GRi Business, Economics & Finance 23 –
06 - 2003
South
African supermarket chain closes down
Inter-bank
exchange rates of the cedi
Rural banks commended
for services in rural areas
Consult Councils
and Assemblies for assistance
South
African supermarket chain closes down
Ho (Volta Region)
Bernard A. Acheampong, Ho Branch Manager of PEP Stores, told the Ghana
News Agency (GNA) on Monday that the June deadline for the PEP Stores shutdown
might be extended because a few of the branches, including that of Ho, still
hold a considerable amount of stock which needed to be sold.
He said the PEP
stores fold up in
He said initially,
PEP Stores Ho branch had a good turnover but business slumped considerably
especially in the outerwear, including shoes and dresses. Acheampong
denied speculations that goods sold by PEP Stores were of low quality, saying
that all goods have quality ranges.
''PEP Stores
branches in Achimota, Kaneshie,
Madina, Nima, Kokomemle all in Accra, Cape Coast and Tema
Community Two are among those already closed down while the branches in Ho,
Tamale, Tarkoradi are among a few operating to clear
stocks.''
Acheampong declined to say what agreement management
and workers had reached on payoffs.
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Inter-bank
exchange rates of the cedi
Currency Buying Selling
U.S. Dollar 8,591.09 8,755.55
Pound
Swiss Franc 6,468.40 6,589.73
Canadian
Dollar 6,302.36
6,420.40
Danish Kroner 1,340.19 1,365.55
Japanese Yen 72.79 74.16
South African
Euro 9,951.73 10,138.94
CFA Franc 15.17 15.46
Naira 68.14
69.45
ECOWAS WAUA 12,213.83
The rates for
countries under BCEAO are as follows:
ECOWAS WAUA
12,213.83
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Rural banks
commended for services in rural areas
Zabrama (Brong
Ahafo)
He said the trend had
contributed immensely to making institutional credit available to micro-scale
economic operatives in the rural communities and assisting them to create
wealth to improve their living standards.
Alhaji Montia
was addressing the official commissioning of the Zabrama
Agency of the Yapra Rural Bank Limited at the weekend
at Zabrama in the Atebubu
District of Brong-Ahafo.
He explained that the
originators of the rural banking idea saw it as a simple and flexible system to
meet the peculiar needs of predominantly small depositors and borrowers in the
rural areas.
That was why the BOG appreciated
in significant terms, the efforts being made by rural banks in extending
banking services to the remotest corners of the country, the chief manager
added.
Alhaji Montia
said the opening of the Zabrama agency attested to
the readiness of the management of the Yapra Rural
Bank to rise up to the emerging opportunities and challenges in the banking
industry.
"The operations in this
area would become one of the most profitable ventures of the bank, if
appropriate marketing and sound operational practices are adopted to suit the
needs of customers in this fast growing commercial community," he said.
Alhaji Montia
commended the management and board of directors of the Yapra
Rural Bank not only for ensuring the establishment of the Zabrama
agency but also for proving as the sole financier of the agency from its
profits and called on the management of all rural banks to emulate the Yapra bank.
He advised the management of the
bank to finance capital projects from shareholders' funds and not from depositors'
funds.
Alhaji Montia
also advised management of rural banks to institute strong internal control
measures to forestall unsound banking practices like embezzlement, granting of
unauthorized credit facilities, suppression of deposits, cross-firing, manipulation
of accounts, imbalances of accounts among others.
The BOG official appealed to
opinion leaders in the Zabrama community to educate
their people not only to patronize the rural bank but also to repay their loans
promptly so that funds could be recycled for the benefit of others.
He charged the authorities of
the Yapra main bank at Prang also in the Atebubu District to adopt good credit management practices
to protect the interest of the newly carved Zabrama
agency.
Alhaji Montia
said the commitment of the BOG to the steady growth and development of rural
banks within a vibrant banking system was crucial, adding that efforts would be
made to pursue policies and programmes to strengthen the rural and community
banks to perform their developmental role in the economy.
In a welcoming address Mr. Ahmed
Mohammed Awal, Chairman of Board of Directors of the Yapra Rural Bank said with the commissioning of the Zabrama agency, the bank established in 1984 at Prang, now
had four agencies and named Yeji, Abease
and Atebubu as the others.
He noted that it was not easy
for the Management and Board of Directors of the Bank to get BOG's approval for the establishment of the Zabrama agency because of the fear that the communities
would not patronize it.
The Board chairman advised the
people to patronize the agency's services as a way of assuring the BOG and
everybody that the agency was worth its establishment and commissioning.
"The Yapra
Rural Bank views ignorance and hunger as the most dreadful disease in the world
today and not leprosy, tuberculosis or even HIV/AIDS," he said, adding
that the bank last year instituted a programme to reduce the ignorance level
among the people about banking.
He said the on-going educational
programme on ignorance and hunger in the various communities within the Yapra area was aimed at educating the people to cultivate
banking habits to avoid financial mishaps including armed robbery, fire and
other negative activities that impede progress.
The campaign team, he said visited
about 54 communities within the Atebubu District last
year, adding that consultations were going on to assess the possible
involvement of health personnel for the discussion of AIDS awareness topics.
As part of the campaign to
reduce hunger within the catchments area, the Board Chairman announced that Yapra injected a total of 202 million cedis
as credit to farmers and another 192 million cedis
granted to traders in foodstuffs to ensure ready markets for the farmers.
The credits excluded the District
Assembly's Poverty Alleviation Fund and 310 million cedis
credit granted to the farmers by the government, both of which were channelled
through the Bank.
Awal announced that in the year 2002
Yapra rural bank instituted a 10 million cedis scholarship scheme for the poor but brilliant Junior
Secondary School (JSS) students seeking to enter Senior Secondary Schools (SSS)
within the district with the searchlight on students scoring between aggregate
The scholarship scheme of the
bank will take effect from the 2003/2004 academic years and alongside the
policy, the Bank would be donating educational materials to identified
performing schools in the area.
The rationale behind these
policies is to enhance the poor enrolment levels in the SSS in the district,
the Board Chairman further explained and appealed to Non-Governmental
Organisations (NGOs) and other societies to support the Bank in its scholarship
scheme.
Richard Mettle Addo, Head of Training of ARB APEX Bank announced that
there were 451 rural banks in the country, including the Zabrama
agency.
Robert Nantoma
Samari, Chief Project Manager of Prang Rural Bank
told Ghana News Agency in an interview that it cost the bank 192 million cedis to renovate the office building of the Zabrama agency, which was also expected to cater for Beniem, Kyerembo, Burkina, Krobo, Kyiremako, Kumfoukrom, Basa, Abom-Basare, Yaw Dapare, Bronikrom and many more communities whose main occupation
is the cultivation of cereals and tubers.
Nana Osabarima
Kokroko Nyumakwa II, Omanhene of Abease Traditional
Area presided.
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Consult
Councils and Assemblies for assistance
Bolga (Upper East)
Failure to do so, often resulted
in the delayed projects at the expense of the contractor and the government, he
said. Salifu gave the advise
when he inspected on-going works on the final portion of the Bolga-Bawku main road, a World Bank project being carried
out by PW Ghanem Construction Company at the cost of
three billion cedis.
The project, which was started
in November 2002, was supposed to be completed in October this year. However,
in the view of the Minister the contractor was not likely to beat the deadline
given the volume of work yet undone. The site engineer, Douglas Agyepong, explained that progress had been slow due to the
shortage of base material.
He said the approved category of
gravel for the work was located in only one area around Tilli
in the Bawku West District but that the people in the
community had refused the contractor permission to extract the gravel.
Agyepong indicated that with the
availability of material the project could still be completed on schedule, adding
that, "funds is not the problem" since the contractor had already
received part payment for the work.
The Regional Minister offered to
meet the chiefs and elders of the community to persuade them to allow the
contractor access to the gravel pit. He, however, stressed the need for such
problems to be brought to the quick notice of either the RCC or the relevant
DCE in future to forestall delays.
"The
Other projects Salifu inspected included repairs and drain construction on
the Bolga-Pwalugu road at a cost of ¢1.8bn and the
construction of a retaining wall on the Navrongo-Chuchuliga
road at a cost of ¢700m.
Salifu also inspected work on the
upgrading of the Chuchuliga-Sissili road from
Kilometre 18 to 25 by Ghanem Construction Company and
from kilometre 25 to 36 of the same road by Alhaji Awudu Ali (AAA) Construction Limited at the cost of ¢2.6bn
and 5.8bn respectively.
Another World Bank project the Chuchuliga-Sissili road serve as a
major link between the Upper East and West Regions and should be completed in
December this year.
The Regional Minister indicated
that the construction of roads was part of the government plan to provide a
solid infrastructure base for economic growth particularly in the rural areas.
"This plan will be pursued
in all parts of the country irrespective of who voted or who did vote for
us," he said and asked the contractors to speed up work. Salifu commended the contractors for the quality of work
and urged them not to rest on their oars as there was still much left to be
done.
Francis Hammond, Regional
Director of the Ghana Highways Authority and other officials of the GHA
accompanied the Minister.
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