Transport, Kwame Governs Agbodza, says the GACL must justify any proposed increase in the Airport Passenger
Service Charge (APSC) and convince the legislature that any additional funding would not be used for other purposes.
ice President Dr Mahamu du Bawumia has com mended Tullow Ghana Limited for the lead role it was playing on the Jubilee and TEN oil elds and for its continued invest ment and expansion
The Vice President said the gov ernment recognises Tullow’s
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has partnered with two institu tions to create opportuni
ties for international trade and nancial cooperation for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.
The central bank signed a memo randum of understanding (MOU) with its Singaporean counterpart, the Monetary Authority of Singa pore (MAS) and the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) last week to develop the Ghana Integrated Financial Ecosystem (GIFE).
A joint statement from the three partners said the agreement aimed to enhance nancial capabilities and access for MSMEs in the coun try.
By Eugene Davis
The Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has backed the Speaker of
Parliament’s ruling to set up an eight-member adhoc Committee to probe the vote of censure against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
FBNBank and the University of Ghana Medical diabetes starting with the commem oration of World Diabetes Day under the theme Centre (UGMC) are collaborating to ght
The GACL, a state-owned limited liability company responsible for managing all civilian state-fund ed airports in the country, is seeking an upward adjustment of the current GHC 5 APSC charged to each passenger on all domes tic routes.
The company says the proposed increase is to enable them to maintain existing domestic airports and new terminal build ings soon to be inaugurated in Tamale and Kumasi.
Their proposal is expected to be submitted to the Parliamentary Select Committee on Transport
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in due course. However, Mr.Agbodza says he will only support any such increase if the “GACL come out with the real cost of their opera tions, identify the cause/causes of their cash ow and tell us what the additional money will be used for.”
“In recent times, we have seen many state agencies simply go and collaterise expected incomes and misuse them. I can’t support that.” Mr. Agbodza said.
He advised the GACL to be more innovative in raising funds to sustain the operations of domes
tic airports without recourse to the government.
The government of Ghana is committed to improve the avia tion sector to ensure the country become an aviation hub.
The Transport Ministry has also backed the call to have GACL’s user fees and services reviewed upwards to enable them under take proper maintenance service in the new airports that are springing up across the country.
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contribution to the economic development.
Vice President gave the com mendation during a courtesy call on him by two board mem bers of Tullow at the Jubilee House.
Dr Bawumia said the govern ment would be keenly looking forward to the realisation of Tullow’s investment decisions on ongoing projects including the execution of post-founda tion commercial gas agree ments, exploration interests and other projects being considered by the company and its partners in the country.
The two board members, Martin Greenslade and Mitchell Ingram were in Ghana for a four-day working visit on the back of the group’s renewed focus to prioritise investments in its producing assets.
The board members assured the Vice President of the Group’s resolve to continue supporting the delivery of the Ghana Value Maximisation Plan, which is in its second year.
The Tullow delegation provid ed an update on the progress of the plan which has since 2021, delivered eight (8) new wells across the Jubilee and TEN elds. The investment by Tullow and its partners, will continue to be delivered under the 10-year plan.
The two o cials also reiterated the Group’s commitment to achieving its 2030 Net Zero plans.
The Vice President, H.E. Dr Bawumia acknowledged Tullow’s continued investment
and expansion of its operations in Ghana, and recognised Tullow for its contribution to economic development by these e orts at a time of challenging global energy crisis.
Under Tullow Oil Plc’s renewed focus, the Group plans to invest its capital principally in the large resources underpinning its producing assets, with a goal to pursue cost discipline, responsi ble and safe operations, and e cient production.
In 2021, Tullow Oil and the Jubilee and TEN Partners announced the ‘Ghana Value Maximisation Plan’ which is an over $4 billion, 10-year investment plan, to unlock signi cant value in the Jubilee and TEN Fields, through a multi-year, multi-well drilling campaign and expansion proj ects. Under the plan, 50 new wells are estimated to be delivered in the Jubilee and TEN elds, over the 10-year period, with expan sion works in the Jubilee North-East and South-East areas of the eld.
Cumulatively, the plan is expect ed to deliver over $10 billion worth of value to the government of Ghana at maturation.
As part of the country visit, the Board Members visited the FPSO Kwame Nkrumah in the Jubilee Field and the Noble Venturer, which is currently conducting drilling activities, to get a rst-hand appreciation of the transformation of operations on the Jubilee asset and the ongoing investment in the drilling programme.
The o shore visit provided real time updates on the performance
of the Ghana Value Maximisation Plan to the visiting Board Mem bers.
While in Takoradi, the two o cials were pleased to see some of Tullow Ghana’s local content development and socio-economic investment activities. They took a tour of Orsam Oil and Gas Limited, an indigenous company and one of Tullow Ghana’s sub-contractors supporting the Jubilee South-East Expansion Project with the design, fabrication, and assembly of o shore equipment.
Currently, more than 1000 tonnes of steel are being fabricat ed in Ghana.
These include the fabrication of manifolds, suction piles, rigid jumpers, and umbilical termina tion assembly (UTAs) at the Orsam yard, for the Jubilee South-East Project.
Signi cant progress has been made on the Jubilee South-East project with installations sched uled to be completed by the rst half of 2023. The JSE project, once online in the rst year, is expected to bump up average daily oil production rates to c.100,000 bbl./d in the Jubilee eld.
The JSE project is an expansion of development of the Jubilee eld being undertaken by the Jubilee Partners.
The Board Members also visited Tullow Ghana’s socio-economic investment projects including the ongoing Free SHS project at Bompeh Senior High School, and the Early Childhood Education Project at Nkotompo, both in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan area.
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cooperation between Singapore and Ghana.
“Over time, it is envisaged that the integrated nancial ecosys tem model can serve the Asia-Af rica SME trade corridor more broadly,” the statement said.
The statement explained that GIFE would o er an open digital infrastructure for MSMEs in Ghana and Singapore in four key areas.
It listed the areas to include SME nancial empowerment programme to help MSMEs build foundational digital nancial literacy skills and gain a good understanding of cross-border nancial services.
connections in Asia and Africa, through a network of busi ness-to-business electronic-com merce platforms.
“The DBG and partner nancial institutions will provide digital trade nance and guarantees for eligible MSMEs through a digital platform.
“The MAS, BoG, DBG and nancial institutions will jointly develop nancial trust frameworks to assess creditworthiness for nanc ing by enabling nancial institu tions to use alternative data sets, such as the track record of successful payments to suppliers and tax payments to relevant authorities,” the statement said.
The statement explained that the GIFE was a collaborative e ort
ties, FinTechs and tech solution providers in Ghana and Singa pore.
It said the collaborating institu tions included Proxtera3, Con solidated Bank of Ghana, ANEXT Bank, Enterprise Singapore, and the Global FinTech Institute.
The Chief FinTech O cer of MAS, Sopnendu Mohanty, said the MAS had worked closely with BoG since the announcement of the Financial Trust Corridor in 2020.
“The GIFE is an important step to foster closer collaboration between the two central banks and important emerging mar kets. The GIFE is a rethink to
potentially leapfrog traditional nancial inclusion approaches with combined support mecha nisms powered by smarter data that MSMEs and nancial institu tions can tap into based on their needs,” Mr Mohanty said.
The Governor of BoG, Dr Ernest Addison, said the memorandum further demonstrated the bank’s commitment to working with key stakeholders to explore innova tive nancing models.
“It also further demonstrates our commitment to the Business Sans Borders initiative, which we partnered with the MAS to enhance MSME contribution to economic growth and in line with the government’s broader economic transformation goals,” Dr Addison said.
The Chief Executive O cer (CEO) of DBG, Mr K. Duker, said the bank believed that the part nership would mark a pivotal moment in DBG’s mission to provide sustainable nance solu tions to Ghanaian businesses and facilitate multi-generational, sustainable economic growth.
He said the DBG recognised the crucial role of SMEs in the coun try’s economy and the GIFE programme would further strengthen the bank’s ability to catalyse SME growth by ensuring that they got the nancial solu tions they needed to achieve their full potential.
According to him, SMEs were a key pillar of Ghana's economic resilience, prosperity and inter national competition; hence, the optimism that the journey to unlock their potential would yield excellent results for the people and the country.
The Committee was set up by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, after the Minority caucus moved a motion for the vote of censure against Mr Ofori-Atta.
raised against him.
According to Hon.Afenyo-Mar kin, the majority approached the debate on the motion of censure on issue of fair trail and have been left happy about Speaker’s ruling.
“We should follow due process, we approached our issue on grounds of fair trail and we are happy after the beautiful discourse, the nature of which established democracies have practiced over the years, a com mittee has been constituted to
enact the rule of procedure and determine issues of evidence which will form a prima facie ground for a report for the plena ry.
The New Patriotic Party MP for Adansi-Asokwa, KT Hammond, and the National Democratic Con gress (NDC) Member of Parlia ment for Bolgatanga East, Domi nic Ayine will co-chair the ad-hoc committee set up to probe allega tions by the Minority against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
Other members of the commit tee include Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings and Bernard Ahiafor from the Minority side, while Patrick Yaw Boamah, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi and Andrew Agyapa Mercer consti tute the group from the Majority side on the committee.
The committee will have to present their report to the House in Seven (7) days, accord ing to the Speaker of Parlia ment.
Mr. Bagbin stated that setting up the committee will provide a fair opportunity for the nance min ister to respond to allegations
“The evidence will be placed before the committee. The Minis ter will have the opportunity to defend himself. A report will be presented to the House, and we will debate that report,” the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin said.
The motion of censure was led last week Monday by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, for the removal of the nance minister.
The motion is embedded with a seven-point allegation as grounds for the removal of the minister.
Among the seven-point allegations embedded in the motion are a despicable con ict of interest ensuring that the minister directly bene ts from Ghana's economic woes as his companies receive commissions and other unethical contractual advantage, particular ly from Ghana's debt overhang.
regionally, coupled with some sightseeing tours, it will enable many Ghanaians visits other regions thereby con tributing to the local econo my of the host region.
In Barcelona 2001 the (then) Secretary-General of World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), together with the (then) President of the Inter national Olympic Committee, were joint signatories to a communiqué recognising sports and tourism as “forces for mutual understanding”
row.”
The agenda for the collaboration is reduce the threat that diabetes poses and this will be undertaken through several ways including the platform which the World Diabetes Day o ers. FBNBank and UGMC are therefore coming together to mark the World Diabe tes Day 2022.
EUROSPORT (a multimedia eDiscovery broadcaster) has recently estimated that sports tourism is worth $US800bn constituting +10% of the inter national travel and tourism receipts. In some destina tions, sports tourism accounts for 25% of all tour ism receipts rising to as much as 55% in Australia and parts of New Zealand. According to the World Trade Organiza tion, travel done exclusively for the purpose of attending or competing in an organized sporting event has been esti mated as a multibillion indus try in the world.
study by the South African Tourism revealed that just over 300,000 tourists visit ed the country. This led to a radical change of mindset from tourists who visited the country during the tournament – most of whom were skeptical about the country before the World Cup because of what they had read in the media about the country before they arrived. Amongst other things, the tourism report noted that most people who visited the tip of the Southern African continent are keen to come back and explore the coun try further as tourists.
to the medical condition each year.
The entire celebration is to create awareness of diabetes and the need for people to know one’s diabetic status, early detection, early management and also prevent future complications.
The programme for the celebra tion includes a public lecture on diabetes which is scheduled for Friday, November 11, 2022 at the Medical Training and Simulation Centre (MTSC) and a screening exercise on Monday, 14 Novem ber 2022 at the Banking Square of the University of Ghana.
Unlike Qatar expecting 1.2 million visitors, in the 2010 world cup in South Africa, a
The growth of sports tour ism over the past few years has led to the successful organization of many sports event across the globe. Following the success of the 1992 Barcelo na Olympics, Spain has become one of the top four most visited destinations in the world. Over the years, researchers on sport tour ists have focused on their economic impact upon a host community, although measuring spending
Commenting, the Managing Director and Chief Executive O cer of FBNBank, Mr. Victor Yaw Asante said, “for us at FBN Bank, this is another opportunity to renew our service to our stake holders. FBNBank has over the years made health and wellness one of our topmost priorities. The Bank this year has already made enormous contributions to the health and wellbeing of people. We have partnered with Rotary in the ght against Polio and through our Women’s Network partnered Pink for Africa in the ght against Breast Cancer. We have also supported the Lifeline for Childhood Cancer Ghana Foundation in order to bring hope and opportunities to persons facing medical challeng es. We do these because as a Bank, we have over the years remained committed to putting
patterns is a di cult proposi tion. Globally, the economic impact of tourism is one of the most researched but least understood areas of tourism. Philip Gebu is a Tourism Lec turer. He is the C.E.O of FoReal Destinations Ltd, a Tourism Destinations Man agement and Marketing Company based in Ghana and with partners in many other countries. Please con tact Philip with your com ments and suggestions. Write to forealdestinations@g mail.com / info@forealdesti nations.com. Visit our web site at www.forealdestina tions.com or call or WhatsApp +233(0)244295901/02642959 01.Visist our social media sites Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: FoReal Destina tions
our stakeholders, clients and customers especially at the heart of what we do. We believe strong ly that knowledge can give us the right traction on the path to success in this endeavour and together we will use that to help people overcome the challenge diabetes poses to their health and
The UGMC has welcomed the support of FBNBank in the ght against diabetes and looks forward to the two parties work ing together to achieve the expected goals including the deepening of awareness of diabe tes among sta in corporate enti ties.
According to Julius Evame Agbag ba, a dietician at the University of Ghana Medical Centre, “The main focus of this year’s celebra tion is to bridge the education gap by providing the general public enough evidence-based information about this condition and to call for a national consen sus in addressing it.
The University of Ghana Medical Centre is organizing this year’s World Diabetes Day, with the Department of Dietetics and Food Therapeutics leading the way, to promote information among the general public but with a special focus on the corpo rate world.
L i mi t e d
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This is because like other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), Type 2 Diabetes is lifestyle related considering the work schedule of most sta in the corpo rate industry, the probability of them developing the condition is high and we believe that as profes sionals, it is our mandate to ensure that we provide the people with adequate and evidence-based information to help them make good lifestyle choices.”
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FBNBank has in its 26 years of operating in Ghana remained focused on putting its customers and communities rst. This, it has sought to do through the rich value and excellence of what the Bank contributes to the relation ship with its stakeholders as a whole, particularly the customers. FBNBank Ghana is a member of the First Bank of Nigeria Limited Group which is renowned for its great customer service and gener al stakeholder engagement garnered over its 128 years of oper ation. FBNBank Ghana has 25 branches and two agencies across the country with over 500 sta . FBNBank o ers universal banking services to individuals and busi nesses in Ghana.
The story so far
The headline numbers are glaring enough. Africa is developing ever deeper ties with China in trade and investment.
The majority of emerging econo mies are found in Africa, with China being the largest in the globe. Over one-third of the world's population resides in China and Africa togeth er. The challenge China and Africa share is advancing social and economic development.
Africa-China relations can be traced back to the 1950s when economic and trade cooperation centered on bilateral trade and China's aid to Africa. Through the joint e orts of both sides, cooperation has been developed in ever-expanding elds and with increasingly richer content.
Africa-China relations reached their peak when, in 2009, China became Africa’s largest trading partner.
China overtook Europe as Africa's top trading partner in 2009, despite the global nancial crisis, which caused the volume of China-Africa trade to decline to US $91.07 billion. As the world economy recovered, China-Africa commerce maintained a positive recovery and develop ment momentum.
The story hasn’t changed much since 2009. We have, however, witnessed an ever-increasing volume of trade and investment volumes between Africa and China.
The volume of bilateral trade between China and Africa increased from US$12.14 million in 1950 to US$100 million in 1960 to US$1 billion in 1980.
After crossing the US$10 billion threshold in 2000, trade between China and Africa has continued to rise quickly ever since.
China and Africa conducted more than $100 billion worth of bilater al trade in 2008, with China exporting $50.8 billion to the continent and importing $56 billion from it.
Between 2000 and 2008, the
reached new highs in 2021. A shift in Chinese strategy toward commerce and cooperation rather than state-backed invest ments is partially re ected in the increase.
According to the most recent data from China's General Administration of Customs, total bilateral trade between China and Africa in 2021 reached USD 254.3 billion, a 35.3 percent increase over the previous year. China's top ve African commer cial partners in 2021 were Egypt, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa, Nigeria, and Angola. Together, the value of commerce between China and these nations made up more than half of total trade between China and Africa.
Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, and Kenya imported the most products from China in 2021. Together, their imports accounted for more than half of all Chinese commodities brought into Africa in the previous year.
goods are among Africa's top exports to China.
FOCAC Route
The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has undoubtedly been instrumental in increasing the momentum of investment engineered over the period between China and Africa.
Since its inception more than 20 years ago, the FOCAC has improved and reenergized economic and trade coopera tion between China and Africa; trade, investment, infrastruc ture, and capacity building have all been advanced; and nancial and tourism coopera tion have gradually expanded, forming a multi-tiered and extensive cooperation pattern on a new historical starting point.
average annual growth rate of China-Africa commerce was 33.5%; during that time, the volume of trade between the two continents increased from 3.8% to 10.4% in Africa and from 2.2% to 4.2% in China.
Despite issues with the global supply chain, commerce between China and Africa
On the other hand, the top exporters to China in 2021 were South Africa, Angola, the Demo cratic Republic of the Congo, and Zambia. Their combined ship ments to China last year made up over 71% of all exports.
Minerals, metals, agricultural goods, crude oil, and agricultural
Under the direction of the then-Chinese President, Hu Jintao, FOCAC brought together more than 40 leaders of state or governments from Africa for the rst time in 2006. Its advancement under the Xi Jinping era from 2013 to a com prehensive strategic multilater al framework covered concerns relating to human develop ment, politics, trade, and the environment.
FOCAC continues to have the deepest, broadest, and most cooperative strategic relation ships. Signi cant investments have helped Africa, and China has built up a sizable soft power presence on the continent.
Today, FOCAC is much more than just one development criterion. It has evolved into the central idea behind China's grand strategy for the develop ing world, and Africa is central to this strategy.
The Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIA DEC) has introduced OPCL as the new majority shareholder of Ghana Bauxite Company (GBC) to the traditional leaders, Chiefs and people of Ahwiaso and Sefwi Bekwai in the Western North region.
OPCL, a wholly owned Ghanaian company in March 2022 acquired the total 80% shares in GBC, which was previously held by Chinese mining giant, Bosai Min erals Group Limited with the remainder 20% held by the Gov ernment of Ghana (GoG) follow ing Bosai’s decision to pull out of operations and exit the country. GoG’s interest in GBC is held by GIADEC.
At a courtesy call, rst on the President of the Western-North Regional House of Chiefs and Sefwi Ahwiaso Traditional Coun cil, Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, at his Palace in Sefwi Ahwiaso, the traditional leader, who doubles as President of the National House of Chiefs, commended GIADEC for ensuring a seamless transition from the old to the new managers of GBC which has led to the conti nuity of work without any break. He was particularly thankful to
the CEO of GIADEC, Mr. Michael Ansah for playing an instrumental role in ensuring that there were no job losses during the transi tional phase as that was a major concern especially for the local workers
Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II com mended OPCL for taking up the management of GBC and urged them to ‘turn a new leaf’ in the operations of the company.
According to him, the communi ties have not enjoyed any mean ingful bene ts especially during the administration of Bosai Miner als Group Limited and thus expects OPCL to do things di er ently.
He made a passionate appeal to OPCL and GIADEC to o er employment opportunities to the teeming youth in the area and keep the traditional council updated on major developments.
The delegation next stop was at the Palace of the President of Sefwi Bekwai Traditional Council, Oyeadeyie Basape Kwadwo Armah II for a formal introduc tion of OPCL as the new majority shareholder in GBC. The team was welcomed by the Acting Pres ident of the Traditional Council,
Katakyie Kwasi A ul who reiter ated the need for OPCL not to neglect the community but see it as one of its key stakeholders.
He pledged his support and that of his people to the operations of GBC under the new management of OPCL adding that the success of GBC will bring massive devel opments to the communities that has eluded them for years.
Chief Executive O cer of GIADEC, Mr. Michael Ansah, expressed his gratitude to the traditional leaders for their continuous support to the Inte grated Aluminium Industry (IAI) vision and assured them that he remains committed to the over riding goal of value addition.
He noted that GIADEC is working with the Government of Ghana and its new partner, OPCL, to stabilise the existing operations at Awaso. The new outlook for GBC, in the short to medium term, according to Mr. Ansah, is to ramp up production from 1million tonnes per annum to 2 million per annum.
Touching on the role of OPCL in executing Project 1, one of four projects under the IAI, Mr. Ansah emphasized that GIADEC is currently assessing the capaci
ty of OPCL to execute Project 1 which involves the expansion of the existing Awaso mine and building of a re nery.
On his part, the Executive Chair man of OPCL, Mr. Ofori Poku, was grateful to the traditional leaders for their endorsement and show of support. He assured them that GBC recognizes the traditional leaders and people in the com munities as development part ners and his visit is to rekindle and further strengthen the rela tionship existing between them.
The delegation from GIADEC included its Deputy CEO, Akwasi Osei-Adjei, Executive Assistant to the CEO, Kojo Yankah, Communi cations Manager, Sheri Appiah, External A airs and Sustainabili ty Manager, Ernest Appiah, and Joseph Chibae Adjaho, member of the Communications team.
The delegation was also joined by Senior Executive Members of Ofori Poku Company Limited (OPCL).
Source: GIADEC Communications
beverage sector: importers, distributors, food and hospitality companies and prescribers.
Along with the commercial exhi bition, the Spirits of Spain Exhi bition 2022 at Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast, City Accra, will develop a program of activities that will enhance the educational and sensory experiences linked to wine and other beverages.
The tradeshow is targeted at Ghanaian companies and entre preneurs interested in importing wines and beverages, such as beers, vermouths, cavas, etc., from Spain.
Mr. Miguel Casero, Head of the Economic and Commercial O ce highlighted the impor tance of the wine sector in Spain, the world’sthird-largest wine-producing country. Spain also has the largest vineyard area in the world and is the world's largest exporter in terms of volume.
wine”, he emphasized.
He added that “regarding Ghana, Spain is one of the main exporters of wine and beverages, and its presence is growing fast. Among the main drivers behind the success of Spanish wines in Ghana are the great variety and quality of its wines, its signi cant production volumes and its price competitiveness compared to other countries. We can observe a growing interest in Spanish wines and beverages in Ghana, especially among wine experts and wine lovers”.
The Economic and Commercial O ce of the Embassy of Spain remains focused on delivering quality business matchmaking through the event and its supporting programs, making it the only tradeshow in Ghana specializing in Spanish Wine and other alcoholic bever ages.
ki Hotel Gold Coast, City Accra after two years following the coro navirus pandemic, which saw many events postponed.
The 7th edition of “Spirits of Spain Exhibition” will once again bring together a great variety of Spain's beverages, such as wine, spar kling wine, beer, vermouth, and other alcoholic beverages to show all its
since 2015.
This year’s event will showcase a wide selection of wines and other alcoholic beverages from Spain in Ghana (over 70 di erent prod ucts) with the collaboration of 3 Ghanaian importers and 8 Span ish wineries.
The event will be a meeting point for local professionals from the
“Spain's unique geography and situation are responsible for the wide range of climates available throughout the country which give rise to a large number of di erent grape and product vari eties which can be elaborated there. With almost 4.000 bode gas and more than 10.000 di er ent wines, Spain produces unique red, white, and sparkling
Ghanaian companies and entre preneurs interested in participat ing can contact the Economic and Commercial O ce at accra@comercio.mineco.es, or call (+233) 302 974 979.
A ride-hailing service provider, Yango Ghana has rewarded a driver on the app, Enoch Osae, who helped to save the life of a woman that had mistakenly swallowed a bone.
Mr Osae, who had been on the app for barely a year was given a brand-new phone and some dresses and other souvenirs as a way of thanking him for exhibiting the safety and humane side of Yango’s operations.
Yango said “The gesture was a way of showing appreciation to Enoch for his behavior and his morals which are aligned to the focus and values of the ride hailing brand”.
Enoch Osae picked up a woman
rider who had a medical emergency and drove her to eight di erent hospitals until she was nally treat ed through surgery and discharged.
According to Yango, the brand remains attentive to customer care and to drivers’ experiences, hence the need to celebrate the benevo lence and health of the driver and rider respectively.
“Yango is more than a riding app; it’s about human connection, one ride at a time,” the company added.
“I am very grateful for Yango, for their passion and their attention, and I’m just as happy to be part of this unique family, a family that cares for each member,” Osae said in his brief remarks.
The African Telecommunications Union (ATU) held a ministerial forum on Day 0 of AfricaCom 2022, bringing together partici pants from Malawi, Namibia, Uganda, and Zambia. The session focused on methods to engineer a new sense of hope for Africa’s digital economy journey.
Under the theme ‘Rise Stronger with Digital Economy: New Paths towards a Resilient Recovery and Growth’, the forum was support ed by Huawei.
Introducing the session, the Gen eral Secretary of the ATU, John Omo spoke about digital transfor mation as the driver of inclusive economic growth, job creation, the improvement of public service delivery, and the optimis ation of business services in Africa.
“Africa needs digital innovation to spill over into all segments of busi ness and society if we are to strengthen our digital economy,” he said. “According to the World Bank, Africa requires US$100 trillion to achieve full digital transformation, and no one, in the public or private sector, has the capacity to do this alone. Through the power of investment and of regulation, together we can craft a framework that will give e ect to the growth and development we want to see.”
Leo Chen, Huawei President of Sub-Saharan Africa Region, in his address, emphasized the three major elements of digital transfor mation: digital infrastructure, digital services and digital skills. “If we do these three things well, we can connect the unconnected people and businesses, fully unleash digital productivity, and develop the digital economy, no
ners, to nd local solutions to local problems,” Chen said. “We are a leading global ICT company, and technology is our most important asset. We want to keep what matters the most in Africa. That is why we have made signi cant investments in people and skills transfer, through training, certi cation, and joint innova tion.”
example in issues around agri culture and education - technolo gy is being incorporated through their systems.
“The digital sector has been given authority in Zambia,” said Zambia’s National Coordinator of SMART Zambia Institute, Percy Chinyama “We are work ing to maximise the work of reve nue generating departments and to reduce duplications of work and now have 240 government services online.”
nent’s digital transformation.
tion is under 25, harnessing and retaining the innovation of its young people is critical for the future of Africa.
“Even as we have increased the number of tertiary education institutions, levels of unemploy ment remain a problem, and so we are working towards greater job creation for graduates,” said Ugandan Minister for ICT and National Guidance, Chris Baryo munsi.
Forum guests were in consensus that digital infrastructure is fundamental to ensuring the digital transformation of their respective countries. In Malawi, according to Francis Bisika, Prin cipal Secretary of e-Government, 230 000 km of bre network has been installed across the country including to the remote rural areas.
“We are addressing the issue of connectivity, especially in rural areas, we are also bringing ber to the home, as well as business. Once we have the connectivity, we can address the issue of digital literacy,” he said. “We have also built a government data centre in which we are accommodating businesses and individual’s request for networking and stor age, making ICT facilities avail able to as many Malawians as possible.”
ICT and climate change share equal importance in Namibia, according to Emma Theofelus, Deputy Minister of Information and Communication technology. “Digitisation and energy e cien cy go hand in hand,” she said, “and we are committed to work ing to increase levels of digitiza tion and reducing our impact on climate change.”
Another theme was that of the
The forum closed with the signa ture of a joint communique where all participants agreed that the development of the digital economy is measurable. In order to develop the digital economy, countries need to have in place a top-level strategy and an imple mentation roadmap, with clear objectives, indicators and mile stones. They also need favourable policies to encourage investment, improve e ciency, and enable the infrastructure, skills, digital ecology, and innovation needed to grow the digital economy and create a fair business environ ment for all investors.
sions of the Corporate Insolvency and Restructuring Act, 2020 (CIRA), which provides that the association should be established under an Act of Parliament within two (2) years after the coming in to force of the Corpo rate Insolvency and Restructuring Act. The purpose of this provision is to establish the organization as a statutory body working in tandem with the O ce of the Registrar of Companies to educate and certify Insolvency Practitioners with a professional code of conduct “George’srich experience and exper tise will serve the associationwell as it transitions to a worldclass profession al association of Insolvency Practi tioners.”
business rescue regulatory regimes in the world.
“My vision of a forward looking progressive and innovative profession guided by an unforgiving ethical code of conduct, o ering options for preserving value to companies, business owners and creditors for the common good of our economy is one that is enabled only because of the shoulders of giants that I am privi leged to stand upon.
I look forward to building upon this foundation and accelerating imple mentation so that our economy may fully realise this awesome opportuni ty a orded by law to save viable but nancially distressed businesses from liquidation especially, in these uncer tain and unpredictable economic times”.
The Governing Council
Ghana Association
Restructuring and Insol vency
is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. George Fosu as the Chief Executive O cer of the professional association with e ect from 1st September 2022.
George Fosu has a 30-year track record across a variety of economic sectors and geographies (Cohen Arnold & Company-United Kingdom, Price Waterhouse-Ghana, PwC-South Africa, IBM-South Africa and Akanani Group of Companies-South Africa). George is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certi ed Accountants (United Kingdom) and a Member of
the Institute of Chartered Accountants (Ghana), with degrees from Henley Business School and Oxford Universi ty (United Kingdom). Trained as a chartered accountant, he has special ist expertise in institutional reform; governance; business transformation; and organization restructuring, in
Felix Addo, President of the associa tion notes that George takes over at a strategic time when the Ghana Associ ation of Restructuring and Insolvency Advisors is being transitioned into the Chartered Institute of Restructuring and Insolvency Practitioners, in ful lment of the Transitional Provi
According to George Fosu, the key and important goal of the insolvency professional is to the extent possible, preserve viable businesses that nd themselves in a spot of nancial distress. He notes that the complexity of commercial arrangements; business nancing; human resource management and preservation of property rights require highly competent, knowledgeable, and skilled professionals well-grounded in multiple disciplines to help with the navigation of insolvent business es. He points out that CIRA fast-for wards Ghana into the 22nd Century and o ers companies (however large or small) one of the most progressive
Slamm Foundation, under its Women in Tech Programme, is train ing 10 young ladies in cybersecurity for free for the next six months. Slamm Foundation is the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) arm of Slamm Technologies, an Information Technology (IT) rm that o ers IT Support, Career Services, and Corpo rate IT Training.
The training seeks to provide on-the-job IT training through a blend of practical skills and knowl edge in Cyber Security, Security Operating Centre (SOC) operation, and an exciting mentoring programme.
Commenting on the initiative, Fran cisca Boateng, Executive Director of Slamm Foundation who doubles as the Director for Operations at Slamm Technologies, noted that the world would be a better place when more women are trained in technology and that is what Slamm Foundation is doing by engaging these ladies to promote the initiative of female engagement in Science, Technology,
The objective is to train women in cybersecurity with no experience from beginner to advanced levels. I selected girls because I am aware that there is a signi cant workforce gap in STEM elds and due to the underrep resentation of women in these disci plines, it is important to give these ladies the chance to participate in cybersecurity,” she said.
tice all that has been learned after the six-months training programme, she stated that the foundation will provide internship opportunities for the top two graduates adding that the remaining eight will receive internship opportunities with other corporate organizations with which the foundation has a partnership.
Lead Instructor for Slamm Technol ogies, Prince Carl Tu our said Slamm has a skilled and e cient team of instructors ready to provide the students with intensive, hands-on practical training needed
The Ghana Association of Restructur ing and Insolvency Advisors (GARIA) is an association of accounting, bank ing and legal professionals with an interest in restructuring and insolven cy established in 2006 to play a leadership role in corporate restruc turing, business recovery and insol vency in Ghana. It is presently regis tered as a professional body under the Professional Bodies Registration Decree, 1973 (NRCD 143) and also incorporated as a company limited by guarantee under the Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992).
to succeed in the workforce.
“I am excited about this training, and as an instructor, I believe it is a great opportunity for the girls to take advantage of, and with our skilled instructors we are looking forward to providing these students with the skills they will need in the work force,” he said.
He said the skills that would be passed on to these students are carefully crafted to enable the students to create opportunities for themselves putting them in the elite rank of women in the workforce.
“We are taking them through Basic Computing, Internet Networking, and Cybersecurity. These are all practical skills that they can learn and achieve that will help them both in the local and international markets.
With such training, they will be able to establish themselves and not necessarily have to look for employ ment elsewhere,” he added.
Antoinette Aikins, who serves as the class's representative, expressed excitement about receiving training from the foundation, saying that it would not only increase their knowledge but also give them the capacity to instruct and teach more women in technology.
tion has become a global responsibility for us all, espe cially in view of the impact of climate change, and the global energy crisis brought forth by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
Ghana’s Minister for Foreign A airs and Regional Integration, Hon. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, on Tuesday, 8 November 2022, o cially inaugurated the Premi um Application Center (PAC) in London. This is a premium service to complement the existing consular services provided by the mission.
With Ghana being a signatory to the Paris Agreement and other international conven tions, which require the coun try to reduce her carbon diox ide emission levels, he indicat ed that it has become impera tive for Ghana to develop plans and strategies toward the creation of a net-zero energy sector, whilst aggres sively pursuing the nation’s economic development.
Prior to the establishment of PAC, the ministry, led by Hon. Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, Deputy Minister for Foreign A airs, in charge of passports and visas, and the Ghana High Commission UK carried out sensitization tours and public engagements with the Gha naian community in the UK, where he disclosed the plans for rolling out the improved consular services to ease the pressure and challenges that many applicants faced.
“Our updated Nationally Determined Contributions, under the Paris Agreement, a rm the country's resolve to address the impacts of climate change and build a resilient economy for our people”, he stressed.
During the interactions in the UK on the 10th and 11th of August 2022, Hon. Ampratwum-Sarpong noted that the Ghanaian govern ment had recognised the need for improvement in its services at the missions abroad, and as such, the ministry had made the decision to extend and deliver front-end premium services through a pub
President Akufo-Addo contin ued, “Ghana’s position on energy transition is to contin ue the responsible exploita tion of our natural resources for our development and tran sition at our own pace. The Government of Ghana is mind ful of the actions of the devel
oped countries in relation to energy transition, and their e ect on us.”
To this end, he told the gather ing that it has thus, become nec essary for the Government of Ghana to develop an Energy Transition Framework that will guide the country, as the entire world moves towards realizing net zero
service provider for processing visas and passports applications.
The Premium Application Center, London is the rst of its kind in the diaspora for Ghana’s missions and is the culmination of e orts within the West African country to deliv er premium passport and visa application services to citizens following a successful four years pilot in Ghana.
The President also said that the Government of Ghana, being mindful of the implications of such a framework and its imple mentation on the entire econo my, directed the Committee to undertake extensive stakehold er consultations, in addition to expert input, to produce the National Energy Transition Framework to guide its transi tion to a net-zero economy by 2070 in a just and equitable manner, as well as minimise possible stranded assets and job losses in the oil and gas sector.
where he indicated that Ghana has developed a National Energy Transition Framework to provide the vision and guid ance for Ghana's energy transi tion.
In preparing this framework, the President stated that all existing policies were consid ered and the programmes that are being implemented towards achieving Ghana's Nationally Determined Contributions.
As part of the long-term objectives of the Ghanaian government to improve consular services both at home and abroad, the opening of this brand-new Premium Applica tion Center (PAC) is to give citizens of Ghana and visitors to Ghana, in the United Kingdom, convenient access to an e cient and compre hensive process for faster passport and visa application and acquisi tion all in one place.
The total cost of the transition is estimated at ve hundred and sixty-one billion dollars (US$561.8 billion), the President added.
Speaking at the grand opening, the Minister for Foreign A airs and Regional Integration, Hon. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey acknowledged the importance of the centre and reiterated the resolve of the minis try to further improve its service delivery.
Energy Transition President Akufo-Addo also addressed the High-Level Meet ing on “Just Energy Transition”,
“Wide stakeholder consulta tions were held to ensure that the energy transition issues in various parts of the country were captured and addressed in the framework. These included organized and non-or ganized labour, market women, academia, Ministries, Depart ments and Agencies (MDAS), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), Development Partners (DPs) and the international commu nity,” he said.
socio-economic development of Ghana.
gration to provide quality service delivery at home and its missions abroad. The opening of this PAC, the rst to have been established, is a testimony to the progress we have made in recent years. Every applicant can expect expedited frontline consular services for passport, visa, and travel certi cate applications”.
“Ghana aims to achieve universal access by 2024. The Energy Transition Framework will meet future electricity demand of 380 Terawatt-hours, with a corre sponding installed capacity of 83 Giga-Watts. Ghana's diversi ed energy mix will include 21 Gigawatts of renewable energy installed capacity, which will provide the opportunity to enjoy a greater share in the renewable energy carbon credit market,” he added.
Hon. Ayorkor Botchwey said, “...this milestone event marks another achievement in the deter
He explained that the Frame work provides the optimal and sustainable pathway for fuel supply security, diversi ed energy mix and cost-e cient electricity generation, with an estimated generation tari of less than US$4.5cents per kilo watt hour to accelerate the
The Minister emphasised that the nal determination of applica tions will be done by the consular section of the Ghana High Com mission – so this is for frontline services only. “I, therefore, call on Ghanaians and the public to take advantage of this PAC. As the Ministry opens such facilities in several Ghanaian missions in the coming years, we will draw lessons from the successes and shortcomings of the London PAC – I hope more successes than shortcomings”, she said. Also present at the event was Ghana's High Commissioner to UK and Ireland, HE. Papa Owu su-Ankomah. In his address, he called on all Ghanaians in the UK to use the services of PAC. The High Commissioner noted that
President continued, “the transition will mitigate 200 million tons of carbon dioxide of Green House Gas emissions, minimising energy-related indoor air pollution and asso ciated diseases. It is estimated that forty-eight thousand, two hundred and eighteen (48,218) premature deaths will be avoided annually due to the improvement in air quality, resulting from the impact of the transition.”
the establishment of PAC comes as a relief to the mission as it provides an alternative for anyone wanting to apply for visas and passports. The High Commission er further added, “I hope that we’ll cooperate so that this becomes a success and demon strates the way Ghana is improv ing its consular services globally”. In an opening address, Mr Nidal Kamouni, CEO, of Access Group said “We are a Ghanaian company with international reach serving reputable governments and are delighted to be working with the government of Ghana to handle and manage what we call the front-end element of service deliv ery, which is basically ensuring that all citizens and visitors to Ghana have the best experience when it comes to applying for their passports & visas, o oading some of the volumes and load o the High Commission. This collab oration will enable us to help all applicants in a timely manner, providing faster processing service which allows the diplo matic missions to focus on
and Citsys hold Data Analytics Seminar for nancial institutions
Three tech companies that o er data, security, and cloud services, Dataware Tech, Think! Data Services and Citsys have held an insightful Data Analytics Seminar that focused on nancial service providers in Ghana.
The event hosted by Cloudmania, a cloud technology rm, in Accra on Thursday, November 3, 2022, was held on the theme, ‘Deriving Value from Data in the Financial Sector in a Secured Manner’. Experts at the seminar have indi cated that in the face of changing customer experience, competi tiveness and even fraud, proper data management is crucial for business pro tability. They said while institutions must strive for quality data as it guarantees e ciency, improves accuracy, optimize performance, and assures its integrity, properly managing the data and leveraging it to better position its operations is equally important.
“With our fast-changing world, data analytics is becoming more important and useful for organiza tions, nancial institutions includ ed. Good examples are fraud detection, customer churn, senti ment analysis and loan default prediction. Nonetheless, using
advanced data analytics is still not a common tool for data analysis and data-driven decision-making in many organizations,” they indi cated.
In view of that, presenting on Data Quality, General Manager of Think! Data Services Ltd, George N.K Saka said that businesses are where they are because of data and that data quality can make or break a business. “Data Quality can make or break your business, and insights from it dictate your business strategy,” he said.
He added that proper data man agement is also “key to data-driv en success and business pro tabil ity.”
During his presentation, Chief Executive O cer of Dataware, Kwesi Kwo e, mentioned that nancial institutions needed to prioritise data analytics as a tool that enables them to provide personalized services at scale. He said that organisations wanting to analyze customer sentiments, predict customer loss, detect fraud, predict loan default, and increase product uptake through personalized recommendations must leverage data generated from customer touchpoints.
“In the nancial space, there is a lot of competition and a lot more of these businesses have become
how they serve their customers. A lot have automated, using digital channels such as social media, mobile apps, and internet banking there is some interaction between the business and the customer at more touchpoints than before. All these interac tions are automated, data is generated, so the key thing is how businesses leverage all this data to serve customers better,” he said.
Mr. Kwo e added that by leverag ing data, businesses can cut down costs and identify new revenue opportunities.
Attah-Antwi Francis Roosevelt, a security analyst with Citsys, an Information Technology (IT) company, who presented on Data Security also stressed that busi nesses must ensure that their data is always secured and for business continuity, have back ups.
“The core thing that businesses must look at is to ensure that their data is always secured. At the level where you even hand over a laptop or phone to any sta , you need to ensure that the device is well protected and has end-point security installed on it to prevent any business data to be transferred and or exposed. No matter what you do, your data
do o -site or cloud backups,” he said.
For Group Partner Development Manager, Cloudmania, Bernard Victor Ayettey, institutions should identify and engage credible IT rms as well as leverage the expertise of IT analysts to stay a oat in the changing times and meet demands.
He said the current dispensation requires businesses to take advan tage of technology or innovative cloud technology to o er superior solutions to their customers, and keep track of their data, perfor mance, and customers.
The programme made room for participants to actively participate through its question-and-answer session which saw representatives from the various organisations taking their turns to suggest solu tions on how businesses can lever age data to change the status quo and become more e cient.
The invited institutions included Societe Generale, Best Point Savings and Loans, Letshego, Direct Savings and Loans, First National Bank, Opportunity Inter national, Equity Savings and Loans, Nsia Insurance, Republic Bank, Nsano Limited, and was hosted by Cloudmania, Citsys, Dataware, and Think! Data Services.
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“The evidence will be placed before the committee. The Minister will have the opportunity to defend himself. A report will be presented to the House, and we will debate that report,” the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin
Bernard Ahiafor from the Minority side, while Patrick Yaw Boamah, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi and Andrew Agyapa Mercer constitute the group from the Majority side on the committee.
The committee will have to present their report to the House in Seven (7) days, according to the Speaker of Parliament.
to control fuel prices are clear indica tions that the nance minister is not t to continue in his role.
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin has constituted an eight-mem ber committee to determine the motion of censure raised by the Minority Caucus against the belea guered Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta.
According to the Speaker, setting up a committee will provide an opportuni ty for the nance minister to respond to issues of con ict of interest raised by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddri
The New Patriotic Party MP for Adan si-Asokwa, KT Hammond, and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East, Dominic Ayine will co-chair the ad-hoc committee set up to probe allegations by the Minority against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
The Committee was set up by the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, after the Minority caucus moved a motion for the vote of censure against Mr Ofori-Atta.
Other members of the committee include Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings and
Mr. Bagbin stated that setting up the committee will provide a fair oppor tunity for the nance minister to respond to allegations raised against him.
“The evidence will be placed before the committee. The Minister will have the opportunity to defend himself. A report will be presented to the House, and we will debate that report,” the Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin said.
Haruna Iddrisu in his presenttion to the House stated that the record in ation rate, the depreciation of the cedi, the excessive borrowing and the reckless spending and the failure
However, the Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin indicated that the call by the Minority Leader was in bad faith and not procedural. According to him, issues raised by the Minority Leader borders on criminali ty. He said Parliament cannot arrogate to itself judicial powers to try the nance minister, and called on the Speaker to allow Mr Ofori-Atta to defend himself before any decision is made.
The Majority caucus in Parliament had earlier indicated their unwillingness to back the Minority’s vote of censure against the nance minister.
At a press conference held Thursday morning, the Majority group led by the MP for E duase/Asokore, Nana Ayew Afriyie said they have declined a request by the Minority to back a bid to remove Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, but said they would contin ue to push for his dismissal.
of banks in the country.
Kwamina
Mr. Asomaning, who was accompa nied by the Head, Brand and Market ing and at Stanbic Bank, Mawuko Afadzinu and the Bono Regional Manager of the bank, Anthony Asare, met with executives from Form Ghana and Ericas Limited.
Kwamina Asomaning expressed the bank’s gratitude to the companies for choosing to do business with Stanbic Bank despite the multiplicity
He said “We at Stanbic Bank want to say thank you for choosing us among the many banks in Ghana and also for sticking with us throughout the years. For those of you, our clients, who are far away from the capital and for that matter don’t get to see us often, we treasure you very much because even though you do not get to see us, you still stick with us and do business with us. So, anytime we nd ourselves here, we take the opportunity to meet with you and discuss ways we can serve you even better.”
The Finance and Administration Director at Form Ghana, Samuel Sarpong explained what the compa ny does and thanked Stanbic Bank for the fruitful partnership they have enjoyed over the years.
According to him “Since the incor poration of the company in 2007, Form Ghana has grown to become the leading forest plantation compa ny in Ghana, managing over 20,000
hectares of land with 12,000 plus hectares reforested with teak, indig enous tree plantations and nature conservative areas. The company currently employs over 1,000 permanent and casual workers.”
Mr. Sarpong continued that “We have had experiences with a lot of banks in the past who didn’t under stand our business and our needs but the situation is di erent with Stanbic. Our relationship with you has been great so far and we are equally grateful for the enormous support you have given us over the years.”
On his part, the Chief Executive O cer of Ericas Limited, Eric Asare, expressed con dence in the ability of Stanbic Bank to support the com pany even in these very trying times. Mr. Asare noted that “We have been trying to expand our operations across the region over the past couple of years but with the economic situation at the moment we have slowed down a bit. Howev
er, I know from my experience with Stanbic Bank over the years that when I approach you, you will support the business in any way that you can. And I am very grateful that today, the Chief Executive himself has come to confer with us to get a rsthand experience of what businesses in the region are going through and how best the bank can help. We are excited about this and be rest assured that we will contact you any time we require your help.”
This year, Stanbic Bank dedicated the month of October to celebrate loyal customers for their support and also members of sta for their excellent customer service. Early on in the month, the Chief Execu tive, Kwamina Asomaning spent time with traders and store owners who are clients of the bank to thank them for their loyalty and also to further strengthen the relationship between the bank and the traders.