Rural banks on threshold of commercial banking
Kumasi (Ashanti Region) 02 June 2003 - The Association of Building and Civil Contractors of Ghana (ABCCG) on Monday accused the Regional Co-ordinating Councils (RCCs) and district assemblies for ''lack of transparency and nepotism in the award of contracts.''
It said the practice by the RCCs and the assemblies to award projects through selective tender and not competitive bidding was 'totally unacceptable, disgusting and scandalous'.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Ashanti Region branch of the Association at the end of its general meeting in Kumasi at the weekend.
The Regional Chairman, Kwame Afreh and the Regional vice-Chairman, Opoku Agyemang Prempeh, signed the statement. ''Those to whom jobs are being dished out in almost all cases tend not to possess the capacity, competence and equipment for efficient project execution.''
"It is regrettable that the mistakes of the past, which resulted in shoddy projects all over the country are being repeated''. The statement said the ''Association expected that with the new political administration, the practice where contracts were the exclusive preserve of cronies of the big men was going to change but it appears we got it all wrong''.
The Association said it was surprised that its members who had been in the construction business over the years and had the expertise to ensure that quality work was done, continued to be sidelined when it comes to job awards.
"We find it a bit odd when the RCC and the assemblies come to us and ask for help to trace quack contractors who are unknown to our association after their poor performance on projects awarded to them."
The ABCCG called on the government to act firmly and decisively to bring about some level of sanity into contract awards so as to promote efficiency in the construction industry.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 02 June 2003
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Kaase (Western Region) 02 June 2003 - OLAM Ghana Limited, a cocoa buying company, has started a programme at Kaase in the Juabeso Bia District of Western Region to educate cocoa farmers and purchasing clerks on new technologies in farming.
Anthony Amponsah, Senior Purchasing Officer of the company said at a farmers' forum that the programme would equip farmers with information on the new technologies to enable Ghana to regain its status as the world's leading producer of cocoa.
Amponsah commended the government for increasing bonus of farmers from 8,000 to 16,000 cedis per bag of cocoa. Yaw Barimah, OLAM Depot keeper, appealed to the farmers to be wary of people and companies who cheat them with bad weighing scales.
He appealed to the Ghana Cocoa Board (Cocobod) to ensure that money was available at all times at the banks so that the farmers could easily cash their Akuafo cheques.
The farmers in a resolution noted that the increase in the producer price of cocoa would motivate them to work harder to increase their yield.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 02 June 2003 - The Ghana Commercial Bank (GBC) is commitment to deepening financial intermediation in the rural areas to promote the growth of small and medium scale enterprises. The financial institution would, therefore, remain focus on its programme of supporting the enterprises to enable the rural areas chart a new economic course.
Peter Ocran, a Board member of the GBC, said these at a dinner dance and award ceremony to round-off activities marking the Bank's 50th anniversary celebrations in Accra on Saturday. The celebration was launched in May under the theme: "50 years of Indigenous Initiative in Banking: Achievements, Challenges and Prospects."
According to Ocran, the Bank as a major financial institution, with its wide network across the country was in a good position to effectively assist in national development efforts aside of inculcating banking habits to a sizeable proportion of the population.
"Indeed the bank is poised to adopt a more positive posture in providing financial resources to all sectors of the economy," he said. Peter Ocran said the rapid technological changes in the banking sector were bound to change the activities of banking entirely and the GCB needed to be focused in order to stay in competition.
He praised the founding founders of the bank for their foresight, the pioneers for their devotion and dedicated service and shareholders for the keen interest and support they offered the financial institution in the past years.
Matilda Obeng Ansong, Managing Director of GCB, said the Bank had come a long way and was proud to say that it was performing creditably due to the dedication and hard work of its staff.
In all three staff and a past student of the University of Ghana received awards. E.A. Hayford a past worker, who served the bank for 41 years, was given the longest serving award and received a plaque and a refrigerator.
Adelaide Odoi Larteh, a pioneer worker and Mrs Cecilia Amankwaah, who has been with the bank for 38 years were each given a certificate, a plaque and refrigerator.
Francis Ofori, a past student of the University of Ghana, adjudged the best student in Banking and Finance for 2002, won the maiden award of the Best Student in Banking and Finance and received a Cheque for ¢5m and a plaque.
The GCB was established in 1953 as the Bank of the Gold Coast to provide the financial needs of the people because the main banks in the then Gold Coast functioned as import and export banks for merchants. The bank now has 130 branches spread over the country. Ghanaians own 53.9 per cent of the bank's shares while the government owns the remaining 46.1 per cent.
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Guelwongo (Burkina Faso) 02 June 2003 - The Upper East Regional Minister, Mahami Salifu, at the weekend urged the government of Burkina Faso to muster the requisite political will to complement efforts being made by the Ghana government to ensure the socio-economic integration of the two countries.
He said this could be achieved by removing all bottlenecks that impede the free flow of people and goods without much time wasting at the various checkpoints, stressing that "We are one people separated by an artificial boundary."
Salifu said these when he attended the commissioning of a new cattle market built by the Burkina Faso government at Guelwongo in the Nahouri Province near the border with Ghana, at a cost of 92 million CFA francs.
The project, which was financed by the Canadian government, is to serve as a transit point for over 3,000 cattle and other ruminants for onward transportation to Ghana on a daily basis.
The Regional Minister said integration calls for prioritisation and diversification of the resources of the two neighbouring countries to create employment and wealth for the people.
Salifu reiterated government's pledge to abide by the ECOWAS Protocol on free movement of persons goods and services and to help speed up the process of integrating the sub-region politically, socially and economically.
The Regional Minister commended the people of Burkina Faso for extending an invitation to Ghana to grace the occasion to foster and deepen ties, adding, "Our presence here is a sign of brotherhood and togetherness."
The Burkinabe Minister for Animal Resources, Monsieur Alphonse Bonois, said the location of the project near the border with Ghana was a clear manifestation of his government's determination to ensure that trade between the two countries improved towards the total integration of the two countries.
He also pledged his country's commitment to ensure the free flow of persons and goods to boost economic activities in the sub-region.
The Commissioner of Nahouri Province, Monsieur Hebe Adama, thanked his Ghanaian counterpart for his presence and gave the assurance that no impediments would be put in the way of Ghanaian traders who patronized the market.
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Ho (Volta Region) 02 June 2003 - Rural Banks are on the threshold of being transformed into highly competitive actors in the commercial banking sector within the next few years E.K. Kwapong, Managing Director of the Association of Rural Banks (ARB) APEX Bank Limited, has said.
In a speech delivered for him at the opening of an agency of the Ziope based Unity Rural Bank at Ho-Fiave on Saturday Kwapong said the 115 Rural and Community Banks (RCBs) in the country make the Rural Banking sector the widest banking network in the country with the potential to make far reaching positive impact on the economy with best management practices and modernisation.
To this end he said 11 key projects were in the pipeline whose successful completion would position the Rural Banks as "formidable institutions, which will compete favourably with the bigger commercial banks in the country".
These projects included the development of new products such as domestic funds transfer, provision of inspection services with the establishment of an inspection department at the APEX Bank Head Office.
Others are cheque-clearing services, already underway at 11 clearing centres in the country, branch network and specie services, provision of office equipment and transport facilities.
Kwapong gave the assurance that the Rural Banking sector was leaving behind it a chapter of mediocrity and entering into an era of professionalism, as evidenced in the positive media attention it is having.
"It is up to us (the practitioners) to put our act together to sustain and improve the business of rural banking", thereby enhancing productivity, profitability and forge a positive image for rural banking in the country, Kwapong said. Other agencies of the bank are at Dakpa and Kpetoe.
Mawutor Goh, Ho District Chief Executive said the opening of the agency in Ho would make it easier for women to assess financial assistance channelled through rural banks by the District Assembly.
He advised the Unity Rural Bank and its Agencies in the Ho District to fashion out mechanisms that would make it easier for market women to transact business with them from the markets. Goh pledged the co-operation of the District Assembly to enable it to expand its operations into other rural communities in the district.
Togbui Binah Lawluvi VI, Chief of Ziope and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Unity Rural Bank urged communities near Ho to do business with the Fiave agency by buying shares and saving with it.
He gave the assurance that the bank would fulfil its mandate of responding to the financial needs of rural communities for personal and community development with their active participation.
Togbe Lawluvi appealed to the Bank of Ghana (BOG) to empower rural banks to sanction loans of up to at least 30 million cedis without its prior approval.
He explained that the 10 million cedis limit above which the BOG's approval was needed was frustrating, counter-productive and detrimental to the cause of rural banking in the country under the prevailing economic conditions.
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