Kofi Ahovi

  The rate of depreciation of the cedi slowed down for three days running as the local currency is now going for ¢13.60 to one US dollar. The local currency strengthened against the American ‘greenback’ the whole of last week, gaining about 1.07% in value. However, it is still the worst-performing currency on the African continent in 2022, depreciating by about 55% to the US dollar since January 1, 2022. President Akufo-Addo on October 30, 2022, assured investors that they would not lose their funds due to the ongoing engagements with the International Monetary Fund. This pronouncement may somehow have assured investors that the government is committed to turning the economy around. Before then, the President had met the Ghana Association of Banks, the Association of Ghana Industries, among other stakeholders to find a remedy to the fast depreciation of the cedi as well as other economic challenges facing the country. Prior to that the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addi...

Interest rates on government securities shot up to 34% last Friday, October 28, 2022, but government failed to achieve its target in the latest Treasury bills auction. This may be due to investor concern about the probability of a debt restructuring by government before a programme can be secured from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Despite the rising yield on the treasury market, investors are mindful of the current economic situation in the country. The IMF and the World Bank are yet to outdoor the nation’s debt situation, whether it is sustainable or not, but there are analyses that the government would restructure its debt. Already some investors are adopting the wait-and-see attitude before acquiring government securities and making commitments to other collective investment instruments. According to data from the Bank of Ghana, the interest rate on the 182-day T-bill hit 34.2%, from 33.07% the previous week. That of the 91-day bill also surged by 0.55% to 32.70%. The one-y...

 MTN Ghana has once again consolidated its leadership in Ghana’s telecommunication industry by winning eight awards at the 2022 Ghana Information Technology and Telecoms Awards (GITTA) held in Accra. Since the inception of the GITTA awards, MTN Ghana has won the most awards at every edition and this year’s feat is in line with that annual ritual. Cynthia Mills, Economic Empowerment Portfolio Advisor receiving CSR Leadership Award on behalf of MTN Ghana Foundation   The eight awards MTN won were as follows: CSR Leadership Award Excellence in Customer Service Customer Services Team of the Year MoMo Leadership Award Network Team of the Year Telecom Executive Team of the Year CEO of the Year – Selorm Adadevoh Top 20 Tech Leaders – Selorm Adadevoh The awards were in recognition of MTN’s best strategies and commitment in ensuring excellent delivery across the business and its continuous investment in infrastructure and its people with the aim of providing exceptional delivery and in...

  Star Assurance Company Ltd., one of Ghana's leading insurance providers has been named the Insurance Company of the Year 2021 (General) by the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) at the 33rd Marketing Performance Awards held in Accra on Saturday, October 29, 2022. The CIMG, through its Selection Committee and Governing Council considered several key criteria such as Marketing Innovation, Customer Care Schemes, Technological Innovation, Market Place Success, Market Share and Market Growth to finally settle on award winners. Other criteria include Contribution to National Development, Enhanced Services, Social Impact and Public Image etc In a citation that accompanied the award, Star Assurance was commended by the CIMG for having made services “that hitherto, were stressful to access, easily accessible in real time to the customer, thus creating convenience.” Commenting on the award, CEO of Star Assurance, Boatemaa Barfour-Awuah said: “We are truly honoured by winning thi...

  President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that the recent depreciation of the Ghana cedi was caused by low inflows of foreign exchange, as well as the activities of speculators and the Black Market. According to him, "If you allow some unidentifiable person to talk down your money, it will go down". He added that all Ghanaians could play a part in helping to strengthen the cedi by having confidence in the currency, avoiding speculation and keeping it as a store of value. The President in an address on the state of the Ghanaian economy on Sunday said all Ghanaians could help to strengthen the cedi by having confidence in the currency and avoiding speculation. Fellow Ghanaians, as the French would say, l’argent n’aime pas le bruit, to wit, money does not like noise, sika mpɛ dede. Where there is chaos, where there is noise, where there is unrest, you will not find money. If you talk down your money, it will go down. If you allow some unidentifiable person to talk down ...

 The Executive Chairman of the Jospong Group of Companies (JGC), Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, has been awarded the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Decade. Dr. Siaw Agyepong won the award at the 5th Ghana Business Awards (GBAs) held on Saturday, October 28, 2022, at the plush Kempinski Hotel, Accra. Additionally, the JGC showed its influence and the impact of its result-oriented cluster of companies that seeks to provide excellent services to its clientele across the country. At the awards ceremony, three subsidiaries within the JGC won various awards including the Logistics Service Provider of the Year - JSA Logistics Limited; Community Impact Award of the Year - Dredge Masters Limited, and; Hall of Fame in the Sanitation Industry-Zoomlion Ghana Limited. In an interview, the Chief Corporate Communication Officer (CCCO) of the JGC, Sophia Kudjordji, on behalf of the group thanked the organisers for the acknowledgement of their numerous services and the Executive Chairman who is st...

  The Economic and Organised Crimes Office (EOCO) has joined the inter-agency task force working to improve royalty payments and collections due the state from the mining sector. The EOCO is the newest member of a group of related agencies in the extractive and minerals sub-sector, led by the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF). The inter-agency collaboration is born out of a framework to enhance the collection of royalties, expand the royalties net and streamline communication on royalties’ payment, especially from the non-gold mining sector, such as salt mining, sand winning, limestone, granite and quarrying. The MIIF is the statutory body that receives royalties on behalf of the state and manages the equity interest of the government in large-scale mining companies. The fund invests the dividends and royalties on behalf of the people of Ghana. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MIIF, Edward Nana Yaw Koranteng, welcomed the inclusion of EOCO on the inter-agency task force. T...

  Former President John Dramani Mahama has professed a number of solutions to the government which he says when implemented would help the country out of its current economic woes. The solutions include the government cutting down on expenditure by reducing the number of appointees, abolishing or realigning state institutions with similar functions and the suspension of non essential projects. Again, the former President has called on the government to do more to curb corruption. Speaking at an event dubbed “Building the Nation We want”, on Thursday night, former President Mahama said the government had created many institutions to perform functions which established state institutions could efficiently carry out, a situation that was a drain on the country’s resources. For instance, he said, there was no need for the government to establish a Free SHS Secretariat when the Ghana Education Service could effectively implement the Free SHS policy or for the establishment of developmen...

 The Bank of Ghana has revoked licences of Airport City Forex Bureau within the Atlantic Tower Building and Trade House Forex Bureau at the Marina Mall in the Greater Accra region. The closure of these forex bureaus follows failure by the operators to desist from issuing receipts as well as breaching the foreign exchange laws. According to the Head of Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department at the Bank of Ghana, Yaw Sapong, the exercise targeted at ensuring sanity in the forex market is expected to continue across the capital city, Accra in the Greater Accra region. These two forex bureaus are under the same ownership and if you could remember few weeks ago we issued warning to them. They have been found not complying with the foreign exchange laws”. Sapong further indicated that officials from the Central Bank will soon descend on those operating within the ‘black market’ to clamp down on their activities. We are not done. We will continue clamping down on activities o...

  The Bank of Ghana has dismissed social media reports that it will on Sunday, October 30, 2022, slap serious restrictions on holders of Foreign Exchange Accounts and Foreign Currency Accounts, a move to reign in the cedi. Some social media reports indicate that President Akufo-Addo and his team of advisors believe imposing new controls on the movement of foreign currency will help Ghana’s deteriorated financial situation. However, the Central Bank has advised the public to disregard the reports. It said “the message is false and the Bank of Ghana cautions against such reportage”.

 The Ranking Member on the Finance Committee of Parliament, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has asked government to stop printing money to finance government expenditure. According to him, this practice, otherwise known as monetary financing, will render any attempt to curb inflation useless. “Curbing inflation should be the top priority: Ghana does not want inflation to be entrenched, we need to confront inflation now before it becomes too late. The Bank of Ghana needs to anchor inflation expectation immediately. They should stop the printing of money otherwise known as monetary financing to finance government expenditure” he said. Dr. Forson made the call at a public lecture ahead of an address by former President John Mahama on Thursday. The theme for the lecture was, ‘Building The Ghana We Want’. He also suggested that the Bank of Ghana should call an emergency meeting of the monetary committee to increase the monetary policy rate to curb the depreciation of the Cedi. To stem the rapid ...

 From October 12 th to December 7 th , 2022, bitcoiners, technologists, investors, humanitarians, educators, advocates, and artists from across Africa and the world will develop and pitch solutions to problems using bitcoin technology as part of the Building for Africa track in BOLT🔩FUN’s #LegendsOfLightning tournament which is also sponsored by Fulgur Ventures - A bitcoin and lightning focused VC.  Project entries open from 12th October and will close November 24th at 12:00 pm (GMT) The #LegendsOfLightning ‘Building for Africa’ track is sponsored by the Africa Bitcoin Conference. Registrations for the tournament are currently open; makers can begin discussing their ideas and forming teams prior to when e building will begin on October 12thh. The Building for Africa track seeks to encourage people to build solutions that solve Africa challenges and increase bitcoin adoption on the continent. All project entries will be done via the Legends of Lightning tournament portal. In...

  Staff of Stanbic Bank’s Operations Unit have donated school uniforms to the Kotobabi TMA Basic School in Tema, as part of their annual employee community initiatives. The staff donated over hundred school uniforms and clothes to the pupils. Underprivileged Speaking at a short ceremony to hand over the items to the school, Card Operations Manager at Stanbic Bank Ghana, Prince Anderson, noted that the donation forms part of the Bank’s core culture to positively impact teaching and learning in Ghanaian communities. He stated that, “Education is a very important pillar in building a nation. At Stanbic bank we are very concerned about national growth and that is why supporting this school is very important to us. We are glad for the opportunity to support these young children and give them access to quality education here at Kotobabi TMA. In the past we have renovated one of the classroom blocks, provided sanitary towels to the older female students and this time we are focusing on th...

 Investments are generally motivated by the desire for profit; each investor aims to use his/her money profitably to generate significant returns. As a result, investors may decide to put their money into one or more of the available investment classes which include bonds, stocks, cash equivalents, real estate, various commodities, among other things. Bonds, stocks and cash equivalents are the three traditional investment classes. All other investment classes fall under the category of alternative investment. Each class comes with its own risks, benefits or advantages. The main advantage of investing in the three traditional classes is the lower initial investments amounts, that is, how much money you may want to begin with. For instance, investing in real estate frequently necessitates that the investor making a sizable one-time payment (as real estate properties may be quite expensive). It is however easy for investors to purchase a modest number of inexpensive shares or bonds th...

HiPipo, a leading Ugandan fintech firm, has been listed among the world’s top 20 companies escalating innovation in the digital financial services market by the Global Business Leaders Magazine. Reports say Hipipo was the only African company to make the American Magazine’s list, and the firm was recognised for championing digital innovation and financial inclusion across Africa under its Include Everyone program. With a keen interest in women empowerment, HiPipo’s events help reduce the barriers perpetuating the gender gap by providing women with technical and business skills in digital financial services. It enables sustainable and inclusive growth and drives financial inclusion by advocating for reducing widespread interoperability issues leading to the exclusion of poor and vulnerable groups in the financial system,” the Magazine said. Innocent Kawooya, HiPipo CEO Commenting on the news, HiPipo CEO, Innocent Kawooya noted that the recognition is a testament to HiPipo’s 18-year jour...

  Rwandan President Paul Kagame has said that bridging the huge digital gap in Africa requires deliberate and constant partnership between governments and the private sector. He said governments must lead the way by deliberately reducing the tax burden on the private sector in exchange for obligated investments into innovations that will deliver very affordable digital access for the masses, adding that anything short of that is mere lip service that will not deliver any dividends. President Kagame was delivering the keynote address on to the topic – Building a Digital Future Together – at the opening of the Mobile World Congress Africa in Kigali, Rwanda. The GSMA flagship event comes to Africa for the first time and brings together over 2,000 participants from across 75 operators and with almost 400 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, to be addressed by at least 187 speakers in 47 sessions. A cross-section of delegates at the opening of MWC Africa 2022 In what was described...

 Ghana has been recognized as the only country that has reached maturity stage in access to financial inclusion in Africa.  This is contained in this year’s State of Inclusive Instant Payment in Africa Report put together by AfricaNenda and launched at the ongoing Mobile World Congress Africa 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda. The report seeks to tell a story about all instant pay rollouts across the continent to identify the areas of commonality with the view to driving adoption to boost financial inclusion on the continent. This year, the report focused on integrated instant payment systems in 12 Africa countries and Ghana was the only country that scored 100% on access to financial inclusion. Ghana’s feat was based on the successful mobile money interoperability (MMI) platform, which integrates all payments platforms across banks, fintechs and telcos, giving access to every Ghanaian to make and receive instant payment. Ghana’s mobile money interoperability is hosted by a state institu...

  Ghana’s leading total beverage business, Guinness Ghana, says the business remains focused on delivering its core mandate and keeping its foundation strong, despite the prevailing macro-economic challenges the country faces today. According to the beverage company, it continues to invest in elements that are important for the future d as it believes in the resilience of the Ghanaian economy and its people. Speaking to investors, shareholders, and members of the press during an investor call organized in conjunction with the Ghana Stock Exchange, Helene Weesie, Managing Director of Guinness Ghana noted, “we just need to weather these storms and then we go back to the foundation of our business, which is strong. These circumstances are temporary, but the business remains focused on delivering its core mandate.” We started the year strong, and we had a particularly good first half. I must say, however, in the second half, a lot of the good work that we did in the first half was eras...

  Director General of the Internal Audit Agency (IAA), Dr Eric Oduro Osae The Internal Audit Agency (IAA) organized a two-day workshop in Kumasi on October 24, 2022, to galvanize submissions on guidelines for the preparation of the 2023 Risk-Based Internal Audit (RBIA) Workplan for Public Institutions. A similar workshop has already been held in Ho, Tamale, Takoradi, Sunyani, and Koforidua, and it is expected to be extended across all regional capitals by the end of the year. The training program is aimed at equipping staff of the Internal Audit Units (IAUs) with the requisite skills to prepare and submit the 2023 RBIA Workplans on time and in the form and manner that complies with the Agency’s standards. This is in accordance with Section 83 (4) of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921) which requires internal auditors to, in consultation with the Principal Spending Officer, prepare an annual risk-based audit work plan of activities required to be performed in a finan...

 In this section, we highlight selected cases of judgment debts to illustrate the extent to which negligence, blatant disregard for public procurement laws, and illegal abrogation of contracts by public officials in their line of duty leads to judgment debt awards against the State and results in the payment of huge sums from the public coffers. Table 4 provides a summary of the cases described in the sub-sections below and other selected cases. Judgment debt payments due to contractual breaches Rockshell International Ltd vs. Attorney General How GH¢55,305.60 Contractual obligation became US$35,000,000.00 Judgment Debt Payment. The Report of the Sole Commissioner for Judgment Debt Enquiry contained the payment of US$35 million, equivalent to GH¢51,047,500 (using 2010 $/GHc rate) to Rockshell International Ltd as negotiated settlement payment for performance under a contract to supply stones to the Keta Sea Defence Project. The facts as captured in the above report are summarised b...

 Shippers who imported containerised cargo into the country last year (2021) paid US$19 million to shipping lines for undue grounding and detention of containers after the mandatory free periods. The figure represents a decline of about 75 per cent compared with the US$76 million demurrage payment for the same period in 2017, mostly by the importing community. Trend also showed that the total amount paid dropped further to US$27 million in 2019. The downward trajectory of these figures bears eloquent testimony of the impact of the combined effect of the sensitisation campaign and very bold the government initiatives and interventions in the cargo clearance process such as the Paperless Port Project and pre-arrival declaration in the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS). The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority (GSA), Benoni Bismarck, who disclosed this at seminar on demurrage in Accra on October 20, stated that demurrage was an avoidable cost and fo...