Business24 Newspaper 26th July, 2021

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MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Republic Bank sees 77% jump in after-tax profit

A window of opportunities How UNDP solution mapping, communication spotlight and financial support attracted partnerships to change the fortunes of a waste recycler in Ghana.

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Gov’t urges collaboration to end Gulf of Guinea piracy

By Patrick Paintsil p_paintsil@hotmail.com

ECOWAS Parliament to push for reforms in ICT sector

By Eugene Davis

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ugendavis@gmail.com

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ransport Minister Kweku Ofori Asiamah has indicated that the threats of piracy, seaborne robbery and illegal fishing could undermine the gains of the blue economy to the nation’s development, urging a more collaborative approach from coastal states to tackle the menace.

He said nations within the Gulf of Guinea region must

joint “delocalised” meeting of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament will consider Cont’d on page 3

Prez announces establishment of US$25m National Vaccine Institute

Cont’d on page 2

GNCCI boss: regulatory env’t tough for businesses

By Benson Afful affulbenson@gmail.com

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he president of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Clement Osei Amoako, says the chamber’s assessment of the business performance of 3,000 companies in the

By Eugene Davis ugendavis@gmail.com

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he President, Nana Addo Dankwa AkufoAddo, has said plans are underway to invest US$25m towards the establishment of a National Vaccine Institute to lead the country’s efforts at producing vaccines locally.

Cont’d on page 5

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Mr. Clement Osei Amoako, President, GNCCI

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Editorial / News

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Editorial

Time to take real actions on piracy and sea-borne crimes

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iracy and armed robbery at sea have long been regarded as a threat to international peace and security but other types of maritime crime are just as significant. But the recent spate of kidnappings and related sea-borne crime within the Gulf of Guinea makes it even more alarming.

The number of kidnappings at sea reported in the Gulf of Guinea region increased by 40 percent between 2019 and 2020, with the Gulf accounting for approximately 95 percent of global kidnappings, according to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB).

The Gulf region is one of the world’s richest fishing grounds

and represents almost 4percent of global fish production. The fisheries sector is a critical source of employment for millions of people and it is estimated that in West Africa alone, up to a quarter of jobs are linked to the fisheries sector.

Admittedly, the richness of the region could be enticing criminals but with the right levels of regional cooperation and political will, these illegalities could be reduced and eventually curtailed.

We cannot sit aloof as a port state and an import-driven economy because the safety of our territorial waters or otherwise has direct impact on cost of trade and all other

services related to shipping.

For instance, if international shipping suffers as a result of piracy attacks, the value chain will equally feel the heat because the safety of the route that a ship sails is a key determinant of the freight cost.

It is time for coastal states directly affected by the canker of piracy to take collective and practical steps to end it.

Undoubtedly, most coastal states in the region and international partners are making positive strides in the area of interagency cooperation and response but there is obviously more room for improvement.

Gov’t urges collaboration to end Gulf of Guinea piracy Continued from cover

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scale up investment, especially in surveillance and early detection systems that will empower enforcement officers to act swiftly to control the problem.

“These criminal acts [piracy and other maritime crimes] have resulted in significant disruptions to trade, financial losses to ship owners, increased insurance premiums and security costs,” said Mr. Asiamah at the launch of the Women in Maritime of West and Central Africa (WIMOWCA), an industry association, in Accra.

“Maritime safety is integral to the sustenance of national economies, especially for coastal countries, and organisations operating in the region must continue to work together to agree on an approach that suits their collective maritime security interests,” he added.

Over the last three years, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has documented attacks in 15 coastal states along the Gulf of Guinea, with the number of kidnapped crew rising by more than 50 percent from 78 in 2018 to 121 in 2019 alone.

In addition, the recent surge in piracy activities in the Gulf of Guinea accounts for over 90 percent of global reported kidnappings at sea, a situation which experts say could make the stretch unattractive to trade.

According to the minister, the pandemic has demonstrated that shipping is still the most reliable, efficient and cost-effective method of transporting goods internationally, hence the need to prepare the maritime sector for sustainable trade.

Mr. Asiamah further called on the industry to embrace gender diversity in the quest to harness the full potential of the blue economy to promote inclusive development.

“Inclusive development is one of the surest ways and sustainable means to harness the full potential of Africa’s blue economy. Women must be at the heart of this agenda,” he added.

It is estimated that women form only 2 percent of global seafarers, and the launch of WIMOWCA is expected to change the narrative on women’s participation in the maritime sector with time.

The association seeks to harness the potential and contribution of women in West

and Central Africa to ensure the sustainable development of the maritime industry in Africa.

Although the number of women pursuing maritime programmes has seen a rapid increase, their engagement, retention and promotion to leadership in shipping and its connecting value chain have been lagging, according to the interim President of WIMOWCA, Sylvia Asana Dauda Owu. She indicated that sustainable maritime development would require inclusive participation of both skilled men and women professionals operating in that space.

“There is the need for greater diversity and specifically ensuring equality for women, to help achieve global socio-economic and environmental sustainability.

WIMOWCA will strive to play a very important role in maritime affairs across the West and Central Africa region and globally,” she said.

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GNCCI boss: regulatory env’t tough for businesses Continued from cover country shows that the regulatory environment—taxes, interest rates, etc.—does not engender business growth and value.

In the chamber’s recent engagement with the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Mr. Amoako also bemoaned the requirement for businesses to pay 30 percent of a tax assessment during a tax audit before a taxpayer can make any objection to the assessment.

He said interactions with tax auditors show that in some cases, the assessment contains plain errors, yet taxpayers are asked to pay the 30 percent.

This creates a lot of stress for taxpayers, as they end up paying taxes on assessments that they are actually not liable for, he said, adding that “these monies could have been used to support the working capital of the taxpayer.”

Moreover, he lamented, after the payment, there are delays in the refund application process.

“The tax laws allow taxpayers an entitlement over their excess tax payments, and this is by way of refunds. Nonetheless, the process of the refund is cumbersome.

There is no particular office of

the GRA known to taxpayers that handles the refund applications,” he said.

According to him, taxpayers have to follow up on these refunds several times, and in most cases, they have to give up, which results in loss of working capital in addition to the stress and frustration.

The GNCCI boss said the

chamber is committed to serving as the link between the private sector and government at the various levels while offering its members a myriad of business support services.

He noted that the history of the growth and development of the private sector in Ghana is replete with notable contributions by the GNCCI.

In this regard, he said the chamber recognises and appreciates the longstanding relations with the GRA, citing, for instance, a collaboration in the early 2000s where the chamber’s advocacy saw a marked reduction in the corporate tax rate of 32.5 percent to 25 percent after much engagement with the GRA and other stakeholders.

ECOWAS Parliament to push for reforms in ICT sector Continued from cover reforms and push for uniformity in the telecommunications and information technology space across the sub-region, the spokesperson for Ghana’s delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, Mahama Ayariga, has said.

According to Mr. Ayariga, the ECOWAS Parliament will soon come up with

regulations to harmonise the telecommunications sector across the sub-region.

His announcement preceded a joint meeting of three committees of the ECOWAS Parliament scheduled to take place from July 27–29 at Winneba in the Central Region.

Among the major issues to be considered at the meeting is the varying cost of roaming data and airtime across the sub-region.

“If you are using the internet in Ghana, Benin, or Nigeria, why should the data rate be markedly different in terms of pricing across the sub-region? As you are aware, the objective of ECOWAS is to promote integration, and we have to ensure that things like the telecommunication sector are made better,” said Mr. Ayariga.

“The meeting is to bring in experts to apprise members of the committee so that we can see

which reforms need to take place at the sub-region level and make recommendations to Parliament for consideration.”

Parliament’s Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo Markin, who is also a member of Ghana’s ECOWAS delegation, said “the ECOWAS dream is very important to pursue, and we want to assure that Ghana is committed to all the protocols of ECOWAS and we are ready to make this meeting a memorable one.”

About 30 MPs are expected to attend the meeting, with Ghana’s Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Bagbin, billed to open the event.

The ECOWAS Parliament, also known as the Community Parliament, is one of the institutions of ECOWAS. It is the Assembly of Peoples of the Community, serving as a forum for dialogue, consultation and consensus for representatives of the people of West Africa with the aim of promoting integration.

The Parliament is composed of 115 seats.

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Prez announces establishment of US$25m National Vaccine Institute Continued from cover He disclosed this during his 26th national update on measures taken by the government to control the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

The President stated that the establishment of the institute forms part of recommendations by a committee established by the government to formulate a concrete plan for vaccine development and manufacturing in Ghana.

“We must be self-sufficient in this regard and prepare ourselves better to deal with any such occurrences in the future.

To this end, the Committee I established, under the leadership of the world-renowned Ghanaian scientist Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, to investigate

Ghana’s potential as a vaccine manufacturing hub to meet national and regional needs, has presented its preliminary report, which, amongst others, recommends the establishment of a National Vaccine Institute to spearhead this development.”

The Institute, according to the President, will be charged with delivering six clear mandates: establishing local vaccine manufacturing plants; deepening research and development (R&D) for vaccines in Ghana; upgrading and strengthening the FDA [Food and Drugs Authority]; forging bilateral and multilateral partnerships for vaccine manufacturing in various areas, such as funding, clinical trials, technology transfer, licensing, and assignment of intellectual property rights; building the

human resource base for vaccine discovery, development, and manufacture; and establishing a permanent national secretariat to coordinate vaccine development and manufacture.

The President acknowledged the challenges the country is facing with its vaccination programme due to the difficulty in getting access to COVID-19 vaccines, but maintained a positive outlook.

He announced that the government is expecting to take

delivery of over 18m vaccines in the third quarter of the year.

This includes the procurement of 17m Johnson & Johnson vaccines through the African Medicine Supply Platform and 1m Pfizer vaccines donated by the United States through the COVAX facility.

Since the beginning of Ghana’s vaccination programme in March, 1,271,393 persons have been inoculated, out of which 405,971 persons have received both jabs, while 865,422 have received a single dose.

PROPARCO and Ecobank sign deal to support MSMEs

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roparco, AFD Group’s private sector financing arm, and Ecobank Ghana have signed a partnership agreement aimed at increasing access to finance for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Ghana.

The partnership, which focuses on the Choose Africa and ARIZ Initiatives, was executed by Proparco, on behalf of the AFD Group and Ecobank, aimed at enabling Ecobank Ghana to offer up to GHc50 million quarterly in loans to MSMEs adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and create more than 50,000 jobs across Ghana.

Proparco and the Ecobank Group have a longstanding history of supporting the private sector in West Africa with a focus on MSMEs. Following an analysis of financing data researched by Ecobank, companies with less than 200 employees affected by the pandemic will be eligible to apply for loans with maturities ranging between 12 and 60 months under the Choose Africa Initiative.

These loans could cumulatively account for up to three months of their turnovers for 2019.

The new resilience component of the French Choose Africa initiative has been made possible, thanks to the support from the French Government.

Launched in November 2020 in response to the economic

crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the EUR1billion Resilience component would bring assistance from the Choose Africa initiative supporting startups and MSMEs in Africa to a total disbursement of EUR 3.5billion.

Since 2018, over EUR 2 billion of this amount has been deployed by the AFD Group under the French Choose Africa initiative.

Anne Sophie AVE, Ambassador of France to Ghana, commented that: “The French initiative Choose Africa launched in 2018, as well as its strengthening in 2020 in response to the crisis, testify to France's strong commitment to African start-ups and MSMEs. Ghanaian entrepreneurs have demonstrated their resilience throughout the crisis, they will play a fundamental role in the country’s development, thus creating jobs and improving people's access to essential goods and services.”

Mr. Ange Pascal KOUASSI, Proparco’s Country Representative for Ghana,

said: “Small and medium-sized enterprises are the backbone of African economies. The success of the Choose Africa initiative illustrates Proparco’s strong commitment to SMEs. We are happy to work with our partner Ecobank on the roll-out of our new initiatives specifically designed in response to the Covid-19 crisis.”

On his part, Mr. Daniel Sackey, Regional Executive for Anglophone West Africa and Managing Director of Ecobank Ghana said: "Our partnership with the AFD Group began in 2015 when Ecobank signed onto the ARIZ initiative to increase access to finance for MSMEs and Start-ups in Ghana. This initiative has since contributed immensely towards unlocking more than One Hundred Million Ghana Cedis (GH¢100,000,000.00) on an annual basis in Term Loans to about a hundred (100) MSMEs within the Transport, Manufacturing, Agribusiness, ICT, Health, and Microfinance sectors across Ghana, and creating in

excess of 20,000 jobs”.

Mr. Sackey concluded that; “The Ecobank Group is indeed pleased to be signing onto the Choose Africa Resilience initiative with the AFD Group and Proparco today. This comes to complement our efforts at building capacity, increasing their access to the market and providing tailored solutions to meet the specific needs of MSMEs. This is against the background that most MSMEs continue to evolve as consumer behaviour and engagements actively change and more people are accepting of the new ways of accessing goods and services, a positive fall out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a Pan-African bank, we believe it is our responsibility to help MSMEs sustain and grow their businesses further and contribute to the economic and social development of our economies. To this end, our deepest appreciation goes to the AFD Group and Proparco for their immense support, and commitment to partner with Ecobank to build resilient and sustainable indigenous businesses in Ghana”.

This signing ceremony further strengthens the partnership existing between these institutions and their desire and commitment to promoting the growth and development of MSMEs, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.

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MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

GCNet resolves redundancy dispute, pays laid-off workers

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he management of Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNet) has amicably resolved its labour dispute with the company’s laidoff workers over their redundancy compensation.

The dispute was resolved through an out-of-court settlement, following which all the 194 workers who were laid off last year have received their redundancy compensation under the terms of the negotiated settlement.

The impasse over the arrangement for the payment of redundancy travelled from the National Labour Commission, through the Accra High (Labour) Court, to the Court of Appeal, after which the parties agreed to settle the matter out-of-court.

The company in a statement said following the resolution of the matter, the two Labour Courts, where the cases in the matter are pending, have adopted

the settlement agreement as their consent judgement.

The settlement agreement, filed in the courts on July 6, 2021 was adopted by the two Labour Courts in the cases of National Labour Commission versus GCNet, and GCNet versus the

affected staff, on July 8.

Subsequently, the parties have withdrawn all pending appeals on the matter.

The management expressed its appreciation to its valued workers for their patience and cooperation in having the matter

ultimately resolved satisfactorily.

The redundancy exercise was necessitated by the government’s abrogation of its trade facilitation service contract with GCNet, in May last year prior to the end of its tenure in December 2023.

GSE holds workshop for pension fund players on maximising support the national economy. and social protection for all returns on the exchange

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he Ghana Stock Exchange GSE, in collaboration with the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has held a workshop for players in the pensions industry to discuss investment opportunities on the exchange’s markets.

The workshop shared the current impressive performance of the exchange and the opportunities, especially in the exchange’s equities markets, that abound for knowledgeable and patient investors like pension fund trustees and managers.

The GSE composite index as of June 30, 2021, was up an impressive 36.16percent; value of equities traded grew by 58.53percent to GHc307.56 million during the first half of 2021 compared to same period in 2020 and the fixed income market traded a volume of 107.6 billion, up 117.3percent over same period last year.

This performance culminated in the exchange being adjudged the best performing in Africa for the first half of this year.

Addressing participants, which included trustees of employer-

sponsored pension schemes, corporate trustees, pension fund managers and licensed stockbrokers of the exchange, the Managing Director of the Ghana Stock Exchange, Mr. Ekow Afedzie said the opportunities the GSE platform provides for pension funds are enormous in realising good returns for their principals.

“Though pension fund investments in fixed income securities continue to increase, the same cannot be said of equities. Since pension funds are long-term in nature, opportunities exist for players in this space to invest in equities as well,” he said.

He added that growth in equity investments is critical in making patient capital available for businesses to expand and grow to

The workshop also discussed opportunities in the exchange’s three markets: the Main Market, Ghana Alternative Market (GAX) for SME’s and Ghana Fixed Income Market (GFIM).

These three platforms have been created to provide options for businesses and the investing public for their investment and capital mobilisation decisions.

In remarks read on his behalf, the CEO of the NPRA, Mr. Hayford Atta Krufi, said there is the need to have a vibrant equities market with rewarding returns for pension schemes to channel more investments in making real impact on the economy.

He said the collaboration between all capital markets players is critical to ensure retirement income security

Ghanaians.

Speaking at the workshop, the Director-General of the SEC, Rev. Daniel Ogbarmey Tetteh, also added his voice to the call for pension fund players to invest in long-term securities including equities in their portfolios.

He underscored the fact that the stock market offers interesting investment opportunities for asset owners who have time on their side, such as pension funds.

He indicated that the implementation of some initiatives in the recently launched Capital Market Master Plan would aid in improving liquidity and listings on the Ghana Stock Exchange.

The GSE shared some key initiatives in their 3-year strategic plan including introduction of new products such as green bonds and derivatives to broaden their offers, listing more companies and undertaking investment literacy programs for key players and the general public.

These initiatives are aimed at moving the Exchange from a frontier to an emerging market, making the Exchange the preferred platform for investment and long-term capital mobilisation.

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MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Trade Ministry to finalise agreement on Komenda Sugar Factory

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he Ministry of Trade and Industry and its transaction advisor, Price Waterhouse Coopers, are concluding the conditions precedent to activate the concession agreement, a strategic investor for the Komenda Sugar Factory.

The sector minister, Allan Kyerematen, said the conclusion of the agreement with the strategic investor, Park Agrotech Limited, would enable them to commence operations at the factory.

Mr. Kyerematen said this when he appeared before Parliament to respond to a question by Mr. Samuel Atta-Mills, Member of Parliament (MP) for Komenda/ Edina/Eguafo/Abrem on why the Komenda Sugar Factory is still closed, and what had happened to the strategic investor the country was promised.

Mr. Kyerematen explained

that Park Agrotech Limited is an agro-processing company based in Ghana, who together with its India-based technical partner, have significant expertise in the sugarcane cultivation and sugar processing industry.

He referred to the various incentives that Park Agrotech is requesting as part of the proposed concession agreement.

He said working with the transaction advisors, the ministry has carefully worked through

various requirements and requests.

As part of the arrangements, Park Agrotech has applied for and has been granted One-District One-Factory (1D1F) status by the ministry.

This, he said, would enable Park Agrotech to take advantage of the incentives and benefits as approved by Parliament for 1D1F registered companies and to commence operation at the Komenda Sugar Factory expeditiously.

Mr. Kyerematen further stated that the ministry has instructed the transaction advisor and Park Agrotech to ensure that the conditions precedent to the concession agreement and a road map for the opening of the factory was finalised by the end of August to enable operational activities to commence before the end of this year.

GNA

MTN reaffirms commitment to go fully digital by 2023

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TN-Ghana has reaffirmed its transitioning strategy commitment to become a fully-fledged digitalised operator by 2023.

The envisioned digital repositioning is in tandem with the company’s dedicated plan to lead the delivery of a bold new telecommunication digital

evolution aimed at enhancing customer experience and create value for its shareholders and clientele.

Mr. Kennedy Ofosuhene, Corporate Services Advisor of MTN-Ghana, gave the reassurance at a customer service engagement

held at Kasoa New Market in the Awutu Senya East Municipality of the Central Region.

The forum provided the opportunity for MTN officials to interact and solicit feedback from its cherished customers including market queens, traders, drivers and the public as part of its 25 years services in the country.

The platform was also to thank customers for their dedicated support for the two-and-a-half decades of its operations in the country and updated customers on measures being taken to improve the network and the various social investments being implemented in Ghana.

Going digital, according to Mr. Ofosuhene, meant investing in infrastructure and technology to ease the removal of everything manual to allow customers to manage their accounts from one simple interface on their mobile, broadband and momo accounts.

“That means employing new technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning to provide total automated personalised user experience and self-service options for their customers.

“With that, customers could buy bundles for their TurboNet, send money with momo or pay for things with momo Pay all from one simple app,” he said.

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UPSA confers honorary doctorate on Matthew Opoku Prempeh

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he University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), has conferred an honorary doctorate on Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Energy Minister, who is also the immediate past Minister of Education, at its 13th special congregation.

The honorary doctorate was in recognition of Dr. Opoku Prempeh’s contributions towards the advancement of education in Ghana.

During the congregation, a total of 870 students from the UPSA School of Graduate Studies and the UPSA Law School graduated.

Out of this number, the School of Graduate Studies presented 764 students where as the UPSA

Law School graduated 106 students.

Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia was the special guest of honour at the Congregation.

A visibly elated Dr. Opoku Prempeh in his acceptance speech expressed gratitude to the UPSA Governing Council and management for the honour done him.

He recounted that when he took over as an Education Minister in 2017, he faced the daunting task of implementing the Free Senior High School (SHS) education programme, however, with determination the government was able to do it.

He said the government was determined to ensure that all

junior high school graduates who qualify for admission into SHS have access to secondary education free of charge.

“As a society, our collective security lies in the people, we chose to lead us, to make decisions on our behalf, to protect us and to ensure our wellbeing,” he said.

“It is crucial, therefore, that

we nurture the right leaders to ensure that the right calibre of people are brought up in this country for the task ahead.

What this means is that we must deliberately give leadership grooming the urgency that it deserves right from school till we start political or active lives,” he added.

Africa, women and ecommerce …a positive emerging trend on the continent

By Bennet Otoo, Jumia Ghana

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commerce is creating new opportunities for women in Africa. Beautiful as it may sound, this comes with many challenges. From gender inequalities to lack of adequate resources and the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, there are many other limiting factors to the growth of ecommerce.

Although many leaders in the e-commerce industry in Africa are women, there is the need to empower more women to play active roles in Africa’s growing industry. A recent report by the IFC indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic has also hit hard.

In the first year of the pandemic, women-owned businesses faced a drop of 39 percent in sales, compared to a 28 percent drop for men-owned businesses.

This begs the need for more work into developing talents and helping drive home the message of women in ecommerce.

There are different facets of the ecommerce spectrum where women are employed or play active roles. Jumia, Africa’s leading ecommerce ecosystem looks at Africa, women and ecommerce in general.

In Africa and Ghana today there are many women in great leadership positions when we talk about ecommerce. Notable among them are, Madam Juliet Anammah, Chairwoman, Jumia

Nigeria and Head of Institutional Affairs, Jumia Group; Madam Tolulope George-Yanwah, CEO of Jumia Ghana; Madam Anita Wiafe Asinor, Secretary General of the Ecommerce Association of Ghana among many others.

Ecommerce in Africa involves many stakeholders; below we look at the impact women are having in a few of them.

• Consumers: With over 680 million in Africa constituting 50% of the population, it is by no means by coincidence that many ecommerce consumers today are women as well. From essential items such as provisions, groceries, health & beauty, home decor and kitchenware, women are active shoppers online. The demand for all these essential products by women creates a very important need for supply. This

creates a chain of very beneficial businesses.

Manufacturers need to produce more, logistics businesses grow in the number of fleets and carriers, and ecommerce websites expand to accommodate the huge traffic as well as the millions of categories and other technologies. The impact women customers have is overwhelming.

• Sellers: For ecommerce businesses to function properly, there has to be a perfect blend of all stakeholders and Sellers play a major role in this. In many African countries, women contribute at least half of the total sellers. According to the recent IFC reports, 50% of e-commerce sellers in Kenya are women entrepreneurs.

Women are behind many businesses in Ghana and Nigeria as well. From digital

payment solutions, food delivery, fashion, beauty, electronics and many more. These women are supporting their families and creating jobs for many young people in Africa. Especially during the covid-19 pandemic when many offline businesses found it difficult to operate, ecommerce came in handy and many women played an active role.

• Employees: Apart from many women leaders in Africa’s ecommerce industry, many employees in online marketplaces, tech firms and other online delivery services are women. Although the dominance of men cannot be overlooked, it is actually very impressive that over the past few years, the number of women in ecommerce has increased tremendously.

These growing numbers promise to grow significantly over the coming years as well.

With ecommerce courses and programs being taught in many tertiary institutions and great achievements by many women leaders in the online space, there is no doubt that a lot of other women will be motivated to enter that space.

Ecommerce in Africa is growing and women are playing a very vital role in it. As a continent, we have key responsibilities in ensuring that barriers and challenges are removed to ensure successful growth.

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The importance of strong corporate governance in a complex world

By Hendrik Steynberg It is about leadership and strong corporate governance The world is becoming increasingly complex and interconnected, with organisations under pressure to deliver value to shareholders while also remaining accountable to society as a whole – all against the backdrop of rising competition.

Moreover, many organisations are part of sophisticated supply chains, which are conduits for information, goods, services and payment flows, both locally and internationally. In such a climate, inspired leadership and strong corporate governance are paramount.

Corporate governance refers to the measures introduced and the steps taken to ensure that an organisation’s management acts in the interests of shareholders and other stakeholders, using resources effectively and adhering to the principles of transparency and accountability. Corporate governance has two primary functions: driving the organisation forward (directing performance) and exercising prudent control over the operation (controlling conformance). Together these two functions help to ensure that the organisation remains progressive and forward-looking, but operates within realistic and ethical boundaries.

Many high-profile corporate failures in recent years have put the spotlight on governance

issues and raised questions about whether traditional governance rules, structures and mechanisms should be overhauled. Corporate governance is typically associated with financial oversight provided by an organisation’s board of directors and the agency relationship it has with management and shareholders.

However, there is a growing body of opinion that corporate governance should extend beyond the boardroom – that it should be practised by managers throughout the organisation.

For example, the devolution of accountability to successive levels of management would help to improve both financial and non-financial performance, evidenced in enhanced employee morale and customer satisfaction.

Having more managers involved in determining the future trajectory of the organisation and continuously monitoring progress could be both empowering and energising for the people concerned.

A more focused and energised operation, in turn, should lead to better organisational performance.

By extension, supply chain performance should also improve because more managers (being accountable) will be able and willing to make a positive contribution to those aspects against which supply chain performance is measured, such as cost reduction, on-time delivery, throughput, compliance and achieving a high-performance culture.

Is there a link between corporate governance and organisational performance?

Some say that the quality of corporate governance directly affects an organisation’s performance ‒ that the design of a system of governance and its enforcement are important determinants of whether the organisation will consistently meet its objectives or, alternatively, produce erratic or insipid results. If that is the case, then strong corporate governance and effective leadership go hand in hand.

There are numerous examples of corporate governance lapses in various supply chain performance areas, which contribute to organisations’ poor results or even demise. Not only do these failures deal a blow to shareholders, employees and supply chain partners, but they are also sometimes damaging to the economy as a whole. Sadly, lapses in corporate governance (both within organisations and among supply chain partners) are often the result of unethical behaviour, such as backdating contracts, offering cash inducements to secure business deals and misrepresenting financial results.

Yet, despite the apparent evidence, the link between corporate governance and organisational performance is not clear-cut. A number of studies have failed to detect a direct relationship between

corporate governance measures and performance outcomes, possibly because other factors (including an organisation’s size, financial stability and position in the market) help to cloud the issue. It is possible, for example, for an organisation to be doing well financially in the absence of a sound system of governance. In contrast, the failure to implement a proper risk management strategy, which would see an organisation pursuing opportunities in an informed manner, could negatively affect performance – even with financial controls in place.

Other studies have shown that an organisation’s strategy will influence the chosen style of governance. For example, if shareholder value is the board’s chief concern, corporate governance will be geared towards maximising profits without transgressing the law. On the other hand, if a growth strategy is the board’s main focus, less importance might be attached to rigorous corporate governance.

It has been suggested that corporate failures are attributable not so much to the absence of corporate governance mechanisms as to the lack of clear governance processes ‒ such as how governance is exercised in an organisation and how the outcomes are acted upon. In other words, it is not only about having the right tools; it is also about using them in the most effective way.

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Abeiku Aggrey to speak at Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Summit

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beiku Aggrey, Managing Director of Kaya Tours, has been selected as one of the speakers at the upcoming Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Summit in Accra.

The summit, organised by Africa Tourism Partners based in South Africa, serves as an exclusive gathering for key stakeholders, mentors, innovators, academics in tourism, travel, hospitality, aviation and related industries to connect, engage, learn, innovate and grow with African youth and startups in tourism on annual basis.

Mr. Aggrey, who is also a media practitioner, said he considers this as one of the greatest privileges to be on a continental platform to speak about the socioeconomic activity, tourism and its contribution to Ghana’s GDP among others.

This, he said, will be a fine opportunity for him to showcase destination Ghana and it’s unique tourism product offerings.

“I will also reveal Ghana’s readiness to welcome both leisure and business tourists as a safe destination amid Covid19 and promote the country as a travel destination to participating

African youth,” he added.

The Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Summit (#AYTIS2021) and Challenge is the ‘one and only’ Pan African youth and startups tourism summit on the

continent.

Among key strategic and supporting partners are UNWTO, BDO, MasterCard Foundation, NEPAD, SITE Global and ICCA Africa.

AfCTA opportunity: Ghanaian women entrepreneurs urged to be innovative

M

adam Roslyn Ngeno, Senior Investment Expert, African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) has urged Ghanaian women entrepreneurs to venture into technical oriented fields to pioneer innovation and be competitive in the free trade market.

She asked them to add value to products and position them in the global space to maximise the full benefits of AfCTA. Madam Ngeno said this at a national consultative forum for women in intra-African trade, organised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

She said AfCTA had created opportunities for African women, stressing that gender inclusion was necessary for the achievement of the free trade system.

Women entrepreneurship, she said, played an important indicator for the country’s development agenda because their work impacted positively on the socio-economic wellbeing of society.

“When women are empowered, there is change in development.

"Meaningful growth requires women to play a part to advance to improve their livelihoods for

national development,” she said.

She urged businesses to ensure that the quality and packaging of their products met standards to attract the attention of consumers.

Madam Ngeno advised them to ensure consistency in their businesses to sustain their clients and create specialties for themselves and obey the trade rules in order not to miss the opportunities that the continental trade would offer.

She said AfCFTA would undoubtedly offer an opportunity for Small and Medium Enterprises to deepen their economic footprint and expand intra African trade through better harmonisation and coordination of trade liberalisation and facilitation instruments across the various regional economic communities on the continent.

Dr. Angela Lusigi, the UNDP Resident Representative, said

research indicated that over 70 per cent of cross-border traders, especially those engaged in informal trade were women, and that understanding their needs and giving them platform would enhance their businesses.

She said to ensure that the promise for women yielded expected results, it was critical that the unique challenges they faced were brought to the fore for solutions to foster utilisation of opportunities in the AfCTA. Dr. Lusigi said consultations had started in the Northern belt in Tamale and the middle belt in Kumasi and revealed huge existing potentials that could be enhanced for women to effectively benefit from the AfCTA. Ms. Esther Ama Asante, an Entrepreneur and Founder of Organic Trade and Investment, urged participants to take advantage of the digital space to market their products to improve their business fortunes.

She called on authorities to help in facilitating the certification process of their products and review the cost of shipment to facilitate smooth movement of goods and products across the continent.

GNA

14

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

15

Africa Business

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Africa commits to cut 32% of emissions by 2030

N

igerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday confirmed his nation's commitments to the Paris Agreement at the U.S.-led climate summit.

Speaking virtually to the White House from Abuja, Buhari said since 2016, Nigeria had undertaken "major environmentally sound and climate friendly programs."

He said institutional frameworks have been made to cut emissions by 2030.

"Beyond ending gas flaring by 2030, the oil and gas sector has undertaken steps for

diversification, risk management systems, insurance (indistinct) research and development and energy crisis planning", Buhari said.

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta laid out the African nation's targets for clean energy and reducing carbon emissions at the U.S.-led climate summit.

"In our journey to the 2050 target, Kenya intends to complete its transition to renewable energy. And clean energy already accounts for about 90% of total electricity supply in Kenya, and we intend to increase this to 100%

by the year 2030", he said.

South Africa's president Cyril Ramaphosa used his address to urge developed nations to assist developing nations to meet climate targets.

He said poorer countries who typically contribute less global emissions, they «often suffer the most from the devastating effects of climate change". ''We call on developed economies which historically bear the greatest responsibility for emission to meet their responsibilities to developing economies. This will be vital

to restoring the bonds of trust between developed and developing economies", said Ramaphosa.

Africa has committed to cut 32% of emissions by 2030. The continent is currently developing a strategy for greenhouse gas emissions to be presented to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change before COP 26 in November, Kenyatta added.

Source: Africa news

Seychelles: AfDB approves $20m loan to support Covid-19 recovery

T Nigeria: Pharmacists lament over hike in prices of drugs

P

harmacists in Nigeria have lamented the impact of COVID-19 on the pharmaceutical sector, saying the hike in prices of drugs is due to the current pandemic.

The pharmacists said 65 per cent of pharmaceutical raw materials and finished products being used in the country were imported from China and India.

Chairman, Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, Abuja and Managing Director, Zinni pharmacy, Wuyep Nimnan Nankap says the hike is as a result of Covid-19 and the erratic exchange rate adding that drugs sold around $10 is now sold for about $20.

“Actually, many reasons account for this, the covid is primary, since the advent of the covid, there are lots of drugs that you cannot access and when you access them, our importers or even our indigenous manufacturers will tell you the cost of raw materials due to ban on some things has affected them to produce locally,” he said.

However, experts say the hike in prices of drugs may affect the delivery of quality health care as a result of influx of counterfeit drugs.

According to the managing Director of the Aloba pharmacy, Aloba Olatunji, to fight the situation, the government has to be involved especially the regulatory body.

“It is a menace we can’t really fight, to overcome it, the security people in the country have to get involved to form alliance with them because some pharmacies in Nigeria are not being managed by real pharmacists, he added”.

“Two or three months ago, we had a case that I reported to NAFDAC on the issue of capsulating pins, we are talking about fake or expire or counterfeiting you can see the level at which it is going and many more like that and the rebound will be a terrible situation on counterfeiting,” said Managing Director, Zinni pharmacy, Wuyep Nimnan Nankap.

He reiterated that the government is neglecting the sector, adding that attention should be given to the sector to improve its activities.

Over 70 per cent of what the country use in producing drugs are imported from China, India and Europe. The drug market in Nigeria depends solely on foreign exchange.

he Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group has approved a $20 million flexible loan to finance Seychelles’ Governance and Economic Reforms Support Program, expected to help drive the island nation’s macroeconomic stability and recovery from Covid-19 in the medium-term.

The government program aims to deepen reforms introduced through the Bank’s Covid-19 Crisis Response Budget Support Program, approved in June 2020 for $10 million. These reforms are expected to advance fiscal sustainability, improve the business environment and Seychelles’ climate change and environmental resilience.

The Bank’s financing will complement funds from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in support of reforms that will benefit Seychelles’ private sector, dominated by small enterprises. By ensuring that such businesses stay afloat during these challenging times, the operation will positively impact women and the youth, while creating employment and equal opportunities.

Seychelles’ Minister of Finance,

Trade, Investment and Economic Planning, Naadir N.H. Hassan, thanked the Bank for being a trusted partner in the country’s development.

“The facility comes at an opportune time and will provide much-needed relief given the economic hardship we are faced with in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. It will help the government meet the current budgetary financing gap and help achieve economic development targets as we steer the country on the path to recovery and debt sustainability,” Hassan said.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has devastated the tourism sector, which contributes about 25% of GDP and accounts for the largest share of total employment,” said Nnenna Nwabufo, Director General of the Bank Group’s East Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office.

She noted that on the same day the loan was approved, the IMF and the Seychelles government reached a staff-level agreement for a $107 million arrangement under the Fund’s Extended Fund Facility, which underscores the timeliness of the Bank’s intervention and the strength of the partnership between the Bank and the IMF.

16

Feature

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

A window of opportunities How UNDP solution mapping, communication spotlight and financial support attracted partnerships to change the fortunes of a waste recycler in Ghana.

Alinko with plastic lumber raw material. Photo: Priscilla Mawuena Adjeidu/UNDP Ghana.

By Praise Nutakor, Priscilla Mawuena Adjeidu/UNDP Ghana “We live in a world of plastics and this is money all around us when we put it to good use”, stressed Ibrahim Yougbare, popularly known as Alinko, a recycler, whose passion for plastic waste recycling is an inspiration.

Working in the waste recovery sector for over 30years, Alinko uses recycled plastic waste to produce chair leg floor protectors, curtain ropes and plastic lumber for furniture.

His fortunes changed overnight after his waste recycling work was identified and showcased on social media by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ghana through a video story.

The documentary was produced under the solutions mapping initiative of the UNDP Accelerator Lab in Ghana, in collaboration with the Ghana Waste Recovery Platform, being facilitated by UNDP. “I received a call one day and it was the CEO of Footprint Africa, Joana and she said, we saw your video on one of UNDP’s social media platforms, will you be interested in a business incubation opportunity? I was dumbfounded”, Alinko narrated.

Alinko seized the opportunity and after seven months, Footprint Africa presented a grant scheme opportunity. He applied, and subsequently received a cash amount of 25,000 pounds, which he invested into his enterprise,

enabling him to expand.

“My connection with UNDP has been a breakthrough.

When I thought Footprint was enough, the European Union (EU) also came in few months later. One thing is constant, these granters kept referring to the UNDP documentary I got featured in. EU also mentioned our business incubation journey with Footprint and opted to expand our plastic business”, he reported.

Alinko, was awarded 400,000 euros by the European Union through Asase Foundation, to establish a waste recycling factory and he acquired a 10-acre land for the establishment of the factory. The EU is also supporting him with a Project Manager and 5 more staff to support him in the implementation.

Moreover, he also applied for the second edition of the UNDP Waste Innovation Challenge,supported by the Coca Cola Foundation, and luckily, he won and received USD36,000 grant, part of which he has invested in purchasing a new extruder. This means more plastics will be recycled to ease the burden on the planet.

At Pyramid Recycling Enterprise, Alinko was formerly recycling about 5.6 tons of plastics a week. However, thanks to the additional supports, he is able to recycle up to 11.2 tons of plastics per a week.

The Plastics Menace Plastic pollution is a major

development challenge across the world. Research shows that, Ghana alone generates about 1million tons of plastic waste annually. Out of this, only 2-5% (22,000-55,000) is recycled. The rest ends on landfill (38%), land (28%), sea (23%), or burned (11%).

People like Alinko are stepping in to provide some solutions.

Alinko’s journey started when his dad offered him the opportunity to work in his recycling company when he completed his sixth form education. After spending 3years in his dad’s company, he transformed his sister’s garage into an office and set up Pyramid Recycling Enterprise to produce curtain ropes and the residue he uses for chair leg floor protectors to prevent slippery.

“One day, I brought a carpenter to renovate my office. Anytime he hits the nail on the wood pallet, the wood breaks. There I thought to myself, this wood could be replaced with plastic.

After 2 years of conceptualizing the idea, Alinko produced the first plastic lumber prototype which went through a testing process at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Ghana.

This was then presented to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, who then recommended his innovation to the UNDP. A Profitable Venture According to Alinko, the waste recycling business is a profitable one and he is ploughing back profits to make his business self-

sustaining. He revealed that one is likely to make about 40 percent profit on any capital invested into the business. He also noted that, the venture needs a lot of hands, and he is able to support other young people with gainful employment and experience to improve livelihood.

So far, Pyramid Recycling Enterprise employs 30 people: 10 fixed-term workers out of whom 7 are women and 3 are men, and 20 temporary workers.

The Enterprise is also indirectly improving the income of over 100 waste collectors and plastic pickers in Ghana.

“Working here has really impacted me. I have had countless opportunities to learn, get certificates through trainings and practice the use of machines here. It has been a good journey for me with Pyramid”, Rafatu Zachari, Assistant Technical Engineer at Pyramid Recycling Enterprise noted.

Alinko’s story is yet another good example of how effective communication can attract critical partnerships to upscale innovations for sustainable development. As required by the fifth target of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12, together we can support the next “Alinko”, and substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse. More supports for many young innovators mean killing two birds with one stone: reduce plastic pollution and turn waste into valuable resources.

17

Technology

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Apple plans an all-5G iPhone range, but not until '22 A pple won’t introduce an all-5G iPhone range until 2022, when it is expected to also roll out an A15-powered iPhone SE with 5G, according to a Nikkei report.

Apple’s first 5G iPhones are available now, but most users don’t yet really feel the benefit, given that network infrastructure and services are still being rolled out. But you can expect adoption on both fronts to accelerate into 2022.

Good news, bad news Let’s get to the bad news first: If a report on Nikkei is to true, Apple won’t introduce an all-5G iPhone range until 2022, when it is expected to also introduce an A15-powered iPhone SE with 5G, but no iPhone mini. The current iPad Pro range also features 5G, but we have no info on any plans to extend this to other models.

The good news is that Apple’s decision to field 5G across all iPhones starting next year suggests the company expects the standard to be more widely available across every market by then. This makes sense and sits broadly in line with expectations, which have always anticipated the standard seeing significant deployment and use into 2023

and beyond.

It also suggests that the faster 5G+ and 5Guw standards will see wider deployment in additional regions.

What’s not in the news?

it eventually settled in 2019. We also know Apple acquired the modem development unit of Intel to continue to try to build its own 5G modems. And we know that Apple reached a multiyear chipset supply deal with Qualcomm, timed to take the two forward to 2025.

We’ve also heard that Apple has always wanted to pack iPhones with its own self-developed 5G radios, though we don’t know how possible this is turning out to be.

We did hear from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently, who claimed Apple plans to adopt its own custom-designed 5G chips starting with the 2023 iPhones “at the earliest," which means every iPhone will continue using Qualcomm chips until then. An analyst at Barclays had previously predicted a 2023 introduction.

What’s not in the news is Qualcomm. We know Apple had a dispute with Qualcomm that Source: Computerworld

Noteworthy technology acquisitions 2021

G

lobal tech merger-andacquisition deals totaled $634.1 billion in 2020, an increase of 91.8% year-onyear. Can 2021 match that for blockbuster activity?

Amid the coronavirus, 2020 was unpredictable in more ways than anyone would have expected.

But one thing that stayed fairly constant was the steady flow of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) across the tech sector.

Global tech M&A deals last year totalled $634 billion, a 91.8% yearover-year increase, according to GlobalData.

Among a late flurry of big deals was the $35 billion acquisition of Xilinx by Advanced Micro Devices and Salesforce's $27.7 billion acquisition of Slack.

As for whether 2021 will maintain last year’s pace, if the first part of the year is anything to go by, there will be no slowing of big deals across the industry, with silicon innovations and collaboration software already proving to be hot areas.

Here are the biggest enterprise technology acquisitions of 2021 so far: Visa to acquire Currencycloud for $700M Visa continued its European

fintech buying streak in July, acquiring London-based startup Currencycloud for $700 million.

This followed the June acquisition of Swedish open banking startup Tink for $2.15 billion.

Founded in 2007, Currencycloud has built an APIbased foreign exchange and cross-border payments platform, which allows banks and financial services to provide foreign

exchange services to customers.

“The acquisition of Currencycloud is another example of Visa executing on our network of networks strategy to facilitate global money movement,” Colleen Ostrowski, Visa’s Global Treasurer, said in a statement.

“Consumers and businesses increasingly expect transparency, speed and simplicity when making or receiving international

payments. With our acquisition of Currencycloud, we can support our clients and partners to further reduce the pain points of crossborder payments and develop great user experiences for their customers.”

Visa says that Currencycloud will continue to operate from London under the existing management team.

Source: computerworld

18

Energy

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Committing to a just energy transition

By Eni

H

ow would you ensure that an energy business operating in over 60 countries and providing more than 30.000 jobs aligns with the world’s climate and development goals? Solid commitments and clear strategies play a key role.

The past year has shown that the fight against climate change and the commitment to a sustainable and just transition have now become clear guidelines for the global agenda, as more and more governments, as well as investors, prioritize them in their agendas.

The private sector has a crucial role to play, especially when we talk about the energy sector.

Aware of the challenges and opportunities the fight to climate change creates for people and businesses, energy company Eni wants to be an active part of a virtuous path of the energy sector.

For that, it needs to address a key challenge of its sector: ensuring everyone can have access to efficient and sustainable energy while reducing greenhouse gas emissions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement and working to abide the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To do that, the company is integrating environmental and social sustainability principles in the whole of its business plan, taking action along three main lines: operational excellence, carbon neutrality by 2050, and forging alliances for development.

To become carbon neutral in the next 30 years, Eni has drawn a medium and long-term plan that will target emissions produced throughout the entire life cycle of its products and use existing technologies for decarbonisation.

This means that by 2050, Eni will

sell only decarbonised energy products. To support its goals, the company will invest €5.7 billion by 2024 in decarbonisation, circular economy, renewables, and research and development.

“We are taking another step forward in boosting our transformation. We commit to the full decarbonisation of all our products and processes by 2050.

Our plan is concrete, detailed, economically sustainable and technologically proven,” said Claudio Descalzi, Eni CEO, when he presented the company’s 20212024 Strategic Plan earlier this year.

To get to 2050 goals, Eni’s decarbonisation targets include: • reducing the absolute GHG emissions by 25% by 2030,by 65% by 2040 (relative to 2018) and by 100% by 2050; • reducing the net carbon intensity of energy products sold by 15% by 2030 and, 40% by 2040 and by 100% by 2050; Reaching those targets will include a wide range of actions. To give a strong boost to sustainable mobility, the company will progressively increase the processing capacity of its biorefining plants, which has already doubled since 2019, and, starting from 2023, will no longer use palm oil as raw material. It will increase renewable energy capacity to 60 GW by 2050 and reduce hydrocarbon production in the medium term, with a relative increase in the share of natural gas. Hydrogen will power Eni biorefineries and other highly energy-intensive industrial activities.

Carbon capture and storage is also part of Eni’s decarbonising

strategy, as the company wants to create worldwide storage hubs to decarbonise its plants and refineries and third-party plants.

New technologies, such as Waste to Fuel that converts urban waste into bio-oil and biomethane will play an increasingly important role. Eni has also launched innovative systems that can access to clean, safe and inexhaustible energy sources, such as the transformation of wave energy into electricity and the confinement fusion of two hydrogen nuclei – still in the experimental stage – that generates energy without greenhouse gases emissions.

To further reduce its carbon footprint toward net-zero, Eni is also investing in REDD+ forestry projects which protect primary and secondary forests in Africa, South Asia, and Latin America, targeting to offset more than 6 metric tons of CO2 per year (MTPA) by 2024 and over 40 MTPA by 2050.

To be successful in the energy transition, a collaborative approach is essential. Indeed, companies and public actors, as well as civil society organizations, must work together to shape ad hoc solutions for each economic entity and for each country, as there is no one unique path towards carbon neutrality. That is why Eni is strengthening its alliances in the countries it works in to promote development and meet the needs of local communities in line with national development plans and the UN 2030 Agenda. What sets the company apart is its “Dual Flag” strategy it uses in partner countries, which means Eni constantly interacts with local institutions and stakeholders to improve livelihoods and create

new growth opportunities.

Through its Local Development Programmes (LDPs), Eni invests in energy access, economic diversification, training, community health, water and sanitation access and land protection, aligning with the national and regional contexts and international sustainability agendas.

During the pandemic, the company has also boosted its alliances and partnerships, as it worked closely with countries to track the health of local communities and address healthcare and education issues, social protection, or basic necessities’ access. For instance, to promote local sustainable development, Eni is working closely with the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and food banks to improve food security in Nigeria, with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to improve access to sustainable energy and mitigate climate change across African countries, and with the UN’s Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) to improve youth employment and agrifood chains in countries like Mozambique and Congo.

In 2020, Eni has also started new collaborations with civil society organisations such as AMREF, AVSI, CUAMM, and VIS, which will help create local partnerships that improve energy access, economic diversification, education, access to utilities and healthcare especially for vulnerable groups.

The group is also developing participatory projects with Indigenous communities and their representatives to make sure that energy projects and infrastructure respect the rights of the local peoples.

19

Banking

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Ecobank CEO tops banks CEOs media visibility ranking for Q1&Q2 – IBNA Research BANKS CEO VISIBILITY RANKING: Q1&Q2, 2021 70 60 50

IBNA Data Basis Analysis of 5,941 News Total News Stories- 240 Total News Statements- 12,708 Medium: Print, Radio, TV Period: Q1&Q2, 2021 Code Validity-85%

40 30 20 10

BANKS CEOs VISIBILITY

of communications linked to a banking CEO’s brand identity.

In addition, the IBNA’s CEO Media Visibility Matrix is designed to establish how news narratives impacts on a CEO’s personality, communication styles, corporate style, corporate philosophy within the industry.

Also, strategic communication rhetoric is measured: What is a CEO’s public projection sentiments associated with a banking brand? How often is a CEO directly quoted in a news narrative? How often is a CEO’s corporate voice paraphrase in a news narrative? How often is a CEO given a vivid quote in news narrative and does CEOs voices linked to the corporate vision and mission? How often is a CEO’s news narrative associated with a brand’s logo or a CEO’s picture? What constitute CEO’s picture themes in terms of color, posture, news angle placement – is it 45 degree or 90 degrees?

Finding answers to this communication rhetoric is critical for the strategic management of CEO’s media visibility. Banking CEO’s media visibility is not about a mechanical presentation across media platforms but a promotional strategy.

IBNA therefore encourages Banks corporate communication

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EO’s identity is intrinsically linked to the organic identity and culture of an organisation. As such, CEOs acts as the central nerves and guardians of the values, purpose and strategies of an organisation.

Furthermore, CEOs sets brands transformations in the context of strategy and business model for an overall brand impact in a competitive business market.

Another significance of a CEO’s identity is how it impacts on the corporate identity as a whole.

The fact is, corporate identities are supposed to remain in a stable balance than to be seen as static.

CEO’s role is to a larger extent, ensuring that each attribute of a CEO identity drives the static state of a brand and the corporate into a competitive edge of uttermost stability.

Banking sector thrives on a strong consumer trust.

Subsequently, banking CEOs identity has the tendency of influencing banking sector consumer trust.

It is therefore imperative for banking sector communication departments to be concerned with how their CEO-identity is exposed through the media to consumers and prospective customers and investor relations.

It is against the backdrop of the impact and importance of banking CEOs’ visibility in consumer relations, investor relations and on the organisation that the Institute of Brands Narratives Analysis (IBNA), a strategic media intelligence agency in Accra conducted a study on the media coverage of Ghana Banks’ CEOs. The study was conducted under IBNA’s CEOs Media Visibility Index Score Card (IBNAMVISC) in the first and the second quarter of 2021. The study results ranked Ecobank Ghana, the PanAfrican Bank CEO, Mr Dan Sackey topping the Top 10 Ghana Banks CEO media visibility ranking for Q1 &Q2, 2021.

The Ghana Banks CEOs Media Visibility Index is a quantitative deconstructive analysis that seeks to evaluate every single news narrative statement associated with a banking CEO within the scope of the selected media platform.

This analysis is performed against IBNA’s tools for measuring CEO attributes by assigning numerical values to symbols

IBNA’s CEOs Media Visibility Index Score Card (IBNA-MVISC), 2021:

D

By: Messan Mawugbe (PhD)

PERCENTAGE %

departments to adopt CEOpromotion strategy through mechanisms of turning CEO’s activities and stories into brandlife and brand-style news narrative as a way of sustaining brand health. Certainly, there is the challenge of CEO-Media shyness.

Notwithstanding that, CEOs should be well informed about how their voices and articulations contributes to brand health, brand reputation, and subsequently brand-consumertrust.

Many banking CEOs in Ghana have a catch up to do on their overall media visibility. IBNA’s study on the Ghana Banks CEOs Media Visibility for Q1 and Q2, 2021 revealed the following CEObrands visibilities: Among the 23 banking CEOs representing the 23 banks in Ghana, woefully, only 9 (39%) banks’ CEOs gained media visibility for the period of Q1 and Q2, 2021. This is not encouraging for Ghana’s competitive business sector such as banking.

Ecobank Ghana CEO, Mr Dan Sackey pulled 69 (25%) to gain the most visible CEO position.

The 2nd position slot was gained by Mr Victor Yaw Asante of FBNBANK with 63 (23%), GCB Bank CEO Mr Kofi Adomakoh

recorded 38 (14%) for the 3rd position. ADB Bank CEO, (Mr) Dr John Kofi Mensah who topped the IBNA’s 2020 Annual CEO Media Visibility Index recorded 36 (13%) for a 4th position. I guess ADB Bank is working hard to maintain their enviable 2020 visibility position.

The 5th position through to the 9th position were recorded by the following respectively: STANBIC Bank CEO, Mr Kwamina Asomaning 29 (10%), Mr Olumide Olatunji, the CEO of Access Bank Ghana gained 24 (9%), Mrs Abena Osei Poku, the CEO of ABSA Bank of Ghana also had 8 (3%) scores, Mr Julian Opuni, the CEO of Fidelity Bank had 6 (2%), Mrs Mansa Nettey, the CEO of STANCHART Bank scored 2 (1%).

Each of these Banks CEOs has actually what it takes to be media visible and are therefore encourage to inch their visibility strategy up since CEO’s media visibility corresponds to Brand value and Brand visibility.

The writer is a lecturer at the Communications Studies Department of the University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA) and Founder of the Institute of Brands Narrative Analysis (IBNA) a strategic media intelligence agency: Email- nekzy@yahoo.com

20

Aviation

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Emirates launches new passenger service to Miami

E

mirates is connecting global business and leisure travellers with its firstever passenger service between Dubai and Miami. The airline celebrated the inaugural flight of its four times a week service when it touched down in Miami at 1100hrs local time yesterday.

Emirates flight EK213 was welcomed by Miami International Airport with a water cannon salute, and drew in an audience of passengers, aviation fans and guests. For the first flight, the airline operated its popular Boeing 777 Gamechanger, and on the ground, showcased the interiors of the aircraft to guests, featuring its highly popular First Class private suites. With floor to ceiling sliding doors and sleek design features inspired by the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Emirates’ First Class suites on the Gamechanger offer up to 40 square feet of personal space each, and ultra-modern design features.

The airline will subsequently operate its three-class Boeing 777300ER on the route, featuring eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie flat seats in Business Class and 304 spacious seats in Economy Class for the four times a week service.

Along with Orlando, the new service to Miami provides an additional access point to and from Florida and expands Emirates’ US network to 12 destinations on over 70 weekly flights, providing more choice and convenient

connections from the Emirates network to Southern Florida. It also links travellers from Miami, as well as Southern Florida, South America and the Caribbean to over 50 points across the Middle East, West Asia, Africa, Far East and the Indian Ocean Islands via Dubai.

“We are excited to welcome new Emirates flights to MIA as we expand business and leisure traveling options for Miami-Dade residents and visitors, connecting them with new cultures and growing economies,” says MiamiDade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “Opening our doors to new visitors from Dubai and adding to our growing list of worldwide destinations continues to consolidate MIA as a global travel hub.”

Essa Sulaiman Ahmed, Emirates’ Divisional Vice President, USA and Canada said: “We are thrilled to start our longanticipated service between Dubai and Miami for travellers.

We expect that the service will be popular with our customers

who are seeking new experiences as countries like the UAE and US advance their vaccination drives and the world safely opens up for international travel.”

With the greater access that the new Miami service provides, we expect it to generate high demand, enhancing business, cruising and leisure traffic and forging more economic and tourism ties between both cities and beyond.

We are committed to growing our operations into the US in line with increasing air travel demand and would like to thank the authorities and our partners in Miami for their support and look forward to providing our unique product and award-winning service to travellers.”

“We proudly welcome Emirates to MIA, and we greatly look forward to welcoming their passengers from Dubai, the Middle East, and points across the globe,” Ralph Cutié, Miami International Airport Interim Director. “Emirates is without question one of the leading airlines in our industry, and

Dubai has become one of the world’s most popular cities for leisure and business travel. As our local and connecting passengers continue returning to air travel, we are pleased to now offer them Emirates’ world-class service to Dubai,” he said.

William D. Talbert III, CDME, President & CEO Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau said Emirates’ first flight from Dubai to Miami is a true testament to Greater Miami’s positioning as a global gateway and world-class destination.

“As we safely reopen to international visitors, we’re excited to welcome the Emirates customer who is sure to appreciate our diverse cosmopolitan metropolis, surrounding waters and pristine beaches, and perfect year round weather.”

To celebrate the new service, Emirates extended its signature onboard service to include specially crafted mocktails and cocktails on the airline’s food and beverage menu, and customers across all cabins enjoyed a zesty key lime pie dessert to round off their meal. To transform the inflight experience on the way to Miami, mood lighting was set to the signature red, white and blue US colours upon boarding and arrival. Customers in all classes enjoyed the 4,500 channels selection of on-demand entertainment on ice, including a Miami inspired musical playlist, as well as Wi-Fi and Live TV.

Ethiopian enhances its chat-bot for domestic and international services

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thiopian Airlines Group, the Largest Aviation Group in Africa, is pleased to introduce an upgraded chat-bot for domestic and international flight uses. The Ethiopian chatbot, dubbed “Lucy” is equipped with various self-service features that will enable passengers to easily process their travel needs.

Passengers can simply use their mobile to book, pay, check-in, check flight status, get information on free and excess baggage and Live Chat through the chat-bot.

The chat-bot is available in both Amharic and English languages with Ethiopian calendar installed for Amharic language users.

Beyond the previous features that were limited only for domestic flight services, the new enhanced Ethiopian chat-bot is expanded with more features to provide services to both domestic

and international flight users with multiple payment options.

Among the new features included in the chat-bot is an option where passengers can send their feedback.

Regarding the upgraded chat bot, Ethiopian Director Integrated Marketing Communications,

Mr. Mesfin Biru said, “We are constantly working on ways to improve our accessibility to our customers. Our main goal is to secure simplicity and convenience in the services we provide.

With the upgraded chat-bot, passengers will have additional option to process their travel

globally at their convenience.”

Easily accessible on telegram and messenger, the chat-bot is expected to have a vital role in simplifying travelers’ experience.

“Lucy”, the Ethiopian chat bot is an additional online platform of the airline along with Ethiopian website and mobile app.

21

Feature

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

The changing map of economics

By Kaushik Basu

T

he global economy and capitalism are at a crossroads, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, the rise of digital technology, and the changing nature of labor markets.

Understanding this new world will require major breakthroughs in economic thinking, and closer scrutiny of some of the discipline’s core assumptions.

The International Economic Association’s triennial World Congress has long been one of the most important global gatherings of economists, owing to its success in bringing together researchers and policymakers from the poorest to the wealthiest corners of the world. The 19th edition of the event earlier this month, albeit held via Zoom instead of in person, was no exception.

One recurring theme of this year’s Congress was that the global economy and capitalism are at a crossroads. While the COVID-19 crisis was the immediate impetus for this view, other major shifts – from climate change and the rise of digital technology to the changing nature of labor markets – have been increasingly salient. The pandemic has merely accelerated these shifts or thrown them into sharper relief.

COVID-19 has forced us into one kind of “learning by doing,” an idea that the Nobel laureate economist Kenneth J. Arrow, who emphasized that much learning “is the product of experience,” developed in the abstract a long time ago. We have learned to give lectures and hold conferences

by Zoom, and to make complex decisions in meetings conducted via Webex. People have suddenly realized that they had been spending more time than necessary in the office, and that they can do much of their work

from home. And we have learned to shop at home, too, via digital platforms.

As a result, demand for office and retail space will fall, even after the pandemic. And because more people will have the freedom to work remotely, property prices will gradually rise where they were previously low and fall where they were high, leading to greater leveling.

On the other hand, salary disparities will increase, because the labor market will tend to be more of a common pool with heightened competition for talent. Most important, globalization, after some initial stumbles, will accelerate, with rapid growth in cross-country outsourcing. This is likely to have a significant effect on labor markets, national politics, and the nature of conflict.

Understanding this new world will require major breakthroughs in economic thinking. Economics normally proceeds by contesting the explicit assumptions and axioms on which theory is built.

But all scientific disciplines also have hidden assumptions that are so deeply embedded that we do not state them explicitly and often forget they exist. In their celebrated research in the 1950s that provided a formal structure for understanding Adam Smith’s idea of the “invisible hand,” for example, Arrow and fellow Nobel laureate Gérard Debreu showed the many assumptions that were needed for Smith’s conjecture to be valid.

There were other assumptions that were taken for granted – simply part of the woodwork of economics – including the symmetry of knowledge among buyers and sellers. One of the biggest breakthroughs of modern economics was the insight that knowledge is often asymmetric, and that this asymmetry can

shatter the invisible hand. This breakthrough earned Joseph E. Stiglitz, George Akerlof, and Michael Spence the 2001 Nobel prize in economics, and led to new forms of regulation that made the modern economy possible. We owe many of our regulations concerning quality control and product standards to this breakthrough, which showed definitively that the market’s invisible hand cannot ensure standards when information is asymmetric.

It remains to be seen what form the economics profession’s new intellectual discoveries will take and what regulations we will need to apply them. What is clear is that the strain humanity has imposed on the environment means growth as we currently know it cannot be sustained. But that does not mean we have to learn to live with lower growth. In fact, I believe future growth will be faster than we have seen thus far.

The lower-growth camp’s mistake stems from a common misunderstanding of GDP or national income. A higher GDP is often taken to indicate more wasteful consumption and consumerism of the kind we are indulging in now. But that need not – and now must not – be the case.

The consumption of more art, music, and learning, as well as better health and greater longevity, are all components of GDP, and are, or can be, environmentally friendly.

Reforming our regulatory system can foster rapid GDP growth – but with the content of GDP changing dramatically, and with a disproportionate amount of human labor directed to creative activities. The nature of reform for the new world is a big topic, but policymakers will need to focus on curricula that nurture

creativity, because routine work will increasingly be automated; shift consumption away from environmentally wasteful goods; and redistribute wealth radically to lessen inequalities.

My recent research on group morality, however, highlights a caveat that we must address.

When discussing matters like climate change and current global inequities, we urge people to be other-regarding. In other words, they should not be concerned solely about their own well-being but also consider the welfare of the current poor and future generations who will be affected by our decisions.

But as moral philosophers have long known, group morality is a problematic concept. I have recently tried to address the “Samaritan’s Curse,” whereby a future generation can end up being hurt when all individuals today take its well-being into consideration. This problem, like the prisoner’s dilemma but in the moral domain, can potentially defeat our best intentions.

So, the road ahead will not be easy. Economists and society as a whole must confront profound intellectual and moral challenges in order to come to grips with the changing world. But humans have done it before. One can only hope that our intelligence and resolve enable us to do it again.

Kaushik Basu, a former chief economist of the World Bank and chief economic adviser to the Government of India, is Professor of Economics at Cornell University and a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

22

BUSINESS24.COM.GH MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

NO. B24 / 226 | NEWS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

MONDAY MAY 3, 2021

MONDAY JULY 26, 2021

Republic Bank sees 77% jump in after-tax profit

R

epublic Bank Ghana, one of the country’s most diversified lenders, posted a net profit after tax of GH¢43.16m in the first half of 2021, up an astonishing 77 percent year-onyear, according to unaudited financial statements published last week.

The bank’s operating income rose by 14.5 percent to GH¢180.89m, driven by a 17.6 percent increase in net interest income to GH¢138.86m, with revenue from fees and commissions improving by 9.5 percent to GH¢23.78m.

Net trading income—the other key revenue stream—stood at GH¢10.62m, slightly below the GH¢10.82m posted last year.

The statements also revealed strong cost management as a principal driver of the net profit growth, with Republic’s total expenses falling by 3.6 percent to GH¢116.55m. A major contributor to the cost containment was a 55 percent drop in net impairment losses on financial assets, which

declined to GH¢8.04m at the end of June 2021 from GH¢17.84m a year ago.

On balance sheet performance, total assets grew by 9.1 percent to GH¢3.75bn, propelled by a 34 percent increase in investment securities while loans and advances to customers grew by

5.2 percent. The slow growth in lending mirrors an industrywide trend as banks attempt to navigate the heightened credit risks occasioned largely by the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Customer deposits increased by 7.7 percent to GH¢2.83bn, while

total shareholders’ equity went up by 12.1 percent to GH¢651.39m.

Republic also reported a nonperforming loans ratio of 17.4 percent, about the same as a year ago (17.5 percent), while its capital adequacy ratio improved to 26.3 percent from 25.7 percent.

Dr. George Acheampong shares insight on agribusiness in Ghana

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Senior Lecturer at the Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), Dr. George Acheampong, delivered an insightful lecture on the theme, “4 Steps to Starting and Succeeding in Agribusiness as a side business”.

This lecture, which was held online, was organised by the

United States Embassy Public Affairs Section.

The lecture sought to highlight entrepreneurial opportunities that exist in the agricultural sector in Ghana.

Dr. Acheampong indicated that the objective of his presentation was to give people a paradigm shift from the established perception of the agricultural sector, using a perspective that can help them

succeed in their agribusinesses.

Focusing on the agricultural factsheet-crop, Dr. Acheampong disclosed that agriculture employs over 48% of Ghana’s workforce according to 2016 statistics, and Ghana has 65% of their land being arable.

However, he noted that there are always food shortages in the country. He revealed that lots of farmers in the country are

subsistent and not commercial.

“Most of these food producers rely on our normal rains which is very dangerous”, he said.

He continued by discussing some of the challenges of agriculture in Ghana and opined that these challenges include the lack of formal management, lack of access to a ready market, irrigational difficulties, and few extension services such as lack of farmer educational opportunities in the agribusiness.

Dr. George Acheampong stated some frameworks for engaging in side-businesses.

He explained a side-business as an enterprise where individuals engage in aside their routine ‘8-5’ jobs.

According to Dr. Acheampong, there are two major considerations an individual must make before going into a side-business and these are the resource commitment and the scalability of the business.

However, he advised that in venturing into a side-business, a person must try and go with their means, take the risk he or she can afford, share risks, and most importantly, pivot with feedback.