Anyone who aims to maximise their business opportunities in Africa will have to capture the informal trade. Even in nations like South Africa, the informal sector makes up a large portion of the economy – involving 2.9 million people (well over 17% of total employment in the country). Although road-side traders, open-air markets and hawkers …
The Payment Systems and Service bill, 2017, which is currently before cabinet, will expectedly allow banks to issue electronic money – thereby breaking the monopoly of telcos. “Some universal banks have submitted applications to also issue electronic money under the Payment Systems and Services bill 2017 that is currently before cabinet. “The bill’s passage is …
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture has said it is putting in place measures to enable the country participate actively in the global seed market, which is expected to reach a value of US$86billion by 2022. Agric Minister Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto explained that government is currently working on creating the legal, policy and regulatory …
Ghana’s Producer Price Inflation (PPI) increased to 6.4 percent in April 2018. The Producer Price Inflation measures the average change over time in the general prices received by domestic producers for the production of goods and/or provision of services. Comparing the April figure to that of March, the PPI went up by 2.7 percent. In …
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has reduced the policy rate to 17 percent. This represents a 100 basis points reduction in the policy rate which was at 18 percent. Today’s announcement comes after the central bank reduced the rate from 20 percent to 18 percent in March this year. The announcement was made after the …
The International Monetary Fund ((IMF) has granted some waivers to Ghana after its fifth and sixth review of the country’s economic performance under its programme with Ghana. A statement from the Fund said during the review, adjustments were made to the programme to ensure that it remains on track and to enhance its prospects of …
The Ghana Standards Authority is set to push for a national policy that will ensure that at least 50% of cocoa produced in the country is processed before exportation. Cocoa contributes about 25% to the GDP, amounting to over $2 billion in foreign exchange annually. Ghana, although second on the list of cocoa producers in the world, …
In 2016, the World Bank reported Ghana’s urban population at 54.68% of the total population; the majority of which are based in Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tema. A typical day in the life of a resident in any of the above urban centres and many others across the country is one of work, school and …
Sub-Saharan Africa’s small and medium enterprises have benefitted enormously from the revolution in digital finance in the region, and now require more innovation and targetted approaches to reach entrepreneurs hungry for US$331billion in new funding across Africa. These issues are at the forefront of discussions in Nairobi at the SME Finance Forum – an initiative …
The country’s energy sector must be treated as a business that supports all aspects of the economy and not as a social tool, says Harriette Amissah-Arthur, Executive Partner at Arthur Energy Advisors – a consultancy that focuses on energy and power. “When we sit down and look at the sector [energy], it is not seen …