More than 300 small-scale businesses get loans
Produce Buying Company to go public
Private Enterprise Foundation kicks against re-introduction of A2 forms
Produce Buying Company to go public
Accra (Greater Accra) 26 Nov. ’99
The Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC) said on Thursday that the divestiture of the Produce Buying Company (PBC) is a major step in the restructuring of the cocoa industry.
Speaking to the press in Accra, Mr Emmanuel Agbodo, Executive Secretary of the DIC, said it would return the business of cocoa into private hands and enable market incentives and competition to operate under an overall national policy framework.
He was briefing the press on public share flotation of the Produce Buying Company (PBC) which begins on 1st December to 14th January next year.
The flotation of the shares makes PBC the 22nd equity to be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange and would be undertaken by the National Trust Holding Company (NTHC), a brokerage firm.
Pricing of the shares would begin at 500 cedis for 35 per cent of PBC's total shares.
It will be open to both foreign and local investors.
PBC functions as a buyer of cocoa beans from farmers, stores and sells to the government at guaranteed price.
Mr Agbodo said the government has not allocated all the shares to investors adding that 45 per cent will go to PBC workers.
Dr Albert Barnor, General Manager of NTHC, said most of the farmers have been educated on the impending flotation.
He said his outfit would soon embark on a nation-wide education campaign to attract public interest.
GRi../
Private Enterprise Foundation kicks against re-introduction of A2 forms
Accra (Greater Accra) 26 Nov. ’99
Nana Yeboah Asare Kodie II, President of the Private Enterprise Foundation (PEF), on Thursday protested against the re-introduction of the A2 form in place of the Ghana Export form saying its use will send wrong signals to the business community especially, foreign investors.
The A2 form was used by the Bank of Ghana (BOG) to monitor transactions of exporters and was priced at 1.75 per cent of proceeds of exports.
It was replaced by the Ghana Export form in 1995 by the Import and Export Act 503 which covered only traditional exports at no cost to the exporters.
Nana Kodie registered the protest at a day's trade and investment forum organised by the National Development Planning Commission for participants of the 10th Consultative Group Meeting in Accra.
He said the private sector recognises the need to improve the business environment to make it more transparent.
In pursuance of this, "we do not object to the re-introduction of the A2 form if the purpose is to enable a closer monitoring of exports.
"However, we will be sending wrong signals to the business community and the foreign investors in particular about the transparency or the lack of it in our legal framework if the A2 form is extended to cover non-traditional exports."
Nana Asare Kodie recommended that copies of the Ghana Export forms be sent to BOG as a form of monitoring mechanism instead of the re-introduction of the A2 form.
He noted that the enactment of laws and policy initiatives alone are not enough to encourage the local entrepreneurs to attract the needed foreign direct investment.
"We must therefore ensure that the reality on the ground reflects the law as it exists in the statutes.
"Any discrepancy between the laws and what businessmen and women experience in their daily transactions will most definitely defeat our aim of making the environment business-friendly."
Referring to the duties of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) Commissioner, Nana Asare Kodie said the position, which allows officials to "use a so-called Commissioner's value to levy duties on imports in complete disregard of value stated on the Clean Report of Finding (CRF), does not show transparency in the legal framework."
The Clean Report of Findings helps in determining the value of goods imported through a pre-shipment inspection at a cost to the importer of one per cent of the value of the imports.
Nana Asare Kodie said members of his outfit who are importers have made several complaints to this effect and expressed the belief that the practice is out of line with the World Trade Organisation's rules on customs valuation.
The Commissioner cannot take a unilateral decision to do otherwise from what is contained in the laws.
He said as a country, Ghana has launched an ambitious long-term growth perspective plan to achieve middle income status by the year 2020.
This requires an accelerated growth of eight per cent per annum and as well as sustaining it for the foreseeable future.
He noted that although the rate of gross domestic investment of 23 per cent is high by African standards, it remains below the rate required to sustain such rapid growth, which is about 30 per cent of Gross Domestic Product.
Nana Asare Kodie recounted some of the government's economic achievements but added: "having achieved a reasonable level of macro-economic stability, we need to re-focus attention on identifying and addressing factors that constrain the international competitiveness of Ghanaian exporters and the industry in general."
Dr John Abu, Minister of Trade and Industry, gave an overview of trade and investment opportunities in the country.
He mentioned major reforms that the government has pursued in recent times, backed by stable democratic policies and establishment of institutions and infrastructure to facilitate the inflow of foreign direct investment.
The Minister placed emphasis on the need to enhance capacity building of the work force aimed at achieving the desired economic growth rate.
GRi../