Business

Small and medium businesses based and owned by women in Ghana are expected to receive support to boost their businesses under the auspices of Women’s Empowerment and Investment Group (WEIG) in partnership with Annan Capital Partners (ACP) and GUBA.

The seed investment is part of an initiative to uplift SMBs currently affected by the coronavirus pandemic, a press statement noted.

Applications for the initiative is expected to commence from the 1st of June 2020.

The Women’s Empowerment & Investment Group (WEIG) is a women-led and majority owned Ghanaian Investment Holding Company set up to efficiently channel capital and expertise into high-potential Small & Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) that prioritize female empowerment & entrepreneurship.

WEIG does this by making permanent capital investments in women focused greenfield and brownfield businesses/business opportunities in Africa’s “KINGS”, economies namely Kenya, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal of which Ghana remains a primary focus country, the release further adds.

Commenting on the strategic agenda for the initiative, co-founder and CEO of WEIG, Adeline Akufo-Addo Kufuor said : “Through our local and international value adding networks we aim to assist women to create long term wealth for themselves”.

The Managing Partner of Annan Capital Partners (ACP)- Robert Annan, also stated : “We are excited to support Female-led SMEs in Ghana with investment and infrastructure to support their long term growth and development.”

Annan Capital Partners (ACP) is a specialized boutique investment and advisory company active in industries such as energy, health, education, real estate, agribusiness, technology and more. They work to provide businesses with professional and insightful investment strategies that preserve their capital and diversify their investment in sectors which will give an appreciable return on their investments.

The funding initiative is in line with their objectives and is incredibly significant given the current pandemic and its effect on small businesses.

Dentaa Amoateng MBE, President of the GUBA Enterprise stressed on the importance of the initiative “Coronavirus has greatly affected a number of business especially, small and medium businesses.

This initiative is not only timely but incredibly necessary to help women businesses get back on track. GUBA Enterprise through the GUBA Expo works to provide a platform for the elevation of small and medium enterprises therefore, we are glad to be in partnership on this project. We encourage all suitable businesses to apply”- she added.

The seed investment available under this initiative ranges from 15,000 to 30,000 Ghana Cedis.

Businesses that meet the eligibility criteria are encouraged to apply via https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Q99B669 from the 1st of June till the 1st of August 2020.

This initiative is one of the many ways to help boost women businesses and the Ghanaian economy as a whole.

Source: thebusiness24online

The Bank of Ghana has released an amount of GH¢5.5 billion as first tranche of the GH¢10 billion of the COVID-19 Relief Bond, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta announced in Parliament in Accra on Thursday.

In a memo to the House, the Minister said, the programme, launched earlier by the Government of Ghana is to trigger the emergency financing provision as result of challenges brought on by COVID-19 pandemic.

“Given the exceptional circumstances and the challenges, the Minister of Finance, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana and the Controller and Accountant General as required under Section 30 of the Bank of Ghana (Act 612) as amended have agreed to trigger the emergency financing provision under the law, which permits increasing the limit on the purchase of Government securities by Bank of Ghana in the event of any emergency, to help finance the residual expenditures,” the Minister said.

The GH¢ 5.5 billion first installment of the bond was released on May 15, 2020.
With high hopes of Ghana’s economy to rebound after the pandemic, Mr Ofori-Atta characteristically, and in a prayerful tone made biblical allusions with hope in God that Ghana would regain its economic strength.

The Minister said some of the financing measures identified by the Government include IMF Rapid Credit Facility of US$1 billion, World Bank Development Policy Operation (DPO) of US$350 million, Stabilization Fund US$ 219 million but that still results in a residual financing gap of about GH¢17.9 billion to be sourced from both domestic and external markets.

He said as a result of the pandemic with its attendant domestic market challenges there has been a reduction in liquidity on the market, with sell-off by non-resident investors.

“Therefore financing the residual gaps would not only significantly increase interest rates but would be counterproductive by denying the private sector access to cheaper sources of financing,” the Minister said.

Additionally, global financing conditions have also worsened and investors have negative sentiments towards emerging markets, which is making the international capital market remaining largely closed to emerging markets issuances.

However, Minority Leader and MP for Tamale South Haruna Iddrisu threw a jab at the Government saying, it was borrowing excessively and urged the Government to declare “Ghana Beyond Borrowing” rather than the policy of “Ghana Beyond Aid.”

The position of the Minority leader was challenged by the Majority Leader and MP for Suame, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, who was of the opinion that the move by the Government was a novelty and in no way contravenes the Bank of Ghana Act.

Source: GNA

Government is preparing to institute a roadmap for the easing of restrictions on movement, and both economic and social activities, following the conclusion of Coronavirus (COVID-19) stakeholder consultations.

A final decision on how and when to reopen Ghana’s borders, and ease restrictions on hospitality sector activities, social gatherings including church services, conferences and workshops among others is expected to be made public shortly.

Discussions between government and key groups notably the private sector associations and religious bodies have focused on designing a pact that seeks to restore the socio-economic activities of people whiles containing the disease by way of adhering strictly to the safety protocols to avoid further rise in infections.

Last week, the President, Nana Akufo-Addo mentioned that it was imperative the country found new ways of restoring economic life, insisting that “we cannot be under these restrictions forever”.

Reports gathered indicate that the hospitality industry – one of the worst hit by the COVID-19 as a result of the ban on social gatherings – is expected to see an easing of restrictions as hotels, restaurants among others are anxiously anticipating an end to restrictions in the sector.

Ghana Tourism Authority had earlier paved way for resumption of business in the hospitality industry, but the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture subsequently quashed the directive.

Indeed, while many actors in the education sector assert that it is important to still delay reopening of schools to avoid further infections, some groups, especially religious bodies, have been lobbying for reopening of churches in June.

A number of European countries – previously the global epicenter of the disease – have begun easing restrictions on movement of persons to restore partial economic activity as the growth rates of new infections and deaths reduce.

However, the situation is by far different in Ghana as the country’s case count of Coronavirus infections keeps surging, now surpassing 7,300.

Despite this, government is expected to initiate steps and processes that will see to a gradual restoration of economic activity whiles still trying to contain the disease at the same time.

Key Highlights

Collapse of businesses coupled with loss of jobs are some major shocks this new global pandemic is ravaging on world economies and countries in sub-Sahara Africa are projected to be the most affected.

It is estimated that COVID-19 will cost the region between US$37 billion and US$79 billion in output losses for 2020 due to a combination of adverse effects.

They include trade and value chain disruptions, which impact commodity exporters and countries with strong value chain participation; reduced foreign financing flows from remittances, tourism, foreign direct investment, foreign aid, combined with capital flight; and direct impacts on health systems, as well as disruptions caused by containment measures and the public response.

Source: goldstreetbusiness

The government still faces a residual Covid-19-induced financing gap of GH¢17.9bn, despite receiving combined funding of US$1.57bn from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the Ghana Stabilisation Fund, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has told Parliament.

To help finance the gap without crowding out the private sector, which itself is reeling from the coronavirus shock, the government has resorted to central bank financing via a GH¢10bn Covid-19 Relief Bond programme, out of which the bank released GH¢5.5bn to the finance ministry on May 15.

Presenting a report to lawmakers in Accra on Thursday on government’s decision to seek extra funds to weather the pandemic, Mr. Ofori-Atta argued that the sustainability of the country’s macroeconomic growth coupled with shortfalls in revenues, additional emergency spending and tight financing conditions necessitated the bond programme.

The emergency financing from the central bank is consistent with the provisions of Section 30 of the Bank of Ghana Act 2002, he noted.

He said preliminary assessments—taking into consideration the revenue shortfall impact, direct health-related spending, additional expenditures including programmed expenditures for the Coronavirus Alleviation Programme, the payment of outstanding government claims to health-related sectors of the economy (National Insurance Trust Fund), and identified government intervention programmes—have put the pandemic-induced fiscal gap at about GH¢21.42bn.

This is made up of a revenue shortfall impact of GH¢15.85bn in addition to COVID-19 related expenses of GH¢5.57bn.

The coupon rate for the Covid-19 Relief Bond is pegged to the monetary policy rate, currently at 14.5 percent, and the bond has a 10-year tenor and a two-year moratorium on both principal and interest payments.

Mr. Ofori-Atta said government will introduce remedial measures to reduce its indebtedness to the central bank. These include revenue mobilisation enhancement measures, an expenditure rationalisation and prioritisation programme, and a strategy to broaden the investor base to access cheaper sources of financing.

A further measure is a policy to revise the primary dealer guidelines and introduce a bond market specialist as a basis for developing the domestic debt market.

Government has so far received a US$1bn IMF Rapid Credit Facility, US$350m World Bank support, and US$219m drawn from the Stabilisation Fund, all aimed at shoring up funds to cushion the economic impact of the virus since March this year.

Work done by the finance ministry and Bank of Ghana on the initial potential impact of the pandemic on various sectors of the economy showed that 2020 real GDP growth will slow down from the projected 6.8 percent to 1.5 percent, with lingering effects on economic activity into 2021 and beyond, Mr. Ofori-Atta said.

To address this, the ministry is developing a three-year Covid-19 Alleviation and Revitalisation of Enterprise Support Programme (The Ghana CARES Programme) to help stabilise and revitalise the economy.

Bond amounts to breach of law

Reacting to the Finance Minister’s report, Minority Leader in Parliament Haruna Iddrisu said the bond programme breached the Bank of Ghana Act, adding that the focus of the Finance Minister should be ensuring a “Ghana beyond borrowing”.

Ranking Member on the Finance Committee Ato Forson said the borrowing of GH¢10bn is unprecedented and requested that further details of the bond should be provided, as he stressed that the minority will continue to ask for accountability.

Source: thebusiness24online.ne

Moody’s, the ratings agency, has said the coronavirus pandemic is hastening a structural change in collective demand for oil, reducing the industry’s need to develop higher-cost reserves for reinvestment to support production levels and growth in the next three to five years.

Moody’s said it has reduced its medium-term oil price assumptions to US$45-$65/barrel (bbl), down from US$50-$70/ bbl.

“The price range reflects our view that oil prices will remain highly volatile, with periods outside the top or bottom ends of the range. Geopolitical issues or attempts to manage supply by the OPEC-plus group of oil-producing nations will also lead to price fluctuations from time to time,” it said.

According to Moody’s, government measures to reduce the spread of the coronavirus have restricted oil-intensive activities such as domestic and international air travel, which will recover more slowly than overall GDP.

High inventories of both oil and fuels globally will further slow the pace of recovery in oil demand and prices, it added.

In Ghana the government has predicted significant oil revenue losses due to the oil price collapse. Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta told Parliament in March that at an average crude oil price of US$30 per barrel this year, the government will register a shortfall in oil receipts amounting to GH?5.7bn.

The shortfall will lead to a reduction in the annual budget funding amount from petroleum revenues. It will also trigger a fall in transfers to the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) by GH?642m, according to finance ministry estimates, which is nearly 40 percent of the national oil company’s original budgetary allocation of GH?1.7bn.

Experts have predicted that the company may be compelled to seek external funds to shore up its revenue and finance key investments. International oil companies in Ghana, such as Irish major Tullow Oil, have announced cuts to capital expenditure for 2020 in the wake of the oil price decline.

In response to the exceptional decline in demand, Moody’s said the global oil industry has mobilised to implement significant production cuts—about 10 percent from December 2019 levels.

The OPEC-plus group of oil-producing nations has agreed to cut oil production for two years by about 7m barrels per day (bbl/day) from February 2020 levels, starting in May 2020.

The International Energy Association (IEA) estimates that by late 2020, world oil demand will return to levels some 6.5m bbl/day, or 6 percent, below pre-crisis levels.

Source: thebusiness24online.net

Market Queens at the Takoradi Market Circle in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) have welcomed the decision of the Assembly to introduce a shift system using coloured cards for traders as a means to stem the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Metropolis.

The market queens in the various markets were engaged by the Assembly, before arriving at the decision to introduce the shift system using coloured cards when the markets reopened.

Mr. Anthony K.K. Sam, Metropolitan Chief Executive of STMA, explained that the Sekondi-Takoradi Metro and the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assemblies held a joint Security Council meeting to review measures put in place to control the spread of COVID-19 in the Metropolitan area.

At the meeting, it was agreed that the Sekondi, Takoradi, Jubilee Park, Kojokrom and Effia Markets be close down to public from Thursday, May 28, to Wednesday, June 3, 2020.

He explained that while the markets remained closed, the various Assemblies would undertake fumigation and disinfection exercises.

The MCE noted that the recent increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in the Metropolis was due to a decision taken to get all staff of the Assembly, front line workers, health institutions and security agencies to a compulsory test for the COVID-19.

He indicated that initially some market women agreed to go to the Jubilee Park but later disregarded the move and went back to the Market Circle to sell whereas some members at the fishing harbour flouted the protocols.

Mr Sam disclosed that his outfit was looking for more centers to be used for quarantine, more security personnel, funds to support front line workers with PPEs as well as educate people on the need to implement more robust plans to stem the spread of the pandemic in the Metropolis.

The meeting agreed that the Takoradi Market would run three shifts thus, red, yellow and green coloured cards would be used, while the Sekondi, Kojokrom and Effia Markets would run two shifts using red and yellow cards.

Madam Rose Nyameye, a Market Queen who spoke to the Ghana News Agency in an interview, hinted that traders were doing their best to observe the protocols, but that there were some recalcitrant ones who relegated the protocols to the background, hence the need to close down the markets.

“I believe when this is done, the traders will learn their lessons and comply with the directives when the market is reopened. Our numbers keep rising and the authorities need to do something about it,” she opined.

Meanwhile, market women at the Effia Market in the Effia-Kwesimintim Municipal Assembly (EKMA) have pleaded with the city authorities to exempt them from the closure.

They have also pleaded with the city authorities to consider extending the closing date to enable them clear their stocks, which were already going bad.

A market woman, Madam Ayishetu Anas told the Ghana News Agency that the news about the closure came to them two days to the closure. It came as a surprise since they were doing their best to comply with the social distancing protocols.

Mr Philip Evans Nyarko, Assemblyman for the Effia Electoral Area, said Assembly Members were not consulted about the decision, but that it was necessary that the Effia Market was closed. If not all the people would troop there for trading and shopping when exempted, which may import COVID-19 cases into the Municipality.

He said the decision to close the markets was not an easy one to take, but looking at the fact that the Metropolis was becoming a hotspot for the pandemic, it was necessary for all strategies to be put in place to fight the menace.

He was of the view that the closure of the markets would inure to their good, as it would save lives and urged the market women to embrace it and refrain from the market during the period.

Mr. Nyarko noted that trading has not being banned and encouraged the traders to engage in neighbourhood trading, while observing the social distancing, wearing of nose mask, and the washing of hands especially after handling money to avoid possible infections.

Source: GNA

Ghanaian entrepreneur, Madam Josephine Marie Godwyll, is among eight entrepreneurs from sub-Saharan Africa, to be awarded funding to harness engineering and business skills of their organisations to help tackle the spread of COVID-19.

A statement issued by the British High Commission in Accra said the funding was initiated by the Royal Academy of Engineering in early April as the virulence and rapid transmission of COVID-19 gripped countries around the world.

The initiative is with the support of the UK Government’s funding through the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), and Project CARE (COVID Africa Rapid Entrepreneurs).

It said the Academy already works extensively with engineers across sub-Saharan Africa, and the new initiative was an extension of the partnership supporting small and medium engineering businesses to re-focus their work to help address the challenges of COVID-19.

It noted that the Project CARE initiative means that Young at Heart Ghana, run by Josephine Marie Godwyll and her team, are able to support children across Ghana to continue to learn remotely and safely despite COVID-19.

Commenting on Madam Godwyll’s success, Mr Iain Walker, British High Commissioner to Ghana said: “Project CARE has rightly recognised the agile and important contribution Josephine and her team at Young at Heart Ghana have made to the country’s education system.

“Their innovative work supplements the efforts of the Ministry of Education, to ensure that children across Ghana continue to access quality and vital education despite the restrictions and difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.”

The statement said more than 50 people applied for funding through Project CARE, and only eight were chosen to receive funding including entrepreneurs from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa as well as Ghana.

Each of the successful candidates received £5,000 to support them in scaling up their COVID response.

Talking about her work, Madam Godwyll said Remote learning platforms have never been more essential. The benefits of e-learning have been further illuminated not only as an alternative but a necessity due to the disruptions in traditional approaches to learning in these atypical times.

She said Ananse At Home, is a homeschooling program based on the ‘Ananse The Teacher’ e-learning platform, which uses stories and games to explore learning modules in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), art and literacy, through hands-on activities conducted with everyday materials found at home.”

“Designed with a full awareness of the constraints associated to access, the app can be deployed on both phones and computers through both online and offline engagement.

We believe this programme, which is part of the Lab and Library on Wheels project, is the kind of disruptive innovation that is needed especially in such a disruptive time.”

The statement said Madam Godwyll’s team have created the Ananse The Teacher App, which had been adapted into a home schooling program called Ananse@Home.

It said the free app provides a range of home-learning modules for children aged 8 – 14.

It intimated that these modules focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), as well as literacy and art.

Participants receive module instructions and activities every week.

It said the programme also enables parents, who were having to act as teachers, to access a network of teachers and mentors who can provide extra support and answer questions.

It said the Project CARE will continue to work with manufacturers and other partners to provide innovative answers to the challenged of COVID-19.

The resurgence of demand on the trading market has led to the cyclical depreciation of the Ghana cedi against three major trading currencies on the interbank currency market, according to data released by the IGS Financial Services.

According to the figures, the US dollar last week made a weekly gain of 0.05 percent to trade at GH¢5.62 on the interbank currency market with the year-to-date depreciation of the cedi consequently rose to 1.45 percent.

The Financial Services firm also notes the British Pound recovered from a seven-year low against major trading peers sustained by improving risk sentiments.

They add; “the Pound’s surge was driven by emerging reports of a successful COVID-19 vaccine trial by Moderna Inc. and the reopening of some global economies in the wake of the coronavirus lockdowns.”

Additionally, the British Pound appreciated by 0.59 percent to sell at GH¢6.85 on the interbank currency market with the year-to-date appreciation of cedi therefore easing to 6.50 percent.

For the Euro, it firmed on account of the release of upbeat economic data and proposals of a euro-recovery fund.

The Euro appreciated by 0.76 percent to trade at GH¢6.12 with its year-to-date appreciation of the cedi also declined to 1.54 percent.