Ghana, South Africa to join Africa delegation against gold sales
Cocoa set to lead gold as chief export earner
Government will intensify investment promotion
Rawlings cuts sod for work to begin at Export Processing Zone enclave
Takoradi and Tema ports to operate as landlord ports
Ghana, South Africa to join Africa delegation against gold sales
Accra (Greater Accra) 19 July '99
Ghanaian and South African Ministers of Mines, Minerals and Energy have resolved to participate in a broad African delegation to the United Kingdom (UK), Europe and United States to seek a moratorium on gold sales by the British government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This is contained in a joint communiqué signed by Mr Fred Ohene-Kena, Minister of Mines and Energy and Ms Susan Shabangu, South African Deputy Minister of Minerals and Energy after a day's meeting on the impact of the British and IMF gold sales.
Officials from the Minerals Commission of Ghana, Ghana Chamber of Mines, Ghana Mineworkers Union, Chamber of Mines of South Africa and the National Union of Mineworkers of South Africa attended the meeting.
The meeting agreed that there was the need to work together for a strong collective approach to the intended sale of gold by the IMF, UK and other Central Banks in Europe.
The communiqué said the two ministers agreed that the sales are harmful to Africa.
In Ghana, 2,500 workers in two mines are in the process of being laid off with several jobs threatened should the low price continue.
In South Africa 11,700 jobs involving six mines have been lost and should the current price remain, 80,000 workers stand the risk of job losses.
The price of gold has plummeted to its lowest in 20 years following British sale of 25 tonnes of gold, the first of an intended 450 tonnes of 750 tonnes of gold reserves.
The IMF last month proposed the sale of 10 million ounces of gold to provide a fund for highly indebted poor countries.
The price of the commodity, which was at 261 dollars an ounce dropped to 255 dollars when the British sales started last week, a figure far below the 278 dollars an ounce at the beginning of the year.
The communiqué said mines stand closure while residual mineral pockets have the potential of severely damaging the environment.
"In the light of the experience with the UK gold sales, the ministers agreed that the IMF gold sales to fund highly indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative should be suspended and other options be found."
It noted that of the 41 identified HIPCs 34 are in Africa with 30 of them being gold producers.
"While the parties strongly support the IMF initiative, they agreed that other alternatives to funding should be sought."
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Cocoa set to lead gold as chief export earner
Bunso (Eastern Region) 19th July 99 -
Despite its current low price on the international market, cocoa looks set to surpass gold as the country's leading foreign exchange earner over the next few years, Mr Kenneth Brew, a Deputy Director of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), has predicted.
To achieve this would, however, depend greatly on effective collaboration between the extension staff of COCOBOD and cocoa farmers for sustainable increased output.
Mr Brew said this when he addressed the closing session a 12-day workshop organised for various categories of senior staff of COCOBOD and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) at Bunso Cocoa College.
The workshop is part of preparations for the planned absorption of extension staff of the Cocoa Services Division (CSD) by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA).
The 47 participants, comprising District Directors of MOFA from the Volta, Eastern and Ashanti regions, were taken through topics like cocoa and coffee agronomy, pests/diseases of cocoa and coffee, extension programme planning and education.
Mr Ernest Mallet, Assistant Director of the MOFA, said the Ministry puts great emphasis on extension services in its efforts to improve cocoa production, notwithstanding, the falling price of cocoa on the world market.
He explained that the on-going training workshops were aimed at equipping participants with the requisite skills to perform their duties, adding that the Ministry was considering further courses at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) for them.
The Executive Director of the CSD, Dr S.T. Ampofo, said the proposed absorption programme should promote the cocoa industry for the sake of the country's economy.
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Government will intensify investment promotion
Kumasi (Ashanti), 17th July 99 –
President Jerry John Rawlings on Friday said the government would continue to intensify its investment promotion drive.
It would also provide a stable macro economic environment, deepen physical discipline and forge closer partnership with the private sector to ensure that investing in Ghana continues to be mutually rewarding.
This was contained in an address read on his behalf by Mr Owusu Bempah, member of the Council of State at the commissioning of a new 40 billion-cedi modern equipment and technology brew house for Guinness Ghana Limited (GGL) in Kumasi on Friday.
President Rawlings noted that through the collective efforts of Ghanaians there has been improvement in the economy adding that recent development in monetary, fiscal and exchange policies have been generally positive
In 1997 the company commissioned a new packaging line at a cost of 18 billion cedis. With the new brew house, the company has increased its annual production capacity from 300,000 hectolitres a year to 575,000 hectolitres.
President Rawlings said there was a significant decline in the growth of money supply, during the first half of the year, due to increased deposit mobilisation efforts by the commercial banks.
He added that a significant decline in the growth rate of credit to the government by the Central Bank has led to a reduction of the interest rate on treasury bills.
This has in turn, is led to the lowering of interest rates and consequently, to lower cost of credit to the private sector.
On the investment by GGL in the past three years, President Rawlings said they are a clear testimony of the company's faith in Ghana, her economy, people and in the future.
"Those potential investors, who hesitate to invest in Ghana now are losing time and the opportunity to be part of our accelerated development process in the next millennium" he added.
He said the beer industry's contribution to the Ghanaian economy in terms of revenue generation, employment and direct and indirect supply and services linkages is very significant. "As a government, we shall continue to support the industry for the mutual benefit of all the parties".
President Rawlings expressed concern about developments on the labour front and said the spate of industrial actions, where laid down procedures are not followed, are turning the clock of the country's investment drive backward.
Worst still, such actions have an understandably negative effect on potential investors, he said, adding that while worker-management problems would persist, there was the need to approach them in a matured manner by following the rules, which have been set for the resolution of such problems.
Mr Peter Peperah, a Deputy Minster of Trade and Industries, said the major consumers of skills of the products of these institutions to start a "practical industrial attachment programmes to complement the theoretical grounding of students in these institutions".
He assured the private sector that the government would continue to rationalise the tax and tariff regimes in order to improve the incentive generally so that domestic industries could enhance their competitiveness.
"We shall continue to count on the co-operation and collaboration of the entire business community in arriving at acceptable and supportive tariff", he added.
Sir Anthony Grinner, Chairman of the DIAGEO, a joint company of Guinness International and Grand Metropolitan, a major world food and drink manufacturing company, said the new brew house has the most modern beer brewing and processing equipment in Africa.
He said the investments made by the company demonstrate their confidence in the economy, adding that the government's policy of controlling inflation is necessary for a continuous growth in the beer industry in the country.
Sir Anthony noted that further reduction in taxes on beer would help consumers to buy more for economic growth and to enable the company continue with its assistance to the community within which it operates
Guinness International operates in 150 countries on all the five continents of the world and has been operating in Ghana for the past 30 years.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene, who chaired the function, said the government's investment policy is commendable, as it has led to an improvement in the private sector participation in the country's development drive.
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Accra (Greater Accra), 19th July 99 –
The market index on Friday firmed up by gaining 4.49 points compared to 5.94 points loss recorded earlier in the week but on low volume.
The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) All-Share Index, closed the week at 788.32 up from Wednesday's 783.83 with the change in the year to date climbing up from negative 9.73 per cent to negative 9.22 per cent.
Market indicators recorded higher gains as offers closed the week at 2.6 million compared to the previous 1.9 million shares.
Total shares traded almost matched bids finishing up from 53,100 shares to 481,000 shares while bids closed at 574,100 up from 317,200 shares.
Market capitalisation finished the week higher at 3,280.44 billion cedis as against 3,273.38 billion cedis.
On the broader market, there were seven price changes - six gains and a loss.
Unilever Ghana Limited (UNIL) gained 60 cedis to close the week at 1,780 cedis with Aluworks Company Limited (ALW) and the SSB Bank recording price yields of 45 cedis and 31 cedis at 2,600 cedis and 1,981 cedis respectively.
Pioneer Aluminium Factory (PAF) finished the week higher by 10 cedis at 290 cedis.
Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) and Guinness Ghana Limited (GGL) earned five cedis and one cedi to close at 1,000 cedis and 921 cedis respectively.
Ghana Breweries Limited (GBL), the only loser, was down by 29 cedis to finish trading at 1,850 cedis.
In spite of the gains, some brokers said most of the equities are selling below their value and expressed the hope that the continuous decline of interest rates on treasury bills would encourage more investors to come to the capital market.
The following are the last prices of listed equities in cedis:
ABL 600
AGC 18,700
ALW 2,600 +45
BAT 380
CFAO 40
EIC 1,990
FML 1,250
GBL 1,850 -29
GCB 1,000 +5
GGL 921 +1
HFC 750
MGL 220
MLC 200
MOGL 16,500
PAF 290 +10
PZ 850
SCB 20,000
SPPC 210
SSB 1,981 +31
UNIL 1,780 +60
UTC-E 125
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Rawlings cuts sod for work to begin at Export Processing Zone enclave
Tema, (Greater Accra) 19 July '99,
President Jerry John Rawlings has cut the sod for work to start on the Business Focus (BF) Tema Export Processing Zone (EPZ) at Kpone, near Tema.
The BF Tema EPZ, being developed by the Business Focus Group of Malaysia, will be the first private sector-built export processing zone enclave in Africa.
The EPZ enclave will be completed in six phases, with manufacturing concerns like electronics, computer components, food processing and furniture. Others are automotive components, instrumentation, housing and building materials and steel fabrication.
President Rawlings said the BF Tema EPZ is the first of many such enclaves that the government intends to develop to boost export sales to establish Ghana as a major industrial and commercial hub in the West African sub-region.
He noted that the co-operation between the BF Group of Malaysia and Ghana is a practical demonstration of the concept of South-South co-operation which, he said, should not be allowed to remain a mere catch phrase.
At the sub-regional level, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) offers great potentials in the drive to attract mass direct foreign investment, he stated.
ECOWAS has therefore intensified its efforts to get its partners to implement fully all their (ECOWAS) protocols, which hopefully will establish a big market for industries that will be attracted into the EPZ enclave.
President Rawlings said Ghana expects industrial operators in the enclave to introduce quality products, rely on most efficient methods of production, and offer employment, improved skills and work ethics that will spill over onto the domestic economy.
He thanked the World Bank for assisting to secure an IDA funding for the off-site infrastructure and the BF Group for its confidence in Ghana.
Mr John Abu, Minister of Trade and Industry, said the mission of the Ghana Free Zone (GFZ) Board is to help make Ghana the gateway to Africa by creating an attractive and conducive environment for attracting domestic and foreign direct investment.
Mr Abu disclosed that the GFZ board has to date licensed 71 free zone companies, out of which 46 are fully operational as single-factory free zone enterprises, while the rest are waiting to start production in the Tema enclave.
He said some of the sub-sectors covered by the activities of these companies, which currently employ 5,000 people, include rubber/plastic products, beauty and skin care, coconut fibre extraction, pharmaceuticals, warehousing and telecommunications.
The ownership of these enterprises reside in investors from Ghana, USA, Lebanon, South Africa, China, United Arab Emirates, Britain, Australia, Canada and Germany, among others.
Dato Amin Shah Haji Omar Shah, Executive Chairman of the BF Group, explained that Ghana is the excellent gateway to West Africa, saying it is endowed with political stability, practising democratic governance, and has a liberalised economy and a well-defined investment code.
He noted that Ghana is geographically positioned within access to a total market of around 250 million people, and said the BF Tema EPZ can cater for manufacturing and business concerns to deliver products for export market in the Americas, Europe, Africa and Oceania.
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Takoradi and Tema ports to operate as landlord ports
Takoradi, (Western Region) 19 July '99,
The Takoradi and Tema Ports are to operate as landlord ports from the year 2000 under the gateway programme.
This means the ports would divest themselves of cargo handling activities for the private sector to take over.
Mr Addo Koranteng, a financial manager of the Ghana Ports and Harbour Authority (GPHA) disclosed this to the press during the visit of the Parliamentary select committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs to the Takoradi Port at the weekend.
He said legislation to regulate the private sector in cargo handling at the ports is being drafted for consideration by Parliament.
Mr Koranteng said the Authority has leased land at the Takoradi Port to Sensor Wiafe Company Limited to construct and operate warehouses.
The taking over of cargo handling activities by the private sector would necessitate the restructuring of the GPHA, he said.
Briefing the committee, Mr H. C. K. Kuzagbe, Operations Manager at Takoradi Port, said the GPHA handled 180,000 metric tonnes of sawn timber for shipment in 1998 and 86,000 metric tonnes of sawn timber passed through the Port from January to June this year.
Mr. Kuzagbe said 140,000 metric tonnes of cocoa was handled in 1998 and 102,503 metric tonnes from January to June this year.
An average of 28,000 metric tonnes of non-traditional crops are handled annually.
Mr Kuzagbe said the GPHA is considering constructing a fish market at the Albert Bosomtwe-Sam Fishing Harbour in Sekondi, where members of the committee interacted with fishermen and fish mongers.
They also visited Sekondi Beach and the Ghana Rubber Estate Limited at Apimenan Number Two, near Agona-Nkwanta, and the National Oil Palm Plantation Limited ( NOPP ) at Prestea.
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