Businesses and consumers in the country are finding it increasingly difficult to obtain credit from financial institutions as challenges in the macroeconomic environment have made banks wary of lending funds to the private sector, Bank of Ghana has said. Studies undertaken by the Central Bank show that banks are gradually tightening their advances to both consumers and businesses, despite credit to the private sector going up by 28.2% at end of May 2014 as against 18.4% a year earlier. The Governor
Ghana's government has said it is "scandalised" after 200 Ghanaian World Cup fans asked for asylum in Brazil, saying they were Muslims fleeing religious conflict. A government statement said there was no religious violence in the country. The group are believed to be part of a government-sponsored delegation, mainly comprising supporters of the governing party. Ghana is seen as one of West Africa's most peaceful and prosperous countries. "The basis for this alleged request
The Ministry of Transport has selected PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), as the lead transactional advisor for the 400 acre Boankra Inland Port Project. PwC is also to advise government on the 330 kilometer Eastern Railway Line Project that extends from Tema to the Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi. The railway line is seen as central to the success of the Boankra project. The two projects are to be executed on a public-private partnership basis transaction advisor is being financed using part of a
The World Bank Group continued to deliver US$15.3 billion to sub-Saharan African countries for development from July 2013 to June 2014, in support of shared prosperity and increased efforts to reduce poverty. The Bank Group sustained its strong commitment to Africa by delivering US$10.6 billion as new lending for 160 projects this fiscal year. A statement issued by the Group on Thursday said the Bank's commitments would include a new record of US$10.2 billion in zero-interest credits and grants
The aviation industry can add an additional US$47million to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and create 9,500 additional jobs if government fully commits liberalisation of the industry, a study by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has found. The aviation sector contributes about 6 percent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) globally. There is no official figure of the sector’s contribution the country’s GDP. In 2013, the country’s real GDP was estimated at GHȻ32,332million. In
This year’s Joy FM Beauty and Bridal Fair being held at the Accra International Conference Centre has attracted lots of patrons from all over the country. The four-day event is being held on the theme; "together. naturally". This year’s marriage seminar, which is a key part of the Fair covers: " how not to have an affair, Passion, Fidelity, Fulfilment, Total disclosure." Launched in 2003, the JOY FM Beauty and Bridal Fair provides young couples who are about getting married,
Henry Kofi Wampah, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), this week called for stronger action from the Ministry of Finance and government to alleviate the country’s economic difficulties, which so far appear to have resisted the medicine administered by the central bank. “Fiscal consolidation will require a more aggressive stance in the second half of 2014. Government must continue to enhance revenue measures and rationalise expenditures to achieve the fiscal deficit target of 8.5 percent of GDP
It was a strict “zero-flaring†posture on the part of government when oil production started at the Jubilee Field, but its own inadequacies forced it to abandon the idea -- at least for now. A long-drawn-out delay in the completion of a processing plant to harvest the gas for power generation has bothered operators of the Jubilee oilfield, where the gas is held. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which has its own challenges, was immediately thrown the challenge of deciding whether or
A United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report on Economic Development in Africa has said in order to push investment for transformative growth in Africa, governments should ensure that investment goes to productive and strategic sectors deemed crucial for sustained and transformative growth. “Experience has shown that investment is likely to have more developmental impact in Africa if it goes to infrastructure and production sectors, such as agriculture and manufacturing,
Vice President Paa KwesiAmissah-Arthur on Tuesday appealed to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Task Force on monetary cooperation, to work assiduously to achieve their 2020 convergence point. He said the achievement of a common currency for the sub-region is crucial for inter- and intra-trade among member-countries, to increase the production of goods and services. Vice President Amissah-Arthur made the appeal when members of the Task Force called on him at the Flagstaff House,
The Country Manager of Invest In Africa, Sam Brandful, has paid a courtesy call on the Business & Financial Times (B&FT) as part of a media engagement programme to foster links with media houses in Accra. Invest In Africa is an independent non-profit organisation established in 2012 to actively support investment in Africa and develop local enterprises, with Ghana as its priority market. Mr. Brandful shared with the newspaper Invest In Africa’s mandate to create a better way of working
President of the Peasant Farmers Association, Mohammed Adam Nashiru, says challenges within in the country’s agriculture sector are likely push the country into a severe food shortage next year. "This year (2014-15) the high cost of inputs is making it impossible for individual farmers to cover 100 percent of what they did last year. So some are doing 35 percent or half of the fields they grew last year. We are having an erratic weather pattern that is not very good for us. Market access is
The Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Emmanuel Armah Kofi Buah, led a delegation from his Ministry to pay a working visit to REROY Cables Limited at Tema industrial area for a general tour. The Minister’s delegation included Deputy Minister of Energy & Petroleum in charge of Power, Mr. John Abdulai Jinapor; the Chief Director of the Ministry, Director of Power and other Directors of the Ministry. In his discussion with top management, the Minister hinted that the Government is in the final
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