Business24 Newspaper 4th December, 2020

THEBUSINESS24ONLINE.NET

1

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

NO. B24 / 135 | NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

FRIDAY DECEMBER 4, 2020

EIU forecasts Akufo-Addo victory

Stock market keenly awaits outcome of election

By Joshua Worlasi Amlanu macjosh1922@gmail.com

T

he outcome of Monday’s election will have a significant impact on the performance of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) as it will determine the crucial investment decisions of investors, the Head of Research at Databank, Alex Boahen, has said.

Cont’d on page 3

Construction activities pick up strongly

By Joshua Worlasi Amlanu macjosh1922@gmail.com

President Akufo-Addo touring some parts of the Ablekuma North Constituency in the Greater Accra region.

By Nii Annerquaye Abbey annerquaye@gmail.com

O

n Monday, December 7, 2020, Ghanaians will go to the polls to elect a President and 275 parliamentarians, in what will be the eighth time under the

Fourth Republic.

While there are a dozen presidential aspirants on the ballot, the race is largely seen as between the leaders of the two main political parties, incumbent Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and

ECONOMIC INDICATORS EXCHANGE RATE (INT. RATE)

Business24 Limited.

Copyright@2020 All Rights Reserved.

Tel: +233 030 296 5297 Editor@thebusiness24online.net

ex-President John Dramani Mahama of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in its latest Country Report, Cont’d on page 2 INTERNATIONAL MARKET

USD$1 =GHC 5.7027

BRENT CRUDE $/BARREL

POLICY RATE

14.5%

NATURAL GAS $/MILLION BTUS

GHANA REFERENCE RATE

15.12%

GOLD $/TROY OUNCE

OVERALL FISCAL DEFICIT

11.4% OF GDP

PROJECTED GDP GROWTH RATE AVERAGE PETROL & DIESEL PRICE:

0.9% GHC 5.13

A

ctivities in the construction sector continue to surge following the significant dip in the early period of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.

Available data from the Bank of Ghana—which measure construction activities by cement sales—point to significant

CORN $/BUSHEL COCOA $/METRIC TON COFFEE $/POUND:

Cont’d on page 3 Follow us online:

$41.26 2.622 1,922.57 329.50 $2,339.27 $109.65

facebook.com/business24gh twitter.com/business24gh linkedin.com/pg/business24gh instagram.com/business24gh

2

Editorial / News

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Editorial

T

Ghana first!

wenty-eight years ago, Ghana ushered in the Fourth Republic. Once a beacon of hope for democracy in the sub-region having led the fight for independence, Ghana’s credentials prior to 1992 had suffered severe damage following strings of coup d’états.

After nearly three decades, the country’s fourth republic has seen a power transfer between democratically elected governments three times. That notwithstanding, ours remains a relatively young democracy which we must continue to nurture.

From an economy that was almost in ruins in the 1980s, Ghana has slowly built itself into one of the economies of note in sub-Saharan Africa – a progress which was made possible by

its relatively stable democracy which protects investors’ capital.

In barely three days, Ghanaians will be heading to the polls –for the eighth time since 1992—to elect a President and Parliamentarians.

The incumbent, President AkufoAddo will be seeking a reelection with ex-President John Mahama seeking a comeback – a scenario which is novel to our political landscape.

Save some excesses here and there, the country continues to underline its beautiful democratic credentials. This year’s electioneering campaign has been largely devoid of the usual acrimony with attempts made by both parties, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), to sell their policies to the electorates.

Indeed, there is only one winner when political campaigns are centered on ideas and policies – the electorate. This paper is of the view that debates on workable policies must be a mainstay in our politics as against the use of invectives, character assassinations etc which only serve to sway needless emotions.

The Electoral Commission, which has been instrumental over the past three decades, appears to be on top of its game which is very remarkable. A free and fair elections is certainly a minimum requirement for any democracy and this paper has absolute faith in the Commission to deliver that.

As the days draw nigh, this paper would like to wish all the aspirants well and may Ghana come out victorious, yet again!

EIU forecasts Akufo-Addo victory Continued from cover

Visit thebusiness24online.com/

Adverting / Sales: +233 24 212 2742

President Akufo-Addo is favourite to win a second term in office, having managed the economy better than his main rival Mr. Mahama, who was in power from 2012 to 2017.

“The upcoming elections are set to be competitive as it is the first time in Ghana’s history that a sitting president, Nana AkufoAddo of the NPP, will run against a former president, John Mahama of the NDC. This unique situation creates a platform for both presidential and parliamentary candidates from across the political divide to engage in debates over records in office.

“The polls will be closely contested, but the NPP can still portray itself as the better custodian of Ghana’s economy (despite the impact of the pandemic), as the NDC’s line of attack that the NPP has mismanaged the economy will be blunted by its own economic record while in power. We

therefore expect Mr Akufo-Addo and the NPP to secure reelection,” the EIU said.

Despite predicting a 1.3 percent contraction of Ghana’s economy this year owing to the pandemic, the EIU makes the point that the strength of Akufo-Addo lies in the management of the economy, which saw a turnaround from the one he inherited from former President Mahama.

Commenting on some of the possible factors that could throw a spanner in the works of the Akufo-Addo reelection bid, the

London-based firm mentioned the resignation of Martin Amidu as Special Prosecutor.

“Our forecast that the incumbent NPP will win the upcoming election remains unchanged, but we highlight that the ongoing case focusing on potential political interference in anti-corruption investigations risks reducing the NPP’s core message, namely, that the party is serious about tackling corruption and is a better custodian of Ghana’s economy than the opposition NDC,” the EIU said.

Former President John Mahama stops over to engage the electorate

3

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Stock market keenly awaits outcome of election Continued from cover Cumulatively, this year, investors on the GSE have lost capital to the tune of GH¢3.69bn, with the value of the market falling from GH¢56.79bn since the beginning of the year to GH¢53.1bn on December 3. This is due to factors including the lingering effects of the financial sector crisis and the current global pandemic.

The year-to-date return on the GSE Composite Index also stood at -19.36 percent by the end of trading on Thursday.

“After next week, we will have a clearer picture of where the market is heading. This will give us some indication of what we are likely to see in the market in 2021,” said Mr. Boahen in an interview with Business24.

“There are investors waiting to come back to the market in order to take advantage of the current attractive market valuations; however, they are waiting to see the outcome of the 2020 general elections,” he added.

Mr. Boahen noted that currently, foreign investor holdings have dropped across most emerging markets including Ghana, largely due to the de-risking of their portfolios following the coronavirus pandemic.

“When the upcoming election is over, the market will begin to see some level of improvement in sentiments, leading to a positive recovery in the performance.”

The rate of decline in the performance of the exchange has slowed down since the second quarter, Mr. Boahen disclosed.

“The market saw its worst performance in the second quarter, when it lost over 12 percent of its value. During the first quarter, the GSE lost about 4 percent; however, this has declined consistently to about 1 percent in November.”

Construction activities pick up strongly Continued from cover recovery to 360,000 tonnes in September from 220,000 tonnes in April.

During the first quarter of the year, about 760,000 tonnes of cement were sold, whereas during the second and third quarters, cement sales were about 860,000 tonnes and 1.06 million tonnes, respectively.

The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, in a statement following the Monetary Policy Committee meeting last week, indicated that construction is one of the key factors contributing to economic activities, aside manufacturing and credit to the private sector.

These factors led to an annual growth of 10.5 percent in the real Composite Index of Economic Activity (CIEA) in September, compared with 4.2 percent growth a year ago, after contracting in March, April and May.

Construction growth forecast Notwithstanding the current

growth in the sector, Fitch Solutions has estimated that in

Currently, MTN stocks have been the main driver in terms of market activities.

“On a week-on-week basis, MTN stocks account for more than 70 percent of the values and volumes of shares traded on the market. However, this has not really reflected in the wholesome performance of the market,” the Databank research chief said.

the short term, the industry will expand by 5.8 percent year on year (y-o-y), down from the 7.4 percent previously projected.

Beyond 2020, growth is expected to average 6.8 percent y-o-y to 2028.

Fitch said the government’s relatively high debt burden, with a debt-to-GDP ratio at 71 percent in September, has resulted in a large share of government revenues being devoted to debt servicing, which in turn reduces funds available for infrastructure spending.

“This has likely contributed to contractor payment issues and weighed on growth in the construction sector. Beyond 2020 our outlook is more positive, as we believe that a strong project pipeline across the transport, power, industrial and residential building sectors; improving government revenues due to a widening tax base; and the ready availability of Chinese financing will support an acceleration of growth in the construction industry,” it added.

4

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

5

News

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Cocoa farmers deserve a fair price—report

By Benson AFFUL affulbenson@gmail.com

T

he 2020 Cocoa Barometer report has made a strong case for government pay a fair price to cocoa farmers, stressing that the single biggest positive impact for farmers and incentive for farming sustainably is delivering a fair price for the cocoa they produce.

President Nana Akufo-Addo last month announced a 28 percent increase in the producer price of cocoa per bag for the 2020/21 crop year. The new price took effect from October 1.

The Cocoa Barometer report also urged cocoa and chocolate companies to find ways to redistribute value along the supply chain so that farmers are guaranteed a living income.

Sandra Sarkwah, Coordinator for the Ghana Civil-Society Cocoa Platform (GCCP), was quoted in the report as saying: “Efforts of sector players to change the story of farmers keep on beating about the bush when evidence presents to us the plight of farmers—that is, low income from their hard work—is a major threat to cocoa sustainability.”

She said processors, chocolate

manufacturing companies and retailers who earn a large chunk from the value chain must be fair to farmers by paying a living income, and this must reach the farmer.

“This will require the efforts of various actors, including civil society organisations in both producing and consuming countries, as well as strong farmer cooperatives to demand transparency and accountability for effective delivery of pricing policies for better farm gate prices

for farmers,” she added.

The report calls for systems change and regulation that creates an enabling environment.

It said current forms of certification and farm-based standards increase pressure on farmers, adding: “We need laws that hold the powerful accountable, rather than systems that demand farmers to solve systemic issues. Compliance criteria are imbalanced and need restructuring so that companies are held accountable to due

diligence systems.”

It also called for an effective partnership between producer and consumer countries.

“We need partnership agreements between producer and consumer countries that facilitate and finance system change, ensuring the right policies are in place. Processes that set partnerships in motion should be inclusive and deliberative, ensuring that civil society and farmer groups have a respected voice at decision-making tables.”

With Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire responsible for 65 percent of the raw cocoa beans used in making chocolates, industry players have expressed worry over the fact that cocoa farmers from the two countries earn just US$6bn from an over US$100bn chocolate industry.

However, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire are receiving a Living Income Differential (LID) of US$400 per ton of cocoa, which is an additional earning from the world market price for both countries’ farmers.

The LID is expected to guarantee some stability to the producer price of cocoa and sustainability of the industry in the two countries.

Pokuase BSP project nears completion, Kasoa project picks steam

By Patrick Paintsil p_paintsil@hotmail.com

W

orks on the construction of two bulk power supply points at Pokuase and Kasoa by the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) are progressing steadily with the former set to be handed over to government by May 2021.

The two BSPs, with a combined capacity of close to 1,015megavolt amperes or megawatts, will serve an estimated 600,000 consumers within the project catchment areas—both households and businesses—with constant supply of power for enhanced economic activities.

This is expected to lead to significant improvement in business activities for both small and large enterprises within those enclaves especially at a time that the coronavirus pandemic has boosted demand for power postCovid.

A visit to the 580-megawatt Pokuase BSP showed only 13percent of works left to completion with key civil works and installations already in place.

The switchgear room for the ECG, the control building for GRIDCo, and equipment installations had been completed except for the laying of cables which is expected to be completed in a few months.

“What excites us at MiDA is the fact that we are getting closer to the finish line for Ghanaian to start benefiting from this project.

MiDA is devoted to ensuring that the project objectives are achieved; we are on course with

our mandate to facilitate its timely completion,” Project Manager Patrick Oppong of MiDA stated.

At the 435kva Kasoa BSP, which is a gas-insulated switchgear, civil works were ongoing with over 37percent of work done although the project has been tipped to be completed on schedule.

Key efforts have been made in the areas of procurement, manufacturing and delivery of equipment for the project.

The project will ensure that

power consumers within Kasoa and its adjourning towns of Senya Beraku, Bawjiase, Tuba etc. get access to reliable power supply.

“This project will support government’s developmental projects within the area and increase growth and expansion in industrial and socioeconomic activities in Kasoa and its environs,” Project Manager Mawunyo Rockson told journalists.

6

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

7

News

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Six UBA African subsidiaries win Bank of the Year at The Bankers awards

I

n obvious recognition of its brand acceptance and its role in facilitating economic development across Africa, six subsidiaries of pan-African financial institution, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc have been named ‘Bank of the Year 2020’ by the Banker Magazine, leading global finance news publication published by Financial Times of London.

For the second year running, UBA’s multiple initiatives which include its investment in digital technology, adherence to worldclass customer services offerings and financing critical projects have been recognised by the organisers of the world’s leading award in finance, as UBA Benin, UBA Cote D’Ivoire, UBA Chad, UBA Liberia, UBA Sierra Leone and UBA Zambia emerged best bank in their respective countries.

The 2020 edition of the awards ceremony was held virtually on Wednesday, December 2, 2020, and the exceptional win makes it the second time ever in the history of the banker awards, that any banking group will be clinching as many as six wins in the same year. The made history with the same number of awards in the 2019 edition of the Banker’s awards.

John Everington, Middle East

and Africa Editor for The Banker, explained that a rigorous and highly analytical process is made to reach each Bank of the Year decision and the institution’s reputation for independence, authority and integrity is applied to each submission.

“More banks apply for the Bank of the Year Awards than any other similar process and our access to data on each bank and our focus on transformation, inclusion and

diversity in the industry is well known. Winning Bank of the Year, this year more than any other, is an opportunity for your Bank to position itself as playing a key role in what the future holds and building towards a recovery in economies in 120 countries worldwide,” Everington said.

CEO, UBA Africa, Africa, Oliver Alawuba, expressed delight over the recognition from The Banker stated “The recognitions come as

a reassurance that we are on track in consolidating our leadership position in Africa, as we continue to create superior value for all our stakeholders,” He said, “Following the multiple awards won by UBA Group and five of our subsidiaries in 2019, this year’s award is another testament of our hard work and increasing effort by the UBA Group to impact the African continent, positively.

“This award comes at a very auspicious time due to the Covid-19 global pandemic but the UBA Group has been able to stand strong and resilient in its mandate of delivering excellent financial services to over 21 million customers, across 23 countries of operations.

Alawuba dedicated the awards to the over 20,000 staff of bank, adding, “we believe that this award will spur us on in our renewed commitment to exceed customers’ expectation, always.

Since1926, the Bank of the Year awards has been celebrating the best of global banking and is regarded as the industry standard for banking excellence and the 2020 edition highlights those institutions that have outshone their peers in terms of performance, strategic initiatives and response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

CIAMC-G inducts 150 administrators, management consultants

T

he Chartered Institute of Administration and Management ConsultantsGhana (CIAMC-G) last week inducted 150 administrators and management consultants into its membership.

The CIAMC two-year programme sought to effectively train individuals in administration and consultancy to help solve

crisis in their institutions and professions.

The event was under the theme: “Preparing towards presidential charter, responsibilities, benefits and prospect.”

Speaking at the 19th graduation and induction ceremony of the CIAMC-G, CEO of the Institute, Samuel Mawusi Asafo noted that so far, CIAMC-G has licensed

about 900 professionals and currently the institute has about over members made up of both students and professionals.

He also noted that the Institute is hopefully that in the next two years, it would receive a presidential Charter, ensuring that the Body is able to enforce it code of conducts.

“Now have come of age by

churning out more than 1,000 licensed members and there are more than 1,000 at various levels of training. So, we need to now move in to a charter, where we can get the power from government to enforce our code of practice.

Our aim is to train professional administrators and management consultants who desire excellence. This, we believe would lead to national development,” he said.

Board Chairman of the Institute, Paul Hammond, said Administration practice a specialized field of study with no substitute in corporate and national decision making.

“In recognition of Administration, as the pivot of corporate success, the CIA MC-Ghana, has strategically positioned itself as a professional career destination where the skill of managerial leadership is inculcated into career and noncareer administrators,” he said.

8

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

9

News

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Search begins for African startups addressing access to energy, agriculture, mobility issues

S

eedstars and Shell Foundation have joined forces to look for sustainable, scalable and innovative startups addressing universal access to energy-related challenges, as well as sustainable agriculture, mobility and transportation.

With support from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), they are launching the Energy, Mobility and Agriculture Innovation Program to find African tech entrepreneurs in the mobility, transportation, energy, and agriculture space in order to provide them with the resources, training, and potential funding to scale their startups and impact.

Interested applicants can sign up here before Dec 20th: https:// seedsta.rs/3meCEG1 The objective of this program is to support, catalyse and train the highest potential tech-based early stage (seed)African-led startups working towards: • universal access to energy (household energy to heat, light and cook; energy for business and large communities); • sustainable mobility and transportation (clean and safe transportation in rural areas and last mile transportation); • or sustainable agriculture value chains ( innovations that improve access to knowledge, finance, markets or knowledge for smallholder farmers).

Selected startups will be able to take part in Seedstars’ threemonth Investment Readiness Program, which will provide the entrepreneurs with 1-on-1 mentoring with industry experts, potential funding opportunities, and leverage human and knowledge resources available within Shell Foundation.

“Start-ups have immense potential to solve Africa’s biggest development challenges and local African entrepreneurs are uniquely positioned to develop these solutions. We are excited to collaborate with Seedstars to identify and support some of the most promising African-led

start-ups that will scale these solutions and improve millions of lives across the continent over time” Tara Collier, Market Development Manager, Shell Foundation.

The following are the criteria for startups interested in applying for the program: • Startup should be Africanled and based or operating in at least one Sub-Saharan African country; • Tech solution must be focused on the mobility, transportation, energy, or agriculture value chains; • Startup must be at their early stage/seed round with a

minimum viable product (MVP); • Startup must have initial traction and already able to generate revenue; • startup must have raised only less than $1M to date; and • Startup should have significant positive impact on lower income communities (in line with SDGs 2, 7 or 11) To become part of the mission of providing universal access to energy, and making agriculture and mobility more inclusive and sustainable, send in your applications to the Energy and Mobility Innovation Program page before December 20, 2020: https://seedsta.rs/3meCEG1.

Ghana Police Professional Standards Bureau Investigators on police misconduct. reform efforts – as outlined in their receive Training Boost At a ceremony to mark the Transformation Programme.

G

IZ has organised a 10-day training workshop for the Police Professional Standards Bureau (PPSB) of the Ghana Police Service.

The training was part of the German agency’s programme to build and strengthen the police structures in selected partner

countries in Africa.

The training workshop brought together officers from all four regional offices of PPSB to deepen their knowledge on investigation skills.

PPSB is the Unit within the Ghana Police Service that investigates citizen complaints

closure of the training workshop, the Director-General of the PPSB, COP Vincent Redeemer Dedjoe, expressed his gratitude to the GIZ for supporting such a workshop.

PPSB had teamed up with the GPS Detective Training Academy to develop a course that covered practical investigation skills, like evidence gathering, report writing and conduct of interviews but also more fundamental aspects as ethics and human rights in investigations.

COP Dedjoe noted that this training will help in ensuring officers hold the required skills to effectively carry out their duties.

The Police Programme aims to strengthen the Ghana Police Service in the areas of training system, citizen relations and accountability as part of GPS’s

In his remarks, the GIZ Country Component Manager for the Police Programme, Philipp Niehenke said: “In the Result Area Accountability and together with our partner PPSB and other involved police units, we strengthen the internal police complaints mechanism for cases of police misconduct.

Participants who feel capable and motivated to now apply their acquired skills are one important building block to further improve the complaints management system and by this strengthen the trust of citizens in their police.”

At the end of the training workshop, all 30 participants from the regional offices of PPSB namely Accra, Kumai Takoradi and Ho, were presented with certificates of participation.

10

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

11

World

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

Brexit: UK-EU trade talks down to the wire

P

ressure is mounting on the UK and EU negotiating teams to finalise a post-Brexit trade

deal.

Talks went on late into Wednesday evening at the business department in central London.

The two sides are urgently seeking compromises in key areas before current trading rules expire at the end of December.

Fishing rights, competition rules and how an agreement should be enforced remain outstanding issues.

The two sides have been locked in talks since March to determine their future relations once the UK’s Brexit transition periods ends on 31 December.

Ireland’s foreign affairs minister said there was a “good chance” a deal between the two sides could be agreed in the coming days.

Speaking to Ireland’s Newstalk Radio, Simon Coveney said the EU needed to “hold our nerve” and trust its chief negotiator Michel Barnier.

“I believe if we do that, there’s a good chance that we can get a deal across the line in the next few days,” he added.

Mr Coveney is due in Paris on Thursday for Brexit discussions with his French counterpart JeanYves Le Drian.

Boris Johnson has said the UK remains “absolutely committed” to “getting a deal if we can”.

Speaking on Wednesday, the prime minister said the EU side “know what the UK bottom line is,” as talks continued in what is seen as a crucial week.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier has been in London since face-to-face talks resumed

Negotiators got back to work in London on Thursday morning - face-to-face talks have been ongoing since the weekend after a week-long pause.

Discussions had to move entirely online after Mr Barnier was forced into self-isolation after one of his colleagues tested positive for Covid-19.

Pizzas were delivered to a central London venue late on Wednesday evening, as the two teams continued to haggle over the details of a deal.

On Thursday, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer told reporters: “If the choice is a deal or no deal, then a deal is obviously in the national interest”.

He said he was “consulting across the Labour Party” on whether the party should back a deal if it comes to a vote in the Commons, and would decide after examining the contents of the deal.

He denied Labour was split over

the issue, after reports he was planning to ask his MPs to vote in favour but some shadow cabinet members want to abstain.

“We’ve pulled together incredibly over the last few months through difficult decisions, and we’ll do so on this decision again,” he added.

The government has not confirmed how it intends to ratify a deal in Parliament.

But the UK’s chief negotiator Lord David Frost has said he assumed MPs would have to approve a law to implement “at least some elements” of a deal.

Brexit bill controversy The negotiations are continuing ahead of a politically sensitive moment next week, when a controversial piece of Brexit legislation returns to the Commons.

The Internal Market Bill, which would allow ministers to override

sections of the UK’s withdrawal agreement, will come back before MPs next Monday.

The publication of the bill in September sent shockwaves through the talks, and led to the EU Commission beginning legal proceedings against the UK. But on Thursday, Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg said the government intends to reinsert contentious clauses taken out of the bill by the House of Lords.

The PM’s spokesman added the bill was a “legal safety net” to protect the UK internal market, in case talks about detailed arrangements for the Irish border break down.

The government could also publish a new taxation bill next week with similar powers to override the withdrawal agreement in the areas of customs and VAT. EU leaders are due to meet next Thursday in Brussels for a scheduled summit.

OPEC talks on production hit snag as pandemic clouds outlook

T

he OPEC oil producers’ cartel was to push ahead with a new round of discussions Tuesday about how much to pump next year as countries wrestled over whether

to extend the production cuts that have been supporting prices depressed by the pandemic.

Members adjourned a videoconference after a first day of deliberations Monday ended

without an agreement. They also put off from Tuesday to Thursday a meeting with non-OPEC oil producers like Russia, who have been coordinating their actions with the cartel in recent years to increase their influence.

Oil producing countries face a difficult situation. The pandemic has sapped demand for fuel across the economy, which induced them to cut back production this year to keep prices from sagging even more than they have. Yet the lower production means less revenue for governments that depend on oil sales to fill state coffers.

And the outlook for demand is mixed across the globe; economies in the U.S. and Europe have been disrupted by a second upsurge in coronavirus infections, while activity and travel in China have rebounded

more strongly.

Oil traded 19 cents lower at $45.15 per barrel Tuesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

That is off from $63 at the start of 2020.

The sag in demand has been reflected in lower prices to consumers for auto fuel in the U.S. Gasoline prices at the pump dipped well below $2 per gallon in many parts of the country in May as the pandemic took hold, and have remained flat after a mild rebound. The U.S. average was $2.12 as of Nov. 30, down 45 cents from the same week a year earlier but little changed from this summer, according to the U.S. Energy Information Agency.

Analysts at UniCredit bank said the oil producing countries were likely to agree to extend this year’s production cuts of about 7.7 million barrels a day.

12

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

13

Feature

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

The offensive approach to Ghana’s voter data exposure

By Blay Abu Safian

A

few days ago, the voter registration details of over 15 million Ghanaians were uploaded and circulated through various media platforms via google drive. However, the source of the publication has not been completely verified, and the legal authority to publish this data is equally under discussion. The above stated are not the primary concerns of cybersecurity experts.

The CIA and AAA models CIA model stands for Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability. AAA model represents Authentication, Authorization, and Accountability Security’s main focus is based on protecting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.

Security cannot be achieved through technology alone. It involves people, procedures, and products. Humans are regarded as the weakest link in the chain of security. Data must be private.

Authorized users should have the right to see it as well as unauthorized users should be restricted from viewing the contents.

Data in transit via the Internet should be free from modification.

If a piece of data is tampered with, then the whole content of the data is regarded as being corrupt. Permitted users of service should be able to access that service regardless of where and when to work on it. The data should be available to them to make it possible for them to do their job efficiently.

Every organization such as the electoral commission of Ghana should require

authentication, which is the process of proving that a user is who he or she claims to be.

When a claim to be somebody, that is the identification, but when you can prove that, then it is regarded as authentication.

Some possible ways one can prove authentication can be by something you know, like a password, something on your body like a fingerprint, or something you possess like a key.

A combination of more than one of these possible ways is regarded as multi-factor authentication.

Authorization means providing the correct level of access that a user should have based on their credentials.

Any authorization beyond the normal job function opens the door for malicious violations of confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data. Keeping track of what users do when they access a system is crucial.

This is necessary in the case of forensics, which can be vital during a security incident.

The rise in cyber-attacks during this COVID-19 era There has been a huge rise in the number of breached records of governments and individual politicians in the first quarter of 2020, according to research from Atlas VPN. The study showed there were 17 million leaked government records during this period: a 278% increase compared to the first quarter of 2019. In February, the records of 6.5 million Israeli citizen voters were leaked online and in the same month, the government of Quebec, Canada, admitted to a data breach that has potentially exposed the records of 360,000 teachers.

The resources are considered valuable and are dumped onto the internet and sold on the dark web at cheaper prices. Nation sponsored attackers leverage on the covid-19 to craft emails that lure organizations into giving out sensitive data.

Security concerns Scenario 1: Clickjacking vulnerability in a system is a malicious technique of tricking a user into clicking on something different from what the user perceives, thus potentially revealing confidential information or allowing others to take control of their computer while clicking on seemingly innocuous objects, including web pages. An attacker could craft a malicious page that would replicate the site of the electoral commission and infect the Ghana voter data with a malicious command.

Anyone can be tricked to download files without their intention. The file gets dropped unto the victim (tricked citizen) and gets executed causing a full compromise on the system.

Scenario 2: From the exposed voter data, an attacker can create a fake voter registration card to impersonate anyone. The attacker could possibly find a vulnerability in an online site such as tonaton, jumia, and cause a reduction in pricing by manipulating the cost from 1,000gh to 1gh. The attacker then orders whatever he or she wants and upon delivery, they can verify their identity with the fake crafted voter ID with the dispatch riders.

Mitigations and preventions Cybersecurity awareness training should be encouraged to help state institutions like the electoral commission of Ghana and to further understand the risk involved in the release of confidential data to the general public on the Internet, and how attackers or malicious users can leverage that for their own gains.

A much-secured platform with proper access control and security methods to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability rules must be established The Electoral Commission of Ghana must identify and document security requirements early in the development stage with quality assurance techniques in check. Further practices can be effective in identifying and eliminating risk in the application. Penetration testing and vulnerability assessment should all be incorporated as part of an effective quality assurance program.

Threat modeling can be used to anticipate the threats that could affect the software or application. Threat modeling involves identifying key assets, decomposing the application, identifying and categorizing the threats to each asset or component, rating the threats based on a risk ranking, and then developing threat mitigation strategies that are implemented in designs, code, and test cases.

Author: Blay Abu Safian – (Founder/ CEO Inveteck Global & Security Researcher | Member, Institute of ICT Professionals Ghana) For comments, contact ceo@ inveteckglobal.com; +233 (20)2366048

14

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

15

Feature

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

The case for a quadripolar world

H

aving diminished America’s global role while refusing to accept China’s growing clout, Donald Trump’s presidency represents the last gasp of a unipolar epoch. But while many assume that the unipolar post-Cold War world is giving way to a bipolar international order dominated by the United States and China, that outcome is neither inevitable nor desirable. Instead, there is every reason to hope for, and work toward, a world in which Europe and the emerging economies play a more assertive role.

To be sure, as the world’s most economically successful autocracy, China has already achieved significant geopolitical influence in Asia and beyond.

During the two most recent global crises – the 2008 financial collapse and today’s pandemic – the Communist Party of China quickly adjusted the country’s political economy in response to changing circumstances, thereby solidifying its grip on power. Because countries that do not want to toe the US line now routinely turn to China for inspiration and, often, material support, what could be more natural than China emerging as one of the two poles of global power?

In fact, a bipolar world would be deeply unstable. Its emergence would heighten the risk of violent conflict (according to the logic of the Thucydides Trap), and its consolidation would make solutions to global problems wholly dependent on the national interests of the two reigning powers. Three of the biggest challenges facing humanity would either be ignored or made worse.

The first challenge is the concentrated power of Big Tech. While technology is often presented as a key front in the US-China conflict, there is considerable congruence between the two countries. Both are committed to the pursuit

of algorithmic dominance over humans, whereby digital platforms and artificial intelligence (AI) are used as tools by the government and corporations for surveilling and controlling the citizenry.

There are differences, of course. Whereas the US government has adopted Big Tech’s own vision and become subservient to the industry, Chinese tech giants remain at the mercy of the government and must abide by its agenda. For example, recent research shows how local governments’ demand for surveillance technologies shapes Chinese AI creators’ research and development. In any case, neither country is likely to strengthen privacy standards and other protections for ordinary people, much less redirect the trajectory of AI research so that its benefits are unambiguous and widely shared.

Likewise, advocacy for human rights and democracy would be a low priority in a bipolar world.

With repression in China growing, the US may appear by comparison to remain an exemplar of these values. But America’s principled commitment to democracy and human rights is thin and generally not taken seriously abroad. After all, the US has overthrown democratically elected but insufficiently friendly governments in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. And when it has supported democracy in places like Ukraine, it has generally had an ulterior motive, such as the desire to counter or weaken Russia.

The third big issue likely to receive short shrift in a SinoAmerican bipolar world is climate change. In recent years, China has appeared more supportive of international agreements aimed at reducing greenhouse-gas emissions than the US has. But the two superpowers are not just the world’s two biggest emitters; they also are both beholden to energy-

intensive economic models.

China will remain dependent on manufacturing growth, while consumers and growth industries (like cloud computing) will sustain high demand for energy in the US. And one can expect that both sides’ short-term interest in economic supremacy will trump everyone else’s interest in a swift green transition.

All of these problems would be more likely to be addressed in a world with two additional poles, represented by the European Union and a consortium of emerging economies, perhaps within a new organization – an “E10” – comprising Mexico, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, South Africa, and others.

Such a quadripolar world would be less conducive to a new cold war, and it would bring more diverse voices to global governance.

For its part, the EU has already emerged as a standard-bearer for privacy protection and regulation of Big Tech, and it is well positioned to push back against algorithmic automation.

Even though it is US and Chinese companies that largely drive concerns about privacy, consumer manipulation, and labor-replacing AI, the European market is so large and important that it can tilt the playing field globally.

But a strategic pole that speaks for emerging economies may be even more consequential. If AI continues to displace humans in the workplace, emerging economies will be the biggest losers, because their comparative advantage is abundant human labor. With automation already cutting into the supply of jobs that had previously been offshored to these economies, it is critical that they have a voice in global debates that will determine how new technologies are designed and deployed.

Europe and the emerging world also can form a powerful

constituency against fossilfuel emissions. While the EU has become a world leader in decarbonization, emerging economies have an acute interest in climate action, because they will suffer disproportionately from global warming (despite having contributed the least to the problem).

To be sure, a quadripolar world would not be a panacea. With a wider array of voices and the possibility for more opportunistic coalitions, it would be much more difficult to manage than was the unipolar world of the recent past. With Brazil, Mexico, India, and Turkey all now led by authoritarians intent on silencing their opponents, independent media, and civil-society groups, Europe inevitably would find itself at odds with this bloc when it comes to human rights and democracy.

Yet, even here, a quadripolar world would offer more hope than the bipolar alternative.

Bringing these countries to the international table might make them more willing to countenance opposition at home.

Moreover, emerging economies can cooperate as a united front only if they abandon their most authoritarian, nationalistic, and destructive behavior. Ushering in a quadripolar world may thus yield unexpected dividends.

About author

Daron Acemoglu, Professor of Economics at MIT, is co-author (with James A. Robinson) of Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty and The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty.

16

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

17

Markets

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

18

Markets CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

19

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020

20

FRIDAY DECEEMBER 4, 2020