Category: Finance

Stanbic Bank Ghana in partnership with The Tech Entrepreneurship Initiative ‘Make-IT in Africa,’ a program implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development has today announced a partnership to help fast-track their journey towards commercially scalable and sustainable impact-oriented ventures.

Dubbed NextGen Fintech Accelerator, the program will assist growth stage technology companies in their market validation and customer acquisition phase in Ghana. The rolling accelerator program is focused on product validation, customer acquisition, and investment readiness.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Stanbic Bank Ghana, Kwamina K. Asomaning, signed on behalf of the bank, while the Head of the Network for Inclusive Economic Development (NIED) cluster at GIZ, Mr. Gerald Guskowski, signed for the International cooperation enterprise in Accra yesterday.

Mr. Asomaning said, “At Stanbic Bank, we believe that experiential learning is one of the best ways to leapfrog young entrepreneurs into established businesses contributing significantly to the economic growth of the country. For this reason, since 2018, we have been investing in young entrepreneurs through work-based learning, coaching, and the provision of an enabling environment to equip young people with the skills needed for work.”

Ghana has revolutionized its FinTech industry to embrace the use of smartphones and applications in transactions. There are presently over 11 million active users on mobile payment systems, with banks recording over 80% of their transactions originating from electronic and digital channels.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG), which is the regulator of payment systems, reports that about 71 fintech companies operate in the country. FinTech’s have proven to be the future of banking, especially in these times of the COVID-19 Pandemic, where the use of digital payment systems is increasingly becoming mainstream. However, the Fintech Ecosystem in Ghana is at a blossoming stage hence the need for this initiative.

Mr. Asomaning also indicated that “Our priority today is to build the capacity of FinTech businesses and startups through a 6-month intensive curriculum-based training. The training will focus on reconstructing and validating the business models to scale and adhere to industry best practices. The training will also refine, test, and validate their growth strategies as well as the operational framework. Ultimately, this initiative will coach and nurture the FinTechs to be investor-ready”.

Commenting on the launch of the program in Accra, Mr. Gerald Guskowski commented: “This is significant and timely cooperation that will foster more relevant sustainability-driven innovation far beyond the financial industry. The NextGen Fintech Accelerator is unique in a way that will scale up innovative technology and business-based solutions to drive sustainable development. Mr. Guskowski also added:

“Over the past two years, Make-IT in Africa has invested in supporting a pipeline of startups in Ghana in various sectors including health, education, smart city, agriculture among others. Financial technology is the next area that we are supporting including using the instrument of regulations by the Central bank to enable startups in the field.”

“We look forward to supporting this ambitious initiative that we see as a key contributor to business growth and driver of economic development in future,”
The accelerator program will run one cohort of 20 selected early-to-growth stage FinTech startups. The Joint Stanbic Bank & GIZ NextGen FinTech Accelerator” aims at contributing to UN (United Nations) Sustainable Development aims at contributing to UN Sustainable Development Goal # 8 by supporting tech start-ups in the field of FinTech to help advance their solutions in the local environment.

The program features a 6-months long intensive curriculum-based training, after which participants will engage in a Mentorship program by experts from Stanbic Bank.

The launch kicks off the application process where potential applicants will go through a series of selection processes, and shortlisted applicants will move on to the Virtual Training Bootcamp.

The media event which took place on October 18, 2021, at the Stanbic Incubator, Accra brought together officials from both parties as well as ecosystem actors from Private Sector to engage and network.

 

 

 

Source: Ghana Web

 

 

On Tuesday 12 October 2021, the Ghana Nigeria Business Council (GNBC) appointed an Executive Committee as part of another step in driving the organization forward and promoting/supporting trade for entrepreneurs and investors in Ghana and Nigeria.

The newly established Executive Committee includes:

Ms. Adwoa Agyemang – Founder & CEO of Ghanaian Londoners, a social enterprise organization that has been organizing investment tours for diaspora entrepreneurs to Ghana.

Mr. Efosa Igiehon – Partner, Business Development Manager at Unimas Microfinance Ghana Ltd and also the Managing Director of Risk Assurance Insurance Brokerage.

Mr. William D. Nartey – Dual qualified attorney licensed to practice law in the State of Georgia (U.S.A) and in the Republic of Ghana. Mr. Nartey is currently the Managing Attorney of Nartey Law Firm, which is a full-service law firm in Accra, and he also serves as the CEO of Blackbridge Consulting Group.

Mr. Stephen Onaivi- Managing Director of mediaReachOMD Ghana, a leading advertising agency in West & Central Africa; Mr. Onaivi has over a decade of experience in media strategy, planning, and account/business management across the region with global brand experiences.

Mrs. Eunice Tornyi – An award-winning presenter and host of African Women’s Voices show one.TV Ghana. Mrs. Tornyi also works with a top Public relations and integrated communications agency in Ghana.

Ms. Nadia Takyiwaa-Mensah, who is presently the Executive Secretary of the Council also forms part of the new Executive Committee.

“For us, this is a key milestone for our council (GNBC) as we have made many strides since we relaunched our membership drive in November 2020. It is imperative for us to ensure we have the best people on board to realize the vision of the Ghana Nigeria Business Council and ensure that we are putting our best foot forward at every given opportunity” stated Mr. Reginald Laryea, Chairman of the Ghana Nigeria Business Council.

“I am personally excited by this Executive Committee with a myriad of backgrounds and competencies, I am confident that in 2022 we will see our council grow and become even more relevant in the space of trade and investment between Ghana and Nigeria” Mr. Laryea continued.

Since the council’s membership drive in November 2020, the organization has seen positive growth with its corporate membership, with companies such as LeasAfric, Sunu Assurance, Alisa Hotel, Camelot Printing as a few of the brands that have signed up. Also, individual membership consisting of entrepreneurs and investors from both Ghana and Nigeria is also on the increase.

The council has successfully executed a number of online and offline events with their strategic partners Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, Ghana Export Promotion Authority, Ghana Free Zones Authority, Ghana Revenue Authority, and the Nigerian High Commission. And just at the start of the month, they celebrated 61years of Nigeria’s Independence.

The Ghana Nigeria Business Council has now reached a new milestone with the establishment of the Executive Committee.

For more information about the Ghana Nigeria Business Council please email Betty Isliker at admin@thegnbc.com

 

 

Source: Ghana Web

 

Cape Verdeans began voting in presidential elections on Sunday, in a contest marked by debate over the future for the tiny west African nation battered by the Covid-driven slump in global tourism.

Prior to the pandemic, visitors accounted for a quarter of the economy for the volcanic archipelago, a former Portuguese colony of half a million inhabitants lauded for its stable government and smooth democratic transitions of power.

GDP shrank by 14.8 percent last year and many hotels and restaurants closed as coronavirus fears and restrictions kept hundreds of thousands of visitors away.

Soaring inflation is another concern. Since the beginning of the month, the price of water and electricity has risen by 37 percent.

Small numbers of voters began turning up at polling stations in the capital of Praia at 7:00 am (0800 GMT), according to an AFP correspondent.

The first results are expected a few hours after the closing of polling stations at 6:00 pm (1900 GMT).

The two frontrunners among a record seven candidates are both former prime ministers: 72-year-old lawyer Carlos Veiga and academic Jose Maria Neves, 60.

Veiga represents the centre-right Movement for Democracy (MpD), which has a majority in parliament.

Neves stands for the opposition African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV), which ruled the former Portuguese colony when it was a one-party state.

Archipelago

Outgoing president Jorge Carlos Fonseca (MpD) cannot run again, having already served the maximum two terms.

If no one wins more than 50 percent of the vote, it will go to a second-round run-off between the two leading candidates on October 31.

Sunday’s election comes six months after the MpD won parliamentary elections, beating the PAICV into second place.

Between them, the two parties have run the country since it won independence from Portugal in 1975.

Under Cape Verde’s semi-parliamentary political system, the prime minister has executive powers while the president acts as arbiter.

Cape Verde is home to just over half a million people, living on 10 arid islands scattered some 500 kilometres (300 miles) off Guinea-Bissau and Senegal.

The islands were uninhabited until they were settled in the 15th century by Portuguese traders who brought in slaves from the African mainland.

The country is ranked second for governance in Africa on the index drawn up by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, after Mauritius.

Since it staged its first free elections in 1991, it has never recorded any violence linked to election campaigns or their results.

 

 

Source: Modern Ghana

The Ministry of Finance has published the Sustainable Financing Framework (the “Framework”) including the Second Party Opinion (SPO) to be used in connection with any future ESG linked or related capital markets issuance.

A statement issued in Accra said the publication of the Framework did not imply any new issuance under the International Capital Market Programme.

It said the aim of publishing the Framework was simply to allow investors and stakeholders to review its contents and be guided by it.

The Framework provides the Government, through the Ministry the criteria to screen programmes and projects with sustainable, green and/or social credentials that may require financing from the National Budget.

The statement said under the Framework, it was recommended that any ESG related issuances should fall under two broad categories of Sustainable Financing Instruments.

These categories are those that will finance or refinance eligible green and social projects and expenditures (Green, Social and Sustainability bonds) and those that are linked to the performance versus the targets on certain defined Key Performance Indicators (Sustainability Linked Bonds).

It said given the current market conditions, strong reserves position, the recent US$ 1.007 billion SDR allocation and the relatively stable currency, the Government of Ghana does not intend to access the international capital markets again this year.

Ghana initiated its 2021 International Capital Market Programme for the issuance of sovereign bonds in the last quarter of 2020.

Subsequently, Parliament on November 10, 2020, granted the government approval to issue bonds amounting to US$3billion, of which proceeds of up to US$1.5 billion was to be applied to support the 2021 budget and growth expenditures.

The balance was to be used for reprofiling domestic debt and liability management purposes.

It said Parliament also approved a further issuance of up to US$ 2.0 billion, for liability management purposes and reprofiling of domestic debt, should market conditions prove favourable.

In March 2021, Ghana successfully issued bonds worth US$3.025 billion comprising the first 4-tranche Eurobond which included an innovative zero-coupon bond, under the 2021 ICM Programme.

The 4-tranche transaction was executed after a three-day virtual roadshow with a series of fixed income meetings with investors mainly domiciled in North America and Europe.

Based on feedback received from various investor engagements, including the roadshow meetings in March, Ghana accelerated its plans to develop and establish a Sustainable Financing Framework (the “Framework”).

 

Source: Ghana News Agency

ActionAid Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation, has called on government to establish a national fund for effective preparedness and response to climate related disasters.

ActionAid noted that: Ghana should lead the crusade in rallying other African countries to make a joint and strong call for the establishment of a dedicated international climate fund to respond to loss and damage caused by perennial climate events in developing countries.

It said Ghana should use its strategic position as President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo who serves as the chairman of ECOWAS as well as Co-Chair of the Eminent Group of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Advocates, to push for the establishment of the fund.

The ActionAid made the call through the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in a statement signed by Mr John Nkaw, Interim Country Director of ActionAid Ghana and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Tema to commemorate this year’s International Day of Rural Women.

The NGO further appealed to the two Ministries to promote women friendly national climate adaptation plans and incorporate climate change issues into their budgets to ensure funding streams were created for projects targeted at improving smallholder farmer’s awareness and adoption to climate change.

ActionAid said the dedicated international fund should also support vulnerable countries’ resilience building initiatives to reduce vulnerability to climatic events.

The International Day of Rural Women presents an opportunity for Ghanaians and the international community to reflect on the contribution of rural women in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving food security and eradicating poverty globally.

The theme for this year, “Rural Women Cultivating Good Food for All”, puts the spotlight on the essential role these rural women and girls play in the food system – from production, to processing, consumption, and distribution of food.

The statement added that the degree at which people were affected by the impact of climate change was partly a function of their social status, gender, poverty, power and access to control over resources.

The statement explained that smallholder women farmers who contributed substantially to food security were usually the hardest hit when drought and other unfavourable environmental conditions destroy farmlands.

ActionAid Ghana therefore called for the strengthening of capacity for climate change adaptation to combat extreme weather patterns, drought, floods and disaster, especially for people living in poverty and vulnerable groups.

 

Source: Ghana News Agency

Winneba (C/R), Oct.14, GNA – The Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Dr Sidie Mohammed Tunis, has called on the ECOWAS Leader, President Nana Akufo-Addo, to consider imposing harsher punishments on presidents who try to amend their constitutions to gain undue advantage.

He said it had become necessary that the leadership went beyond statements that merely condemned those actions and considered imposing tougher punishments on would-be perpetrators.

“Amending a constitution to conform to current realities itself is not a problem however when the propose amendments of the constitution protect the governing elite at the expense of citizens or undermined the very nature of the constitutional democracy thereby granting the incumbent undue advantage to extend his mandate then we have a problem,” he said.

Dr Tunis said this at the High-Level Regional Parliamentary Seminar by the Fifth Legislative Assembly of ECOWAS at Winneba in the Central Region.

The Seminar, being attended by members of the ECOWAS Parliament and ECOWAS Commission, is on the theme: “Two Decades of Democratic Elections in ECOWAS Member States: Achievements, Challenges and the Way Forward.”

Dr Tunis also condemned the recent phenomenon of some ECOWAS Heads of States amending their country’s constitution before the conclusion of their term of office.

The practice, if not checked, had the tendency of eroding the gains ECOWAS had made as a community, thereby sinking the region into more chaos and creating serious risks, he said.

Dr Tunis said the hijacking of electoral processes, voter fraud, disenfranchisement, attack on free speech and the press are vices that attacked a country’s electoral system and took the shine out of democracy.

Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, said recent events in Mali and Guinea had made it imperative for an urgent review of the 2001 Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.

She said after two decades of the document’s existence the time had come to revise it to jettison the inherent weaknesses and bring new ideas on board to strengthen and consolidate democracy and good governance in the sub-region.

Ms Botchway said as the Community continued to adapt to ever changing global, continental and regional environment, it was important for the people’s representatives to make an assessment of what ECOWAS had been able to achieve, the challenges confronting it in the quest to consolidate democratic practice, and how to work together to strengthen governance mechanism that would deliver on the aspirations of the citizens.

Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the Leader of Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, highlighted some of the democratic gains in Ghana and ECOWAS as a whole.

He said, over the past two decades, the community had placed high value on entrenching democracy across member states, which had achieved significant success.

Despite the sub-regions’ brutal past and dictatorial regimes resulting in poverty, loss of human lives and economic stagnation, it was evident that the Africa region had recovered significantly from the menace and the states were more secure, democratic, prosperous and progressive, he said.

Mr Afenyo-Markin said recent developments in Mali and Guinea provided reasons for a more consolidated effort to protect the strides made.

“It is the reason why the ECOWAS Parliament deem it fit to hold the seminar for the purpose of taking stock of the democratic legacy as a region and propose recommendations as to how they can better protect it,” he said.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Speakers Pay Tribute to Former President of Algeria, Twenty-Ninth Assembly Session

The General Assembly today elected 18 Member States to the Human Rights Council, the United Nations body responsible for promoting and protecting all human rights around the globe, and paid tribute to Abdelaziz Bouteflika, a former President of Algeria and of the Assembly during its twenty-ninth session.

Mr. Bouteflika, who died on 17 September at age 84, was the youngest person to be elected to the Assembly when he assumed the post at age 37 in 1974, while also serving as Algeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.

By secret ballot, the Assembly elected Argentina, Benin, Cameroon, Eritrea, Finland, Gambia, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Montenegro, Paraguay, Qatar, Somalia, United Arab Emirates and the United States to the Human Rights Council. All 18 members will serve three-year terms beginning on 1 January 2022.

The newly elected States are replacing the following outgoing members: Argentina, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Czech Republic, Denmark, Eritrea, Fiji, India, Italy, Philippines, Somalia, Togo and Uruguay. In accordance with Assembly resolution 60/251, those Member States were eligible for immediate re-election, except delegations that had already served two consecutive terms — the Philippines and Togo.

The 18 new members were elected according to the following pattern: five seats for the African States; five seats for the Asia-Pacific States; two seats for the Eastern European States; three seats for the Latin American and Caribbean States; and three seats for Western European and other States.

Newly elected to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council were Benin, Finland, Gambia, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Montenegro, Paraguay, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and United States.

Assembly President Abdulla Shahid (Maldives) announced that the following States will continue as members of the Council: Armenia, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, France, Gabon, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Libya, Malawi, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mexico, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Senegal, Sudan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.

Created by the General Assembly in March 2006 as the principal United Nations entity dealing with human rights, the Human Rights Council comprises 47 elected Member States. On the basis of equitable geographical distribution, Council seats are allocated to the five regional groups as follows: African States, 13 seats; Asia-Pacific States, 13 seats; Eastern European States, six seats; Latin American and Caribbean States, eight seats; and Western European and other States, seven seats.

Abdulla Shahid (Maldives), President of the General Assembly, led the Assembly’s tribute to Mr. Bouteflika, who in 1974 became one of the youngest persons ever elected as Assembly President. It was during his term that the Assembly adopted resolution 3236 on the Question of Palestine, Mr. Shahid said, adding that Mr. Bouteflika also played an important role in the Non-Aligned Movement and the “Group of 77” developing countries and China. He believed in international cooperation and solidarity, defended decolonization processes and upheld the value of human rights. He also believed in empowering women through greater participation in decision-making. “He showed us that yes, it is possible for the United Nations to be a community of nations united,” Mr. Shahid said, adding: “His contributions are now part of the annals of diplomatic history.”

António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, said that Mr. Bouteflika was particularly active in decolonization issues and strongly advocated for a more inclusive United Nations in the post-Second World War era. Many will remember that in 1974, he invited former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to address the Assembly. He played a central role in the Non-Aligned Movement and took a firm stand against apartheid in South Africa, whose membership in the Organization was suspended under his Presidency. He also supported the democratic opposition in Portugal and the liberation movements of former Portuguese colonies during the dictatorship of António de Oliveira Salazar, the Secretary-General added.

The Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group, paid tribute to Mr. Bouteflika and his work as a freedom fighter. During his years as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Algerian diplomacy was a pride of place, he said. It was a period of richness as Mr. Bouteflika pushed for a reassessment of the global economic system that met the needs of the least developed countries. He worked to strengthen the sovereignty of peoples. The twenty-ninth session was a transitional phase. For example, Mr. Bouteflika called Mr. Arafat to take the floor of the Assembly podium for the first time and represent the Palestinian people.

Thanking the Secretary-General, the Assembly President and the regional groups for their condolences, the representative of Algeria said Mr. Bouteflika worked tirelessly to promote the values of the United Nations and played a leading role in building a multilateral system. Mr. Bouteflika also led a review of the global economic system to encompass the needs of developing countries. To do so, he unified these countries’ positions through the Charter of Algiers, a reference document that the Group of 77 and China use to this day. Mr. Bouteflika tirelessly supported a language of dialogue that led to the peaceful resolution of many disputes.

Also delivering tributes were the representatives of Ghana (on behalf of the African Group), Malaysia (on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Group), Bulgaria (on behalf of the Group of Eastern European States), El Salvador (on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean Group), Turkey (on behalf of the Western European and Other States Group) and the United States (on behalf of the Host Country).

In other business, the Assembly authorized the Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction to convene its second session from 29 November to 3 December 2021, and the Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to hold the elections of Bureau members of the Board for 2022 on 6 December 2021. The authorization was granted on the strict understanding that conference services would be allocated on an “if available” basis from existing resources in such a way as to ensure the work of the Assembly and its Main Committee is not impeded.

The General Assembly will reconvene at 10 a.m., on Wednesday, 20 October, to discuss the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals.

Source: United Nations