key detail – NRGI

Dr. Ernest Addison, Governor, Bank of Ghana

BoG affirms commitment to innovation, financial inclusion By Joshua Worlasi Amlanu macjosh1922@gmail.com

he Bank of Ghana has reaffirmed its commitment to addressing the financial inclusion needs of the unbanked and underserved persons and businesses. Cont’d on page 3

By Nii Annerquaye Abbey abbeykwei@gmail.com

he Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) has said the recently passed Local Content and Local Participation regulations for Ghana’s mining sector would have been best if it provides further room to detail how to achieve and monitor local content.

The NRGI argues that there is further room for reforms in the new regulations despite the several positive and forward-looking provisions in the regulations. The Local Content regulations got passed into law in December 2020 as the Minerals and Mining (Local Content and Local Participation) Regulations, 2020 (L.I. 2431).

ECONOMIC INDICATORS EXCHANGE RATE (INT. RATE)

POLICY RATE

14.5% 14.77%

OVERALL FISCAL DEFICIT

11.4% OF GDP

AVERAGE PETROL & DIESEL PRICE:

4.2% GHC 5.13

By Joshua Worlasi Amlanu macjosh1922@gmail.com

he MTN Group, the panAfrican mobile services operator, has said it is committed to its agreement with the government of Ghana to further localise its holdings in the country.

Cont’d on page 2 INTERNATIONAL MARKET

US$1 = GHC 5.7606

GHANA REFERENCE RATE PROJECTED GDP GROWTH RATE

Speaking during a virtual training of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the media on the newly passed regulations, Policy Advocacy Officer for NRGI Ghana Office, Mr. Nasir Alfa Mohammed said that the regulations did not make provision for a Local Content Committee as obtains in the Petroleum Sector.

MTN commits to further localise holdings in Ghana

BRENT CRUDE $/BARREL NATURAL GAS $/MILLION BTUS GOLD $/TROY OUNCE

CORN $/BUSHEL

$543.75

COCOA $/METRIC TON

$123.55

COFFEE $/POUND:

Cont’d on page 3

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Editorial / News

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Editorial We need gender responsive policies for AfCFTA

he Africa Continental Free Trade Area offers a sustainable and workable path towards the socio-economic liberation of the continent should its ideals and protocols be administered to the letter. It also provides an excellent opportunity to bridge the economic gender gap. The call to action then will be for African policymakers to design gender-specific interventions which can positively impact cross-border trade and unlock the economic opportunities of this laudable continental initiative. “Otherwise, we risk widening the gender gap even further,” trade expert Ziad Hamoui of the Borderless Alliance shared

as a panelist on an UNECABUSA Conference on the theme “Leveraging AfCFTA to boost women’s economic empowerment”. Tackling the perennial lack of suitable infrastructure for crossborder trade and transport, including access to adequate areas for goods handling or storage, passenger movement, health, security and sanitary facilities were other concerns that trade expert raised. “It doesn’t need to be a top-class joint border post or nothing, but it can be fit for purpose, easy to maintain and sustainable, depending on available resources,” he added. In most African economies like Ghana, women form

the backbone of trade and commerce. A Borderless Alliance research on cross border trade in 2017 revealed that an overwhelming majority of trade is carried out by small, informal, women traders, many of them lacking minimum organizational skills to form networks or associations. As a result, their trade volumes go unnoticed, along with their pleas, while the real cross-border trade flows remain largely underreported. To be able to promote the cause of women owned businesses in the single continental market, respective governments must push gender responsive policies that will give the necessary support to their trade.

New mining local content law lacks key detail – NRGI Continued from cover

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He emphasised that a local content committee was one of several proposals CSOs submitted to the Minerals Commission towards the preparation of the regulations. When you translate what happens in the petroleum sector to the mining sector we thought that the Committee would enhance the work of the Minerals Commission,” he said. Mr. Mohammed further said it was remarkable how the monetary value, in terms of services in the mining sector has jumped from US$426million in 2018 to about US$1.4billion in 2019.” A Senior Legal Analyst with NRGI, Ms. Nicola Woodroffe who also spoke during the training was particular about defining what ‘local’ meant with respect to goods and services and making sure that “there is an emphasis on in-country value addition.” According to her, one of the issues that came up in the assessment of Ghana’s previous local content regulations was the distinction between local importing foreign goods which provided less benefits within the country and hardly supported local manufacturing. In her opinion, it is crucial to ensure preference was given to

local companies that are creating direct value addition and not local companies engage in the business of import to service the mining sector. It will be recalled that in February 2020, the Minerals Commission (MinCom) collaborated with the NRGI to organise a consultative forum for civil society on government’s proposal for amendments to the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006

(Act 703) and related sector reform efforts in the mining sector. The reforms included a proposed law dedicated to local content in the mining sector. The forum was a follow-up to a multi-stakeholder technical session organized by NRGI in October 2019 to obtain updates from the government and build a shared understanding of the government’s review plans for Act 703.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

BoG affirms commitment to innovation, financial inclusion Continued from cover In a release following the launch of its regulatory and innovation sandbox pilot in collaboration with EMTECH Service LLC., the bank said it remains committed to evolving an enabling and inclusive regulatory environment that promotes FinTechs and supports innovation. Within the financial sector, a regulatory and innovation sandbox is a supportive and controlled policy environment that enables firms to test innovative products, services and business models under the supervision of a regulator. “Effectively, the regulatory and innovation sandbox will provide a forum for financial sector innovators to interact with the sector regulator to test digital financial service innovations while evolving an enabling regulatory environment,” the bank said. “In this regard, the bank and

the innovator are able to assess the usefulness, viability and safety of innovations through shared understanding of their respective interests,” it added. The sandbox will be available to banks, specialised deposittaking institutions and payment service providers, including dedicated electronic money issuers, as well as unregulated entities and persons that have innovations that meet the sandbox requirements.

The central bank noted that innovations eligible for the sandbox environment will have to satisfy broad categories including new digital business models not currently covered explicitly or implicitly under any regulation; new and immature digital financial service technology; and innovative digital financial services products that have the potential of addressing a persistent financial inclusion challenge. Within these broad categories, the Bank of Ghana said it will give preference to products and

services leveraging blockchain technology, remittance products, crowdfunding products and services, e-KYC (electronic know your customer) platforms, RegTech (regulatory technology), SupTech (supervisory technology), digital banking products and services targeting financial inclusion for women, and innovative merchant payment solutions for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). “Notably, the sandbox is of strategic importance in driving financial inclusion through innovative digital financial services, as it presents the opportunities to reduce timeto-market; allow regulators to learn about innovations faster; encourage innovators to formalise their business and incentivise incumbents to experiment with new ideas; reduce the cost of innovation for innovators; and provide valuable insight for regulators to evolve effective regulations,” the bank said.

MTN commits to further localise holdings in Ghana Continued from cover Last year, the group and the government agreed to increase local ownership in MTN Ghana by a further sale of 12.5 percent shares to Ghanaians. In its 2020 annual report to investors released this week, the group said it remains committed to the agreement, which will increase local shareholding to 25 percent in MTN Ghana, also known as Scancom Plc. Last year, MTN Ghana sought authorisation from shareholders for the implementation of an employee share scheme by way of an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) for lower-level staff and a Performance Share Plan for senior staff. The total amount of shares subject to the scheme will be allocated on an estimated share price of GH¢0.60, representing about 4.41 percent of the issued share capital of GH¢1.097bn of Scancom Plc. Efforts are also being made to localise 30 percent of MobileMoney Limited, a whollyowned subsidiary of Scancom Plc, which is a licence requirement according to the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987). The deadline to meet this

requirement was extended by the central bank to January 15, 2022. Significant market power The company says it is optimistic of a positive result from discussions on its significant market power status that was declared by the regulator, the National Communications Authority, last year. “Importantly, engagements and discussions with relevant

stakeholders continued after they were briefly suspended leading up to the national elections in December 2020, and we are optimistic that these discussions will result in a positive outcome for MTN Ghana and the long-term sustainability of the industry.” 2020 Performance MTN Ghana recorded a profit of GH¢1.3bn last year, representing about 38.4 percent year-on-

year growth. Total revenue was GH¢6bn, a 16.4 percent increase over that of 2019. The board of the company recommended a final dividend of GH¢0.05 per share, bringing the total dividend for the year to GH¢0.08 per share. MTN Ghana subscribers increased by 23.4 percent to 24.4m, whilst active data subscribers increased by 32.4 percent to 10.8m.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

News

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Tourism Minister-designate pledges to boost domestic tourism By Eugene Davis ugendavis@gmail.com

he Minister-designate for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Awal Mohammed, says he aims to get 1m people travelling within the country every year as part of a domestic tourism campaign. He said the hotel industry will be integral to the execution and success of the campaign, and he will engage the sector to consider options to lower the cost of accommodation for domestic tourists. “We have over 50,000 hotel rooms in this country, but we need a minimum of 150,000 rooms, so the cost of hotels is [based on] demand and supply factors. I intend to engage the hotels to give us a cap in terms of pricing so that it can encourage Ghanaians to go

around the country,” said Mr. Awal during his vetting by Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Thursday. He also promised to see to the establishment of a US$20m film studio that will attract local and

international film artistes and help develop the film industry. “It’s one element that can increase the tourism potential of this country. We don’t have any serious studio in this country, so this is one of the first things that

we will do. The film studio will help in music and film production and make Ghana the hub of film production in West Africa.” He also said that local television series will be encouraged to help project Ghanaian culture.

Covid-19 vaccines arrival timely – MP

T FDA organises Covid-19 testing for staff By Eugene Davis ugendavis@gmail.com

he Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), as part of measures to protect public health and safety, has organised a COVID-19 testing for its workers to ensure that its staff and offices remain safe for conducting business. The Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Delese Darko in a staff durbar reiterated the need for all staff to stay safe while assuring them of the Authority’s continuous support for all who may test positive. The FDA set up a COVID-19 Task Force in March 2020 to ensure that both staff and visitors adhere strictly to all the safety protocols and are protected from

contracting the virus. Staff who tested positive for the virus as well as their contacts traced were required to selfisolate and given the necessary medical assistance. The FDA, she said, would like to assure the general public that the well-being of its clients, consumers as well as staff is of utmost priority. “The Authority will therefore continually put in place measures to ensure the safety of all who visit any of its offices across the country. Visitors are advised to ensure strict adherence to all the safety protocols such as washing of hands and the wearing of face masks at all times that they visit any of the FDA Offices to conduct business,” she added.

he Member of Parliament for Effiduase-Asokore, Dr. Nana Ayew Afriyie has hailed the arrival of the first batch of the covid-19 vaccines in the country describing it as “critical and timely” in the country’s fight against the pandemic. A total of 600,000 doses of the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University arrived in the country on Wednesday, making Ghana the first African country to receive vaccines through the UN-backed COVAX scheme, which aims to get COVID-19 vaccines to the world’s most vulnerable people, in a global effort to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Government plans to distribute it across hospitals for vaccinations to begin by next Tuesday March 2, 2021. He called on the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), religious bodies, media to intensify education on the benefits for having the vaccination. The delivery comes almost a year after the WHO first described the novel coronavirus as a global pandemic and eight months after the launch of the COVAX initiative, aimed at pooling funds from wealthier countries and non-profits to develop a COVID-19

vaccine and distribute it equitably around the world. Ghana has recorded more than 80,700 cases of coronavirus and 580 deaths since the pandemic began. These numbers are believed to fall short of the actual toll because of low levels of testing.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Feature

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

The CIO Diaries: Resilience beyond digital transformation

By: Kwadwo Akomea-Agyin

nformation Systems (IS) become more and more complex as the number of solutions in the IS space keeps rising; each solution promising different but convergent gains. The question no longer remains how to transform your IS strategy to meet your organization’s digital needs but how to remain resilient in uncertain times. Managers of IS today make decisions out of a complex, contradictory, and dynamic landscape of big data that is available but has a short relevance lifecycle. This means that decision-makers spend more time making informed decisions today than they did a few years ago with fewer and less complex systems. In this article, I posit that creating a resiliency strategy goes beyond digital transformation and offers some strategies for designing a resilience plan. Your resilience strategy beyond the systems Beyond Big Data Analytics is the question of whether the systems producing data can withstand the shocks and ambush that surprises all of us (Not to mention the Covid-19 pandemic and the digital transformation it rapidly fasttracked). Consequently, there is a need to embark on a journey of IS resilience if your organization will be able to seamlessly adapt to change while protecting its business and customers from all types of disruptions and disasters (Ambush and Shocks) - incomplete knowledge, interoperability, and surprise. Business leaders today demand

both stability and disruptive innovation – two key variables that used to be on different sides of the continuum. Your ability to balance these two competing pressures will determine success for your IS team, with your digital transformation journey underpinned by disruptive innovation whiles your resilience journey is underpinned on stability against adversity. In this tag of war, however, there is a third and perhaps most important factor – Productivity and Business Continuity, which tends to suffer. Resilience is not only about the systems. It has more to do with the decisions that lead to making the systems resilient. Your resilient plan may encompass an array of decisions such as: • Which services may only need load balancing to prevent the event of overloading a particular system? • Which services will demand a backup (online and/or offline)? • Which services will need a disaster recovery solution (including Geographical redundancy and their corresponding recovery time objective and recovery point objective)? • Which services will need a high availability solution? • Or which services will need a combination of the above strategies Your resilience program should therefore: • Avoid monopoly & be flexible: A monopoly of resilience decisions may lead to widespread disruption. Monopoly may emanate from the strategy itself,

using the same vendor (s) or not properly prioritizing services. In providing Disaster Recovery (DR) services as a resilience measure, geo-redundancy is a good choice. However, it may not be needed for every ‘critical service’. Instead of planning for a single failure scenario, look into the possibility of other failure scenarios occurring and the right strategies to curtail them. • The big picture: The big picture is ensuring productivity and business continuity. Your resilience strategy should hence go beyond striving for immunity and incorporate the need for productivity and business continuity. Most often, IS Managers and CIOs receive a list of services all classified as ‘critical’ by their respective business unit owners (Marketing, Finance, Operations, Customer Support, etc.), demanding that they ask the more relevant question: what is my resilience tolerance level? What is your resilience tolerance level? In answering this question, IS Managers and CIOs should first define the various tolerance levels and the respective strategies that would be applied for each resiliency strategy. Investment decisions would then be justified and then resilience classifications done together with the business owners for each service. Most importantly, however, the investments should be justified. If data available reveal that a particular system has not had downtime for 8 years, it would be difficult to justify a Disaster Recovery (DR) spend. On the contrary, however, resilience is about being ready in times

of uncertainty. Hence offering a DR for such a system may amount to ensuring readiness for uncertainty. But is the investment justifiable? In conclusion Your IS resilience journey is not a ‘quick fix’. It is a gradual journey of policy creation and an array of strategic decisions that need business alignment and investment justification with results to show. To avoid creating resiliency strategies out of incomplete and irrelevant data, a detailed business impact analysis of the organization’s IS portfolio should be conducted to address the risk appetite of the various business units and the organization. This should be accompanied by a thorough engagement of the various business units to determine policies, risk levels, and investment options (For example, how much it will cost to create resiliency as against the revenue being generated from such a system). Finally, IS Managers and CIOs should continually revisit their resiliency strategies and update them as new and more relevant data becomes available. Author: Kwadwo AkomeaAgyin is a seasoned business professional with 12+ years of progressive experience in Project Management, Consultative Business Development, and Digital Transformation solutions. He is a member of IIPGH and a regular contributor to this column. Contact Kwadwo on WhatsApp: +233544341374 | Email: kojo.e@ live.com | Skype: Kwadwo_2010

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

News

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Dow supports communication infrastructure connecting 50,000 people

ow is supporting an information and c o m mu n i c a t i o n infrastructure pilot to reach approximately 50,000 people in Nsutem, Eastern Region to support improved internet and data communications connectivity. Dow’s support will help to enable the construction of a renewable energy biomass power facility which will generate sustainable incomes for thousands of smallholder farmers locally. Through its local grantee, the Okyeman Environment Foundation (OEF), Dow has enabled the construction of a WiFi network inclusive of hardware, software and deployment of technology to support two base stations and 18 hot spots to create an information and communication infrastructure pilot covering a collective area of about 15 km radius within surrounding communities of the biomass power facility. The infrastructure allows approximately 50,000 people

to connect to a WiFi network permitting affordable data communications and internet access. This Project is a grantee of the Dow Business Impact Fund, which has been identifying and funding new projects around the globe that hold the potential to create significant social impact since 2016. “Access to modern, cleaner energy is essential to human development. For Ghana, and indeed the world over, affordable energy decreases poverty and improves quality of life, be it for jobs, security, climate change, food production or increasing incomes,” said Adwoa Coleman, Country Manager, Dow Ghana and Africa Sustainability & Advocacy Manager, Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics. “Communication infrastructure is also key for sustainable development. Access to reliable and affordable communication technologies lifts people out of poverty and helps them to overcome the digital divide. Dow’s 2025 sustainability goals aim to engage for impact and deliver

breakthrough innovations, which is exactly what this project allows us to do.” Lack of affordable access to electricity and subsequent lack of telecommunication infrastructure form the crux of the digital divide inhibiting poor rural community members from participating in meaningful socioeconomic development in this region. To address this problem in a sustainable way, a 40MW biomass power plant is planned to be constructed in Nsutem, Ghana. The project has been sponsored by Village Corps and a Power Africa grant by the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and has been advanced through the commitment and support of the Government of Ghana, the Akyem Abuakwa Kingdom and the Okyeman Environment Foundation. The Project will address several UN Sustainable Development Goals, inclusive of #7 and #9 for clean and affordable energy and industry, innovation and infrastructure. The Project will

Laws still restrict women’s economic opportunities despite progress, study finds

ountries are inching toward greater gender equality, but women around the world continue to face laws and regulations that restrict their economic opportunity, with the COVID-19 pandemic creating new challenges to their health, safety, and economic security, a new World Bank report says. Reforms to remove obstacles to women’s economic inclusion have been slow in many regions and uneven within them, according to Women, Business and the Law 2021. On average, women have just three-quarters of the legal rights

afforded to men. Women were already at a disadvantage before the pandemic, and government initiatives to buffer some of its effects, while innovative, have been limited in many countries, the report says. “Women need to be fully included in economies in order to achieve better development outcomes,” said David Malpass, World Bank Group President. “Despite progress in many countries, there have been troubling reversals in a few, including restricting women’s travel without the permission of a

male guardian. This pandemic has exacerbated existing inequalities that disadvantage girls and women, including barriers to attend school and maintain jobs. Women are also facing a rise in domestic violence and health and safety challenges. Women should have the same access to finance and the same rights to inheritance as men and must be at the center of our efforts toward an inclusive and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.” Women, Business and the Law 2021 measures the laws and regulations across 8 areas

not only drastically increase the access to baseload renewable electricity, but also will help mitigate climate change and assist local community members to adapt to a changing climate, which contributes to the Paris Climate Accord. “With the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) infrastructure installed and operational, community members can have affordable data connectivity and will be trained in how to use their phones to benefit from various software solutions to help enable skills development and access to valuable information in areas such as primary education, farming, and healthcare,” said Norman Beaulieu, founder of Village Corps. “WiFi infrastructure can no longer be considered a luxury, it is now an essential resource, and we believe that this project is taking important steps towards delivering this resource to an underserved community.”

that affect women’s economic opportunities in 190 countries, covering the period from September 2019-October 2020. From the basics of movement in the community to the challenges of working, parenting, and retiring, the data offers objective and measurable benchmarks for global progress toward gender equality. Following the outbreak of the pandemic, this report also looks at government responses to the COVID-19 crisis and how the pandemic has impacted women at work and at home, focusing on childcare, access to justice, and health and safety.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

News

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

500 youth benefit from Solidaridad’s competencybased training in oil palm

olidaridad has enrolled more than 500 youth to undergo a competencybased training in oil palm under the Agricultural Technical and Vocational Education Training (ATVET) initiative of the Government of Ghana. The training seeks to build the skills of the youth for employment and entrepreneurship in the oil palm sector. The first of its kind in the country, the training is accredited by the Council for Technical and Vocational Education Training (COTVET), the national regulator, and would be in two batches. The initial batch of learners, drawn from oil palm-growing communities and oil palm enterprises in Ghana, will undergo the training for a tenweek period, which will involve instruction time and internship. So far, five educational institutions accredited by COTVET are running the training programme to provide support in six modules including nursery establishment, land preparation, plantation establishment, harvesting, farm management, plant protection, chemical application, processing, quality assurance and agribusiness management. Solidaridad developed the competency-based training in partnership with the Ghana Skill Development Initiative under the implementation of the second phase of its Sustainable West Africa Palm Oil Programme (SWAPP II).

The programme is supporting the youth learners with funding from the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Accra, the Swiss government through its State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), and GIZ. At a ceremony to officially enroll the learners, Joshua Dzigbah, a representative of the Kpando Municipal Directorate of Education, a government entity that endorses the training, emphasised the need to include skills acquisition in the education curriculum as an answer to the human resource needs of industries. He commended Solidaridad for spearheading such a novel initiative and also urged the learners to take advantage of the opportunity to equip them with the requisite skills to strategically position themselves in Ghana’s industrialization agenda. Solidaridad’s commitment to youth inclusion The Programme Manager for the Sustainable West Africa Palm Oil Programme, Nicholas Issaka Gbana, said the competencybased training, which is under the skills for employment component of SWAPP II, seeks to provide technical and vocational training to equip young people with employable skills for the oil palm sector. “Creating employable skills and opportunities for young people is a crucial intervention to ensure the sustainability of the

oil palm sector in Ghana. When young people are empowered with the right knowledge, skills and training, they are better placed to set up businesses in the oil palm supply chain to help boost Ghana’s profile in the global palm oil production space,” Nicholas said. Stepping up support for ATVET under the Sustainable West Africa Palm Oil Programme In 2019, Solidaridad, under the Sustainable West Africa Palm Oil Programme, supported the partner institutions with Council for Technical and Vocational Education Training accreditation, as well as tools and equipment to run the training

programme. In partnership with the Ghana Skills Development Initiative and the Council for Technical and Vocational Education Training, Solidaridad in 2020 provided technical upskilling training to lecturers and tutors from the five partner educational institutions on the oil palm ATVET curriculum. The Sustainable West Africa Oil Palm Programme seeks to contribute to the transformation of the oil palm sector in West Africa, increase incomes of smallholder farmers and processors, and generate economic growth and jobs. SWAPP II is part of Solidaridad’s global agenda to build sustainable supply chains.

Laws still restrict women’s economic opportunities despite progress, study finds CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 Overall, the report finds that many governments have put in place measures to address some of the impacts of the pandemic on working women. For example, less than a quarter of all economies surveyed in the report legally guaranteed employed parents any time off for childcare before the pandemic. Since then, in light of school closures, nearly an additional 40 economies around the world have introduced leave or benefit policies to help parents with childcare. Even so, these measures are likely insufficient to address the challenges many working mothers already face, or the childcare crisis. The pandemic has also

contributed to a rise in both the severity and frequency of genderbased violence. Preliminary research shows that since early 2020, governments introduced about 120 new measures including hotlines, psychological assistance, and shelters to protect women from violence. Some governments also took steps to provide access to justice in

several ways, including declaring family cases urgent during lockdown and allowing remote court proceedings for family matters. However, governments still have room to enact measures and policies aimed at addressing the root causes of this violence. “While it is encouraging that many countries have proactively taken steps to help women

navigate the pandemic, it’s clear that more work is needed, especially in improving parental leave and equalizing pay,” said Mari Pangestu, Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships, The World Bank. “Countries need to create a legal environment that enhances women’s economic inclusion, so that they can make the best choices for themselves and their families.” Despite the pandemic, 27 economies in all regions and income groups enacted reforms across all areas and increased good practices in legislation in 45 cases during the year covered, the report found. The greatest number of reforms introduced or amended laws affecting pay and parenthood.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Companies

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Agrihouse to launch 3rd Livestock, Poultry and Fisheries Tradeshow on March 2

grihouse Foundation, in partnership with United State Department of Agriculture (UNDA) - Ghana Poultry Project (GPP), is set to launch the third edition of the Livestock, Poultry and Fisheries Tradeshow (LiPF) on March 02, on the theme, “WE MOVE! W) YAA.” The main event of the twoday training and exhibition tradeshow, is slated for May 21 May 22, and is also in partnership with Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), and National Farmers and Fishermen Award Winner’s Association of Ghana (NFFAWAG). According to the Executive Director of Agrihouse, Ms. Alberta Nana Akyaa Akosa, the third edition of LiPF will afford participants, including, livestock, poultry and fisheries farmers and exhibitors, tertiary and financial institutions, agriculture and media organizations, and development partners, a learning environment to explore deeper ways to take advantage of opportunities in the animal agricultural sector.

She said LiPF has come at an opportune time to inform and educate participants about alternative means to create jobs and make additional income, especially, in the animal agricultural sector, since many people in the country now have lost their jobs as result of the COVID-19 pandemic. “LifP is a relevant intervention and it is now more relevant as it seeks to build resilience

and confidence in individuals who have lost their source of income and are looking for alternate means in these times. It is also here to encourage people who are passionate and interested in the animal agricultural sector, to let them see the multiple opportunities they can take advantage of. Even with government and private sector interventions, the animal agricultural sector still has

several areas of opportunities that have not been tapped into. These are the areas we are aiming to highlight this year.” she said. As organizing partners, Chief of Party of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Ghana Poultry Project (GPP), has Ms. Carianne De Boer, noted that development partners and agri-stakeholders must ensure that public and donor investor policies truly reflect the resilient and prosperous future they envision for the agricultural sector, by taking a fresh look at youth in agriculture programmes, and considering more robust approaches to enabling the youth to gain access to knowledge, finance, assets, and modern technology. She said to engage and empower young people in agriculture, the sector must address young people’s aspirations and expectations, emphasizing that, young people are very interested in modernized approaches to agriculture, where they can utilize their mobile phones, new techniques and computers to manage their poultry.

Huawei CEO: We won’t give up the ideal of globalisation

uawei’s CEO Ren Zhengfei has pledged to stick to a globalization strategy despite external pressure. He has called on the new US administration to come up with more open policies that are in the interests of US companies and the US economy as a whole. These are the first public remarks the founder of Huawei has made since the change of the US administration. Ren was speaking during a press briefing in Taiyuan, the capital city of China’s northern Shanxi province, after launching the Intelligent Mining Innovation Lab. “Trade benefits both sides. Allowing US companies to supply goods to Chinese customers is conducive to their own financial performance. If Huawei’s production capacity expands, US companies could us sell more. It’s a win-win situation. I believe the new administration will weigh these interests as they consider their policies,” said Ren. Ren stated that Huawei creates value to the whole ecosystem and wider economy. He cited the example that Huawei has built

5G networks in many cities in Europe, Asia and Middle East, and its networks in Europe top global network performance tests, benefiting all the users on those networks. “The fact high-end users can use the iPhone 12 to its fullest effect on our 5G networks in Europe is a testament to the quality of our networks,” said Ren. “As humanity keeps making progress, no company can develop a globalized industry alone. It requires concerted efforts around the world,” Ren added. The United States government has been campaigning against Huawei in the past two years alleging Huawei’s equipment could be used to spy on Americans, without presenting any evidence. Huawei has repeatedly denied the claims, and few other countries have given in to US pressure, with most focusing on ensuring all vendors meet technical standards to security. Ren said he is now even more confident about Huawei’s survival than he was. “We have found

Huawei’s CEO Ren Zhengfei

new and more ways to overcome our challenges. Our sales revenue and profits in 2020 were higher than the previous years,” Ren told journalists. Enabling digital transformation for industries Ren said new strategies include research and development and growing deeper roots in vertical industries around the world to enable the digital transformation with its Huawei’s core ICT capabilities. Ren said the Intelligent Mining Innovation Lab would result in better services for

mines with 5G. “By supporting the mining industry, we can grow our business and support more efficient and safer production in mines. We can also enable coal mine workers to ‘wear suits and ties’ at work” Ren said. “In the 5G era, connecting businesses is the main goal. There are many industries that we are not too familiar with, like airports, ports, coal mining, iron and steel production, automotive manufacturing, and aircraft manufacturing. That’s why we built joint labs to learn more about the needs of these industries.”

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Feature

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2021

Why the US should pursue cooperation with China

By Jeffrey D. Sachs

merican foreign policy since World War II has been based on a simple idea, perhaps best expressed by President George W. Bush after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks: Either you are with us or against us. America should lead, allies should follow, and woe be to countries that oppose its primacy. The idea was both simple and simplistic. And now it is antiquated: The United States faces no implacable foes, no longer leads an overpowering alliance, and has far more to gain from cooperation with China and other countries than from confrontation. Former President Donald Trump was a grotesque caricature of US leadership. He hurled insults, threats, unilateral tariffs, and financial sanctions to try to force other countries to submit to his policies. He ripped up the multilateral rulebook. Yet Trump’s foreign policy faced remarkably little pushback inside the US. There was more consensus than opposition to Trump’s anti-China policies, and little resistance to his sanctions on Iran and Venezuela, despite their catastrophic humanitarian consequences. President Joe Biden’s foreign policy is a godsend in comparison. Already, the US has rejoined the Paris climate agreement and the World Health Organization, is seeking to return to the United Nations Human Rights Council, and promises to rejoin the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. These are hugely positive and admirable steps. Yet Biden’s early foreign policy pronouncements vis-àvis China and US leadership are problematic. Biden’s recent address to the Munich Security Conference is a good window into his administration’s thinking in these early days. There are three causes for concern.

First, there is the rather naive idea that “America is back” as world leader. The US is only now returning to multilateralism, has utterly botched the COVID-19 pandemic, and until January 20 was actively working against the mitigation of climate change. It still must heal the many deep wounds left by Trump, not least the insurrection of January 6, and address why 75 million Americans voted for him last November. That means reckoning with the hefty dose of white supremacist culture animating much of today’s Republican Party. Second, “The partnership between Europe and the United States,” Biden declared, “is and must remain the cornerstone of all that we hope to accomplish in the twenty-first century, just as we did in the twentieth century.” Really? I am a Europhile and strong supporter of the European Union, but the US and the EU account for just 10% of humanity (NATO members account for 12%). The transatlantic alliance cannot and should not be the cornerstone “for all we hope to accomplish” this century; it is but one important and positive building block. We need shared global stewardship by all parts of the world, not by the North Atlantic or any other region alone. For much of the world, the North Atlantic has an enduring association with racism and imperialism, an association stirred by Trump. Third, Biden claims the world is engaged in a great ideological struggle between democracy and autocracy. “We’re at an inflection point between those who argue that, given all the challenges we face – from the fourth industrial revolution to a global pandemic – that autocracy is the best way forward…and those who understand that democracy is essential…to meeting those challenges.” Given this alleged ideological battle between democracy and

autocracy, Biden declared that “we must prepare together for a long-term strategic competition with China,” adding that this competition is “welcome, because I believe in the global system Europe and the United States, together with our allies in the Indo-Pacific, worked so hard to build over the last 70 years.” The US may view itself as being in a long-term ideological struggle with China, but the feeling is not mutual. American conservatives’ insistence that China is out to rule the world has come to underpin a bipartisan consensus in Washington. But China’s goal is neither to prove that autocracy outperforms democracy, nor to “erode American security and prosperity,” as the 2017 US National Security Strategy asserts. Consider Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech at the World Economic Forum in January. Xi did not talk about the advantages of autocracy, or the failures of democracy, or the great struggle between political systems. Instead, Xi conveyed a message based on multilateralism to address shared global challenges, identifying “four major tasks.” Xi called on the world’s leaders to “step up macroeconomic policy coordination and jointly promote strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive growth of the world economy.” He also urged them “to abandon ideological prejudice and jointly follow a path of peaceful coexistence, mutual benefit, and win-win cooperation.” Third, they must “close the divide between developed and developing countries and jointly bring about growth and prosperity for all.” Lastly, they should “come together against global challenges and jointly create a better future for humanity.” Xi stated that the path to global cooperation requires remaining “committed to openness and inclusiveness,” as well as “to international law

and international rules” and “to consultation and cooperation.” He declared the importance of “keeping up with the times instead of rejecting change.” Biden’s foreign policy with China should begin with a search for cooperation rather than a presumption of conflict. Xi has pledged that China will “take an active part in international cooperation on COVID-19,” continue to open up to the world, and promote sustainable development and “a new type of international relations.” US diplomacy would be wise to aim for engagement with China in these areas. Today’s hostile rhetoric risks creating a selffulfilling prophecy. Cooperation is not cowardice, as American conservatives repeatedly claim. Both the US and China have much to gain from it: peace, expanded markets, accelerated technological progress, the avoidance of a new arms race, progress against COVID-19, a robust global jobs recovery, and a shared effort against climate change. With reduced global tensions, Biden could direct the administration’s efforts toward overcoming the inequality, racism, and distrust that put Trump in power in 2016 and still dangerously divides American society. About the author Jeffrey D. Sachs, Professor of Sustainable Development and Professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University, is Director of Columbia’s Center for Sustainable Development and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. He has served as Special Adviser to three UN Secretaries-General. His books include The End of Poverty, Common Wealth, The Age of Sustainable Development, Building the New American Economy, and most recently, A New Foreign Policy: Beyond American Exceptionalism.

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