French Company to invest in fruit production
Kumasi (Greater
Accra) 29 March 2003- Sampson Kwaku Boafo, Ashanti Regional Minister, has
re-emphasised the government's determination to ensure that Ghanaian
entrepreneurs played a leading role in every sector towards economic
development.
He said government
was committed to vibrant commercial activities employment and reduction of
poverty in the Ghanaian society. This was contained in an address read for him
at the opening of an eleven-day "Super Easter" bazaar in Kumasi on
Thursday.
The bazaar, which was
organised by Driwald Consult, an Accra-based publicity firm, is under the
theme: "Trading - The bedrock of industrial development". About 150
local and foreign exhibitors were participating in the bazaar, which has on
display, clothes, jewellery, cosmetics, drugs, household appliances, food and
beverages, and others.
Boafo said the
government's liberalisation policy on trade fairs held over the past years
provided ample testimony and demonstrated its commitment to create congenial
and conducive environment for local manufacturers and service providers.
He commended Driwald
Consult for the initiative and said the government would continue to support such
local initiatives. Samuel Donkor, Deputy Co-ordinating Director of Kumasi
Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), said Ashanti abounds in both human and natural
resources, which needed to be tapped for national development.
He pledged the
assembly's support towards the fair and commended Driwald Consult for its
sustained interest in the promotion of business in the metropolis. Walter
Djokoto, Chief Executive Officer of Driwald Consult, said it was important for
Ghanaians to recognise and appreciate the critical role of trading in all human
endeavours.
He said the bazaar
was to recognise the important role of trading and the ingenuity of Asanteman,
as well as the need to grow and expand market potentials in Ashanti, the second
largest in Ghana.
GRi.../
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Sekondi (Western
Region) 29 March 2003- The Coconut Sector Development Project (CSDP) re-planted
860 hectares out of a target of 1,200 hectares for 713 farmers in six districts
in the Western and Central regions between April 1999 to December 2002.
The beneficiary
districts include Nzema East, 264 hectares, Ahanta West, 226 hectares, Komenda
Edina Aguafo-Abrim, 165 hectares, Shama Ahanta East Metropolis, 84 hectares,
Abura Assebu-Kwamang-Kese, 63 hectares and Wassa West, 58 hectares.
Ransford Arthur,
Project Manager of the CSDP disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency in an
interview on Thursday at Sekondi. The CSDP is a five-year project launched in
April 1999 to combat and replace 4,000 hectares of coconut trees in the coastal
belt, infected by the Cape St Paul Wilt disease.
Arthur said the
project is aimed at revitalising the coconut sector in Ghana and improving the
socio-economic conditions of communities, including women involved in the
coconut processing and marketing.
He said the Nzema
East and Jomoro districts, which had not been affected by the disease, were
benefiting from the intensification programme, adding that between October 2002
and December 2002, some 1,210 hectares out of a target of 2,000 hectares,
representing 60.5 percent had been fertilized.
So far, 893.28 tons
of fertilizers had been used on the 1,210 hectares in the intensification programme
in the Nzema East and Jomoro. Arthur disclosed that Anyinase-Abura-and Asuansi
seed gardens were being intensified, using polythene imported from Marc Delorme
Coconut Research station in Cote d'Ivoire and that from January to December
2002, 85,434 seed nuts were harvested.
He said 34.5 hectares
of land had been acquired in Bonsaso in the Western Region while another 15
hectares had also been purchased in the Central Region for the Malayan Yellow
dwarf (MYD) and Sri Lanka Green dwarf seed garden.
Arthur noted that the
project, which is expected to be completed in March 2004, has so far completed
a greater percentage of its estimated figure and called on the French
government to extend the expiration of the project because there were a lot
more applications from farmers with several hectares of land.
GRi.../
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Accra (Greater Accra)
29 March 2003- Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB), the best performer on the Ghana
Stock Exchange for 2002, has recommended a final dividend of 350 cedis per
share amounting to 57.950 billion cedis for shareholders due to appreciable
capital gains and an after-tax profit of 174.372 billion cedis.
This is in addition
to an interim dividend of 150 cedis per share amounting to 24.550 billion cedis
brings the total dividend per share to 500 cedis that comes to 82.500 billion
cedis.
Kwabena Osei-Bonsu,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, said this at the Bank's 9th Annual General
Meeting (AGM) on Friday, for its 80,000 shareholders most of who struggled but
could not enter, the National Theatre auditorium until the meeting was over at
1200 hours.
The meeting was to
enable the Board Members present the 2002 Annual Report and Account to the
shareholders and to re-elect past directors and elect new ones for the
operations of the Bank. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the Bank's
existence and activities for its celebrations would end in June.
Profit before tax for
2002 stood at 281.908 billion cedis against the previous year's mark of 296.962
billion cedis. After making provisions for the Reconstruction Levy and
corporate tax, profit after tax came to 174.327 billion cedis, representing an
increase of three per cent over that of 2001, Osei-Bonsu said.
The Board Chairman
said total income for the period stood at 695.088 billion cedis registering a
growth of 38 per cent over the operating expenditure in 2001. He said the Bank
registered a total return of 153 per cent made up of 124 per cent in capital
gains and 29 per cent income yield adding that the average gain on the market
over the same period was 45 per cent.
Touching on both the
international and domestic environment in which the bank operated, the Board
Chairman said the world economy showed a marked growth in the first quarter of
2002 reflecting a robust six per cent growth of the United States economy as
well as rates of 4.3, 4.4 and 3.0 per cent for Canada, Denmark and Japan in
that order leading many to believe that economic recession had abated.
"However the
growth prospects of the world economy stagnated after the first quarter
necessitating a downward revision and the projected world outlook for 2003 was
reduced from four per cent to 3.7 per cent.
Osei-Bonsu said these
developments impinged on the domestic economic performance, which among other
things made the cedi to depreciate by 15.4 per cent against the dollar during
2002 with inflation at 15.2 per cent resulting in a marginal real depreciation
against the major currencies.
He said in
furtherance of the Bank's objectives to improve and continue its recent
achievements, the Board and Management had approved a new corporate plan to
focus on shareholder value and customer satisfaction covering the period 2002
to 2004.
Osei-Bonsu said
though the fall of interest rates with its attendant dwindling margins in the
economy continued to affect the performance of banks, the resilience brought in
by the new corporate plan as well as prudent management practices moderated the
effect on the GCB.
He said the new
corporate plan was designed to enhance profitability, improve the preferences
of staff and the effectiveness of the organisation as well as to effect change
in GCB's culture.
Osei-Bonsu expressed
the hope that shareholders as well as the numerous customers of the Bank would
give their total commitment and co-operation to the Management and Staff to
enhance its financial stature and investor appeal.
Answering questions
on the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) debt owed the GCB, Mrs Matilda Obeng-Ansong,
Managing Director of the Bank, said the TOR debt had been converted into bonds
adding that its removal from the percentage of gross non-performance loans to
total credit portfolio was 35 per cent in 2002 as against 18 per cent in 2001.
She said the bank had
proposed 3.5 billion cedis remuneration for Directors that was approved by the
shareholders, adding that it had ordered the Directors to fix the remuneration
of the Auditors.
Members of the Board
as well as the shareholders re-elected Mr Felix Ntrakwah, Peter Augustus Ocran
and Kojo Mensah as Directors of the Bank. Mrs Cecilia Nyann elected as a new
Director of the Bank.
The Financial Times
Group of London crowned GCB the Bank of the Year in Ghana in 2002 for the third
consecutive time. The Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana in 2001 also
crowned it as the Bank of the Year.
GRi.../
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Accra (Greater Accra)
29 March 2003- The GSE-All Share Index maintained its momentum in trading on
Friday, rising by 1.34 points although shares changing hands remained low.
The Index ended trading
at 1,631.76 points from 1,630.42 points on Wednesday. The number of shares that
changed hands rose to 126,000 shares from 23,400 but remained low as
institutional investors continued to shy away from the market.
The change in the
year to date was 16.95 per cent. In the broader market, there were only three
price changes. Mechanical Lloyd Ghana Limited was 30 cedis richer at 310 cedis,
Ghana Commercial Bank closed 10 cedis better at 5,110 cedis and Home Finance
Company rose by five cedis at 1,220 cedis. Market capitalisation closed up at
7,465,18 billion cedis from 7,461.93 billion cedis.
The following are the
last prices of listed equities in cedis:
ABL 420
AGC 28,500
ALW 4,300
BAT 1,102
CFAO
67
CPC 630
EIC
5,005
FML
2,009
GBL 520
GCB 5,110 +10
GGL 1,218
HFC 1,220 +5
MGL 257
MLC 310 +30
MOGL
19,751
PAF 750
PBC 390
PZ 2,016
SCB 30,001
SPPC 390
SSB 6,005
SWL 285
TBL 4,900
UNIL 5,201
CMLT 460
GRi.../
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Accra (Greater Accra)
29 March 2003- Shareholders of Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) on Friday expressed
dismay about the behaviour of Kwabena Osei-Bonsu, Chairman of the Board of
Directors, for not allowing them to speak their minds after discussions on the
main agenda at the Bank's Annual General Meeting (AGM).
GCB's over 80,000
shareholders some of who struggled but could not enter the National Theatre
Auditorium where the meeting took place, were not happy when the Chairman ended
proceedings without allowing people to express their views on "other
matters."
''How could you treat
us like this, after paying so much to the bank is this how you will reward us?
This is not fair" one shareholder retorted as members of the high table
started to leave the auditorium.
Some of the
shareholders' wanted to know the extent of indebtedness of the Tema Oil
Refinery (TOR) and A-life Supermarket to the Bank. They claimed very little
explanation was given on the matter.
They also wanted to
know why GCB had proposed 3.5 billion cedis remuneration for its Directors and
the procedures for their nomination among other things. Some of the shareholders
complained that the Board and Management took decisions and imposed them on
shareholders adding that the AGM was just a rubber stamp.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
29 March 2003- Explore Abroad and Africa, a South African non-governmental
organisation, has initiated moves to attract foreign professionals into key
areas in the country.
"Ghana as a developing
country needs the infusion and exchange of technical skills and manpower
resources of the developed world to accelerate its growth. "This calls for
networking and establishment of collaboration and partnership," Ms Lezelle
Botha, Explore Director, told Journalists in Accra on Friday.
Ms Botha commended
Mrs Cecilia Bannerman, outgoing Minister of Employment and Manpower
Development, for her commitment and contribution to the creation of an enabling
environment to reduce unemployment in the country.
She said key skilled
and non-skilled professionals would be identified, processed and packaged for
export to Europe, Asia, Far East, United State and other African countries
whilst other professionals in demand in the country would be imported.
This would be done
through the Ministry and its local counterparts, Youth Educational Rural
International (YERI). The first group of 100 Ghanaians would be sent to the
United States as part of a pilot programme by June.
Ms Botha said through
such collaborative efforts, Ghana and other developing and developed countries
would re-distribute their professionals equitably; reduce unemployment and
generate foreign exchange for the development of infrastructure to retrain
local manpower skills.
She said working
holiday programmes would also be developed for students during vacations for a
period of three months. YERI's Director, David Kumah said the exchange
programme would also be used to sell the country's tourism potentials.
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Accra (Greater Accra)
29 March 2003- A French Company, La Compagnie Fruitiere, the World's largest
fresh fruits producing company, is to invest about seven million dollars this
year in the production of pineapples in Ghana for export.
The company plans to
invest about 20 million dollars in the next five years and employ 1,500 people.
It is expected to export about 30,000 tonnes of pineapples per annum.
Pierre Arnaud, Vice
Chairman of the Company, said this when he led a three-man delegation to pay a
courtesy call on President John Agyekum Kufuor at the Castle, Osu, on Friday.
Arnaud said the
company had already acquired land at Obom in the Eastern Region to begin the
production of pineapples, while negotiating with the management of the
Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) to acquire Jei River Farms at the western
part of the Greater Accra Region.
He said the company,
established about 10 years ago had established similar companies in Cote
d'Ivoire, Senegal and Cameroon and is investing in Ghana because of prospects.
The Vice Chairman
said, in addition, the Company was negotiating for a container terminal at the
Tema port to export their produce, which would in future include banana and
vegetables.
President Kufuor said
the government shared the same vision with the Company to establish industrial
farms, provision of capital and know-how, create employment and export their
produce.
He said while they
assist to improve the living standard of the people within their area of
operation, they should become good corporate citizens in Ghana. "We want
to be part of your team in order that Ghana can become a major exporter of
fresh fruits to Europe because your operations in Cote d'Ivoire, which has the
same vegetation as Ghana, thrived," he added.
GRi.../
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