ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
Emmanuel Asiedu- Mante, The Board of Directors of Akuapem Rural Bank Limited, The Acting Managing Director of ARB Apex Bank Limited, The President and the Executives of the Association of Rural Banks, Traditional Rulers, The Clergy, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
I bring warm greetings from the Bank of Ghana .
It is an honour to join you today at the 40th Anniversary celebration of the Akuapem Rural Bank, which marks a significant milestone in the life of the bank.
Forty years of rural banking is remarkable and I applaud the promoters, past management teams, and the current d irectors of the bank for this achievement.
On occasions such as this, it is appropriate for stakeholders to take stock of the journey so far, examine present circumstances , especially amidst the present global health pandemic, and , most importantly, plan for the future.
Chairman, rural and community banks continue to be drivers for financial inclusion and socio -economic development in Ghana .
Going down memory lane, rural and community banking was conceptualised at a time when access to bank credit for farmers and traders , especially in rural areas, was inadequate.
It was envisaged as a unique business model where rural banks thrived based on community empowerment, community ownership and community participation in governance.
With this background, the first rural bank was established in Agona -Nyakrom, a farming community in the Ce ntral Region in 1976, and a year later, a second rural bank was established in Biriwa, a fishing community also in the Central Region.
After these two rural banks, several others were licensed, including the Akuapem Rural Bank in 1981, which was the third for the Eastern Region.
With the increasing number of rural and community banks, an Association of Rural Banks (ARB) was formed by the then 30 existing rural banks to support RCBs in building ca pacity in areas such as risk management, credit analysis, and delivering financial literacy programs to the rural communities.
Subsequently, the Bank of Ghana issued comprehensive guidelines for the establishment of rural banks and introduced the Akuafo Cheque operations in cocoa growing areas in 1982.
In 2000, the ARB Apex Bank was established as an umbrella body of RCBs, with 9 branch offices across the country.
Thus, the Bank of Ghana regulates RCBs through the ARB Apex Bank.
Chairman, in 2017, the Bank of Ghana embarked on a clean -up exercise of the financial sector, having identified the prevalence of system risks across several institutions, including some RCBs.
These included severely impaired capital, low asset quality, liquidity crises, and po or governance structures, which threatened depositors’ funds and undermined efforts aimed at promoting financial inclusion.
After the initial clean-up of the banking sector, the Bank collaborated with the ARB Apex Bank to reposition RCBs to better realign with the founding objectives of fostering rural economic development.
Given the unique nature and expected role of RCBs in the financial sector, the Bank has rolled out some initiatives, including an ongoing review of the Apex Bank model as well as the reg ulatory and supervisory frameworks to restructure the r ural banking concept in Ghana.
To address lingering corporate governance and risk management weaknesses in the rural banking sector, the Bank published the Corporate Governance Directive and Risk Man agement Guideline for rural and community banks.
The Corporate Governance Directive establishes sound corporate governance principles and best practices within the rural banking sector.
Among others, it is expected to promote governance systems that will c reate the environment for individual institutions to undertake their licensed business sustainably, serve the best interest of depositors and other stakeholders and enhance overall corporate performance, accountability, and public trust.
The re is also the Risk Management Guidelines that seek to provide a comprehensive risk management framework that will enable rural and community banks to 4 fashion an appropriate culture of risk management in their respective institutions.
Chairman, the Bank of Ghana has made several improvements to the surveillance and supervision regime , with a positive impact on the rural banking sector’s performance.
These were propelled by deploying several tools available to the Bank of Ghana including regular on -site examinations, improved quarterly performance re views, management visits, follow-ups and improvement in the approvals and authorisation regime, among others.
Another major initiative introduced is the Online Regulatory Analytics Surveillance Systems (ORASS).
This was introduced to help streamline data collection, maintain dynamic corporate profiles on regulated financial institutions, and move licen sing and related authorisation onto an electronic platform without the need to physically visit the premises , thereby eas ing the supervisory and regulatory burden on financial institutions.
An important requirement for successful integration with ORASS, especially in the submitting of prudential returns, is the requirement to use application programming interface (API) to pe rform machine-to-machine data transfer.
To this end, reporting institutions must reconfigure their banking software and databases to capture new data points and implement API processes for direct data transfer from banking software to the ORASS.
The main goal of introducing the API is to reduce, as far as possible, human 5 interference in data processing and transfer , which is best done by automated computer processes.
The ARB Apex Bank is implementing the API submission of returns for rural and community b anks operating on the T24 platform and a Technical Team from the Bank of Ghana continues to provide the needed support to facilitate this process.
Chairman, let me use t his opportunity to reiterate the Bank’s commitment to innovation and technology.
In May 2020, t he Bank established the Fintech and Innovation Office to drive the cash -lite, e- payments and digitisation agenda with the mandate to develop policies to promote Fin tech, Innovation and Interoperability in the country.
Subsequently, the Bank, in February 2021, launched a regulatory and innovation sandbox pilot to provide a framework for stakeholders and other innovators to conduct live experiments in a controlled environment under the supervision of Bank of Ghana.
Central banks around the globe are exploring the introduction of digital currencies and Ghana is among the leading African countries to enter the pilot phase.
The E -Cedi, which is the first general -purpose Central Bank Digital Currency in Africa, will complement and serve as a digita l alternative to physical cash, in line with the Government’s ‘Digital Ghana Agenda’.
The E-Cedi will be tested in trial phases with banks, payment providers, merchants, consumers and other stakeholders for a nationwide rollout as it will present an opportunity to build a robust, inclusive, competitive and sustainable financial sector.
We expect that all rural and 6 community banks will collaborate with ARB Apex Bank to leverage the opportunities available with digitisation within the payment ecosystem.
As we seek to improve the regulatory and operational prospects of rural and community banks, Mr.
Chairman, we must admit that a lot of progress has been made within the sector.
From 30 rural banks in the 1980’s, we now have 145 of such institutions with a branch network of about 851.
The increased number of rural banks has been accompanied by increased customer reach, technology deploy ment, as well as improved delivery of financial services within the local communities.
As at the end of June 30, 2021 , the overall profitabili ty of the rural banking sector was positive, and the se ctor recorded an annual growth of 27.4 percent in total asset s, which amounted to GH¢6.5 billion .
Advances, deposits and investments also increased by 23.6, 31.2 and 50.1 percent, respectively.
The sector’s non -performing loans ratio declined to 11.5 percent from 12.3 percent a year earlier , signalling an improvement in asset quality.
It is our expectation that all rural and community banks will fully comply with the minimum capitalisation requirement of GH¢1million by the end of 2021 and maintain the increased capital unimpaired.
Finally, Ladies and Gentlemen, developing a vibrant financial sector that is capable of harnessing financial resources available for growth and development requires the commitment of all key stakeholders.
The Bank will continue to pursue policies and programmes aimed at improving the operational environment to build customer confidence and ensure the stability and soundness of the financial sector .
Let me once again 7 congratulate the Board and Management of Akuapem Rural Bank on this 40th anniversary celebration and encourage you to keep the bank stable and strong to meet the financial needs of the Akuapem community.
1 9 5 7 1 BUSINESS SANS BORDERS STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT FORUM CLOSING REMARKS BY DR.
MAXWELL OPOKU-AFARI FIRST DEPUTY GOVERNOR BANK OF GHANA KEMPINSKI GOLD COAST HOTEL 18TH AUGUST 2021 BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 2 1.0 The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, the Second Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, the Chief FinTech Officer- Monetary Authority of Singapore, Chief Executive Officers, and Directors of Associations of Industries and Financial Services Companies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
2.0 It is my pleasur e to give the closing remarks at this forum.
I believe that all of us have had better insight into the Business sans Borders project and the opportunity to contribute towards shaping digital policy in the SME sub -sector.
Also, w e have learned a lot from the Keynote Address of the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Ernest Addison, which set the tone for the forum and equally rich workshop sessions delivered by speakers from both Bank of Ghana and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
We are grateful for your perceptive and eloquent presentations.
3.0 My special thanks go to the Chief FinTech Officer of Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Mr.
Sopnendu Mohant and his team for the tireless efforts in championing the Business Sans Borders Project.
1 9 5 7 3 4.0 Last but not the least, I would like to express my profound gratitude to the team from Bank of Ghana and Monetary Authority o f Singapore that put this program together.
Your carefully planning and tactful execution have made this program a success.
5.0 Furthermore, I would like to thank the chief executive officers of banks, SDIs and FinTechs; captains of industry, and representatives of stakeholder institutions for sacrificing time to be part of this forum.
Your presence and experienced contributions have made the program a success.
I am certain, judging from your enthusiasm, that it has been worthwhile.
6.0 The critical role of SMEs in the Ghanaian economy is incontrovertible and the need to support them to contribute meaningfully to the national development agenda has been unanimously established at this forum.
7.0 With a stack of foundational infrastructure currently in pl ace, Ghana is positioned, with the active collaboration of Singapore, to release the potential of SMEs through the Business sans Borders project.
Of course, this can only be successful with the active support of all stakeholders.
Your commitment to the project has BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 4 been proclaimed loud and clear at this forum.
I therefore have no doubt that we are together in this endeavor.
8.0 To the Bank of Ghana, the Business Sans Borders, through the Financial Trust Corridor is a game changer in our efforts to drive financial sector activity and inclusive SME development under the regulatory watch of the central bank.
9.0 To the commercial banks and FinTechs, there is a clear opportunity for rapid growth with new clients, and to leverage data for innovation as the project also offers a Sandbox environment to accelerate testing and delivery of new services for SME.
10.0 For traders both in Ghana and Singapore, BSB enables one-stop meta-hub to source for trade and services online whiles Streamlining access to better domestic and cross -border business opportunities.
11.0 To the larger Government of Ghana, the project offers an effective platform towards deepening trade and bilateral cooperation between the Republic of Ghana and Singapore in the scale that has never been seen.
1 9 5 7 5 12.0 Clearly, this is a win-win project.
And now that we are fully aware of the potential benefits of the project, the real work begins.
It is now time to roll up our sleeves and work towards implementation of the various components of the project.
13.0 Let me assure you that the Bank of Ghana will be informed by stakeholders contributions provided at this meeting and thereafter, in the preparatory and implementation activities.
14.0 I would like to kindly inform you that a fter this program, the Business sans Borders Implementation Committee will be call ing on you for your inputs at every step of the process.
BUSINESS SANS BORDERS STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT OPENING ADDRESS BY DR.
ERNEST ADDISON GOVERNOR, BANK OF GHANA KEMPINSKI GOLD COAST HOTEL AUGUST 18, 2021 2 First and Second Deputy Governors of the Bank of Ghana, The Representative of the Office of the Vice President, Professor Appia-Adu, Representatives of the Ministry of Finance, Chief Fintech Officer of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Chief Executive Officers and R epresentatives of Banks, S DIs and Fintechs, Captains of Industry, Representatives of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
1.0 Good morning and a warm welcome to all participants, both in-person and virtual, to this Business Sans Borders (BSB) stakeholder engagement programme.
As you are aware, the BSB project is an initiative between the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Bank of Ghana (BOG) and the Ministry of Finance , which seeks to d evelop a network of digital platforms to serve as a global public infrastructure to facilitate cross-border trade.
2.0 Ladies and Gentlemen, the BSB project was initiated in 20 19, under the direction of H.E.
Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia and H.E.
Tharman Shanmugaratnam of Singapore.
The objective was to collaborate and leverage the capabilities of digital technology to expand the frontiers of businesses, especially Small and Medium -sized Enterprises (SMEs) 3 in Ghana and Singapore.
Since then, the Bank of Ghana has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Monetary Authority of Singapore to collaborate on projects of mutual interest in furtherance of the BSB project objectives.
3.0 Broadly, this project is aligned with the government’s national digitization agenda , as well as the Bank of Ghana’s cashlite and financial inclusion agenda, which has led to the implementation of widespread reforms in the payment and settlement systems.
More recently, the reforms in the financial services industry in collaboration with sta keholders has paved way for expansive delivery of digital financial services in the eco-system.
4.0 One of the objectives of the payment systems reforms is to achieve a financially inclusive and economically empowered society .
Delivering an economically empo wered society hinges on strong SME s, since account for close to 90 percent of businesses .
Therefore, facilitating SMEs participation in the digital economy will enhance efficiency , extending market reach, and build their capacity to generate employment opportunities and boost economic growth .
In addition, the broad-based acceptance of digital payments by SMEs will scale up products and services deployment, and provide digital footprints for improved credit services by financial service providers.
4 5.0 These clearly align with the BSB initiative which seeks to establish a digital-hub and connector of platforms of businesses in Asia and beyond to Ghanaian SMEs and fin ancial institutions.
With the full implementation of the BSB initiative, Ghanaian SMEs will be able to access diversified trade opportunities as well as critical, quality ecosystem facilities such as finance, accounting, and business referrals with Singapore.
The BSB project also includes a global innovation hub to help FinTech companies develop additional innovative services and products.
This component of the digital hub is very important for the Bank of Ghana.
6.0 Currently, the Bank of Ghana and the Monetary Authority of Singapore are creating a Financial Trust Corridor ( FTC), which is a dedicated ecosystem for mutual recognition and closer relationships between businesses, including SMEs, and financial institutions on the platform.
The Trust Corridor will comprise of a governance framework and digital infrastructure for b anks and FinTech companies in both countries .
Participants can then refer to and utilise key information available on the platform for credit assessment, whilst adhering to domestic and international regulations , including data protection and Anti-Money Laundering requirements.
Participating SMEs will have the trust of financial institutions, leading to the much needed financial sector support for SMEs growth.
5 7.0 Ladies and Gentlemen, the importance of this project to partner countries cannot be underestimated.
While the barriers to doing business across national boundaries may be high for SMEs, digital technology has proven a leveller.
It is for this reason that the partner countries have committed to harness the potential of digital technology to overcome hurdles to international trade and improve global competitiveness of businesses.
With massive investment in financial sector infrastructure, a reliable and widespread telecommunication infrastructure, a biometric national ID of high coverage, a robust and resilient banking sector, and a vibrant Fintech ecosystem, the stage is set to facilitate Ghanaian SMEs effective participation in the global economy, via these initiatives.
8.0 In 2020, the Bank of Ghana took another bold step to address SMEs’ access to digi tal merchant wallets with the creation of three (3) tier merchant account categories.
This enabling piece of policy has flexible and proportionate on -boarding requirements that recognize the peculiarities of businesses within the SME category.
With this supportive policy regime, Banks, SDIs and Fintechs have been given a unique opportunity to on -board various types of SMEs for financial services.
9.0 As the host country of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Ghana is also expected to play a leadership role in improving the international trade fortunes of the Continent.
Therefore, the BSB 6 project provides another important platform towards this regional aspiration as the lessons to be learnt can be valuable to AfCFTA’s project on internationalization of SMEs.
This is a shared responsibility of Ghana Government and all private sector actors, and participants at this forum have been carefully chosen to reflect this reality.
10.0 Ladies and Gentlemen, the prospects of the B SB project cannot be gainsaid.
Its potential contribut ion to formalising the Ghanaian economy and unleashing the prospects of SMEs are enormous .
To conclude, let me state that the future is digitisation and fostering SMEs participation in the digital economy is an important component of our national development programme.
This calls for our collective effort as stakeholders and market players, of which the BSB project will be an enabler.
I am of the firm conviction that this forum would create the right atmosphere for a healthy exchange of ideas towards successful project that would strengthen SMEs to make impactful contribution to Ghana’s economy.
Thank you and I wish you successful deliberations.
1 | P a g e BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 Bank of Ghana KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY DR.
MAXWELL OPOKU-AFARI, 1ST DEPUTY GOVERNOR, BANK OF GHANA AT THE JOURNALISTS FOR BUSINESS ADVOCACY FINANCIAL LITERACY TRAINING WORKSHOP HELD AT THE LA TUA HOTEL, PRAMPRAM JULY 9 - 10, 2021 2 | P a g e BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen of the media, 1.
I am delighted to be with you today.
Let me begin by thanking executives of the Journalist for Business Advocacy (JBA) for inviting me to share a few thoughts as part of this media training workshop on the theme “Understanding monetary policy in post pandemic era”.
I consider this event very important for a number of reasons.
First, the global economy is currently recovering from the effects of the pandemic, amidst considerable uncertainty as some countries are experiencing a third wave of infections with important implications for economic policy going forward.
Second, at the height of the pandemic, several bold and innovative policy measures were enacted and implemented, some of which will need to be reversed and unwound in a post- Covid-19 environment.
There also could be the possibility that some of these measures would need to be kept in place for a while and the policy implications of all these decisions will have to be weighed.
Clearly understanding what has happened and how the policies could be adapted in a post-Covid environment is crucial – one which I believe this workshop aims at achieving.
My remarks will therefore broadly focus on two areas: policies pursued so far in dealing with the effects of the pandemic, and on the macroeconomic outlook and policies going forward.
The global economy has been se verely impacted by the pandemic, culminating in the worst recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
We are all aware that the containment measures put in place adopted to tackle the Covid-19 health emergency brought activity in the global economy 3 | P a g e BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 to a ‘sudden stop’ and prompted an unprecedented policy response – in terms of its size, speed, scope, and geographical reach.
The s ynchronized monetary, fiscal, and prudential policies were implemented to deal with the adverse effects of the pandemic and to provide liquidity to financial markets as well as cushion the impact on the private sector especially small businesses and low-income households.
Macroeconomic management in Emerging Markets and Frontier Economies especially became more complicated.
These countries not only experience a collapse of real sector activity but also faced substantial portfolio outflows and wider spreads due to heightened risk aversion when the pandemic hit around the globe.
Thus, the pandemic was a complex mixture of supp ly and demand shocks that elicited a novel set of policies than previous global shocks.
Ghana was no exception.
P erhaps, what was different here was that successive years of reforms and macroeconomic stabilization prior to the onset of the pandemic had placed the country in a better position to weather the effects of the pandemic.
Economic conditions were relatively strong and pointed in the right direction.
Inflation significantly declined and inflation expectations were firmly anchored.
Real GDP growth averaged 7.0 percent in the three years before the pandemic ( 2017-2019) with pre-pandemic projections for 2020 pegged at 6.8 percent.
At the same time, external sector performance was strong with a robust gross international reserve build up , sufficient to cover 4.7 months of imports.
Moreover, the banking sector performance improved after the clean -up exercise and recapitalisation.
4 | P a g e BANK OF GHANA ES T.
1 9 5 7 Indicators of financial soundness pointed to a solvent, liquid and profitable banking sector.
The industry’s me asure of solvency, the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) under the Basel II/III framework remained well above the regulatory 13 percent prudential limit.
Asset quality similarly improved as reflected in declines in the non -performing loans ratio on the back of recoveries, write-offs, and increased credit growth.
Tentative signs of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic started to emerge at the end of the first quarter of 2020.
By the end of the first quarter of 2020, high frequency indicators reflected the effect of the pandemic on the economy.
An incipient decline in the real CIEA recorded in March 2020 intensified at the height of the pandemic in the second quarter.