GRi Business, Economics & Finance 18 - 07 - 2002
Ghana and Norway sign Memorandum to expand Ghana Telecom network
Western Region hosts investors
Ghana to process 40 per cent of cocoa beans
by 2005
Accra (Greater Accra) 18 July 2002-The government would formulate adequate policies for the processing of at least 40 per cent of the country's cocoa produced by the year 2005, Hon. Yaw Osafo Maafo, Minister of Finance said on Wednesday. He mentioned that the government would initiate measures to attract investors and establish more processing plants in order to make the cocoa processing industry viable.
Currently, about 19 per cent of the country's annual average production of 400,000 metric tonnes, which is less than three per cent of the world production was being processed. Mr Osafo Maafo said these when he launched a book entitled: "The Success Story of Cocoa Processing and Chocolate manufacturing in Ghana - The Success Story that demolished a myth."
Mr Paul Kwame Awua, Managing Director of the Cocoa Processing Company Limited, authored the book. It places emphasis on the production of quality cocoa in Ghana, statistics on world production of the crop, processing and consumption of cocoa products and confectionery items as well as the processing and marketing of semi-finished and finished products.
The book also talks on the nutritional value of and health benefits of cocoa and chocolate products and gives answers to the growing concerns and doubts raised about the health implications of consuming the products. Its front cover depicts cocoa beans and cocoa products, a manufacturing site and a farmer harvesting the crop, set out in a forest background.
Mr Osafo Maafo said in processing cocoa beans, "It is necessary to create linkages between companies in the industry so that one company could take over from where another left of." The minister described Mr Awua's book as "an encyclopaedia on cocoa production and processing in Ghana".
He said the book presented a holistic picture of the operations of the cocoa industry, indicating that processing cocoa beans was not only advantageous but also commercially viable. Hon. Osafo Maafo said the book constitutes a tool for investment and a guide to greater participation in the processing of cocoa beans into products for local consumption and for export.
Mr Awua, a trained Biochemist, said he was not motivated by financial consideration in writing the book, adding that it was aimed at helping in disabusing the minds of people who held the view that processing cocoa in Ghana was not economically viable. "It is sad that this view is still being held by some responsible and influential people in the country who could advice the government in formulating polices to enable the industry add value to the cocoa beans before export," he observed.
He suggested that the country should process more than 50 per cent of its cocoa beans locally considering the performance of the Cocoa Processing Company and the benefits the country had derived from its operations,' he added. The first copy of the book was auctioned at 20 million cedis.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 July 2002- The Government of Ghana and Telenor Management Partners AS (TMP), a telecommunication company of Norway, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand a fixed network of Ghana Telecom by a minimum of 400,000 fixed lines within two to three years.
The expansion is to extend telephone services to every town with a Senior Secondary School or Teacher Training College for Internet and other applications.
This information was contained in a statement the Ministry of Communication and Technology issued in Accra and defined "a fixed line as any technology, which allowed one to make broad band telephone connection to the computer so that voice, high-speed data transfer, the Internet applications, including video streaming could be transmitted at competitive tariffs."
The Government of Ghana on its part is expected to facilitate access to Ghana Telecom as well as all information needed for implementation of the assignment, which Telenor is enjoined to accomplish. On the other hand, Telenor of Norway is also expected to address issues such as provision of management expertise and technical services to facilitate the positioning of Ghana Telecom in the Global market, improvement of the quality of service on the existing and proposed telephone infrastructure.
Telenor is again expected to improve existing infrastructure to broadband so as to facilitate the introduction of multi-media applications including the Internet, e-commerce among other things. The statement said Telenor was required to develop in co-operation with the authorities in Ghana, effective methods for the investigation of malpractice in the Telecom sector.
Among other issues to be addressed by the Norwegian company are, the issue of human resource development strategy, programmes to extend services to under-serviced areas, content of Performance Bond and proposed products and services for Ghana Telecom. The statement said the Minister of Communication and Technology had thrown light on efforts being made by the Government of Ghana, to invite strategic investment into Ghana Telecom.
It said, the Minister said after considering the proposals received from the 12 interested investors, government invited Messrs TELENOR MANAGEMENT PARTNERS (TMP) of Norway for negotiations. The statement said this involved the finalisation of the MOU for the development of a business plan needed for the implementation of the Assignment as contained in the advertisement.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 18 July 2002- The All-Share Index of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) on Wednesday finished trading up by a mere 0.02 points when bearish sentiments of inactive trading saw only 49,500 shares changing hands.
The market index inched up from 1,246.00 points to 1,246.02 points on the back of nine cedis gain registered by Mobil Oil Ghana Limited (MOGL). Share price of the equity appreciated at the last trading by as high as
99 cedis.
Shares traded dropped again from 55,300 to 49,500. The highest number of shares of more than half the quantity sold (28,500) went to investors of Ghana Commercial Bank whose shares have seen the highest capital appreciation in the past few months.
Market capitalisation closed mid-week trading at 4,734,90 billion cedis.
In the broader market, there was only one positive change.
MOGL gained nine cedis to close trading at 19,610 cedis.
The following are the last prices of listed equities in cedis:
ABL 370
AGC 18,800
ALW 4,000
BAT 930
CFAO 63
EIC 4,200
FML 1,617
GBL 900
GCB 3,265
GGL 910
HFC 955
MGL 253
MLC 255
MOGL 19,610 +9
PAF 750
PBC 440
PZ 1,750
SCB 21,652
SPPC 385
SSB 3,710
SWL 285
UNIL 3,800
CMLT 455
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Sekondi (Western Region) 18 July 2002- Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, Western Regional Minister, has said that prospective local and foreign investors in the region would be given adequate security and protection. He said the Region had viable resources in abundance and needed adequate financial capital to tap them for the mutual benefit of stakeholders.
The Regional Minister was speaking at a reception for a three-member delegation from Stone and Webster Investment Consultants in Scotland and a cross section of the business community in the region at Sekondi on Tuesday night. The delegation was in the region to study the investment climate as a follow up to an earlier visit by a group of Scottish investors in April.
Mr Aidoo emphasised that with the evolving democratic dispensation and the determination of the Government to turn around the country's fortunes, investors' security was of high priority and being taken care of.He told the group that the country was peaceful more than ever before.
Mr Latheridge Asamoah, Co-ordinator between the group and the Western Regional Administration, said areas such as mining, agriculture and tourism had been identified for possible investment.
There was a photo exhibition of mineral deposits, timber, agriculture, crude oil and tourism potentials of the region. An hour's documentary on the region was also shown. The group, which arrived in the region on Monday, visited the Takoradi Port, Ghana Railway Company and tourism sites in the region.
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