Lack of investment could slow down Africa’s fintech sector- Dr. Ernest Addison

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May 14, 2024
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The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, has identified the lack of requisite investments in African FinTechs as a hurdle that could slow the pace of innovation and scalability of digital solutions in Africa.

He, therefore, underscored the urgent need for Africa to accelerate its digitalisation efforts by nurturing homegrown financial technologies across the continent while stressing the importance of prioritising innovation, investment and impactful policy to propel economic growth and development through digitalisation.

“The general lack of investor visibility is a major challenge for most local FinTechs. Without sufficient capital, brilliant ideas, and prototypes of FinTech startups solutions with the potential to address the diverse financial service needs fail to progress to production,” he said.

Dr. Ernest Addision disclosed this at the opening of the ongoing 3i Africa Summit jointly organised by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Development Bank of Ghana (DBG), and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), through its subsidiary Elevandi.

Youthful advantage

The BoG Governor highlighted Africa’s position, citing its rapidly expanding and tech-savvy youthful population, widespread mobile phone usage, improving network accessibility, and the presence of indigenous fintech solutions.

He pointed to the global digital era, especially with artificial intelligence, which should create a sense of urgency for the continent to accelerate the digitalisation agenda through innovation, investment, and impactful policies to boost economic growth and development.

“These factors have provided fertile grounds to accelerate the digitalisation agenda across the continent,” Dr. Addison said.

He also highlighted regulatory challenges facing fintech startups, emphasising the importance of navigating regulatory requirements and meeting compliance standards.

“The regulatory aspect is another reason not to ignore the issue of deficient findings in the fintech space. Fintech should have the ability to navigate regulatory requirements and meet complaint standards which we all agree are non-negotiables, especially, in Africa’s financial industry, hence the need to address the information gap between the investors and fintech startups to stimulate the payment ecosystem,” he added.

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October 7, 2024
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1 minute Read

Minerals Commission refutes understaffing claim

The Minerals Commission of Ghana has firmly refuted claims of understaffing, asserting that it possesses adequate resources to fulfil its inspection and regulatory duties.

Speaking during a parliamentary hearing before the Government Assurances Committee yesterday, Martin Ayisi, the Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, addressed concerns regarding reports of staffing challenges.

Ayisi reassured the committee that the Commission had both the personnel and logistics needed to effectively oversee the mining sector.

Ayisi’s remarks come in response to widespread reports suggesting the Commission was facing operational difficulties due to staffing shortages.

However, the CEO confidently dismissed these allegations, emphasizing that the Commission was well-equipped to manage its responsibilities efficiently.

“Capacity-wise, I think we’re okay. I was listening to the news this morning, and I heard one of the radio stations talking about capacity, [that] we’re understaffed; it’s not the case. In fact, I heard someone say that our 7 inspectors have been dismissed, but that is not the case.

“In terms of resources for training, in terms of resources to hire more people, we are okay,” he said.

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October 7, 2024
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3 minutes Read

Economic turnaround driving companies back to Ghana- Finance Minister

The Minister of Finance, Mohammed Amin Adam, says foreign companies are returning to Ghana due to the country’s economic rebound.

He said that just as it was heard of some foreign companies exiting the country due to economic hardship, many had started returning, owing to the positive growth in the first half of 2024.

“We were told that some companies left Ghana when the economy went down, and it’s important to note that companies are returning to Ghana because they see that the growth trajectory is positive,” he said.

“The latest is Virgin Atlantic (an airline company that left the country in 2013), which said only yesterday (October 6, 2024) that they’ve returned to Ghana to operate as an airline because they see economic recovery,” he noted during the second Quarterly Economic Roundtable discussion yesterday in Accra.

The event, jointly organised by the Ministry of Finance and the University of Ghana, was under the theme “Driving economic growth through Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

The Finance Minister indicated that some other companies were also returning to the country, but yet to be heard of.

“Let’s get ready for them to build strong partnerships, and use that capital, expertise, and technology that they’re bringing in so that we can leverage them to support the growth of the economy,” Dr Amin Adam told Ghanaian businesses.

Referencing figures from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), he stated that the economic growth for 2024 was exceeding every expectation, prompting major analysts and keen observers to revise their projections upwards.

The Minister noted that the country’s half-year Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 5.8 percent for 2024 was the highest in the last five years, which was a testament that the economy was “back on track.”

“It is fascinating to note that the growth of 4.8 percent in quarter one and 6.9 percent in quarter two was driven largely by industry and agriculture sectors, for quarter two, all three sectors, including services drove the growth,” he said.

“What this means is that we are back on track. It also means that our policies to support the private sector are having a significant impact. Economic actors in these sectors are receiving needed support,” the Finance Minister said.

He encouraged all Ghanaians to be guided by unity of purpose on SMEs to consolidate the strides made in fiscal consolidation, debt restructuring, and economic reforms.

Pledging the government’s sustained support to SMEs, he said, “You are not alone or lonely. You are a priority of the Ghanaian society and this Government. We will not fail you.”

Mr Kyle Kelhofer, Senior Country Manager, International Finance Corporation (IFC), noted that the current macroeconomic landscape in Ghana required a resilient, flexible and innovative structure.

He called for a concerted effort from all stakeholders, including financial institutions, academia, government, and the private sector, to drive sustainable economic growth through SMEs.

Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ghana, encouraged all stakeholders to ensure that the ideas and recommendations from the discussions were translated into actions that would improve development outcomes and the wellbeing of Ghanaians.

She reiterated that SMEs remained the backbone of the Ghanaian economy, providing jobs, and contributing significantly to GDP.

She recommended that policy interventions be directed at solving the cumbersome regulatory processes, limited access to finance, complex tax systems, and high utility tariffs, which often hampered the growth of SMEs.