Business Analyst - August 2

BUSINESS MARKET RATES
US$ 1 – GH¢8.27
GHANA STOCK MON. 1 AUGUST. 2022
Indices and Market Cap Level Previous Level Change % Change
GSE Composite Index 2,810.01 2,798.27 +11.74 +0.42%
GSE Financial Index 2,073.63 2,073.63 0.00 0.00%
GSE Market Cap (GHS 'mn) 63,883.61 63,760.71 +122.90 +0.19%
COCOA: US$2,473.00 per tonne
CRUDE OIL: US$104.6 per barrel
GOLD: US$1,851.99 per ounce
Tuesday, August 2, 2022. Vol. No. 178
GH¢2.50
• Dr. Papa
Kwesi
Nduom
• Mrs.
Ursula
Owusu-
Ekuful,
Minister for
Communic
ations
FuEL prices have dropped by a little
over 3% as GOIL, Shell and Total
Energies have effected price changes
at their respective pumps. This
means petrol price will be going for a
little above ¢10.60, while diesel will sell above a
little above ¢13.
The move by the leading Oil Marketing
Companies (OMCs) will influence the others to
follow suit.
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA)
had already anticipated a drop in fuel prices.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Nuclear annihilation just one miscalculation
away, UN chief warns
THE world is one misstep from
devastating nuclear war and in
peril not seen since the Cold
War, the uN Secretary General
has warned.
"We have been extraordinarily lucky so
far," Antonio Guterres said.
Amid rising global tensions, "humanity
is just one misunderstanding, one
miscalculation away from nuclear
annihilation", he added.
His remarks came at the opening of a
conference for countries signed up to the
nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
The 1968 deal was introduced after the
Cuban missile crisis, an event often
portrayed as the closest the world ever
came to nuclear war. The treaty was
designed to stop the spread of nuclear
weapons to more countries, and to pursue
the ultimate goal of complete nuclear
disarmament.
Almost every nation on Earth is signed
up to the NPT, including the five biggest
nuclear powers. But among the handful of
states never to sign are four known or
suspected to have nuclear weapons: India,
Israel, North Korea and Pakistan.
Secretary General Guterres said the
"luck" the world had enjoyed so far in
avoiding a nuclear catastrophe may not
last - and urged the world to renew a push
towards eliminating all such weapons.
"Luck is not a strategy. Nor is it a shield
from geopolitical tensions boiling over into
nuclear conflict," he said.
And he warned that those
international tensions were "recaching
new highs" - pointing specifically to the
invasion of ukraine, tensions on the
Korean peninsula and in the Middle East as
examples.
Russia was widely accused of escalating
tensions when days after his invasion of
ukraine in February, President Vladimir
Putin put Russia's substantial nuclear
forces on high alert.
He also threatened anyone standing in
Russia's way with consequences "you have
never seen in your history". Russia's
nuclear strategy includes the use of
nuclear weapons if the state's existence is
under threat.
On Monday, Mr Putin wrote to the
same non-proliferation conference Mr
Guterres opened, declaring that "there can
be no winners in a nuclear war and it
should never be unleashed".
But Russia still found itself criticised at
the NPT conference.
uS Secretary of State Antony Blinken
condemned what he called Russia's sabrerattling
- and pointed out that ukraine had
handed over its Soviet-era nuclear weapons
in 1994, after receiving assurances of its
future security from Russia and others.
"What message does this send to any
country around the world that may think
that it needs to have nuclear weapons - to
protect, to defend, to deter aggression
against its sovereignty and independence?"
he asked. "The worst possible message".
Today, some 13,000 nuclear weapons
are thought to remain in service in the
arsenals of the nine nuclear-armed states -
far lower than the estimated 60,000
stockpiled during the peak of the mid-
1980s.
Sudan's military leaders launch
'manhunt' for suspected sources after
CNN gold investigation sparks protests
SudAN'S military authorities have launched a
"manhunt" for people suspected of providing
information to CNN for an investigation that
exposed Russia's plundering of gold in the African
nation, according to multiple former and current
officials.
Relatives were also threatened in a bid to
silence suspected leakers. One source said
authorities were "harassing us, harassing the
people we love, desperately hunting for leaders.
It's a clear message. Authorities are scared and
they're responding in the only way they know
how: with violence."
Thousands of protesters rallied in the
Sudanese capital Khartoum on Sunday calling for
an end to military rule following the CNN
investigation, accusing Sudan's military
leadership of being "thieving soldiers."
Protesters march during a rally against
military rule following the last coup, in
Khartoum, Sudan, on July 31, 2022.
Protesters march during a rally against
military rule following the last coup, in
Khartoum, Sudan, on July 31, 2022.
Pro-democracy protesters on the streets of
Khartoum on Sunday, July 31, 2022.
Pro-democracy protesters on the streets of
Khartoum on Sunday, July 31, 2022.
The investigation, based on multiple
interviews with high-level Sudanese and uS
officials and troves of documents reviewed by
CNN, painted a picture of an elaborate yearslong
Russian scheme to plunder Sudan's riches in a bid
to fortify Russia against increasingly robust
Western sanctions and buttress Moscow's war
effort in ukraine.
The evidence uncovered by CNN also suggests
that Russia has colluded with Sudan's military
leadership, enabling billions of dollars in gold to
bypass the Sudanese state and depriving the
poverty-stricken nation of hundreds of millions
in state revenue.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Fuel prices drop
• Continued from front
Head of Economic Regulation at the
National Petroleum Authority, Abass
Ibrahim Tasunti, said the NPA is
expecting further fuel price reductions
at the pumps from yesterday, August
1st, 2022, following the reduction in
prices of petrol and diesel on the world
market.
Ahead of the review of the prices of
petroleum products, the Chamber for
Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) said
prices of petroleum products may go
down between 3% and 6% from August
1st, 2022.
Accordingly, it said, the expected
reduction would have been bigger if not
for the depreciation of the cedi against
the u.S dollar.
The drop in fuel prices will be the
second consecutive time since oil prices
started falling on the world market.
• By a little over 3%
“Ahead of the review of
the prices of
petroleum products,
the Chamber for
Petroleum Consumers
(COPEC) said prices of
petroleum products
may go down
between 3% and 6%
from August 1st, 2022.
‘Ghana Beyond Aid’
could become a
mere slogan if…
• Nduom cautions Akufo-Addo
FORMER Progressive People's Party (PP) flagbearer,
dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, has cautioned
President Nana Addo dankwa Akufo-Addo
that his “Ghana Beyond Aid” could become a
‘mere slogan’ if proactive measures were not
taken to push it.
He said the vision appears to be fading
and does not find expression in formal presentations
such as the budget and the President’s
speeches at home and abroad.
dr. Nduom gave the warning in an open
letter to President Nana Addo dankwa Akufo-
Addo.
“It is time to light some fire under this vision
and make it real,” dr. Nduom said.
As a good vision, the former PPP flagbearer
stressed that he is an avid supporter of
Ghana Beyond Aid without reservations.
However, he said: “Over the years, Ghanaians
have heard “the private sector is the engine
of growth” with no fuel to make the
engine move for the benefit of the people.
They have been presented with “Zero Tolerance
for Corruption” and “Probity, Accountability,
Transparency” and yet corruption is
seen by citizens as the main barrier to their
well-being. Many leaders, in business and
politics, have put out their versions of “Ghana
First” visions yet there is no common agenda
to work with to make it come alive.”
“Ghana Beyond Aid” is a vision put forth
by your Administration. You have articulated
this forcefully and pushed it in presentations
to Ghanaian citizens. You have also stood
your ground on this with foreign leaders particularly
those from the western divide of
global governance. Many have hailed it and
bought into it as a very necessary agenda.
Arguing his case for supporting the
Ghana Beyond Aid vision, dr. Nduom pointed
out that it is a vision that will promote selfreliance
and thus lead to greater prosperity of
Ghanaians.
He recounted how the late General Ignatius
Kutu Acheampong championed the
Ghanaian ownership of the commanding
heights of the economy, which spawned concrete
actions that were still delivering benefits
to the state and its people.
• Continued on page 5
Govt could block
Vodafone sale
GOVERNMENT could block the sale of
Vodafone Ghana’s 70% stake to Telecel.
Bloomberg reported on Friday that
Vodafone had agreed to sell its shares to
Telecel.
But the government of Ghana led by
the Communications Minister, ursula
Owusu-Ekuful, sources say refused to
allow Telecel to purchase the majority
shares.
Telecel, according to Techgh24, had
put together a group of Ghanaian experts
and given Vodafone a convincing
proposal for the purchase.
But government is expecting Vodafone
to walk away as AirtelTigo did, and
hand over its assets for nothing.
Vodafone Group has given every indication
that it is not interested in exiting,
and rather prefers to sell to a
properly constituted entity with a clear
plan and vision …

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
DIRECTIVE ON
GOLD MUST HOLD
GOlD has been an essential component in
the financial reserves of nations for
centuries, and its appeal is showing no sign
of diminishing, with central banks set to be
net purchasers of gold once again this year.
The World Gold Council reported that
central banks bought a historic high of 374.1
tonnes of gold this year. While this move
accounts for only 16 per cent of total gold
demand, it offers an inside look into the
minds of central bankers.
Indeed, central banks now hold more than
35,000 metric tonnes of the metal, about a
fifth of all the gold ever mined.
But what is it about gold that has made it
such a key asset for so long?
One of gold’s primary roles for central
banks is to diversify their reserves. The banks
are responsible for their nations’ currencies,
but these currencies are subject to swings in
value, depending on the perceived strength
or weakness of the underlying economy.
At times of need, banks may be forced to
print more money, since interest rates, the
traditional lever of monetary control, have
been stuck near zero for over a decade.
This increase in money supply may be
necessary to stave off economic turmoil, but
at the cost of devaluing the currency.
Gold, by contrast, is a finite physical
commodity whose supply can’t easily be
added to. As such, it is a natural hedge
against inflation.
As gold carries no credit or counterpart
risks, it serves as a source of trust in a country
and in all economic environments, making it
one of the most crucial reserve assets
worldwide, alongside government bonds.
In alignment with this thinking, the Vice-
President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia,
announced last Thursday that the Bank of
Ghana (BoG) now had the first right of
refusal for the purchase of all gold mined in
the country as part of measures to stabilise
the Cedi and ensure macroeconomic stability,
as reported in our front page lead story of
the July 15, 2022 edition.
“Ultimately, once we accumulate enough
gold, future borrowing and our currency can
be backed by gold. This will stabilise the cedi,
long term,” he further explained.
The Newspaper believes that the decision
is a timely one which, hopefully, will help
stabilise the cedi and ultimately the macro
economy.
We believe so because gold has an inverse
relationship with the US dollar, which is an
added element to its appeal. When the dollar
dips in value, gold typically rises, enabling
central banks to protect their reserves at
times of market volatility.
The ultimate time
management lesson
BY MAXWELL
AMPONG
THE most productive men
and women in the world
often speak about the
importance of time
management. We keep
asking them “what” their timemanagement
routine is because I
guess most people (me inclusive)
usually think if we copy exactly what
they do during their day, we can then
be as productive as them, or close,
even though we all live different
lives. The main advice in most time
management sessions is that you
have to squeeze as much from the
24hrs in a da.
Time Assets vs. Time debts
Most productivity strategies focus
on short-term efficiency: how to
manage your to-do list effectively,
how to get more done each morning,
how to shorten your weekly
meetings, and so on. These are all
reasonable ideas.
We often fail to realize, however,
that there are certain strategic
choices that impact our time on a
larger scale. These choices can be
categorized as Time Assets or Time
debts.
TIME ASSETS are actions or
choices you make today that will save
you time in the future.
Software is a classic example of a
time asset. You can write a program
one time today and it will run
processes for you over and over again
every day afterward. You pay an
upfront investment of time and get a
payoff each day afterward.
The car leasing system that Steve
Jobs developed is another example of
a time asset. It took him some time
to find a loophole and arrange a
repeatable leasing system, but his
process rewarded him with
additional time
and less hassle
every 6 months.
TIME
dEBTS are actions
or choices you
make today that
will cost you
additional time in
the future.
Email is a time
debt that most
people participate
in each day. If you
send an email
now, you are
committing to
reading the reply
or responding
with an
additional
message later.
Every email you
send creates a
small debt that you have to pay back
at a later time.
This is not to say that all time
debts are bad. Perhaps you enjoy
serving on your school committee or
volunteering with a local
organization. However, when you
make these commitments, you are
also creating a time debt that you
will have to pay at some point.
Sometimes the debts we commit to
are worth sacrificing for, many times
they are not.
Time Assets in Real Life
I wrote down a short list of time
assets and time debts for my
business. Here are a few I came up
with…
Assets
• Speaking. I can create a
speaking page on my website that
answers common questions and
qualifies the right kind of people.
This could include a descriptive
Frequently Asked Questions section
or a better sign up form. The goal of
the system is to set clear
expectations and answer common
questions that I usually have to
answer via email.
• Accounting. By setting clear
rules for my bookkeeper and
accountant, we can develop a system
for automatically tagging certain
expenses and transactions each
month, which minimizes the need
for me to manually approve repeated
transactions.
• Scheduling. Booking calendar
appointments, calls, and interviews
requires a lot of email.
using scheduling software
eliminates this problem and lets
people choose from a pre-selected list
of available times.
debts
• Email. The more email I answer,
the more email I generate.
• Comments. I like the comments
on my site and I don't plan on
removing them. (I love hearing from
you!) But every time I publish an
article with a comments section, I'm
creating a time debt that I have to
pay back by approving and
moderating comments.
• Interviews. At first, I said yes to
every interview that came my way.
Today, I typically do 3 to 5 every week.
Saying yes to every interview has
become a time debt.
• Low quality work. If you don't
edit your article now, you'll have to
fix the grammar later. If you write
sloppy code now, you'll have to debug
it later. If you create a poor product in
the beginning, you'll have to service
customers and process refunds later.
• Every low-quality piece of work
is a time debt that you have to pay
back. To quote John Wooden, “If you
don't have time to do it right, when
will you have time to do it over?”
A System For Your Time
Systems are more important than
goals, and Time Assets are a perfect
example of why this is true. Each
Time Asset that you create is a
system that goes to work for you day
in and day out.
If your schedule is filled with
Time debts, then it doesn't matter
how hard you work. Your choices will
constantly put you in a productivity
hole. However, if you strategically
build Time Assets day after day, then
you multiply your time
exponentially.
driving a car without a license
plate might seem like an extreme
way to save time, but it is also a level
of strategic thinking that most
people never embrace. This isn't an
approach that only works for Steve
Jobs. It works for all of us.
Time debts need to be paid. Be
careful how you choose them. Time
Assets pay you over and over again.
Spend more time creating them.
Maxwell Ampong is the CEO of
Maxwell Investments

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Sim card re-registration extension
not enough — Momo Agents
FOLLOWING the two
months extension
for the re-registration
of all unregistered
SIM cards,
Mobile Money Agents Association
(MMAA) has waded into
the matter, lamenting that the
period was still not enough to
ensure that all Ghanaians reregister
their SIM cards.
The MMAA contended that
the issue for many unregistered
subscribers was their inability
to access their Ghana
Cards.
In a statement, the group
called on the government to
rather extend the deadline to
January 2023 instead of September
30, this year.
“As a business people in the
industry, it will be very detrimental
to our business and the
industry, in general, should the
government pursue the 31st
July 2022. We appeal that with
realism and having considered
inconveniences and challenges,
the government should
extend the deadline to January
2023,” the MMAA urged.
Speaking with Citi News
yesterday, which was monitored
by Business ANALYST,
the Secretary of the MMAA,
Evans Otumfuor, re-inforced
what was captured in the earlier
press statement and
stressed that until the challenges
with the National Identification
Authority (NIA) were
addressed, the extension would
have little impact.
“Looking at the exigencies
that government wants us to
regularise our credentials with
the Ghana Card, we were thinking
that at least, within a space
of six months, it should be
enough for us to get quite a
good number of people.”
The government had initially
set July 31 as the deadline
for all persons to re-register
their SIM cards with their
Ghana Cards.
Persons who had failed to
comply with the directive
would have had their SIM
cards deactivated.
The regulations are to help
law enforcement agencies to
identify SIM card owners, track
criminals who use phones for
illegal activities, curb phone
theft, hate text messaging, mobile
fraud activities, and SIM
Box fraud.
Statistics from the National
Communication Authority
(NCA) show that as of Thursday,
July 21, 2022, 16,969,034 individuals
had registered for the
Ghana Card, with about
16,535,623 cards printed, while
15,395,607 had linked their
Ghana Card to their SIM cards.
To boost the registration
process, the government has
put in place a self-service registration
application, which
will be made available on both
Android and IOS platforms this
week.
Sim re-registration: MoMo vendors
raise concerns over self-service app
MOBILE Money Agents Association
of Ghana is raising
concerns over the
introduction of a self-service
sim reregistration app
to augment the sim re-registration
exercise.
This comes after ursula
Owusu Ekuful revealed that
the deadline for the sim
card re-registration exercise
has been extended to
September 30, 2022, in a
press conference on Sunday,
July 31st, 2022, Minister for
the Minister of Communications
ursula Owusu Ekuful
also disclosed that a selfservice
sim reregistration
app that will be launched
will help Ghanaians re-register
their sim cards in the
comfort of their homes
without going to centers of
operators as is the case currently.
The app will be available for
download on both android and IOS
after the launch and will cost GH¢5.
Reacting to the introduction of
the self-service app on Atinka FM
yesterday, General Secretary for the
Mobile Money Agents Association of
Ghana, Evans Otumfour explained
that it will be inappropriate for a sim
card user who has 10 sim cards to
pay GHS5 for every registration.
“If I download the app, I will be
paying for it. So if I have 10 sim
cards, it will not be appropriate to
pay for all 10 sim cards. We all know
that we have a lot of people within
the informal sector who are unable
to operate a cell phone on their
own,” he added.
Evans Otumfour argued that a lot
of people within the informal sector
are unable to operate a cell phone on
their own and a self-service app will
be an issue.
The Mobile Money Agents Association
of Ghana early on pleaded with
government to extend the deadline
for the SIM card re-registration exercise.
In a statement issued on Thursday,
July 28, the group pleaded for
the deadline to be extended to January
2023.
“As business people in the industry,
it will be very detrimental to our
business and the industry, in general,
should the government pursue the
31st July 2022 deadline. We appeal
that with realism and having considered
inconveniences and challenges,
the government should
extend the deadline to January 2023,”
portions of the statement read.
‘Ghana Beyond
Aid’ could become
a mere slogan if…
• Continued from page 3
“Operation Feed Yourself” was and remains a popular
policy from the Acheampong era.
Against this backdrop, dr. Nduom made some
recommendations to President Akufo-Addo which
implementation he said could push the “Ghana Beyond
Aid” vision.
“All infrastructure contracts signed by the state
must have a minimum 25% of value go to an indigenous
Ghanaian and his/her enterprise.
“All Cocoa roads and projects funded by COCO-
BOd must be given to indigenous Ghanaians and
their companies.
Furthermore, he asked the government to ban
completely the importation of chocolate, soft
drinks, fruit juices, fruits, poultry and meats, rice
and sugar.
“Immediately ban the serving of any imported
food or drink at all state functions. School feeding
programmes must only use locally produced food
and drinks.”
dr. Nduom also entreated the President to take
“firm steps” to ensure indigenous Ghanaian control
of the financial sector - banking, insurance, investment,
pension and others at all levels.
“All professional services agreements - architectural,
technology, financial, etc., must have at
least 25% indigenous Ghanaian participation. All
new and renewed concessions for gold, bauxite, oil
and gas, diamond, and timber must have a minimum
of 25% indigenous Ghana ownership.”
The digitalization policy, he said, must be
placed firmly, 100% in the hands of indigenous
Ghanaians and their companies.
“Give full rights and recognition to Ghanaians
who by necessity have become citizens of other
countries - to vote, be employed by the state and
compete for elective offices.
“Will this hurt? Initially, yes. But eventually,
we will be a better country, one whose citizens can
aspire to prosperity with confidence.”

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
African Continental Free Trade Area:
The economics beyond the rheotic
As AfCTA belatedly prepares to
come into effect, THE BuSINESS
ANALYST, reproduces an econometric
modeling–based report, released
recently by the World Bank Group and
Proshare Economy, which presents
quantitative forecasts on how the
impending pan-continental single
market will affect Africa’s economy, its
member countries and trade relations
with the rest of the world.
THE African Continental Free
Trade Area (AfCFTA)
agreement will create the
largest free trade area in the
world measured by the
number of countries participating.
The pact connects 1.3 billion people
across 55 countries with a combined
gross domestic product (GdP) valued at
uS$3.4 trillion. It has the potential to lift
30 million people out of extreme
poverty, but achieving its full potential
will depend on putting in place
significant policy reforms and trade
facilitation measures.
As the global economy is in turmoil
due to the COVId-19 pandemic, creation
of the vast AfCFTA regional market is a
major opportunity to help African
countries diversify their exports,
accelerate growth, and attract foreign
direct investment.
The scope of AfCFTA is large. The
agreement will reduce tariff s among
member countries and cover policy
areas such as trade facilitation and
services, as well as regulatory measures
such as sanitary standards and
technical barriers to trade.
It will complement existing subregional
economic communities and
trade agreements in Africa by offering a
continent-wide regulatory framework
and by regulating policy areas-such as
investment and intellectual property
rights protection (table O.1)-that so far
have not been covered in most subregional
agreements in Africa.
Scope
To date, studies on the economic
implications of Africa's regional integration
have mainly focused on tariff and nontariff
barriers (NTBs) in goods. This analysis extends
those studies to cover NTBs in services and
trade facilitation measures.
Most important, the analysis is extended to
investigate the implications of AfCFTA for
poverty, impacts on unskilled workers, and
women.
In line with ongoing negotiations, the
model assumes reductions in tariff and
nontariff barriers and in trade facilitation
bottlenecks. Specifically:
Tariffs on intra-continental trade are
reduced progressively in line with AfCFTA
modalities. Starting in 2020, tariffs on 90
percent of tariff lines will be eliminated over a
5-year period (10 years for least developed
countries, or LdCs). Starting in 2025, tariffs on
an additional 7 percent of tariff lines will be
eliminated over a five-year period (eight years
for LdCs). up to 3 percent of tariff lines that
account for no more than 10 percent of intra-
Africa imports could be excluded from
liberalization by the end of 2030 (2033 for LdCs).
Nontariff barriers on both goods and
services are reduced on a most-favored nation
(MFN) basis. It is assumed that 50 percent of
NTBs can be addressed with policy changes
within the context of AfCFTA-with a cap of 50
percentage points. It is also assumed that
additional reductions of NTBs on exports will
be forthcoming.
AfCFTA will be accompanied by measures
that facilitate trade through implementation of
a trade facilitation agreement (TFA). Estimates
of the size of these trade barriers were provided
by de Melo and Sorgho (2019). These
are halved, although capped at 10
percentage points.
Macroeconomic
Impacts of AfCFTA
Real income gains from full
implementation of AfCFTA could
increase by 7 percent by 2035, or
nearly uS$450 billion (in 2014 prices
and market exchange rates). But the
aggregate numbers mask the
heterogeneity of impacts across
countries and sectors.
At the very high end are Cote
d'Ivoire and Zimbabwe with income
gains of 14 per cent each (figure O.1).
At the low end, a few countries would
see real income gains of around
2 percent-including Madagascar,
Malawi, and Mozambique.
Real income gains from tariff
liberalization alone are small, about
0.2 percent at the continental level,
although some countries would
record gains of more than 1 per cent.
Constraints to African trade are largely
attributable to the high costs of that trade. As a
result, the biggest gains would come from the
reduction in NTBs and implementation of the
TFA.
under combined tariff liberalization and
reduction in NTBs, the real income gain would
amount to 2.4 per cent in 2035 at the
continental level. The biggest boost would arise
from implementation of the TFA, which would
raise the gains for AfCFTA members to 7
percent of income.
AfCFTA would significantly boost African
trade, particularly intraregional trade in
manufacturing. The volume of total exports
would increase by almost 29 percent by 2035
relative to the baseline.
Intra-continental exports would increase
by over 81 percent, while exports to non-African
countries would rise by 19 per cent. Intra-
AfCFTA exports to AfCFTA partners would rise
especially fast for Cameroon, the Arab Republic
of Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, and Tunisia, with
exports doubling or tripling with respect to the
baseline. under the AfCFTA scenario,
manufacturing exports would gain the most,
62 per cent overall, with intra-Africa trade
increasing by 110 per cent and exports to the
rest of the world rising by 46 per cent. Smaller
gains would be observed in agriculture-49 per
cent for intra-Africa trade and 10 per cent for
extra-Africa trade. The gains in the services
trade are more modest-about 4 per cent overall
and 14 per cent within Africa.
The AfCFTA agreement would also boost
regional output and productivity and lead to a
reallocation of resources across sectors and
countries. By 2035, total production of the
continent would be almost uS$212 billion
higher than the baseline.
Output would increase the most in natural
resources and services (1.7 per cent), with
manufacturing seeing a 1.2 per cent rise. But
output in agriculture would contract 0.5 per
cent (relative to the baseline in 2035) at the
continental level.
In absolute terms, most of the gains would
be realized by the services sector (uS$147
billion), with smaller gains in manufacturing
(uS$56 billion) and natural resources (uS$17
billion). By 2035, agricultural output would
decline by uS$8 billion relative to the baseline.
As compared with the baseline in 2035,
agriculture is growing faster in all parts of
Africa except for North Africa, which under
AfCFTA is shifting toward manufacturing and
services.
The aggregate numbers, however, mask the
heterogeneity of impacts across countries and
sectors. Ninety per cent of countries would see
their volume of services grow under AfCFTA,
reflecting in part the higher demand for
services as Africa's economy grows.
Similarly, 60 per cent of countries would see
growth in the value of their output of
agricultural and manufacturing goods.
AfCFTA's short-term impact on tax
revenues is small for most countries. Tariff
revenues would decline by less than 1.5 per cent
for 49 out of 54 countries. Total tax revenues
would decline by less than 0.3 per cent in 50 out
of 54 countries.
Two factors
help explain
these small
revenue
impacts. First,
only a small
share of tariff
revenues come
from imports
from African
countries (less
than 10 per cent
on average).
Second,
exclusion lists
can shield most
tariff revenues
from
liberalization
because these
revenues are
highly
concentrated in
a few tariff lines
(1 percent of

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
tariff lines account for more than threequarters
of tariff revenues in almost all
African countries).
In the medium to long run, tariff
revenues would grow by 3 per cent by 2035
relative to the baseline as imports rise and
as tariff liberalization is accompanied by a
reduction in NTBs and implementation of
trade facilitation measures.
distributional Impacts of
AfCFTA on Poverty and
Employment
AfCFTA can lift an additional 30 million
people from extreme poverty (1.5 per cent of
the continent's population) and 68 million
people from moderate poverty (figure O.2).
In 2015, the latest year for which
detailed World Bank estimates are available,
415 million people in Africa lived in extreme
poverty (at uS$1.90 a day in purchasing
power parity, PPP, terms).
Across the continent, however, poverty
rates vary widely by region-for example,
from 41.1 per cent in Sub-Saharan Africa to
less than 3 per cent in North Africa. By
country, the poverty rate is 77.7 per cent in
the Central African Republic, but just 0.4 per
cent in Algeria and Egypt.
under baseline simulations, the
headcount ratio of extreme poverty in Africa
is projected to decline to 10.9 per cent by
2035 from 34.7 per cent in the latest estimate
(2015).
Full implementation of AfCFTA would
contribute to a further decline by lifting an
additional 30 million from extreme poverty.
In West Africa, the poverty headcount would
decline by 12 million people, while the
decline for Central and East Africa would be
9.3 million and 4.8 million, respectively.
At the moderate poverty line of PPP
uS$5.50 a day, AfCFTA has the potential to
lift 67.9 million people, or 3.6 per cent of the
continent's population, out of poverty by
2035.
Implementation of AfCFTA would
increase employment opportunities and
wages for unskilled workers and help to
close the gender wage gap. The continent
would see a net increase in the proportion of
workers in energy-intensive manufacturing.
Agricultural employment would
increase in 60 per cent of countries, and
wages for unskilled labor would grow faster
where there is an expansion in agricultural
employment.
By 2035, wages for unskilled labor would
be 10.3 per cent higher than the baseline;
the increase for skilled workers would be 9.8
per cent. Wages would grow slightly faster
for women than for men as output expands
in key female labour “intensive industries.
By 2035, wages for women would
increase 10.5 per cent with respect to the
baseline, compared with 9.9 per cent for
men.
Labour market results would vary by
country, and some workers would lose jobs
even as others gain new job opportunities
and higher wages.
Governments will need to focus on
facilitating a smooth and inclusive
transition by supporting flexible labor
markets, improving connectivity within
countries, and maintaining sound
macroeconomic policies and a business
environment that is friendly to domestic
and foreign investors.
Policy makers will need to carefully
monitor AfCFTA's distributional impactsacross
sectors and countries, on skilled and
unskilled workers, and on female and male
workers. doing so will enable them to
design policies to reduce the costs of job
switching and provide effective safety nets
where they are needed most.
African Continental Free Trade Area
.. Key To Help Africa Address The
Challenges of COVId-19
The COVId-19 pandemic has taken a toll
on human life and brought major
disruption to economic activity across the
world. despite arriving later in Sub-Saharan
Africa, the virus has spread rapidly across
the continent.
Economic growth in the region is
projected to decline from 2.4 per cent in 2019
to 2.1 per cent to 5.1 per cent in 2020, the first
recession in the past quarter century (World
Bank 2020). It will cost the region between
uS$37 billion and uS$79 billion in terms of
output losses for 2020.
The downward growth revision in 2020
reflects the macroeconomic risks arising
from the sharp decline in output growth
among the region's key trading partners, the
fall in commodity prices, and the reduced
tourism, as well as the effects of measures to
contain the pandemic.
The COVId-19 crisis is also contributing
to increased food insecurity as currencies
are weakening and prices of staple foods are
rising in many parts of the region.
Policy responses that result in subregional
trade blockages will increase
transaction costs and lead to even larger
welfare losses. In Sub-Saharan Africa, these
policies will disproportionately impact
household welfare as a result of price
increases and supply shortages. Welfare
losses would amount to 14 percent relative
to the no-COVId scenario if countries were
to close their borders to trade (World Bank
2020).
Border closings have disproportionally
affected the poor, particularly small-scale
cross-border traders, agricultural workers,
and unskilled workers in the informal
sector.
The COVId-19 pandemic has laid bare
the deficiencies in trade facilitation and
border management procedures, as many of
these countries have struggled with efforts
to keep trade moving while increasing
imports of essential supplies and mitigating
the spread of the disease.
In this context, a successful
implementation of AfCFTA would be crucial.
In the short term, the agreement would help
cushion the negative effects of COVId-19 on
economic growth by supporting regional
trade and value chains through the
reduction of trade costs.
In the longer term, AfCFTA would allow
countries to anchor expectations by
providing a path for integration and
growth-enhancing reforms. Furthermore,
the pandemic has demonstrated the need
for increased cooperation among trading
partners.
By replacing the patchwork of regional
agreements, streamlining border
“On the other hand,
the results may
overestimate the
impacts of AfCFTA
because the analysis
does not capture (1) the
costs of lowering
nontariff barriers and
trade facilitation
measures; and (2) the
transitional costs
associated with traderelated
structural
change such as
employment shifts and
potentially stranded
assets such as capital.
procedures, and prioritizing trade reforms,
AfCFTA could help countries increase their
resiliency in the face of future economic
shocks.
Caveats
This analysis comes with several
caveats.
On the one hand, the results may
underestimate the impacts of AfCFTA
because they do not capture (1) informal
trade flows or new trade flows in sectors and
countries that are not trading in the
baseline; (2) dynamic gains from trade (such
as productivity increases, economies of
scale, and learning by doing); and (3) foreign
direct investment (FdI)-improving market
conditions, competitiveness, and business
sentiment will likely stimulate FdI in Africa,
thereby leading to higher investment and
accelerating imports of higher-technology
intermediate and capital goods and
improved management practices.
Therefore, FdI inflows could boost
regional income well above the gains
predicted in this analysis.
On the other hand, the results may
overestimate the impacts of AfCFTA because
the analysis does not capture (1) the costs of
lowering nontariff barriers and trade
facilitation measures; and (2) the
transitional costs associated with traderelated
structural change such as
employment shifts and potentially stranded
assets such as capital.
Furthermore, the results are based on a
new data set on gender-disaggregated
employment and wages, which requires
further vetting by country experts.
AfCFTA offers big opportunities for
development in Africa, but implementation
will be a significant challenge. This analysis
identifies key priorities for African policy
makers. Lowering and eliminating tariffs
will be the relatively easy part-even if it
comes, in some cases, with the challenge of
how to replace tariff revenues.
The hard part will be enacting the
nontariff and trade facilitation measures.
Such measures will require substantial
policy reforms at the national level,
indicating a long road ahead.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Real Estate Development 101;
Benefits of a Single Storey Home
Abraham Maslow’s theory of
needs considers a home/shelter as
a basic need that is fundamental
to man’s survival. Even if one has a
place to put his or her head to sleep
after a hard day’s work, one still
dreams of owning a house at some
point in his/her life when all is
said and done; at least as an
accomplishment after years of
hard work.
AS appealing as it may sound,
you must decide on the kind
of home you want to build.
Building a home for the sake
of it may end up being a
waste of money because it doesn’t suit your
needs and lifestyle. It tends to be an extra
cost which puts a strain on your finances.
It is important to know the type of
building; thus a single-storey or multiplestorey
(two and above) and which one suits
your needs best.
I have heard many arguments for or
against a single storey home or a multiple
(double) storey home with so much
passion. The arguments usually tries to
downplay the other as if to say one is better
than the other. To be honest that is not the
case, but I understand the posture of those
who prefer one against the other. The
bottom line of which is better is about how
they meet one’s needs. If you have a family
that have elderly people or persons who
will have difficulty in climbing up and
down the stairs, a single storey home will
be best option. On the contrary, if climbing
up and down the stairs is not a problem
and privacy is dear to one’s heart, then a
double-storey home will be perfect.
So you see, it is not because one is
better than the other but because the one
you choose fits your lifestyle and needs;
whatever they may be.
In today’s article, we will focus on a
one-story home and its benefits. A onestory
home is a building that has only one
level and it is important to note that
basements are not counted as a storey. The
numerous advantages that come with onestory
homes are appealing. If you are ready
to build or buy a home and you are not sure
if a single storey home is for you, I have got
you covered. Here are some benefits of
owning a single-story home.
One-story homes are appealing to any
age bracket. They provide better
accessibility for both the young and old,
also, the physically disadvantaged. It is
perfect for every stage in life, thus from
childhood to old age. The designs of single
story homes are good and accident-free.
Whether you have young kids or aging
parents living with you, you do not have to
harbour the fear of someone falling off the
staircase or from the floors of the building.
It is also very convenient for persons living
with disability as it makes it easier to move
to every part of the house without a hassle.
In the case of an emergency, evacuating the
building will be a lot easier as compared to
houses with levels. As a natural stage in life,
we will grow old and tackling stairs with
old age becomes more difficult and
cumbersome. One story homes provide easy
access to every part of the house without
any extra effort. It is easier to navigate.
The beautiful aspect of a one-story
home is that because all rooms are
accessible, it is easier to move to each
other’s room or converge at a place for
family bonding and because spaces are
shared together, it provides an avenue to
get to know each other better. The open
floor plan of these types of buildings is
structured in a way that the kitchen, hall
and dining rooms usually flow together
thus creating a central space for home
which encourages bonding, unlike the
double story homes that comes with
privacy. It is the perfect home for people
to enjoy family time and bonding.
One-story homes are easy to
maintain. This is because it is easy to
reach a lot of places and corners in the
home and you do not need a ladder to
reach certain parts of the house to clean
or renovate, unlike a two story home.
Because the rooms aren’t many and are
within the view of the owner, it is easy to
identify the places in the house that need
maintenance and can be worked on as
soon as possible. Maintenance can also be
done on a regular basis because the rooms
aren’t many. Since everything is on the
same level, there is no need to be carrying
cleaning equipment up and down which
can be very tiring and demotivating. This
will help keep the house in shape and
beautiful as always.
Single story homes also give more
room for creativity with more design
options. The nature of a one-story home
gives you the opportunity to have a variety
of designs because it has a large living
space. There can be more variation in
ceiling and window heights to enhance the
beauty of the home. Also, because the rooms
are large, space can be optimized well and
designed in a way that will suit your needs
or even your family needs; if you plan to
move in with your family. You can also
easily blend the indoor with the outdoor.
It is important to note that single-story
homes are also cost and energy efficient.
That is, it has just one floor or level and it’s
spacious, the place is airy and benefits from
the earth’s natural light and air. Elementary
science states that the higher the altitude
the lesser the oxygen. It is easy to optimize
these natural resources to reduce utility
cost as the AC, fan and lights will be used
less. More so, the lack of walls in a one story
home makes it easier for air to flow thus
improving ventilation.
Windows can be built higher to ensure
the place is airy at all times thus more
ventilation. With regards to one story
homes being cost-efficient, you get to spend
less on décor and furniture as you will not
have to go through the ordeal of designing
and furnishing a lot of rooms. You also
spend less on maintenance. Spending less
on utilities also makes it cost-efficient and
that’s a double win!
If you are looking to go into real estate
as an estate developer, a one-story home
should be your top pick. They have a wider
appeal and are likely to sell more than any
other structure. They are easy to build and
they sell faster too.
In spite of these benefits, it is important
to factor in your needs when buying or
building a home as it may go a long way to
affect your choices. You can talk to estate
developers, brokers or agents to assist you
in choosing the right home if you are still
not certain about the type of story you want
to acquire. Notwithstanding, the next
publication will cover the benefits of a twostory
home in order to make a firm decision
on the type of home you want to build or
buy.
The writer is the CEO of CBC Properties
Limited, a member of the Ghana Association
of Real Estate Brokers (GAR) and Ghana
Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA)

Tuesday, August March 2, 1, 2022 2022
Dangote tops Forbes list of
Africa’s richest people for
10th successive year
AMERICAN business
magazine Forbes
has published its
annual list of the
richest people on
the African continent.
The list has 18 billionaires
who are worth an estimated
uS$73.8 billion, slightly more
than the uS$73.4 billion
aggregate worth of the 20
billionaires on last year’s list of
For the tenth year in a row, Aliko
dangote of Nigeria is the continent’s
richest person, worth uS$12.1 billion,
up by uS$2 billion from last year’s list
thanks to a roughly 30percent rise in
the share price of dangote Cement, by
far his most valuable asset.
The second richest is Nassef
Sawiris of Egypt, whose largest asset is
a nearly 6 percent stake in sportswear
maker Adidas.
At number three: Nicky
Oppenheimer of South Africa, who
inherited a stake in diamond firm
deBeers and ran the company until
2012, when he sold his family’s 40
percent stake in deBeers to mining
giant AngloAmerican for uS$5.1
billion.
The biggest gainer this year is
• Nassef Sawiris
Africa’s richest people.
The continent’s 18
billionaires are worth an average
uS$4.1 billion, 12 percent more
than a year ago, driven in part by
Nigeria’s surging stock market.
The 18 billionaires from
Africa hail from seven different
countries. South Africa and
Egypt each have five billionaires,
followed by Nigeria with three
and Morocco with two.
the tenth year in
a row, Aliko
Dangote “For
of Nigeria
is the continent’s
richest person,
worth US$12.1
billion, up by US$2
billion from last
year’s list thanks to
a roughly 30percent
rise in the share
price of Dangote
Cement, by far his
most valuable asset.
another Nigerian cement tycoon,
Abdulsamad Rabiu. Remarkably,
shares of his BuA Cement PLC, which
listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange
in January 2020, have doubled in value
in the past year.
The only two women billionaires
from Africa, Folorunsho Alakija of
Nigeria and Isabel dos Santos of
Angola have both fallen off the list.
Forbes calculates that the fortune
of Alakija of Nigeria, who owns an oil
exploration company, dropped below
uS$1 billion due to lower oil prices.
And Isabel dos Santos, who since 2013
SEE THE
AFRICAN
BILLIONAIRE
RICH LIST;
• Aliko Dangote
has been the richest woman in Africa,
was knocked from her perch by a
series of court decisions freezing her
assets in both Angola and Portugal. In
January 2020, the attorney general of
Angola charged dos Santos with
embezzlement and money laundering.
The Angolan court claimed that
actions taken by dos Santos, her
husband Sindika dokolo (who died in
October 2020, reportedly in a scuba
diving accident) and one other
associate caused the Angolan
government losses of at least uS$1.14
billion. Forbes has marked dos Santos’
frozen assets at zero. Through a
spokesperson, dos Santos declined to
comment.
• Nicky Oppenheimer & family
Aliko dangote – Net worth: $12.1 billion
Nassef Sawiris – Net worth: $8.5 billion
Nicky Oppenheimer & family – Net worth: $8 billion
Johann Rupert & family – Net worth: $7.2 billion
Mike Adenuga – Net worth: $6.3 billion
Abdulsamad Rabiu – Net worth: $5.5 billion
Issad Rebrab & family – Net worth: $4.8 billion
Naguib Sawiris – Net worth: $3.2 billion
Patrice Motsepe – Net worth: $3 billion
Koos Bekker – Net worth: $2.8 billion
Mohamed Mansour – Net worth: $2.5 billion
Aziz Akhannouch & family – Net worth: $2 billion
Mohammed dewji – Net worth: $1.6 billion
Youssef Mansour – Net worth: $1.5 billion
Othman Benjelloun & family – Net worth: $1.3 billion
Michiel Le Roux – Net worth: $1.2 billion
Strive Masiyiwa – Net worth: $1.2 billion
Yasseen Mansour – Net worth: $1.1 billion

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Why African millennials
can't get enough of Bitcoin
Bitcoin's eye-watering price surge
recently is proving too tempting
to resist despite fears that
cryptocurrencies are a bubble
floating towards an inevitable
burst. One group for whom it holds particular
appeal is African millennials, writes the
BBC's Catherine Byaruhanga from uganda.
Thirty year-old Peace Akware in Kampala
is a convert to the cryptocurrency craze. Like
any self-respecting middle class millennial
here her smartphone is always within reach
and with it her digital wallet.
"I check my Bitcoin every day and any
chance I can get. Any minute, any hour,
anytime, as often as I can," she tells me from
the small bungalow she rents on the
outskirts of Kampala.
Finding a job here is almost like a lottery
for graduates so ugandans often have socalled
side hustles. Peace has sold clothes and
even got into money lending. Both failed. But
buying cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin appeals
to her because it requires less of her time and
there are no upfront costs.
She's bought more than a thousand
dollars worth of Bitcoin. So far the gamble is
paying off and overall she is seeing her digital
value rise. "You know there's potential for it
growing even further. I would like to buy a
car. I would like to buy land. I would like to
build with it."
disrupting remittances
It's not just those hoping to get rich quick
who are getting in on the action. In parts of
the continent - especially commercial hubs
like Lagos, Nairobi and Johannesburg - a
small but growing number of people are
finding that cryptocurrencies offer a cheaper
solution to an expensive problem -
transferring funds across borders.
The technology platform Bitpesa uses
Bitcoin as a medium to transfer cash across
borders.
It is like a remittance company.
With traditional remittance companies
like Western union, when you transfer
money initially it goes from your local
currency into dollars then on the other side
they receive dollars which are then converted
into the local currency.
You lose a lot of money in that
conversion. What Bitpesa does is substitute
the dollars with Bitcoin. It is cheaper,
especially when there is a shortage of dollars
in the country or restrictions on accessing
dollars.
It is also quicker because you don't have
to go through long complicated bank
approvals. Elizabeth Rossiello is the CEO of
Bitpesa. Even as someone who knows how
the finance world works, she gets frustrated
with traditional banking.
"I've been in Nairobi for the past month
and I had three big banking things to do. "All
three of these operations with three different
Kenyan banks were cancelled for different
reasons, or had delays or needed additional
information so it took almost two-and-a-half
weeks per transaction to get them finalised
and I'm an expert."
Bitpesa has been operating for six years
now and has over 6,000 customers across the
continent. It focuses on big-ticket transfers -
for example, paying suppliers in China or
employees in another country.
In Nigeria, when the government placed
controls on access to the uS dollar during a
financial crunch, Bitcoin made it much
easier for businesses to transfer cash abroad,
something that has increased interest in
cryptocurrencies in the country.
In places like Zimbabwe, where there has
been political and economic instability,
Bitcoin has become a place to store value, buy
goods and services from abroad and crucially
a vehicle for remittances from the diaspora.
Many central banks are sceptical.
The Nigerian, Kenyan and ugandan
central banks have issued warnings about
getting involved in the new and unregulated
market.
The governor of the Central Bank of
Kenya went as far as saying digital
currencies are a type of Ponzi scheme
because of the way their value often
fluctuates.
Bitcoin classes
Martin Serugga, a sharply dressed
currency trader in Kampala warns people
to be cautious too. He says unfamiliarity
about the new financial instruments
could lead to criminals duping customers
out of their money.
Nevertheless, he has started weekly
classes with over 50 people attending to
learn about cryptocurrencies and how to
trade them against traditional currencies
like the uS dollar or British pound. He
says high youth unemployment in
uganda is driving interest in Bitcoin and
other products.
"If you don't have factory jobs and you
don't have corporate jobs to serve the
thousands of young people coming out of the
universities this is an alternative," he says.
Mr Serugga's class is made up of equal
numbers of men and women, who are mostly
young. They come to an upmarket coffee
shop for their dose of the financial markets.
The bright projector on the screen flashes
numbers, graphs and bright colours. Joachim
Ndhokero, a recent economics graduate, is
still unemployed.
His father encouraged him to attend the
classes to make some money but it has not
been easy. He lost over $900 (£664) in a trade
gone wrong. Before he lost all his money, he
had just made a $200 profit.
Then he went to the cinema and lost
everything. "I think it was within like two
hours. "That day I learnt that for
cryptocurrencies, since they have a bigger
spread, they can easily bring in losses. If it's a
loss, it's really a loss." The expert advice here
is "use what you can afford to lose".
Blockchain magic
But it's not just the currency aspect of
this technology that people think will
transform the continent. digital security
expert Neil Blazevic sees the blockchain
technology which underpins
cryptocurrencies as the more important
innovation.
Blockchain is a form of recording data
that cannot be tampered with or hacked. It
can be used for documents from contracts
drawn up by lawyers to land registries. He
lists many more applications.
"If African developers, entrepreneurs, and
governments can leverage blockchain
technologies, they may have a shot at
tackling some of the continent's most
intractable problems of the unbanked
masses, digital identities, untrusted voting
systems, to name only a few
applications," Mr Blazevic explains.
"With the right support for
innovation, and collaboration Africa could
once again leapfrog over the digital divide
and become a market leader just like it
did in the move from landline
communications infrastructure to the
mobile phone ecosystem."
One person who has fully embraced
the African mobile phone revolution is
Ms Akware. She continues to watch over
her digital wallet. She knows that the
value of Bitcoin could fall at any moment.
If all fails she will probably start again
from scratch with a new venture.
For the moment she is holding on,
hoping to buy her first car in two months.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022 PAGE 11
Overcoming startups
obstacles in Ghana
BY DA ABOAGYE
IN recent years, Africa is making great
strides to become the launch pad for
high-growth innovative companies.
This is evidenced by the increasing
number of tech startups to have
received financial backing, which grew by
46% annually. This is six times faster than the
global average, according to Partech Partners
(a venture capital firm in the uS).
unfortunately, Africa has not done well in
sustaining and scaling up startups. Even
though startup development has been
progressive, there is only three “unicorns” on
the continent, including Nigeria’s fintech
Flutterwave. unicorns are privately owned
tech companies valued at more than $1
billion. Whereas such unicorns are common
in advance economies; 200 in united States,
100 in China and 50 in Europe.
Also, there are less than 20 African
‘zebras” including Ghana’s only JuMO. Zebras
are privately companies with valuation of
more than $200 million.
According to the Boston Consulting
Group (BCG), African startups rarely survive
beyond the Series B funding stage and return
on venture capital investment remains weak
at a continental average of 3% compared to
16% and 11% in Europe and Asia-Pacific
respectively.
The situation is worse in Ghana, which is
one of the growing economies in Africa.
According to Briter Bridges
(briterbridges.com), there were less than 20
disclosed deals in Ghana valued at $19 million
at close of Q3 2020 whereas the likes of South
Africa and Nigeria closed over 70 deals valuing
more than $200 million.
The Ghanaian startup faces various
structural challenges including low consumer
purchasing power, inconsistent and complex
regulations, inadequate infrastructure, and
scarce capital. However startups manages to
surmount these challenges, there is fierce
competition from incumbent companies,
especially from large companies in -toconsumer
sectors, such as retail, financial
services and energy.
Instead of established companies using
their privileged position to advance the
national interest, they often use their market
power to push new entrants with disruptive
business models out of business. Such
hostility against startups do not only
threatens competitiveness and kills
innovative technologies, products and
business models, it also deprives job creation
and economic development.
Notwithstanding, Ghana remains a very
fertile ground for entrepreneurs. It is
politically stable, fast increasing internet
penetration, fast growing economy in the
Africa, and also part of Africa’s young
population. This presents tremendous
opportunities for innovators to develop
product and services to improve social and
economic development. However, startups
will need to develop new strategies, and
Ghana’s national champions, investors and
governments will need to work together to
tackle the challenges of startups.
Scaling up through Corporate
Partnerships
Large companies have demonstrated the
ability to overcome structural challenges
affecting business. They have access to capital,
the human expertise to steer complex
regulatory environment, and the ability to
expand into other markets. Therefore, rather
than Ghanaian startups competing with
incumbents for consumers, it is advisable to
collaborate with such large entities by
providing innovative business-to-business
solutions to survive and be successful.
On the other hand, large enterprises must
be willing to open up and engage startups as
partners. Such partnership model is already
well-established in financial and
geographical technology. For instance tech
companies such as JuMO and Vokacom have
partnered with large corporations and
government respectively to provide data and
addressing services.
With such collaborations, incumbents
can nurture startups by providing direct
investment or partnerships with external
incubators and accelerators. An example of
such collaboration is that of Indonesia
companies Lippo Group, a conglomerate, and
OVO, a leading digital payment service. Lippo
Group provided financial support to OVO in
its early stage. OVO benefited from Lippo’s
ecosystem, which include hypermarkets,
telcos, e-commerce marketplaces, content
streaming, and banks serving small and
medium enterprises. Lippo also got valuable
help from OVO to bring merchants onto its
platforms and provided incentives for
consumers.
Incumbents can also form strategic
alliances with startups to develop new
technologies or
innovative business
models. Such
partnership can be
revenue-sharing,
joint-venture, or
technological
alliances between
two or more
companies. JuMO,
the Ghanaian
mobile financial
services is a perfect
example of how
such partnership
can be a win-win
and could enable a
startup grow into a
zebra. JuMO, which
holds creditscoring
algorithm,
collects behavioral
data from willing
customers and
share with telecom
operators.
It then collect
mobile-wallet data
from telcos to
provide credit scores to partner financial
institutions such as Ecobank and Letshego to
enable them review loan applications. This
alliance is helping telcos to earn revenue from
data sharing, banks to reached out to
untapped markets and JuMO is gaining
access to wider customers within the
informal sector.
In addition to the above strategies,
established companies can also set up
startups on their own. This enables
companies to overcome internal processes
and cultures that inhibit innovation.
Established companies can set up in-house
incubators or accelerators to attract and
develop new businesses or products. For
instance, In Ghana, companies like Kosmos,
Stanbic Bank and Ecobank has in-house hubs
setup to invest in local talent and capacity.
Such initiatives have benefited the likes of
Ecobank to come up with various Fintech
Products to enhance services delivery and
revenue generation.
Support from Governments and Investors
Governments and investors are important
players to improve startup development and
growth in Ghana. For instance large
companies can help new businesses to scale
up through strategic alliances. Financial
incentive from government, such as tax
reliefs, cash grants, is a good initiative to
entice investors and large companies to
support the growth of new ventures.
Ghana, through government initiatives,
has established innovation hubs such as the
Accra digital Centre to drive digital
innovation in Ghana. However, to further
improve the development of the startup
ecosystem, there is the need for government
to collaborate with development institutions
such as the African development Bank to
develop bigger innovation hubs to enable
partnership between larger companies and
new venture and attracts and investments.
For instance, the African development Bank
and Rwanda have invested $400 million to
develop the Kigali Innovation City on a 70-
hectare land size.
Government also needs to support or
direct state agencies such as the National
Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Programme and the Ghana Enterprise Agency
to educate and build the capacity of
entrepreneurs on initiative and programmes
happening within the West African Region
and Africa. Such as the AfCFTA and the
implementation of a comprehensive legal and
regulatory framework for private equity and
venture capital fund being developed by the
West African Economic and Monetary union
and the World Bank.
The government has undertaken
initiatives to advance the development of
startups in Ghana. However, more needs to be
done by the public and private sector to
release the wave of innovation to create jobs
and improve economic opportunities in
Ghana.
**Credit to Boston Consulting Group**
WRITER
The writer is a Chartered Accountant
(ICAG) and an MBA holder from the University
of Warwick Business School in the United
Kingdom. A Staff of Ghana Export Import
Bank and a freelance entrepreneurship trainer.
I have been assisting businesses to develop
proposals to raise funding and improve their
financial management. My research interest
include entrepreneurship and small business
development. I can further be reached on the
mobile number 050 8887688 or email at
daaboagye@gmail.com.

BACK
PAGE
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Ghana’s return to the IMF will restore
investor confidence – Republic Bank MD
MANAGING
director of
Republic
Bank (Ghana)
PLC, Benjamin
dzoboku has stated that
Government’s decision to go to
the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) to seek for economic
assistance will go a long
way to help increase the ability
of banks to increase lending to
priority sectors of the economy.
despite, data showing that
many sectors of the economy
are recovering from the pandemic,
businesses are still
grappling with cashflow as
they are unable to honour their
loan obligations because of the
challenging economic conditions.
Also, most private sector
loans taken from banks to undertake
government projects
have still not been paid.
In an interview with Citi
Business News, Managing director
of Republic Bank
(Ghana) PLC, Benjamin
dzoboku said the move will
boost the confidence of banks
and ensure they lend more to
the private sector.
“This move to me is
in the right direction
because aside from policy
credibility, the move
will encourage lots of
capital back into Ghana
to help stabilize the foreign
exchange market
where the banks play. It
will also help restore investor
confidence causing
offshore investors to
return to the local
money and capital markets.
The current interest
rates that keep going up
will also begin to normalize
with the inverse
yield curve correcting.
All of these will help
Banks meet their obligations
to assist individuals
and businesses as well as the
growth of the economy,” he
said.
“
“This move to
me is in the right
direction
because aside
from policy
credibility, the
move will
encourage lots of
capital back into
Ghana to help
stabilize the
foreign exchange
market where
the banks play.
Veep inaugurates rehabilitated Kumasi inner city roads
THE Vice President, dr Mahamudu
Bawumia on Monday inaugurated the
first phase of 100-kilometres of rehabilitated
Kumasi inner city roads.
dubbed, "Rehabilitation and Auxiliary
Infrastructure of Kumasi Inner Ring
and Adjacent Streets Project," it is a
turnkey project, in line with the vision of
the Akufo-Addo led government to provide
an integrated urban transport system
responsive to the needs of the
society.
The beneficiary areas are Asokwa,
Kwadaso, New Tafo, Krofrom, Suame,
Manhyia, Bantama and Subin.
Interventions undertaken included
the construction of drains and culverts
and road rehabilitation works.
Speaking during the inauguration at
Nsenie in the Oforikrom Municipality, dr
Bawumia noted that the project would
improve quality of life, improve accessibility
and help reduce dust pollution.
The Vice President underscored the
importance of good roads in the development
of the economy and reiterated President
Akufo-Addo's commitment to the
development of roads in the country.
Ongoing projects
He said the government was working
around the clock to complete the
Boankra Inland Port, and also work on
the four main interchanges - Anloga
junction, Suame, Santasi and Airport
roundabouts.
Roads Minister
The Minister of Roads and Highways,
Kwasi Amoako-Attah said the Ashanti
Region, as of the end of 2020 had a total
road network of 9,633 kilometres, out of
which 2,852 kilometres representing 29.4
per cent was completely paved.