Business24 ePaper ( February 21, 2020)

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GH¢5bn relief for unpaid depositors Gov’t paid

US$1bn for unused power in 2 years

By Patrick PAINTSIL

Customers of the failed Savings and Loans (S&L) and microfinance companies are to get full payment of their locked-up funds because government has budgeted some GH¢5billion to guarantee their deposits.

This development pushes the total cost to taxpayers of the financial sector cleanup to GH¢18 billion, with government having already dished out GH¢13 billion to guarantee deposits in the failed universal banks.

“Depositors of the savings and loans and microfinance institutions, including DKM, which collapsed in 2015, will receive 100% of their deposits, too, once the validation exercise is concluded,” President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday.

Inasmuch as the government has pledged to take up the cost, President Akufo-Addo stressed that coughing up that huge amount to settle the claims of affected depositors was a bitter pill to swallow, considering the scale of development projects it could have financed.

Government had initially guaranteed up to GH¢20,000 per depositor, but the president’s declaration means that already-paid depositors whose claims exceed GH¢20,000 will receive the remainder of their funds, while those yet to access their cash will receive 100% payment.

“This is money that we can ill-afford and which would have gone to fund the many things that our communities are crying for. Properly utilised, GH¢13 billion would work wonders with our perennial infrastructure deficit,” President Akufo-Addo said in relation to the earlier payout.

Banking sector liquid and sound to push economy Although the cleansing of the financial sector has caused

By Benson AFFUL

The country paid nearly US$1billion for unused power in two years, as a result of the many ‘take or pay’ contracts signed in previous years.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) 2020 presented to the 275-member legislature on Thursday, February 20, 2020, said excess power payments are a drain on the country’s revenue envelope and has severely restricted government’s ability to undertake various infrastructure projects.

“The five years of energy crisis led to the signing of what can only be described as various contracts that have landed our country with a huge financial burden. The take MORE ON PAGE 2

some loss to the public purse, it has resulted in a sound and liquid banking sector to drive national economic aspirations, according to the president.

He indicated that: “Thanks to the banking sector clean-up, today I am happy to say that Ghana’s weak banking sector that we inherited is now well-capitalised, better managed, sound and liquid, and the banks are now increasing their lending to the private sector to help propel the transformation of the economy beyond aid.”

According to figures from the Bank of Ghana, total assets of

the banking sector grew by 22.8% to GH¢129.1 billion in 2019, compared with a growth rate of 12.3% to GH¢105.1 billion in 2018.

Banks’ deposits also saw an annualised growth of 22.2% to GH¢83.5 billion in 2019, compared with an annualised growth of 17.3% to GH¢68.3 billion in 2018.

Private sector credit meanwhile has recovered, growing by 18.3% to GH¢44.5 billion, up from the previous growth rate of 10.6% to GH¢37.6 billion.

President Akufo-Addo urged depositors to see the grand pay-

FEATURE

FEATURE

ADAPTING TO A FASTFORWARD WORLD

ALL EYES ON SOUTH KOREA

The world is going through a period of accelerating change, as four secular developments illustrate. PAGE 5

Now that the South Korean blockbuster Parasite has taken home zthe Oscar for Best Picture, many around the world are eagerly searching for more examples of South Korean coolness. PAGE 8

out as a learning curve and to desist from falling prey to unrealistic offerings from financial services providers.

“We hope that lessons have been learnt, and this will serve as a healthy caution to those who are offered unrealistic interest rates on deposits. We expect that those whose job it is to supervise the banks and other financial institutions will do their jobs honestly and competently,” he indicated.

Trade Minister to face Parliament over Trade Fair demolitions

By Eugene Davis

Trade and Industry Minister, Alan Kyerematen, is to be hauled before Parliament to explain the rationale for the demolition of properties of some selected businesses sited within the Trade Fair enclave by one of its agencies—the Ghana International Trade Fair Company.

This follows a visit to the Trade Fair site where the demolition took place by the Minority members of Parliament. According to them, MORE ON PAGE 2

INTERNATIONAL MARKET

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

AS AT FEB. 20, 2020 BBRENT CRUDE $/BARREL: +0.13 ($59.25) NATURAL GAS $/MILLION BTUS: +0.00 ($1.96) GOLD $/TROY OUNCE: +0.30 ($1,612.10) SILVER $/TROY OUNCE: +0.07 ($18.38) CORN $/BUSHEL: -3.75 ($382.25) COCOA $/METRIC TON: +1.00 ($2,847.00) COFFEE ¢/POUND: +0.15 ($109.00) SUGAR ¢/POUND: +0.21 ($15.08)

EEXCHANGE RATE (INT. RATE): USD$1 =GH¢5.3631 EXCHANGE RATE (BANK RATE): USD$1 =GH¢5.4800 POLICY RATE:16% GHANA REFERENCE RATE : 16.11% INFLATION RATE: 7.8% PRODUCER PRICE INFLATION: 13.3% 91 DAY TREASURY BILL INTEREST RATE: 14.6898% AVERAGE PETROL AND DIESEL PRICE: GHC 5.48

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News/Editorial Gov’t paid US$1bn for unused power in 2 years continued from page 1

Editorial: A huge relief indeed After many months of despair and protest, depositors of the failed savings and loans and microfinance companies are to receive full reimbursement from the state, at a cost of GH¢5 billion to the public purse. This expenditure will raise the bill to the taxpayer of the financial sector bail-out to GH¢18 billion, after GH¢13 billion had been spent to guarantee deposits in the failed universal banks.

President Nana Akufo-Addo, who announced this yesterday in his fourth State of the Nation address

to lawmakers, was right in reflecting on the many development projects that could have been financed with the resources that have been used to safeguard deposits in the financial system, following the Bank of Ghana’s landmark restructuring of the sector since 2017.

Indeed, this exceptional public expenditure has ratcheted up the nation’s indebtedness, creating new debt service costs and adding to the pressures on government finances. The government could ill-afford it, but it had to be done,

since the alternative was to allow the financial sector to come crashing down, with all the grave consequences for the nation’s health and security.

It is gratifying to know that anguished depositors, among whom are bread winners, small business owners and pensioners, will now be able to get their economic lives back together.

Our expectation is that once the funds become available, the receivers will expedite the reimbursement process to end the

agony and anxiety that depositors have been feeling over the whole episode.

It is important that the financial services industry, regulators and the government learn the necessary lessons from this experience, and do their utmost to rebuild public confidence in the financial sector. As we look ahead to better times, heightened surveillance by the central bank will be vital to maintain the stability of the new order.

Trade Minister to face Parliament over Trade Fair demolitions continued from page 1

or pay contracts resulted in the country being saddled with expensive excess power and our having to pay nearly $1billion in 2018 and 2019 for power we do not need. We are working to find a way out to ensure a reliable power supply at a cost that makes it competitive in the sub-region.” The President said.

The Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta has maintained that government will renegotiate all take-or-pay contracts in the energy sector, by converting them to takeand-pay contracts.

According to him, there was the need to renegotiate the contract to avert the impending huge cost it would bring to the country in the upcoming years, noting that, currently, the country’s installed capacity is almost double the peak demand.

Among the transactions he mentioned was the, 2,300 Megawatts of the installed capacity which has been contracted on a take-or-pay basis, adding that, on the average, “less than 40 per cent of the contracted take-or-pay capacity is actually used, meaning that we are basically throwing away money by paying for the remaining 60 per cent of excess capacity, which we do not actually consume”.

President Akufo-Addo said all his government best laid plans for industrialization would come to naught unless the country has a reliable and reasonably priced energy source.

“It probably says something about the progress we have made that, in discussing the state of our nation, it takes a while even to get into our power supply matters. “It gives me great pleasure to be able to say that we have overcome the DUMSOR menace. But, unfortunately, I cannot say that we have resolved all our energy problems,” he said.

the demolition was selective, where only properties of tenants who had taken legal action against the company were destroyed.

Ranking Member of the Committee, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, indicated that they came to find out what had happened to understand and experience first-hand.

“What we are expected as citizens is to work hard, play by the rules, pay our taxes and make sure that if our rights are being infringed upon we follow the spirit and letter of the law and go to court and address those grievances. People who are here, the businesses that are destroyed did exactly that, that is what citizens are supposed to do, they didn’t only do that, but they continued to work and employ other Ghanaians and create jobs for us. You know the unemployment situation in our country, we have just been told by the other company that 120 employees are going to lose

their jobs,” he told the press.

Another member of the committee Inusah Fuseini, says the level of destruction was unmerited and they will ensure that justice is served.

“We cannot destroy somebody’s property with this level of callousness and impunity and that is why the minority is here. We did not want to talk in vacuum, we wanted to come see and talk to the issues. We will take steps to ensure that justice is done and it will start with

the minister coming to explain why he allowed this to happen to Ghanaians.

Board Chairman of Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited (GTFCL) has said that the demolishing of businesses at the Trade Fair is not politically motivated but rather is part of a process to redevelop the Trade Fair Centre in La, Accra.

Daniel McKorley, popularly known as ‘McDan’ said, “I don’t think this current government is targeting to collapse businesses.

We have to [develop] the Trade Fair. If you pick me as a leader, it has to be built irrespective of whatever.”

The GTFCL conducted a demolition exercise of business properties on the site to prepare for a redevelopment project last Sunday.

Among the tenants at the Trade Fair Centre whose properties were destroyed by a bulldozer under the supervision of armed security personnel was Universal Labels & Packaging Co. Ltd and Colour Planet, a printing company owned by Raymond Archer, a journalist.

According to Mr. Archer, he had invested about US$10 million in equipment for the company and the demolition exercise affected the equipment.

The GTFCL, however, says owners of the demolished properties were duly notified.

“The GTFCL had informed all the tenants about the redevelopment project and gave them the mandatory 6-month notice on July 10, 2018, to vacate the site by 31st December of the same year [2018],” the GTFCL said in a press statement.

Gov’t seeks to amend Disability Act, Act 715 Government has begun the process of amending the Disability Act, Act 715, to comply with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said Parliament would pass the Act hopefully by the end of the year.

President Akufo-Addo, delivering the 4th State of the Nation Address said as part of the Disability Inclusive Policy of Government, all metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies have representations of Persons with Disabilities to enable them partake in local level governance. He said: “we never lose sight of the fact that there are always some

people who might not be able to run life’s race at the same frenetic pace as the majority of people.”

He said it was the responsibility of government always to provide the safety net that would

ensure that the poor and vulnerable are not excluded from the development agenda.

He said the Presidential Empowerment for Women Entrepreneurs with Disability does not only help deliver a manifesto commitment, it was also in fulfilment of the SDG goals five, eight and 10.

The President said it was to ensure economic inclusion of women, and to harness their talents and capabilities for national development.

He said for the first time in the country’s history, a dedicated fund of GH¢5 million to support women entrepreneurs with disability has been established.

The Fund, known as Presidential Empowerment for Women Entrepreneurs with Disability, is to provide financial support to 1,000 women entrepreneurs

Editorial:

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Dominic Andoh: E ditor Eugene Kwabena Davis: Head of Parliamentary Business & Commodities Benson Afful : Head of Energy & Education Patrick Paintsil : Head of Maritime & Banking Eliezer Mensah: Head of Production Marketing: Alexander Lartey Agyemang: Business Development Manager Ruth Fosua Tetteh: Deputy Business Development Manager

with disability in two years, either to establish or scale-up their businesses.

He said so far, 850 women entrepreneurs with disability across the country have benefitted from the Fund, which was 50 per cent grant and 50 per cent loan without interest.

He said the support has enabled the women to expand their businesses, and to create 180 direct jobs and many more indirect jobs.

President Akufo-Addo said government would continue to improve and expand social protection interventions to cover those who need them. He said it was critical that the social protection interventions were targeted at those, who genuinely need them, and who would use them to help lift themselves out of poverty.

Gifty Mensah: Marketing Manager Irene Mottey: Sales Manager Edna Eyram Swatson: Special Projects Manager Events: Evelyn Kanyoke Snr. Events Consultant Finance/Administration Joseph Ackon Bissue: Accountant Ampomah Akoto: Director of Operations

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News

Dazzling four-camera HUAWEI nova 5T launched in Ghana Huawei Technologies has launched the much-anticipated Huawei nova 5T in Ghana. The HUAWEI nova 5T furthers the legacy of the nova product line, by integrating a unique aesthetic identity with trendy fashion and cutting-edge technology.

This establishes it as more than just a consumer electronic device, but also as emblematic of modern living: avant-garde, fashionable, and idiosyncratic, pushing the boundaries of style and functionality.

The youth-oriented HUAWEI nova smartphone series was conceived with the goal of merging eye-catching visuals with technological innovation, and balancing comfort with novelty.

Building on the dazzling color gradients and reflective design in the previous generation, the nova 5T expresses the feeling of boundless space against a 3D backdrop, and depicts the surreal and fantastical through a bold clash of light and shadow.

Designed to provide flagship-level experience at an affordable price, the HUAWEI nova 5T packs a 32 MP selfie camera on the front and a powerful quad-camera array on the back. The AI-enhanced rear camera system is capable of ultra-wide-angle photography, macro shooting, and natural

bokeh generation for portraits, as well as ultra-HD imagery that excels in any lighting environment.

It comes equipped with the premium Kirin 980 AI processor and 8 GB of RAM, which interact with the newly unveiled EMUI 9.1 operating system to offer a lag-free, fluid experience on par with expensive high-end models. Its 22.5W SuperCharge technology ensures that the phone is always ready to go and takes little time to get fully charged.

The HUAWEI nova 5T sports a 6.26-inch HUAWEI Punch FullView Display, but weighs only 174 grams due to its wafer-thin 7.87 mm thickness, offering an immersive display on a slender body. The HUAWEI nova 5 series comes available in three inventive color schemes: Crush Blue, Dark Black, and Midsummer Purple. A refined finish provides a unique texture, and accentuates lighting contrasts, creating a multi-layered 3D effect on a flat surface.

Equipped with four AI cameras that support high-definition, ultra-wide-angle, macro, and depth of field photography, the HUAWEI nova 5T is able to capture rich and clear images within a single shot in all scenarios, from vast landscapes to

close-up shots. It also combines AI-powered image semantic segmentation and partition optimization technology with the 48 MP HD lens, 16 MP wide-angle lens, 2 MP macro lens, and 2 MP bokeh lens which can clearly present details in the photo and balance the exposure under all lighting conditions, thus preventing blown highlights and crushed shadows.

The HUAWEI nova 5T saw a massive technological leap in the full-view display. The HUAWEI nova Series has one mission - to democratize Huawei’s technology and deliver a premium user experience to the masses and it is very affordable.

ECOWAS backs PESCAO project to tackle illegalities in fisheries sector

By Patrick PAINTSIL

The ECOWAS Commissioner for Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources, Mr. Sekou Sangare, has commended the Fisheries Committee for West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC) on its role in ensuring the protection of fisheries resources and promoting good marine governance practices across the sub-region.

In an interview with Business24 after a working visit to three key implementing partners of the FCWC’s-PESCAO project in Accra, he admitted that the project activities of the fisheries body will, among others, help in tackling marine related crimes of piracy and illegal fishing activities along the Gulf of Guinea.

He therefore called for enhanced cooperation between ECOWAS and the EU to implement appropriate measures to reinforce action on various regional activities and programmes aimed at securing, protecting and maximizing the gains from marine and fisheries sectors on the economies of the ECOWAS sub-region.

“There have been tremendous achievements under the FCWC PESCAO project so far but the main priority is to strengthen the control and survey of the economic zones of the ECOWAS region.“We know that issues of piracy and illegal fishing are high in the sub-regional waters.

We can say that the region has become the epicenter for such incidents because the piracy has shifted towards the Gulf of Guinea.” The Programme for Improved Regional Fisheries Governance in Western Africa

(PESCAO) is a five-year, European Union-funded initiative, implemented with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission.

PESCAO has a budget of EUR 15 million and is running from 2018 to 2023.

The objective of PESCAO is to enhance the contribution of fisheries resources to sustainable development, food security, and poverty alleviation in West Africa. Commissioner Sangare also assured of the commitment of the ECOWAS to the success of the project in line with its vision of empowering economic activities along coastal areas. “The ECOWAS is pushing for a well-managed fisheries sector in a way that coastal countries will benefit grossly from the exploitation of the marine resources, especially when it comes to the empowerment of women and the youth,” he told Business24.

Whilst in the country, the ECOWAS delegation paid courtesy calls to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MoFAD) to assess the progress of work on various projects listed

under the PESCAO project.

Secretary General of the FCWC, Mr. Seraphin Dedi, expressed his outfit’s gratitude to the ECOWAS delegation and described their visit as successful and fruitful while assuring that the ideals of the projects will be given the utmost attention.

He said: “With this visit, we have been able to update the delegation about the progress on the implementation and also received key recommendations from ECOWAS for the smooth running of the project.

We will treat these as priority action in order to achieve the common goal of ECOWAS and the EU and also as beneficiaries from this region.”

Mr. Dedi said one key deliverable of the PESCAO project will be the establishment of a regional vessel monitoring center to monitor vessels that are authorized to fish under our economic zone.

“Once the VMC is set up, the six partner countries will be able to monitor all vessels entering their territorial waters to be able to efficiently manage fisheries resources in a more sustainable manner,” he noted.

NPA launches Phase II of Petroleum Product Marking Scheme

The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) Wednesday launched the Phase II of the Petroleum Product Marking Scheme (PPMS), aimed at further reducing product adulteration and illicit fuel trade.

Product adulteration is said to be a contributory factor to reports of malfunctioning of vehicle engines and harmful emissions to the detriment of the environment and public health, while leading to much revenue loss to the state. Therefore, the PPMS II, launched on the theme: “Quality fuels, value for money”, is also, to help address revenue leakages associated with the sale and smuggling of petroleum products.

The phase I of the PPMS was introduced in 2013.

Mrs Frema Opare Osei, Chief of Staff, Office of the President, who launched the phase II of the PPMS in Accra, called on all stakeholders to give serious considerations to the scheme and support the promotion of the initiative for the sustainable development of the country.

She said fuel adulteration was a global problem that needed stringent measures to deal with the menace, because of the alarming rate of cheating, often perpetuated on the consumer.

Also, the reputation of the fuel retail outlet where the purchase is made is also tarnished. The government also loses millions of Cedis in revenue that was needed to develop the country, she said.

According to the Chief of Staff, an initial assessment carried out after the introduction of the programme in May and June 2013, intended to evaluate the extent of malpractices at various retail outlets across the country revealed that of the 1,000 stations sampled, 32 per cent of the retail outlets were engaged in some violations. She said the extent of violations translated to an estimated government revenue loss in excess of 50million Cedis in the form of lost tax revenue and “diverted” subsidies on “social” products.

However, she had been informed that as a result of sustained successful marking and field monitoring of marked petroleum products, the results obtained from September 2013 to December 2019, indicated a drop in the rate of violations from 32 per cent to

1.99 per cent.

“This drop is attributable to the deterrent effect the scheme and government policies were having on the perpetrators of product adulteration in the industry.

The drop in rate of violations translates to an estimated revenue recovery of GH¢249 million as at the end of 2018 in tax revenue in addition to significant savings made on subsidies, Mrs Opare Osei revealed.

She expressed the confidence that the PPMS “will continue to help stamp out deceitful dealers who supply substandard fuel to consumers and will give Ghanaian consumers the assurance that they are getting value for the money for the petroleum products they purchase”.

Mr Alhassan Tampuli, Chief Executive, National Petroleum Authority, said the Authority had engaged the Nationwide Technologies Limited (NTL), together with Authentix Inc., a global fuel authentication solution provider, in a sub-contractor agreement to undertake the fuel marking activities in the country.

He explained that the Phase II of the PPMS was anchored on technological advancements in the markers as well as the detection proprietary equipment.

“The marker has been uniquely designed for the Ghanaian market with a chemical composition to aid in immediate equipment quantification and detection to enable the NPA make swift decisions on whether retail outlets have dumped or adulterated the petroleum products being offered for sale”.

He said an effective fuel quality management system in place would ensure that the quality of petroleum products were constantly monitored by fuel quality tests and analysis to mitigate all potential effects of poor quality fuels and assure customers of improved quality of fuel and value for money.

Mr Tampuli explained that the marker was a unique identifier, which aided in distinguishing the various types of petroleum products and exposes the addition of a foreign product if any.

“This is achieved by testing samples of petroleum products on a monthly basis at approximately 75 per cent of retail outlets and bulk consumers across the country.

He indicated that a petroleum products consumption statistics show that collaborative efforts by the NPA, National Security and other Security agencies had helped to drastically reduce the menace of supply leakages such as export dumping in the country.

Mr Senyo Hosi, CEO, Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors, and Mr Kwaku Agyeman-Duah, Chairman, Association of Oil Marketing Companies, all commended the NPA for coming out with the PPMS and pledged their support in fighting the menace of fuel adulteration. (GNA)

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Feature

Adapting to a Fast-Forward World

By Mohamed A. El-Erian

The world is going through a period of accelerating change, as four secular developments illustrate. Firms and governments must make timely adjustments, not only to their business models and operational approaches, but also to both their tactical and strategic mindsets.

Firms and governments must increasingly internalize the possibility – indeed, I would argue, the overwhelming probability – of an acceleration of four secular developments that influence what business and political leaders do and how they do it.

Decision-makers should think of these trends as waves, which, especially if they occur simultaneously, could feel like a tsunami for those who fail to adapt their thinking and practices in a timely manner.

The first and most important trend is climate change, which has evolved from a relatively distant concern, on which there is ample time to take remedial action, to an imminent and increasingly urgent threat.

The mobilization of various concerned segments of society, owing partly to unusual climatic disruptions in recent years, has greatly increased the pressure on companies to act now.

BP’s recent announcement that it intends to achieve “net-zero” carbon emissions by 2050 – a notable promise by an energy company that operates in several highly challenging settings – is the latest example of business responding to such calls. It is only a matter of time until this pressure also prompts governments to take further steps, not only to encourage green activities, but also to tax and regulate those that cause pollution.

Second, privacy concerns have grown alongside technical innovations involving artificial intelligence and big data.

Society is increasingly recognizing that recent technological advances allow not only for more efficient compilation of huge amounts of personal data, but also for using this information to monitor and alter behaviors. Broadly speaking, data are controlled and exploited either by governments (particularly in China), Big Tech companies (as in the United States), or more by users (as in Europe). But none of these three general operating paradigms seems to provide sufficient comfort and assurance to most people.

The third secular force involves disruptions to the multi-decade process of economic and financial globalization.

The initial trigger for this was the trade-policy pivot by US President Donald Trump’s administration – from cooperative conflict resolution to explicit confrontation, from multilateralism to bilateralism (or even unilateralism), and from rulebased to more ad hoc arrangements – aimed at creating a stillfree but fairer trading system.

But de-globalization has been turbocharged by the outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 virus, which has disrupted the flow of goods and services in China and beyond.

These challenges to globalization have opened the door for governments to weaponize

economic tools to meet objectives that transcend economics, such as national security. This, in turn, is calling into question conventional wisdom about cross-border supply chains, just-in-time inventory management, and reliance on external demand to boost domestic growth.

The final trend is demographic and concerns more than the aging of societies in Europe and Asia and this trend’s economic and political implications. It also goes beyond the growing realization that millennials’ starkly different expectations – regarding professional careers, personal engagement, political action, and the delivery of goods and services – will persist and deepen.

For starters, businesses need to be smarter about “anywhere, any place, any time” delivery.

Furthermore, job loyalty and tenure are decreasing, while expectations of comprehensive job fulfillment and engagement are rising. Self-mobilization for political and other causes, often with no visible leadership structure, has become a lot easier, yet often is less durable and raises tricky questions about what comes afterward. And all of this is taking place amid the continued migration of an ever-expanding range of interactions from physical to virtual spaces.

Each of these secular forces will have an important impact on the effectiveness and success of companies and governments

alike. And while being challenging overall, the four trends involve a diverse and geographically dispersed set of winners and losers. Executives and policymakers therefore must make timely revisions (including pre-emptive changes) not only to their business models and operational approaches, but also to both their tactical and strategic mindsets.

Getting this right will require cognitive diversity, openness to constructive criticism, repeated scenario analyses, and multi-disciplinary approaches.

Moreover, because each of the secular forces involves a considerable degree of uncertainty (with lots of known unknowns, and probably more than a few unknown unknowns behind them), a combination of resilience, optionality, and agility also is important. And this is even before one considers unanticipated periodic shocks such as the COVID-19 outbreak.

The challenges to sound decision-making and leadership in both business and government are not limited to mapping each of the four secular forces and the required adaptation. Decision-makers also must consider correlations and causalities between these trends that can make their total impact multiplicative rather than merely additive.

As a quick illustration, consider another aspect of demographic change: migration and the humanitarian challenges

that often come with it. Climate change confronts countries with the possibility of waves of migratory human flows that they will find hard to accept and inhumane to refuse.

The combination of de-globalization and the misuse of AI and big data to infringe individual privacy is similarly troubling.

This could lead to questionable behavior by some governments and encourage malicious nonstate actors to disrupt societies and economies.

The world is in a period of accelerating change, the leading edge of which is the ever-growing list of developments that have gone from impossible to inevitable. Many (though by no means all) of the challenges facing business and political leaders may be broken down into four secular changes that can help anchor the timely formulation of required responses at the local, national, regional, and global levels. The faster that companies and governments recognize this, the likelier they will be to alter the balance of benefits, costs, and risks in their favor

Mohamed A. El-Erian

“The combination of de-globalization and the misuse of AI and big data to infringe individual privacy is similarly troubling”

Mohamed A. El-Erian, Chief Economic Adviser at Allianz, the corporate parent of PIMCO where he served as CEO and co-Chief Investment Officer, was Chairman of US President Barack Obama’s Global Development Council.

He is President Elect of Queens’ College (Cambridge University), senior adviser at Gramercy, and Part-time Practice Professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He previously served as CEO of the Harvard Management Company and Deputy Director at the International Monetary Fund. He was named one of Foreign Policy’s Top 100 Global Thinkers four years running. He is the author, most recently, of The Only Game in Town: Central Banks, Instability, and Avoiding the Next Collapse.

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Feature

All Eyes on South Korea

By Mohamed A. El-Erian

Now that the South Korean blockbuster Parasite has taken home zthe Oscar for Best Picture, many around the world are eagerly searching for more examples of South Korean coolness. They should look to the South Korean economy, which offers valuable lessons for achieving sustainable, inclusive growth.

South Korea is all the rage these days. Earlier this month, Parasite, from the South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho, won Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Having read the reviews and seen the film a few days earlier, I was not surprised. Still, for the uninitiated, it is worth noting that this was the first time that a foreign-language film took home the top Oscar. Now, many around the world are eagerly searching for more examples of South Korean coolness – from K-pop to cutting-edge fashion designers.

One usually doesn’t associate economics with coolness.

Nonetheless, I have long pointed to South Korea as one of the most interesting economic case studies to appear in my professional lifetime. No other so-called “emerging economy” has matched its success over the past 40 years. Home to 50 million people, South Korea has experienced faster income growth than any other similar-sized

country. In terms of per capita GDP, South Korea has gone from being close to most Sub-Saharan African countries to enjoying a standard of living similar to that of Spain.

To be sure, Parasite tells a story of Seoul’s haves and have-nots, and offers a scathing critique of inequality in contemporary South Korea. And yet, one of the notable components of South Korea’s success is the relatively low variability in its income growth compared to many other countries that have reached high-income status. Its Gini coefficient (a standard measure of inequality) indicates a more egalitarian income distribution than that of the United States and many European countries.

What lessons does South Korea hold for the rest of the world?

Let’s start with low- and lower-middle-income countries.

As I have pointed out many times, long-term economic growth essentially comes down to two things. The first is the size and growth of a country’s labor force. It is much easier to achieve stronger growth in an economy that has a large number of prime-age people working – plain and simple. This factor lies at the heart of China and India’s growth stories over the past few decades.

But a vibrant, growing workforce is not enough. Many Sub-Saharan African countries, Pakistan, and even India (on occasion) have failed to reap the

potential benefits of their large, young populations. Indeed, governments in these countries often regard the size of their population as a burden, because they have failed to achieve the second factor of growth: sustained productivity gains.

This point goes to the heart of what makes South Korea unique. For whatever reason, most of the countries that have enjoyed strong productivity growth over the past 40 years have been those with smaller populations. Aside from South Korea, the only other big exception is the US, which has a population well over 300 million and until recently enjoyed robust productivity growth.

During my time at Goldman Sachs in the 1990s and early 2000s, I presided over the creation of an index to monitor sustainable growth trends. It consisted of many variables that seemed to be important for productivity: the strength

of governance and institutions, investments in education, openness to trade and investment, the adoption and penetration of technology, and so on.

In studying these trends, what I found most interesting was not just the annual top-level results, but also the strong correlation between specific variables and average incomes. Not only did South Korea often rank in the top 20 overall, but it also came in first on key indices such as the use of technology. The country got in early on the computer age, and it paid off.

Given their low positions on the index at the time, I often advised policymakers in Sub-Saharan African countries to study South Korea and try to mimic its model. I cannot resist suggesting this again, particularly in the case of Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria, which also happens to be a notable source of global culture, particularly in music and film.

Moreover, there is reason to think that South Korea might eventually outperform many other rich countries, too. After all, its response to ongoing global challenges seems to have been more effective than that of Germany, which until recently was regarded as a lasting economic success story.

This is not to suggest that South Koreans are living carefree. The country must contend with several major challenges, not least the slowdown in China and climate change, which calls for the development and deployment of cleaner forms of energy and transportation. But almost no country will be spared the effects of these forces, so the real question is who is most likely to adapt best.

Similarly, countries at all levels of development are grappling with the effects of new technologies. But, at least in terms of access and adoption to 5G and the latest wave of information and communication technologies, South Korea already seems to be ahead of the US. I don’t know which countries will fare best in the coming decades. But I suspect that we will be thinking more about South Korea, with or without the Oscars.

(Jim O’Neill, a former chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management and a former UK Treasury Minister, is Chair of Chatham House)

Is a Strong Economy Enough to Re-Elect Trump?

By Michael J. Boskin

The odds of an economic downturn in the US this year remain low, which means that US President Donald Trump’s prospects for re-election in November are strong. But with an approval rating still below 50%, Trump will have to navigate a difficult field of swing states and cross his fingers that the Democrats are hobbled by infighting.

With the US presidential primaries underway, everyone is wondering whether President Donald Trump will be re-elected in November. Opinion polls show that the ability to beat Trump ranks high among Democratic primary voters’ top priorities.

Following Trump’s acquittal in the Senate on impeachment charges and a State of the Union address in which he could tout America’s strengths – first and foremost, the economy – the president’s approval rating, at 49%, is the highest since he took office.

But Trump has reason for concern. The acquittal may offer merely a transitory bump, and his approval rating should be much higher than it is, given the state of the economy.

Consider the precedent of President George H.W. Bush, whose approval rating rose to 91% following the first Gulf War, which had received congressional approval, succeeded in expelling Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi forces from Kuwait, and was partly paid for by America’s allies (including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, and Japan). In an Oval Office

meeting at the time, I tried to persuade the president’s political team that, despite his recent successes, he needed a better strategy for responding to a mild recession that had begun in the latter part of 1990. I reminded them that even Britain’s victory in World War II had not spared Winston Churchill defeat in an election held less than three months later.

In the event, Bush, anticipating that massive Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress would block any legislation he proposed, decided to postpone a bolder economic agenda until after the election. He hoped that a Republican revival would improve its chances in Congress.

But, owing to a slow recovery and Ross Perot’s third-party candidacy, Bush was defeated

by Bill Clinton.

For his part, Trump has escaped most of the blame for presiding over large budget deficits.

But that is because the Democrats’ proposals would blow up the deficit even more. At the same time, Trump can tout an historically low unemployment rate, including among minorities, as well as solid wage gains, which have been strongest at lower income levels.

Trump can also point to trade deals like the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which will offset some of the damage from his tariffs. He has secured funding to rebuild the military, and appointed two conservative Supreme Court justices and many more federal district and appeals court judges. And he has signed bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation and

a major tax-reform package, as well as rolled back some of the excessive regulations of the Obama era.

Political prediction models, based largely on economic conditions, suggest that Trump should win easily in November, as do betting markets, which give him a 60% chance – an increase since the pre-impeachment period. Trump’s problem, of course, is that he consistently steps on his own good news with his daily Twitter attacks, which have turned off some of the voters he needs.

Meanwhile, the leading Democratic contenders to have emerged are US Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. National polls suggest that any of the Democrats currently running would beat Trump. But those predictions could be misleading, because they do not account for Trump’s outperformance among actual voters in the states that he needs to win the Electoral College.

The biggest threat to Trump, then, is an economic downturn that reverses the recent job and wage gains and triggers a stock-market selloff; but forecasters see low odds for this scenario. Another issue will be the mood among voters in 8-10 swing states. Trump remains a sharply polarizing figure, and a re-election bid is a referendum on the incumbent.

Some of the states that carried Trump in 2016 swung to the Democrats in the 2018 midterm congressional elections. Trump narrowly won Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ar-

izona in 2016, but he just narrowly lost in Minnesota and New Hampshire. Florida and Ohio, usually the most important swing states, are currently leaning his way, and a few other states that he previously won or lost by 3-5 points could conceivably come in to play.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg has already spent hundreds of millions of dollars on advertising – more than all the other candidates combined – and is willing to spend $1 billion to defeat Trump, even if he does not secure the Democratic nomination. If the Democrats are united and encourage strong turnout, especially among minorities and younger voters, they could win.

After complaints from the Sanders campaign that party rules unfairly favored Hillary Clinton in the 2016 primary contest, Democratic convention delegates will now be awarded proportionally to all candidates who receive at least 15% of the vote in a given state. Ironically, this means that Sanders may reach the summer convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with a plurality but not the majority needed for nomination.

In that case, party officials,

chosen without regard to primary results, will vote on a second ballot. Overall, more Democrats associate with the center-left than with the farleft. But if they come together to nominate a more moderate candidate, they risk alienating Sanders’s base, whose failure to turn out in November would tip the scales to Trump. Republicans, meanwhile, remain united behind Trump following his impeachment, which enraged his base and which most moderates viewed as unnecessary overreach.

As of now, Bloomberg is untested, Sanders’s odds are lower than they would be in the event of widespread economic distress, and Trump remains both his own best advocate and worst enemy. The outcome might come down to whether the 10-15% of persuadable voters in swing states – most of whom are satisfied with the condition of the country, the economy, and their personal finances – decide that they can tolerate another four years of Trump’s tweet storms. Or, they might not “vote their pocketbooks.”

They could decide that enough is enough, and accept a leftward policy lurch in exchange for a leader who foregoes the Twitter attacks.

Michael J. Boskin is Professor of Economics at Stanford University and Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution.

He was Chairman of George H. W. Bush’s Council of Economic Advisers from 1989 to 1993, and headed the socalled Boskin Commission, a congressional advisory body that highlighted errors in official US inflation estimates.

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9

Maritime

4th Executive Council Meeting of AAMA held in Accra The fourth session of the executive council meeting of the Association of African Maritime Administrators (AAMA) has been organised in Accra, to discuss issues confronting the maritime industry, including wealth creation through the protection and sustainable exploitation of the African Maritime Domain.

Members of the AAMA who attended the two-day event came from countries including Ghana, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, Tanzania, the Comoros, Mozambique, South Africa, Egypt, Sudan, Uganda and Nigeria.

The participants also discussed among other things the role the AAMA is playing in the implementation of Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS) 2050.

The Director General of the Ghana Maritime Authority, Thomas Kofi Alonsi, revealed that his outfit in keeping with its mandate, has removed tree stumps that caused significant problems to navigation in Ghana’s inland waters to ensure safety.

“If you go onto the Volta Lake now, we are on the second leg of a project that involves ensuring that all three stumps around a certain area where our canoes and boats ply are removed to ensure that we have safety as far as navigation on the inland wa-

ters are concerned,” he said.

He revealed that the Authority has purchased new boats to enhance its capacity towards the prevention of crimes at sea, especially considering the rise of piracy and kidnappings in the Gulf of Guinea.

“The Authority has also procured a number of boats. Just about two weeks ago, two of

them have come into the country. These are to assist us in at least policing our oceans to ensure that incidents of piracy, robbery and all these illicit activities you can think of are curtailed,” he revealed.

The Deputy Minister of Transport, Daniel Titus-Glover, praised the allied efforts of Ghana’s security agencies in ensur-

ing that international trade is protected on the country’s territorial waters and urged other countries in the Gulf of Guinea region to increase their own efforts to curtail piracy.

“Under the leadership of the Ghana Armed Forces, particularly the Ghana navy with the support of the Marine Police, the Ghana Maritime Authority

is providing all the resources to make sure that from the east to the west of our territorial waters are safe to promote international trade.

So we believe that our other sister countries will do same to make sure that we protect merchants.”

He lamented the inadequate participation of Africa at the International Maritime Organisation’s executive council and said his ministry will work behind the scenes to push for increased participation with the objective of improved representation of issues affecting the African maritime landscape.

“I have appealed to this section and I will let my minister of transport know, he will discuss with the president then at that level, they will be able to talk it over to make sure that at least Africa should have more representation at the IMO executive council. 3 out of 38 countries is woefully inadequate,” he bemoaned.

The representatives of the Association of African Maritime Administrators after the two-day seminar familiarised themselves with operations at the Port at Tema by touring some terminals including the new Terminal 3 managed by MPS.

Coronavirus: GUTA predicts fall in cargo traffic The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), David Kwadwo Amoateng, has predicted a decline in cargo volumes at the country’s port, due to factors related to the coronavirus outbreak emerging from the Far East.

“I can say this without any shred of doubt, that we will see cargoes going down,” he said.

Speaking to Eye on Port, on the topic: Coronavirus, A Global Threat to Trade and Shipping: Impact, Interventions and Remedies, the GUTA Greater Accra Regional Chairman, revealed that not only are maritime activities in the area decreasing, but commercial activities within the cities in China have also taken a sudden decline due to the outbreak of the coronavirus disease.

“When you go there you will see a lot of countries trying to evacuate their people there.

That tells you the level of activities that go on there,” he said.

He disclosed that many Chinese factories are on a break due to the coronavirus crisis which has definitely taken a toll on Ghanaian businesses who trade heavily with China.

“The people there that you’re going to buy from them have closed their shops. Some have moved to their villages. Even one of my suppliers sent a video saying he’s vacated his shop.”

David Kwadwo Amoateng admitted that the Hubei province, where Wuhan is situated, is a commercial hub where many Ghanaians trade, but his fellow traders would have to halt all business travels there and many other close areas to protect themselves from contracting this dangerous disease.

He also urged traders to either take the opportunity to enjoy a

period of leave or consider alternative destinations for business plans, while they wait on world health institutions to eradicate this global epidemic.

“As businessmen, we hardly take our leave, so we should use this time to rest,” he said.

He expressed disapproval when addressing the alternative of online trading and cautioned traders not to hurriedly venture into online trading with their Chinese counterparts because there could be dire consequences.

“I’ll advise everybody not to gamble with his hard-won currency. Never do online business with a Chinese company,” he exclaimed.

On the same program, the GUTA Regional Chairman expressed discontentment towards the government’s reluctance in heeding to his outfit’s suggestions regarding ways of improving the value of the cedi.

“Let our leaders listen to us.

They shouldn’t take it lightly when we tell them these things.

They should sit down and analyse it. The kind of economics that go down in Makola, or Market Circle in Takoradi or Kejetia or Suame, you have no idea!”

He opined that the seeming positive performance of the cedi over the recent months is due to the Chinese who trade in Ghana, not having returned the foreign exchange to their country, hence keeping the dollar less scarce than it usually is by this time of the year.

“With the infiltration of the Chinese, after Christmas, the dollar begins to go up. But now, it is coming down, because they are here. They were beginning to go then the virus outbreak came up,” he revealed.

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11

News

Revealed: what’s fuelling the rapid hotel growth in West Africa

By Robert Skidelsky

Today, Africa is seen as one of the most promising regions for hotel developers. Aside from small chains and independents, four global hotel groups dominate signings and openings on the continent.

Over the last four rolling quarters, as of September 2019, Accor, Hilton, Marriott International and Radisson Hotel Group have opened 2,800 rooms and signed deals for 6,600 rooms.

Across Africa, hotel development remains important in most advanced economies, such as Morocco and South Africa; and projects are multiplying in East Africa, especially in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. In West Africa, Nigeria is back on the development scene thanks to emerging regional destinations beyond Abuja and Lagos.

Francophone Africa is also moving fast.

The Ministry of Tourism of Ivory Coast has launched an ambitious national plan for tourism development, Sublime Cote d’Ivoire, and already announced over US$1bn investment in the sector. Senegal is the other regional star, with local programmes such as Diamnadio, Lac Rose near Dakar and Pointe Sarene. Other countries showing active hotel development include Benin, Cameroon, Guinea, Niger, and Togo.

Now, in an interview, Philippe

Doizelet, Managing Partner, Hotels, Horwath HTL, West Africa’s leading hospitality consultant, in conjunction with the Forum de l’Investissement Hôtelier Africain (FIHA), the premier hotel investment conference in Francophone Africa, has identified four fundamental factors which are fuelling an increasing flow of investment into the hospitality sector in West Africa.

They are, in alphabetical order: Air connectivity, Better economic growth, Currency and Demographics.

In the past few years, additional flight connections have transformed travel to and from West Africa, which, in the words of Philippe Doizelet, Managing Partner, Hotels, Horwath HTL, has been a game changer. He said: “It used to be that the main hubs for flying between West African countries were Paris and Casablanca.

However, thanks to the rapid growth of Ethiopian Airlines and other carriers, such as Emirates, Kenya Airways and Turkish, the situation has changed; and new routes are offered to travellers.

For example, it is now possible to fly direct from New York to Abidjan, where the African Development Bank is located, and to Lomé, where the Central Bank of West African States (BOAD) is situated… and with increased travel comes increased commerce and demand for accommodation.”

According to the UNWTO, international tourist arrivals in

Africa grew by 7% in 2018, one of the fastest growth rates in the world together with East Asia and the Pacific. The flight data analyst, ForwardKeys, recently confirmed that trend continuing. In 2019, African aviation experienced 7.5% growth and it is the stand-out growth market for Q1 2020. As at 1st January, international outbound bookings were ahead 12.5%, 10.0% to other African countries and ahead 13.5% to the rest of the world. As a destination, Africa is also set to do well, as bookings from other continents are currently ahead by 12.9%.

The second factor is the superior economic growth of many West African countries, which are expanding substantially faster than many of the world’s most advanced economies. According to World Bank data for 2018, several, such as Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast and Senegal are growing at 6% per annum or better, more than double the world average, 3%. That is a potent attraction to international investors. However, that’s not all; as prosperity grows domestically, so too does the local financial services industry. It then looks to invest client monies; and a good proportion of that capital gravitates towards real estate projects and, in turn, new domestic infrastructure. As those projects come to fruition, more prosperity is generated and so a virtuous cycle is stimulated, which acts as a catalyst for

further economic development.

Currency is the third factor.

Later this year, the CFA franc, which is pegged to the euro, is planned to be dropped and 15 countries in West Africa (ECOWAS) will adopt the Eco, a new, free-floating, common currency, designed to reduce the cost of doing business between them and so increase trade. However, whilst there is great enthusiasm for the Eco, it is somewhat qualified because the economies of participating countries are at different stages of development and governments may find it difficult to adhere to agreed guidelines for managing their economies.

The fourth factor is demographics. The population is young and the fastest growing of any major world region. According to Philippe Doizelet, it is also characterised by a hunger to learn and confidence about the future. “People are seeing their standards of living improve and they are keen to seize opportunities. We are seeing that mindset reflected throughout the hospitality industry; it’s incredibly refreshing and it’s attracting business.” He said.

However, the picture is not all rosy. Horwath HTL also identifies four factors which threaten economic progress; they are security issues, political agenda, governance and increasing public debt. Although Africa today experiences much less conflict than it did three or four decades ago, when most African coun-

tries experienced war, some parts of the Sahel are still subject to security threats. On the political front, although democracy is continuing to spread, it is not yet the general rule everywhere, especially when come the times of major elections.

Third is governance. Philippe Doizelet says: “When people are poor and the state is weak, there will be corruption, but I’m not convinced that it is much worse than in other parts of the world.” The fourth concern is rising public debt, much of which has been incurred as long-term loans from the Chinese to build infrastructure.

That said, the debt to GDP ratio of many West African states is still less than many highly developed nations.

Matthew Weihs, Managing Director, Bench Events, which organises FIHA, concluded: “Africa is not the easiest place to do business, but it is an incredibly exciting place because the opportunities substantially outweigh the threats. Every time we organise a hotel investment forum, I see more hotel openings being announced and I meet new players keen to enter the market. The FIHA delegates are literally constructing the future of Africa in front of our eyes and anyone who attends the conference has the opportunity to join in.” FIHA takes place at the Sofitel Abidjan Hotel Ivoire in Abidjan, March 23-25.

Source: EIN

Ghana rated largest FDI recipient in West Africa – Akufo-Addo

WHO supports Ghana with protective equipment for COVID-19

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said Ghana is presently the largest recipient of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in West Africa.

According to him, this follows a massive vote of confidence by investors in his administration’s current management of the economy in the latest successful issuance of the Eurobond.

“The massive vote of confidence in the current management of the economy is best illustrated by Ghana being successful in issuing the longest-dated Eurobond ever by a sub-Sahara African country, with investors placing US$15 billion of orders for Ghana’s 41year Eurobond. “The international investor community has

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has presented some Protective Preventive Equipment (PPEs) to the Ghana Health Service (GHS) as its contribution towards the management of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The items included nose masks, gloves, goggles and protective clothing for use by frontline health professionals in their management of the COVID-19 outbreak, should Ghana record any cases. Dr Neema Rusibamayila Kimambo, the WHO Country Representative, who handed over the items to Dr Franklin Badu-Sarkodie, the Director, Public Health of the Ghana Health Service, said her outfit is satisfied with the level of professionalism exhibited by the country’s health authorities since the outbreak in China in 2019. He commended the Ministry of Health, the Ghana Health Service and all other stakeholders for their contributions towards the implementation of the var-

recognised this development, resulting in Ghana today, being the largest recipient of foreign direct investment in West Africa”, the President said in his fourth State of the Nation Address on Thursday, 20 February 2020.

President Akufo-Addo also noted that Ghana’s economic growth has rebounded, to place the nation among the fastest-growing economies in the world for three years in a row at an annual average of 7%, up from 3.4% in 2016.

The 7-year Eurobond attracted the lowest coupon rates ever at 6.375%. “No wonder Bloomberg, the reputable global financial media house, earlier this week”, the President adds,

“highlighted Ghana as the top candidate for an economic leap in Africa. This expression of confidence is important because it would lead to enhanced investments in our economy, and the accompanying greater number of jobs,” President Akufo-Addo added that Ghana’s economy recorded a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 5.6% for the third-quarter of this year. The 5.6 percent growth rate, however, was the lowest growth recorded for this. This is because, in the first quarter, growth peaked by 6.7 per cent, while in the second quarter it went up by 5.7 percent.

ious alert programmes and directives by the WHO.She said the WHO remained committed to supporting the country with technical and other assistance in all health issues, and urged the public to adhere to the safety and preventive measures such as regular hand washing with soap or rubbing alcohol, as well as spitting and coughing etiquettes, to prevent the spread of infections.

Dr Badu-Sarkodie thanked the WHO for the gesture, and spoke about the various measures such as intensified surveillance and effective screening at the points of entry and public education, being pursued to prevent the COVID-19 from spreading into the country. He appealed to corporate institutions and individuals to complement the government’s effort byndonating to support the GHS’s preparedness plan for COVID-19 and other similar disease outbreak and emergencies.

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13

Health / Pharmaceuticals

WHO-UNICEF-Lancet Commission presses for radical rethink on child health No single country is adequately protecting children’s health, their environment and their futures, finds a landmark report released today by a Commission of over 40 child and adolescent health experts from around the world. The Commission was convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and The Lancet.

The report, A Future for the World’s Children?, finds that the health and future of every child and adolescent worldwide is under immediate threat from ecological degradation, climate change and exploitative marketing practices that push heavily processed fast food, sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco at children.

“Despite improvements in child and adolescent health over the past 20 years, progress has stalled, and is set to reverse,” said former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Co-Chair of the Commission, Helen Clark. “It has been estimated that around 250 million children under five years old in low- and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty. But of even greater concern, every child worldwide now faces existential threats from climate change and commercial pressures.

“Countries need to overhaul their approach to child and adolescent health, to ensure that we not only look after our children today but protect the world they will inherit in the future,” she added.

Intensifying climate change threatens every child’s future The report includes a new global index of 180 countries, comparing performance on child flourishing, including measures of child survival and well-being, such as health, education, and nutrition; sustainability, with a proxy for greenhouse gas emissions, and equity, or income gaps.

According to the report, while the poorest countries need to do more to support their children’s ability to live healthy lives, excessive carbon emissions – disproportionately from wealthier countries – threaten the future of all children. If global warming exceeds 4°C by the year 2100 in line with current projections, this would lead to devastating health consequences for children, due to rising ocean levels, heatwaves, proliferation of diseases like malaria and dengue, and malnutrition.

The index shows that children in Norway, the Republic of Korea, and the Netherlands have the best chance at survival and well-being, while children in Central African Republic, Chad, Somalia, Niger and Mali face the worst odds. However, when authors took per capita CO2 emissions into account, the top countries trail behind: Norway ranked 156, the Republic of Korea 166, and the Netherlands 160. Each of the three emits 210% more CO2 per capita than their 2030 target. The

United States of America (USA), Australia, and Saudi Arabia are among the ten worst emitters.

“More than 2 billion people live in countries where development is hampered by humanitarian crises, conflicts, and natural disasters, problems increasingly linked with climate change,” said Minister Awa CollSeck from Senegal, Co-Chair of the Commission. “While some of the poorest countries have among the lowest CO2 emissions, many are exposed to the harshest impacts of a rapidly changing climate. Promoting better conditions today for children to survive and thrive nationally does not have to come at the cost of eroding children’s futures globally.”

The only countries on track to beat CO2 emission per capita targets by 2030, while also performing fairly (within the top 70) on child flourishing measures are: Albania, Armenia, Grenada, Jordan, Moldova, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay and Viet Nam. Harmful commercial marketing preys on children – with childhood obesity increasing 11-fold The report also highlights the distinct threat posed to children from harmful marketing.

Evidence suggests that children in some countries see as many as 30,000 advertisements on television alone in a single year, while youth exposure to vaping (e-cigarettes) advertisements increased by more than 250% in the USA over two years, reaching more than 24 million young people.

Professor Anthony Costello, one of the Commission’s authors, said: “Industry self-regulation has failed. Studies in

Australia, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and the USA – among many others – have shown that self-regulation has not hampered commercial ability to advertise to children. For example, despite industry signing up to self-regulation in Australia, children and adolescent viewers were still exposed to 51 million alcohol ads during just one year of televised football, cricket and rugby. And the reality could be much worse still: we have few facts and figures about the huge expansion of social media advertising and algorithms aimed at our children.”

Children’s exposure to commercial marketing of junk food and sugary beverages is associated with purchase of unhealthy foods and overweight and obesity, linking predatory marketing to the alarming rise in childhood obesity. The number of obese children and adolescents increased from 11 million in 1975 to 124 million in 2016 – an 11-fold increase, with dire individual and societal costs.

A manifesto for immediate action on child and adolescent health To protect children, the independent Commission authors call for a new global movement driven by and for children. Specific recommendations include: 1. Stop CO2 emissions with the utmost urgency, to ensure children have a future on this planet; 2. Place children and adolescents at the centre of our efforts to achieve sustainable development; 3. New policies and investment in all sectors to work towards child health and rights; 4. Incorporate children’s voic-

es into policy decisions; 5. Tighten national regulation of harmful commercial marketing, supported by a new Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Dr. Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet family of journals, said: “The opportunity is great. The evidence is available. The tools are at hand. From heads-of-state to local government, from UN leaders to children themselves, this Commission calls for the birth of a new era for child and adolescent health. It will take courage and commitment to deliver. It is the supreme test of our generation.”

“From the climate crisis to obesity and harmful commercial marketing, children around the world are having to contend with threats that were unimaginable just a few generations ago,” said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director. “It is time for a rethink on child health, one which places children at the top of every government’s development agenda and puts their well-being above all considerations.”

“This report shows that the world’s decision makers are, too often, failing today’s children and youth: failing to protect their health, failing to protect their rights, and failing to protect their planet,” Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization said. “This must be a wakeup call for countries to invest in child health and development, ensure their voices are heard, protect their rights, and build a future that is fit for children.”

Four countries in the African region license vaccine in milestone for Ebola prevention

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, Ghana and Zambia have licensed an Ebola vaccine, just 90 days after World Health Organization (WHO) prequalification. Registration of the vaccine is expected in additional countries in the coming weeks.

The licensing of the vaccine means that the manufacturer can stockpile and widely distribute this vaccine to African countries at risk of Ebola virus disease outbreaks. Once licensed doses are available, use of the vaccine will not require clinical trial or other research protocols.

“The approval of the Ebola vaccine by these countries is another milestone in the fight against this unforgiving disease,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

“Africa has rallied to cement hard-fought progress to keep its people safe from Ebola.”

WHO accelerated the licensing and roll-out of the Ebola vaccine by certifying that it met the organization’s standards for quality, safety and efficacy in its fastest vaccine prequalification process ever, announced in November 2019.

The speed with which this has been achieved has been made possible by a different approach, where national licensing procedures were done in parallel based on one single scientific review process. Usually, these process are done one by one, which can take years. The process was led by WHO with the participation of the African Vaccine Regulatory Forum (an African network of national regulatory authorities and ethics committees), the European Medicines Agency, and Merck.

“The rapid approval of the Ebola vaccine by countries in the Africa Region helps ensure this critical prevention tool will be available when and where it is needed most,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “This kind of collaboration and innovation is a model for other health priorities.”

The injectable Ebola vaccine, Ervebo, is manufactured by Merck (known as MSD outside the US and Canada). Preliminary study results have shown a 97.5% vaccine efficacy. Data also suggests that vaccinating people who are already infected reduces their chances of dying.

In response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the DRC, over 290 000 people have been vaccinated under compassionate use protocols. Once licensed doses are available, use of the vaccine in DRC will no longer require these protocols

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15

Mining

Newmont 4Q adjusted profit jumps as output, prices rise Newmont Corp. reported Thursday that its fourth-quarter adjusted net profit nearly doubled from a year ago – topping expectations – as both production and gold prices rose.

Newmont Corp. (NYSE: NEM, TSX: NGT) reported Thursday that its fourth-quarter adjusted net profit nearly doubled from a year ago – topping expectations – as both production and gold prices rose.

The world’s largest gold-mining company said its adjusted profit came in at $410 million, or 50 cents a share, during the October-January period. This was up from $214 million, or 40 cents, a year earlier.

The result beat the consensus estimate, which Credit Suisse said was 47 cents a share.

“We expect a modest positive reaction to the headline EPS [earnings-per-share] beat in what was otherwise a neutral release,” Credit Suisse added.

Newmont said its net income from continuing operations was $537 million, or 66 cents a share, in the fourth quarter. Revenue increased 45% to nearly $3 billion, primarily due to new production from the acquired Goldcorp assets and higher gold prices, the company said.

Newmont closed on the Goldcorp acquisition in mid-April.

Then in July, Newmont and Barrick Gold Corp. formed a joint venture for the two companies’ assets in Nevada. Newmont’s fourth-quarter gold production rose 27% year-on-year to 1.83

million ounces, and the average realized price climbed to $1,478 from $1,233 a year earlier. October-December all-in sustaining costs came in at $946 an ounce.

For full-year 2019, the company produced 6.3 million ounces of gold and reported all-in sustaining costs of $966 per ounce, in line with Newmont’s guidance. The company said it projects output of 6.4 million

Copper steady but virus clouds China demand prospects Copper prices steadied on Wednesday near three-week highs as top consumer China announced further measures to help shore up growth hit by the coronavirus outbreak, but concern about the eventual damage to the economy capped gains.

Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange ended little changed at $5,770 a tonne, down around 9% since the middle of January.

Prices of the metal used as a gauge of global economic health hit $5,828.50 on Monday, the highest since Jan. 27. “Nobody knows how long the global and Chinese economy will feel the negative effects of the coronavirus,” Quantitative Commodity Research analyst Peter Fertig said. “Apple has shown what the impact of the virus on global supply chains could be.”

APPLE: Apple warned this week it was unlikely to meet its March quarter sales forecast set just three weeks ago. Manufacturing facilities in China that produce Apple’s iPhone and other electronics have begun to reopen, but they are ramping up more slowly than expected, Apple said. MEASURES: Firms in China’s virus epicentre of Hubei province will not have to pay pensions, jobless and work-injury insurance until June.

“Metal prices seem to be holding up on hopes that the worst of the crisis is over and that Chinese efforts to stimulate the economy will frontload demand

into the second half of the year, ED&F Man analyst Edward Meir said in a note. “Both of these assumptions are a bit of a stretch at the moment.”

China’s commercial hub of Shanghai has also compiled a list of firms eligible for subsidised loans to ease the impact of the outbreak. STOCKS: In a sign of stalled activity in China’s manufacturing sector, base metal stocks in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) are rising.

Copper stocks, at more than 262,000 tonnes, are at their highest since mid-March and nearly double the level on Jan. 19. “ShFE stocks are expected to continue to build more sharply than normal,” analysts at Citi said in a note.

SPREADS: The premium for the cash over the three-month lead closed at a nine-year high of $68 a tonne on Tuesday due to worries about nearby supplies on the LME market. It was around $50 a tonne on Wednesday. These worries are fuelled by large holdings of warrants and cash and tom/next contracts.

Reinforcing that are stocks of the battery metal in LME-approved warehouses near historical lows of 66,725 tonnes . Threemonth lead was down 0.8% at $1,883 a tonne. OTHER METALS: Aluminium was flat at $1,720, zinc fell 0.8% to $2,128, tin gained 0.1% to $16,525 and nickel was little changed at $12,825.

Reuters

ounces in 2020 at AISC of $975 an ounce, then 6.2 million ounces to 6.7 million ounces per year longer term through 2024.

For all of 2019, Newmont listed adjusted net income of $970 million, or $1.32 per share, up from $718 million, or $1.34, a year earlier. Fourth-quarter net income was $2.9 billion, or $3.91 per share. “In 2019, Newmont generated $1.4 billion in

free cash flow…and we continued to deliver on our promises by completing four projects on four continents within budget,” said Tom Palmer, president and chief executive officer. “We returned $1.4 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases and as we enter our centenary year, Newmont is well positioned with the industry’s largest reserve base

strategically located in top-tier jurisdictions that enables us to sustain production and generate robust cash flow across price cycles.” The company said it ended the year with an industry-leading 100.2 million ounces of gold mineral reserves.

Kitco News

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Africa Business

Greater certainty necessary for Zambian mobile market growth Zambia scores 41.6 points out of a potential 100 on Fitch’s Telecoms Risk/reward Index for Q220. This ranks it 19th out of the 48 markets surveyed for the Index this quarter. The market’s highest score, for Industry Risks (64.1), is a reflection of the regulator, the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA), which has been committed to market advancement and liberalisation.

However, recent developments may cause us to revise this score downwards in upcoming quarters.

The regulator licensed a new player, UZI Zambia (UZI), in March 2018 in the hopes that it would provide an alternative to established players MTN and Airtel Zambia. This is yet to result in the sort of competition envisaged by the regulator, as the operator has repeatedly missed deadlines to launch services. The latest extension goes to May 2020 as UZI hopes to secure financing that would finally allow it to build and launch its long-delayed mobile network.

We note that the operator is linked to the daughter of former Angolan president, José Eduardo dos Santos, Isabel dos Santos, whose Angolan and Por-

tuguese assets have been frozen in an ongoing corruption case.

This could weigh on UZI’s prospects of securing the necessary funding to deploy infrastructure and launch services by the new deadline. If UZI once again fails to launch services, further reticence to sanction the operator would likely see us revise the market’s Industry Risks score as the situation will pose risks to the market’s growth.

In the event that UZI manages to launch by the deadline, we still do not expect the increased competition to result in a greater uptake of services. Although UZI has not released details of its pricing model and roll-out plans, we believe the operator’s financial constraints would likely see it limit an initial roll-out to more profitable capital cities and surrounding areas, with plans to expand into rural and underserved areas only taking effect in the longer term. This would largely limit its service to around 44% of the population which was estimated to be living in urban areas in 2019 and place it head to head with the incumbents who will respond with aggressive pricing to protect their revenues. We expect there to be a weakening of ARPUs accompa-

nying this strategy, with leaner margins weighing on all players’ ability to deploy services, particularly into the rural and economically neglected areas of the country.

Notably, the country’s smallest operator Zamtel has driven more recent expansions of services into rural areas, owing to its obligations under the Universal Access Program. This also saw it take on a USD280mn debt burden which the state had been considering taking over in July 2019, to ease strain on the operator (‘Financial Woes, Zam-

bian State Intervention Risk Lessens Zamtel’s Investment Attractiveness’, July 30 2019).

We believe the state-owned operator’s financial challenges are also behind ZICTA’s efforts to increase the pool of investors in the market.

ZICTA has also indicated that it may consider licensing a fifth player in the market which supported 16.7mn subscribers for a penetration rate of 93.5%. It is highly likely that this could simply exacerbate the issue of oversupply in certain areas. We believe that this move would only be a catalyst for growth if

Ethiopia Hosts Largest Ever Gathering of Military Leaders in Africa Some 40 Land Forces Chiefs & Representatives from across the African continent are in attendance of the summit in Addis Abeba The 8th Edition of the African Land Forces Summit under the theme “Tomorrow’s Security Demands Today’s Leadership” kicked off at Sheraton Addis Hotel here in the capital. The summit is hosted by the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), co-hosted by the U.S. Army Africa (USARAF).

It is being attended by, among other senior military personnel, General Adam Mohammed, Chief of Staff, ENDF, General Michael X. Garret, Commanding General, United States Army Forces Command, as well as David Renz, Deputy Chief Of Mission at the U.S Embassy in Addis Abeba. Some 40 Land Forces Chiefs & Representatives from across the African continent are also in attendance.

The summit comes as reports of possible downsizing of U.S. troops in Africa, a report the U.S. Army Africa Commander Maj. Gen. Roger L. Cloutier Jr. countered saying, the U.S. was “not walking away. We are still engaged,” Maj. Gen. Cloutier told media on February 12.

The U.S. was meeting with land force chiefs from several African countries, among others, to “talk about issues and let them know that the United States and the U.S. military is still committed to being great partners,” Military Times quoted him as saying.

The theme for this year’s summit “reflects our shared belief that leadership is an enduring responsibility among our military leaders,” Brig. Gen. Lapthe Flora, U.S. Army Africa deputy commander, said back in December 2019. “In order for our

Soldiers and leaders to be successful, we must develop our leaders today. Our theme this year reflects that mindset, and we hope that the summit will empower our already strong leaders.”

The summit kicked off with an official opening by David Renz who emphasized on the importance of cooperation between Africa & the United States in all areas especially in Peace & Security. A welcoming remark was also given by Gen. Adam Mohammed followed.

“Africa today is a region of significant strategic importance, superpowers are looking at increasing their presence in the continent.

Major reasons being illicit trafficking & violent extremist organizations other major security problems,” General Adem said, adding, the need for cooperation in stabilizing areas of conflict in the continent as well as the importance for such a cooperation. General Michael X. Garret gave a speech in which he described

the relationship between U.S. Army and its partners on the continent as being “built on trust”.

“These partnerships are important because we operate in a complex dynamic world where the security challenges we face are diverse & African nations contend with some of the most complex challenges in the world, [including] insurgencies, armed conflicts, illicit trafficking, piracy, organized crime & violent extremists organizations.”

These threats have, according to him, “no boundaries; they cross borders, destabilize regions & require significant cooperation & strong partnership so our efforts to combat these challenges are effective.”

Earlier in the morning, Brigadier Gen. Tilahun Ashenafi of the ENDF & Gen. Roger L. Cloutier, gave a brief press conference where they answered question from local and international media.

“Military solution is not the only option for Africa but it is

an important one,” said Maj. Gen Cloutier said, adding, “Ethiopia is an important partner to the United States in the mission of accomplishing a secure, stable & prosperous Africa which is an enduring American interest.”

According to Brigadier Gen. Tilahun Ashenafi most problems the African continent faces today are cross-border problems such as terrorism, but military solutions alone are not the only solutions to solve them. “We can’t solve all problems by military means, we need political solutions as well,” he said.

The summit, called by the US Army Africa as “the largest gathering of military leaders on the African continent ever”, is expected to last for four days discussing a range of security related issues in closed plenary sessions. These include 21st century challenges for military leaders, developing leaders through defense institutions & defense leadership in a multinational environment.

the market is able to attract the sort of robust, financially viable player necessary to drive an expansion outside of urban areas. A good example is Viettel, which operates in neighbouring Tanzania where it has focused on bringing connectivity to rural areas via low-cost voice and data networks, and in doing so has reached a large untapped market which has largely been neglected by its rivals. But, despite the sector’s openness to foreign investment, potential entrants will be wary of heightened risks to their investments, which have emerged in Zambia in recent years.

We had previously warned about the higher degree of risk of government intervention in the sector. Rising fiscal pressures have contributed to the state’s increasingly aggressive approaches to tax collection which have already played out in the mining sector. We could also see this begin to impact the telecommunications sector, evidenced by the state’s plans to introduce a tax on data-centric over-the-top applications such as like WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger which were only halted following public pushback in August 2018.

Normalisation of Monetary Policy In Zimbabwe Unlikely Before 2021

At Fitch Solutions we expect the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) to maintain its focus on price and exchange rate stability in 2020, but with limited success. At its most recent meeting, in January, the MPC maintained its policy rate at 35.0%, and stated that the central bank would continue implementing a monetary targeting policy so as to anchor expectations on inflation and exchange rate movements.

The MPC also highlighted a downward trend in month-onmonth inflation since October 2019—the m-o-m rate slowed to 16.6% in December 2019 from 17.5% the previous month—and forecast that the m-o-m increase would slow to single-digit levels

by Q220, while the y-o-y rate would end the year at around 50.0%.

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Feature

Border security: addressing irregular migration and issues pertaining to trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants

By Osei Bonsu Dickson, Esq., Pat Quaye and Edem Kojo Spio

Introduction The term irregular migrant is applied to persons “who infringe a country’s admission rules and any other person not authorized to remain in the host country”. The definition of irregular migration is broad and refers to irregular flows, while the definition of irregular migrant seems to refer to the corresponding stock.

Irregular migration poses very real dilemmas for states, aside exposing migrants to insecurity and vulnerability. Sensitive as it is, politically most states have, nonetheless, failed to manage or control irregular migration effectively or efficiently. The current problem is not only a European, American, Asian or Australian one, it is also an African problem and thus a global one.

Irregular migration from the East and Horn of Africa to southern Africa for example, presents countries along this route with a new challenge: how to manage these flows while ensuring that the human rights of migrants are respected and protected.

To better manage these irregular migration flows, the Governments of Ethiopia, Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania have, for instance held several bilateral and trilateral technical meetings since 2014.

Despite the political relevance of the phenomenon, assessments of the size of the irregular migrant population are vague, and there are doubts as to whether granting amnesty or mass deportation will solve the problem of having tens of millions of people living in a country illegally.

This report proceeds from the standpoint that irregular migration cannot be managed on a unilateral basis by individual destination states, but requires meaningful cooperation between countries of origin, transit and destination.

Control measures instituted by only receiving states are unlikely to dismantled the problem. In certain parts of the world, policy on irregular migration is driven by the perception (whether accurate or not) that countries risk being ‘overwhelmed’ by large numbers of irregular migrants who embody threat to states and society.

While all states in the international system have the right to control their national borders, what is required are more effective collaborations with sending states and non-state actors to address the issue. Effective approaches will take notice of both the concerns of states and the need to protect the rights of irregular migrants.

Lack of Political Will At the same time, it is essential to be realistic about the initial expected outcomes. Our analysis indicate that irregular migration may continue for the foreseeable future, although it may be possible to scale it down.

One key reason is that certain states lack the political will to address irregular migration, as some of the issues are perceived to be politically-sensitive. Irregular migration can be perceived as benefiting some countries of origin – for example by removing a labour surplus and providing a source of remittances and overseas investment (Koser and Van Hear 2003).

Secondly our analysis suggest that the push forces are equally ubiquitous and powerful (for example growing disparities in the level of prosperity and human security experienced by different societies) and the ability to modify them is very limited (Crisp and Dessalegne 2002).

Rule of Law Issues While nation states have however the sovereign prerogative to govern conditions of entry into and stay within their territory, they must always do so respecting human rights obligations.

Criminalising migration has not been shown to prevent or resolve irregular status and is a concerning practice that leads to a number of human rights violations. The criminalisation of people on the basis of their migration status also reinforces false and xenophobic narratives that migrants are criminals or that migration itself is a threat (A/HRC/20/24, para. 13; WGAD, Deliberation No. 5).

Under international human rights law, the criminalization of irregular migration exceeds the legitimate interests of States in protecting their territories and regulating migration (A/ HRC/13/30, para. 58). Within the New York Declaration, Member States agreed to review policies that criminalize cross-border movement and that children should not be criminalized based on their migration status (paras. 33 and 56).

Migrants in an irregular situation should not be treated as criminals, or as national or public security threats (A/ HRC/10/21, para. 68). Criminalising people on the basis of their migration status can lead to a number of other human rights violations, including discriminatory profiling, arbitrary arrest and detention, family separation, and the inability to access critical health care, housing, education or other rights. Such approaches further push migrants to live and work in the shadows of society and increase their vulnerability to exploitation and abuse by State and private actors.

In the absence of safe pathways for migration, many migrants are compelled to enter and stay irregularly in countries of destination.

In the current environment the available options to states are briefly as follows:

1. Strengthen Border Security 2. Collaborate with Sending Countries 3. Strengthen Interior Enforcement.

4. Improve the Legal Immigration System 5. Implement A Better Job Program 6. Undertake Mandatory E-Verify 7. Eliminate Illegal Immigration Rewards 8. Blanket Amnesty 9. Authorize Armed Forces at the Border 10. Empower Civil Society Organizations 11. Establish international agreements

long-term solution lies in a combination; changing of economic conditions; revising of current policies; and opportunities created in the disadvantaged countries from where the illegal immigrants hail.

A combination of the possible solutions is most likely the best choice to implement a plan that conforms to the rule of law. A key priority of the Project is to support African governments to develop capacities for safe, humane and dignified voluntary return as well as sustainable reintegration processes.

Conclusion Between 2020 – 2025, CSDS Africa will seek partnership with African Governments, the European Union, ECOWAS and the Africa Union with regard to its Anti-Slavery Project. CSDS seeks to implement a number of mutually reinforcing projects in the fight against irregular migration.

Slavery is not a thing of the past.

Our mission is to amplify international law and policy options, hold governments accountable and develop capacities for safe, humane and dignified voluntary return as well as sustainable reintegration processes.

By itself, none of the proffered solutions above will resolve all the problems. The ultimate

CSDS Africa is an African organization that focuses on human security issues central to Africa’s future.

CSDS partners to implement research, training and advocacy projects in the area of border, maritime and cyber security, international law, and development policy. In January 2020, CSDS commenced work on its 2020-2030 Anti-Slavery Project.

The Project seeks to address irregular migration and issues pertaining to trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants to the European Union, United States, the Middle East, Gulf Region and Southern Africa, by working with African security services, governments and regional blocs to prioritize irregular migration.

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News

Terminal 1 rented out for 15years in $5.3million deal Mr. Joseph Kofi Adda, the Minister of Aviation, on Wednesday said the Kotoka International Airport Terminal 3 was able to handle more than three million passengers in 2019. It is also is on its way to hitting the five million passenger target for which it was built, he said.

Mr. Adda said this when he appeared before Parliament to answer questions by Mr. Kwame Governs Agbodza, the Member of Parliament for Adaklu, as to the current status of the Kotoka International Airport Terminal 1 in terms of current and future operations.

Following the relocation of international airline operations from Terminal 2 to Terminal 3 in October, 2018, as well as the increase in numbers of domestic passengers, the Ghana Airport Company Limited (GACL) relocated the domestic airline operations from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2.

The relocation was necessitated by the replacement of the marque tent used a departure lounge, which had become dilapidated. The GACL, therefore, opted for the relocation from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 to save money and also ensure efficiency in operations and

passenger comfort.

Mr. Adda also disclosed that the GACL had rented out the ground floor of the Terminal 1 to McDan Aviation for US $354,480 per year. He said the facility was to be used as a Logistics Operations Centre for a period of 15 years beginning

January 2019, and expected to be renewed every two years.

The facility is expected to yield $5.3million over a 15-year period in non-aeronautical revenue for the GACL. He said pursuant to the Government’s agreement with the United States, McDan had

signed a Management Agreement to provide the US Military with logistics and handling services through Terminal 1.

Mr. Adda explained that the airlines continued to occupy the first floor and use the offices as operational offices to support their ticketing offices at

UK to establish Business School in Africa – Mr Choulet The University of Reading, Henley Business School, UK, has plans to establish a satellite campus in West Africa to broaden the scope of knowledge in Africa, Mr. Jean-Pierre Choulet, Director of Henley Business School Alumni has stated.

“We want to establish a West African Business School with a strong UK heritage to improve knowledge-based excellence in Africa,” he said in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at a business meeting with Henley Alumni Association-Ghana in Accra.

The meeting was to network and share ideas among Alumni for future engagements. The programme will be established in an English-speaking country and will focus on post-graduate level, to be delivered on faceto-face education even though they would use technology, which would be minimal.

It will focus on business disciplines such as finance, real estate, leadership, entrepreneurship and digital transformation among others.

Mr Chouler said the initiative is a good timing for Africa to be equipped with strong academic players because African has a fine infrastructure and lots of talents even though there are still more room to strengthen higher education.

He said the gap between the skills and academia is high and that the establishment of the school would help bridge the gap and provide the needed skills for industry players to grow employment in Africa.

Touching on the benefit of the programme, Mr Choulet said the course would be competitive and produce African academic knowledge to nurture African curriculum and recognised worldwide.

“The programme will help

generate local content and aligned the curriculum with African content, generate new models and new understanding to equip students with skills to overcome African challenges”. Dr Adeyinka Adewale, lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at the Henley Business School, said even though Africa has many challenges there are huge potential that need to be harness with concerted efforts to address African problems.

This, he explained, should be mooted in partnership to help develop the country, stressing

that “if you want to go fast, walk alone, but if you want to go far, go with someone”.

In the 1940s the United Nations in its quest to help the under developed countries, created the technical assistance model of aid, which meant that people from the global north will come down to African to help in consultation while African people travel abroad to learn and share their knowledge back home to others. Dr Adewale said this kind of model is one way and there is the need to build capacities of Af-

ricans locally and share it with the rest of the world.

He called oninternational organisations coming into Africa to put in place partnership models for mutual sharing of ideas. “A solid international partnership will not make Ghanaians or Africans look like they are the deficit ones who need help, because we are in a space where we are mutually creating value for one another clearly articulated in an area of mutuality,” he added.

Terminal 3. He noted that the AVSEC ID Card Section of the Aviation Security Department of the GACL is on the first floor of Terminal 1.

“It is envisaged that the GACL would leverage on the Aviation Driven Development policy initiative to enhance fixed based operations at Terminal 1 and other aviation-related projects,” he said.

Mr. Agbodza, in a follow-up question, asked whether the GACL was a party to the Agreement signed between McDan and the US Military to which Mr. Adda responded that the US Military, under the Agreement, undertakes its own procurement and identified a company most suited for its logistics operations.

He said McDan offers many aviation related logistical services including Fived Based Operations not only to the US Military but to other private aircrafts, which were all subject to the country’s statutory regulations. Mr Adda disclosed that the GACL was putting plans in place to turn the Terminal 2, which is currently underutilised, into an international hub for regional airlines. GNA

Producer Price Inflation hit 13.3% in January 2020

The Producer Price Inflation (PPI), which measures the changes in prices of raw material procurement, production, and finished goods stages of the manufacturing process, hit 13.3 percent for all industries in January, 2020.

According to figures from the Ghana Statistical Service, the mining and quarrying sub-sector recorded the highest yearon-year PPI rate of 32.2%, followed by the utility sub-sector with a 12.6% rate.

The utility sub-sector recorded the lowest inflation rate of -0.1%.

The Manufacturing sub-sector recorded the least year-on-year PPI rate of 9.6% With respect to the monthly changes, the mining and quarrying sub-sector recorded the highest inflation rate of 3.4%.

The utility sub-sector recorded the lowest inflation rate of -0.1% The PPI level is crucial in that the price increases may be passed on to consumers, resulting in higher prices of goods.