Day: March 16, 2022

The CEO Publication, a unique print & digital platform featuring the industry experts who have created ripples across various areas of expertise and provided path-breaking platforms have acknowledged the Ghanaian Founder and CEO of PayAngel, Jones Amegbor among the “Top 20 Dynamic CEOs of 2022” who is transforming payment solutions across Africa.

Referring to their publication titled “A True Payment Angel for Africans globally”, the CEO Publications stated, “It is not every day that you meet someone who is as technically gifted in Finance and Accounting as he is in Technology. But such was our luck when we went in search of the Top 20 Dynamic CEOs in the United Kingdom.

We met up with Jones Amegbor, the Founder and CEO of PAYINC GROUP which trades under the brand PayAngel globally. If Finance, Accounting, Risk, and Technology were languages, we would have to say Jones is fluent in all of them and many more. As a well-rounded financial services executive, Jones is on a mission to change the narrative of not just Africans abroad but also those on the continent.

He intends to connect the world to Africa, and to open Africa to the world through the provision of a seamless payment ecosystem specifically engineered to meet the idiosyncratic needs of Africans globally”.

Taking the Risk

Before risking it all to embark on this journey, Jones worked in Financial Services in the United Kingdom after completing his MBA in Information Technology. He soon became a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. During his time at Barclays, Jones won several nominations and awards, including nomination to the Bank’s Future Leaders Programme.

As Product Controller, he managed assets worth circa £30 billion. Post-Barclays, he worked as an independent consultant in the treasury functions of Lloyds Banking Group and The Co-operative Banking Group, building complex high-value financial models and re-engineering processes.

From that wealth of experience as a banker and creative endeavors as a consultant, Jones has evolved into an architect of innovative financial products and solutions. It is, therefore, not a coincidence that continuous product development has become the corporate culture at PayAngel, as they consistently innovate to satisfy customers’ present and future needs.

Jones takes great inspiration from the life stories of two personalities, namely Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, and Bob Diamond, ex-CEO of Barclays.

For Jack, “I can only hope to meet him one day soon in my lifetime. I see him as one who exemplifies a fortress in the midst of a storm. His story speaks of his inner tenacity to win against all odds. Coming from very humble beginnings, just like myself, having had a number of past failures, and having been rejected on countless occasions, he was more than convinced he could still win in life and business.

Unflinching assurance in the face of stark uncertainty is what always comes to mind, whenever I see the name Alibaba anywhere. My favorite quote of his is, ‘Never give up. Today is hard, tomorrow will be worse, but the day after tomorrow will be sunshine.’ Inspired by Jack’s story, Jones always tells himself, “I’ve got no excuse; I have to find a way or make one.”

About Bob, Jones said, “It was a pleasure working for Bob when I was at Barclays; such an incredible and inspiring leader he was!” Jones learned some of his key leadership skills from Bob. He recalled Bob’s spell-binding way of rallying his team to achieve results and seemingly insurmountable targets. “In my view, Bob was pivotal in the revolutionary success of Barclays Capital and Barclays whilst he was at the helm.

From Bob, I learned that leadership is about connecting with people and harnessing their passions to achieve results.” It goes without saying that Bob was true, a very inspiring figure for Jones on his journey to becoming a well-established entrepreneur seeking to use innovation to make an impact in the financial sector.

Drawing on that inspiration, Jones makes it a point to connect with people, forming teams across the globe to deliver results with passion – that has been the PayAngel story! With each passing day, the company is witnessing impressive growth. Thanks to the incredible team that is making things happen!

Leading towards Productivity

PayAngel was a proud winner of the $250,000 Remittance Grant Facility challenge jointly launched by the Governments of Switzerland and Ghana a couple of years ago.

With this as a catalyst and validation of PayAngel’s work, the company has remained focused on products and services designed to provide tailored payment solutions for individuals and businesses in the markets that they serve. The platform is engineered to deliver exceptional value: affordable, value-added, fast, and reliable digital payments to recipients across Sub Sahara Africa.

Employees of PayAngel are often heard saying, “We don’t just provide payment rails like others; we see payments as needs to be met, not rails to be laid.” Jones explained, “payment rails deliver payment and transfers from one point to another but it’s blind to the issues along the rails.

With that in mind, unlike our competitors, we are focused on the needs to be met. Without a need, payments and transfers will not be initiated. We, therefore, design our solutions to ensure that payments and transfers actually get straight to the endpoint and are ready to meet the need for which the payment was initiated. For remittances, in the African context, this view resolves cost and integrity issues along the chain that payment rails in themselves cannot resolve.”

The benefits that customers enjoy from using the PayAngel service include, among others, no-fee transfers, market-leading exchange rates, embedded free life insurance, and heroic customer service.

In its quest to continually innovate and to deliver on its vision and promises as well as meet the needs of its target customer, the company recently launched a new and improved applications suite, a massive advancement from the old and embedded with capabilities for future innovation. The new applications were built on the founders’ vision to position the company for the future of fintech: seamless real-time borderless digital payments.

The company’s literature tells customers “We do not just pay lip service to saving you money and deceive you with marketing gimmicks. PayAngel is designed to help Africans save money. Period!” United Nations SDG target 10. c calls for reducing the transaction costs of remittances to less than 3 percent by 2030. PayAngel deems it a sacred duty and a fundamental purpose to develop innovative solutions that reduce the cost of payment and transfers to and within Africa.

Offering Innovative Payment Solutions

The company’s thirst for innovation birthed the development and launch of the world’s first life insurance embedded in a remittance product. This revolutionary product called the RemitCare Plan is a free life insurance solution provided in partnership with Allianz Insurance and aims to offer financial support to the insured in case of hospitalization and in the unfortunate event of death.

The product is accessible for free to eligible beneficiaries who receive remittance through PayAngel. With these and many other features designed to save customers money, the company is laser-focused on truly helping Africans save money and putting smiles on their faces.

PayAngel’s innovation extends to collaborating with community groups such as international churches and alumni associations by providing them with tailored solutions that meet specific needs in collecting their dues, donations, and collections, and even with ticketing for their various events.

Towards the Future

“So far in our master plan, we have endeavored to perfect our game to direct remittances from the West to a number of African countries. Subsequently, we launched our Merchant Solutions product to the said markets,” Jones said. “Now we are on the verge of operationalizing the envisioned borderless wallet. This borderless wallet product provides a single platform that enables customers to move money seamlessly and cost-effectively without the limitations of geographical locations.”

The company recently launched into the Canadian, American, and Australian markets and into seven other African countries including Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya. Excitingly, customers in Ghana are set to soon start enjoying the company’s entry into the local peer-2-peer and merchant payment space. Having a certified Blockchain expert as the founder, PayAngel is actively exploring using the technology to further improve its offering and deliver even more value to the people of Africa.

Source: Ghana Web

The maiden edition of the Black History Festival (BHF) in the USA which came off from February 21 to 28 in Washington DC has become an eye-opener for the African diaspora about the scads of opportunities that exist in Africa, with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) and African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) as windows.

“Recently, the commencement of the AFCTA and the AGOA has opened more opportunities for the African Diaspora to connect with the continent for trade, innovation, and investment. Take advantage of it and make good use of it” the Coordinator for BHF, Stephen Selassie Asuo told participants of the event.

“The AGOA for instance is a legislation that was approved by the U.S. Congress to assist the economies of sub-Saharan Africa and to improve economic relations between the United States and the continent” Mr. Asuo added.

The BHF is an opportunity for Africa to celebrate people of African descent while creating a bridge between Africans in the diaspora and Africans back home.
The festival aims to expose trade, investment, and export opportunities as well as bring more diasporans home. “Beyond the Return gave prominence to Ghana, but the Black History Festival gives prominence to Africa as a whole” Mr. Asuo stated.

Amongst the Speakers at the maiden edition of BHF which was a hybrid type include AU Permanent Presentative to the USA, Ambassador Hilda Suka-Mafudze, the Vice President of World Bank, Eastern, and Southern Africa, Hafez Ghanem, Senior Presidential Advisor, Yaw Osaafo- Marfo, Deputy CEO of Ghana Freezones Authority, Mrs. Kate Djankwei Abbey, Deputy Director of Diasporan Affairs, Nadia Adongo Musah, President and Vice President of OB Social and Video and other notable individuals.

Sharing the schedule for the second edition of the BHF, Mr. Asuo stated that “there will be national BHF forums in Ghana, Morroco, Senegal, Kenya, Nigeria, Zambia, South Africa, Eswatini, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Ethiopia from June 2022.”
“This forum will come with business, tourism, and arts activities. There will also be special BHF editions for the Caribbean in August 2022 and Europe in October 2022.”

Partners of the successful maiden edition of the BHF were Africa Union Mission to the USA, Jacobs Abbey Global Institute of Leadership and Studies, Ghana Freezones Authority, YALI office in Washington DC, the US Embassy in Ghana, Mubita LLC, Festival of Lights, Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, Ghana Enterprises Agency, Gaithersburg Auto Clinic, amongst others.

Source: Ghana Web

The office of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai Constituency, Alfred Obeng Boateng, has been vandalized by some unidentified thugs.

According to reports, the attackers made away with items such as mobile phones, cash and laptops.

The special aide to the legislator, Kwame Bekoe, who was present in the office was also stabbed in the process.

He has since been taken to the Bibiani Government Hospital for treatment.

The NPP’s Constituency Secretary, Joseph Halifax Amandeh, told Citi News that some persons had gone to the MP’s office with a bailiff from Sefwi Wiawso High Court to serve Mr Solomon Boamah, who is the MP’s special aide with a writ committal contempt but rather resorted to break into the office although it was locked.

He said a formal complaint has been made to the Bibiani police.

“Some monies were taken away. We have some laptops which have been taken away and three mobile phones. We had to rush there when we heard the issue. We sent the victim to the police station to collect a police form. We have made a formal complaint to the Bibiani police,” he said.

Source: Modern Ghana

The Ghana Police Service is taking further steps to make communities safe and increase the quality of life for residents, by strengthening their community policing.

Based on a country-specific strategy, the Police developed a training course for its officers. Speaking at the workshop, the Director-General of the National Patrol Department highlighted that “Community policing shall become a general approach to policing in Ghana that builds safe, secure and peaceful communities through partnership with members of the community and all other stakeholders”.

In a week-long workshop held in Accra from 28 February to 4 March, 20 trainers from across Police Training Schools and the Community Policing Directorate, deepened their knowledge on the philosophy of community policing, as well as its roots and practices in Ghana. Further, the training, led by an international expert and co-facilitated by the Director of the Community Policing Directorate ACP Rev. Mrs. Laurencia Wilhelmina Akorli, covered new approaches to enhance police visibility and foster a trustworthy relationship between the police and the citizens of this country.

Aside from the training content, which was developed in line with the Enhanced Visibility and Community Policing Strategy of the GPS, trainers were introduced to various training methods to help them in the re-training of police personnel. In the next step, the equipped trainers will train District Commanders and heads of zonal community policing teams from Tema and Accra.

The Programme to Build and Strengthen the Police Structures in Selected Partner Countries in Africa (Police Programme), funded by the German Federal Foreign Office and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, supports the Ghana Police Service in finding suitable solutions to strengthen their community policing approach by developing a country-specific strategy, the corresponding training course, as well as information material for police officers and citizens.

During the closing ceremony, the Manager of the Police Programme in Ghana, Mr. Philipp Niehenke, stated, “I am impressed by the commitment of the National Patrol Department to mainstream community policing and increase visibility. They, together with the newly trained trainers, are now the Ambassadors for community policing within the Ghana Police Service.”

Source: Ghana Web

The Minority in Parliament has been asked not to give rhetoric to the constitution regarding the Supreme Court ruling on the voting rights of Members of Parliament who presides as Deputy Speakers.

Communication Director of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Effutu constituency, Otabil Ellis was of the view that the judgement by the Supreme court panel must be upheld and respected as such.

Commenting on a case presented to the apex court to decide whether the Deputy Speaker of Parliament has the right to a vote to form a quorum or otherwise while presiding, the NPP Communicator indicated that he backs the decision of the panel that sat on the matter.

Ghana’s Parliament since 2021 has been characterised by many unfortunate incidents whenever it comes to voting to determine on matters of the House, with the E-levy been a major example.

The Supreme Court after giving its ruling to re-affirm the Deputy Speaker has the right to vote, the minority and some leaders of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) have also expressed disappointment in the ruling.

But according to Mr. Otabil Ellis, “every good constitution has limits on the exercise of legal and political power of the state. The Supreme Court has given its ruling and the NDC must accept it in good faith, they should not behave as bad losers”.

He was speaking on Lucky TV’s morning show on Monday, 14th March, 2022.

Source: Modern Ghana

Accra- The Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG) has filed a writ in the High Court challenging the appointment of Mrs Henrietta Lamptey, newly appointed Registrar of the Births and Deaths Registry.

The writ is between CLOGSAG and the Minister for Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development (MLGDRD) as First Defendant; the Head of Civil Service, Second Defendant; the Head of the Public Services Commission, Fourth Defendant and the Attorney General as the Fifth Defendant.

Among the reliefs, CLOSAG is seeking a declaration that “the Births and Deaths Registry is a Civil Service Institution,” and further or in the alternative, a declaration that the Second Defendants, the Head of Civil Service, “must have an input in the appointment of the Registrar of the Births and Deaths as provided by law.”

CLOGSAG is further asking the High Court to declare Madam Henrietta lamptey’s appointment as “unlawful and void” for lack of advice from the Head of Civil Service in consultation with the Public Services Commission.

The Association, as part of the reliefs, is also seeking a perpetual injunction to restrain Mrs Henrietta Lamptey, her agents, servants, assigns, workmen and others claiming through them from recognising her appointment or purporting to recognise her appointment.

Mr Issac Bampoe Addo, Executive Secretary, CLOGSAG, speaking at a media briefing, said “the political appointment of the Registrar of Births and Deaths should be reversed” with the Government, as a matter of urgency, bringing “sanity” to the Births and Deaths Registry.

“Should this fail, CLOGSAG shall use any means whatsoever at its disposal to rectify the situation at the Births and Deaths Registry,” he said.

Mrs Henrietta Lamptey, a Research and Development Practitioner, was appointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as Registrar for the Births and Deaths Registry.

Prior to her appointment, she worked with the MLGDRD and ActionAid Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation.

Her appointment was in accordance with Article 195 of the 1992 Constitution, which requires the President to appoint a Registrar of the Births and Deaths and Section two of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act 2020 (Act 1027).

As part of her functions, the Registrar is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the affairs of the Registry and shall keep and maintain the national registry of births, faetal deaths and deaths.

However, the Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG, said at a meeting on Friday, March 11, 2022, that its National Executive had “noted the unlawful appointment of a non-civil servant to replace a civil servant who was acting as the Registrar, and the improper instruction from the Minster of Local Government and Rural Development to the Acting Registrar to hand over to Madam Henrietta Lamptey within ten days.”

The Executive Secretary said the Association had also noted the hurried manner Madam Lamptey was introduced by the Deputy Minister of MLGDRD to the staff of the Registry before the date for the handing over.

He averred that the Birth and Deaths Registry was part of the Civil Service and the Local Government Service, citing Section 8(1)(a) of Act 1027, which states that a district office of the Registry was a Department of the District Assembly, which was also part of the Local Government Structure.

He further stated that Madam Lamptey’s appointment was not in accordance with the advice of the Civil Service Council, referencing Article 195 (1) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, which gave the power of appointment to the President to appoint persons to hold or act in an office in the Public Service in accordance with the Governing Council concerned and in consultation with the Public Services Commission.

Mr Addo said the “blatant” disregard for procedures of appointment into the Civil Service and the Local Government Service as well as the neutrality principle were “unwarranted and regrettable.”

The Executive Secretary told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that some 20 members of CLOGSAG had been dismissed for their involvement in political party activities in 2021 and said it was wrong for “a known Personal Assistant to the former Minister of MLGDRD to be appointed as Registrar of Births and Deaths because it is in clear violation of a Supreme Court ruling.”

He said, “a person appointed as Registrar must have the requisite qualification and experience in civil registration.”

Source: Ghana News Agency

Accra- SES HD PLUS Ghana, the country’s premium high-definition satellite broadcast service provider, will embark on a tour to bring the FeeliFeeli experience of HD quality TV viewing closer to people’s homes.

These roadshows, dubbed: “HD Keteke”, will feature an HD branded truck led by the Akwasi Boadi, popularly known as Akrobetu and supported by popular musicians such as Mr Drew, Amerado Burner and others.

A statement issued in Accra and signed by Madam Adelaide Ahovy Abbiw-Williams, Marketing Manager of SES HD PLUS Ghana Limited said the HD Keteke roadshow would commence on March 18, 2022 in Techiman and then close its first season in Kumasi by the end of May 2022.

The HD Keteke roadshow, which starts in Techiman on March 18, will move to Takoradi on April 15, 2022 and closes its first season in Kumasi on May 20 2022.

It said for those who love HD content, these roadshows come at an opportune time, as they would be able to enjoy 40 per cent discounts when purchasing the HD Decoder during this period.

The statement said with the HD Decoder customers get features such as the ability to pause, record and rewind live TV.

“You can also watch TV on the go via the My HD PLUS mobile app on mobile phone and tablets with free data that is provided,” it added.

It said as the HD Service delivers crystal clear high-definition pictures, the HD Keteke roadshow was set to thrill TV viewers it comes into contact with.

Madam Theodore Asampong, Director at SES HD PLUS Ghana said “we have received positive response from the public since HD began operations in Ghana.”

Over 40,000 homes already enjoy their favourite channels in high-definition quality via the HD service.

She said with the exciting line up of celebrities, musicians and a drama troupe, the tour promised to be fun and exciting as “we get closer to TV homes to share the story about how HD is delivering world class TV viewing experiences to TV homes in Ghana.”

The tour will start with a float through the principal streets of towns visited during the day and will be climaxed with a musical concert later in the evening.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto is confident the controversial Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) would be passed.

In an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show with Bernard Avle on Wednesday, March 16, 2022, Dr. Afriyie Akoto said “the E-Levy will be passed. I am absolutely confident about that. It will be passed and will do Ghanaians good. It will bring a lot of people outside the tax net into it, which is what any modern state should do.”

He said the only way government can address the insatiable needs of Ghanaians is to make more revenue by way of widening the tax net.

“That only between 12% to 13% of Ghanaians pay taxes is totally untenable, especially by West African standards, where the average is 24%.”

“We need to rope in the people outside the tax net. It is unfair that majority of Ghanaians evade taxes. Meanwhile, our expectation of government services keeps skyrocketing. Where is the money going to come from? It should come from ourselves.”

He also posited that the E-levy is a very ‘noble’ initiative.

“It should be praised rather than condemned,” he added.

The E-levy is a new tax measure introduced by the government in the 2022 Budget on basic transactions related to digital payments and electronic platform transactions.

A charge of 1.75% will apply to electronic transactions that are more than GH¢100 on a daily basis.

The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has said that the government is convinced about the need for the e-levy and how it encapsulates the idea of burden-sharing for Ghana’s development.

The opposition in Parliament has sternly stated its stance against the passage of the E-Levy bill since its inception on November 17, 2021, and has got the support of many Ghanaians.

The Bill is yet to be debated in Parliament, after voting on whether to consider it under a certificate of urgency degenerated into fisticuffs in the house.

Source: Modern Ghana