Author: OBG Admin

Daouda Coulibaly-Managing Director-Société Ivoirienne de Banque

Take it to the bank: Financial institutions may be the key to improving insurance penetration

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Bancassurance is a booming business in Ghana. The insurers and banks are actively teaming up in partnerships to offer a wide range of competitive and innovative products. Meanwhile, the regulator has been supporting this distribution method and remains positive that it could help the country to improve penetration and density. Some questions have been raised about these arrangements, however, and there are concerns that the relationships can lead to potential problems, but bancassurance is likely to continue to grow as the private sector supports it and the regulator tackles potential weaknesses in the structure. The segment has been active in Ghana for a number of

Peter Wong-Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive-HSBC

The micro push: New polices are expanding options for the uninsured

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Great strides have been made in Ghana in recent years in terms of promoting microinsurance by developing a framework for the segment and introducing new delivery mechanisms. Insurers have eagerly begun to offer new products that will help rural and low-income customers access cover. The country has set a strong foundation for increasing inclusiveness and getting penetration above the current rate of about 2%. More regulation is needed in order to ensure consumers have adequate protection and further promotion would be helpful. Micro Rules The National Insurance Commission (NIC) established the Microinsurance Market Conduct rules in 2013. Under the guidelines, an insurance company is not

David Gledhill-CEO-Port of Salalah

A period of flux: Government control over downstream markets is being liberalised, creating new opportunities for the private sector

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Ghana’s downstream sector is going through a period of flux, with the most significant change of recent months coming in June 2015, when the government decided to give more control to market participants to set prices for consumer fuels. The gradual removal of control over downstream markets has long been in the making – and is in line with what is happening in other African markets like Nigeria and Egypt – yet is controversial, due to the concerns of highly price-sensitive consumers reliant on these

Generating progress: A number of projects and initiatives will address the energy deficit

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Based on what is currently in the pipeline, Ghana could potentially face a glut of power in less than a decade. While not every project may make it from proposal to reality, there are nonetheless 22 entities with provisional licences to build conventional plants, and another 33 with similar permits to develop renewable energy facilities, according to the US government’s Power Africa initiative. According to the group, projects that would bring an additional 2206 MW of generation capacity to Ghana are planned for commissioning between 2015 and 2018. At least 3000 MW more has been proposed in various forms. Turning these projects into realities would

Peter Wong-Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive-HSBC

Local knowledge: Participation of Ghanaian firms has been assured

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Ghana’s legal and regulatory regime for local content came into force in February 2014, setting in motion a process designed to retain as much value from the energy sector as possible. The country has a goal of attaining 90% local participation in all aspects of the sector by 2020. This would put it at the heart of a trend in the region and worldwide, whereby locals are seeking not only to profit from extractive industries but also to gain technical expertise, building up their own capacity to make investments. Two pieces of legislation govern the regulatory regime for local content: the Local Content and Local

Daouda Coulibaly-Managing Director-Société Ivoirienne de Banque

Spend and save: Discoveries of oil have made revenue management a legislative priority

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Energy sector revenue management has been a legislative priority for the Ghanaian government since 2007, when commercial quantities of oil were discovered offshore. The government started with a revenue management act, called the Petroleum Revenue Management Act of 2011 (PRMA). The PRMA is likely to be amended, given the difficulties involved in budgeting for it. According to Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Seth Terkper, amendments to the plan for parliamentarians to consider would be forthcoming, likely in 2015. The PRMA was designed to channel revenue from the energy sector into defined categories for spending and saving. It mandates that 70% of revenue go to

Mohammed El Etreby-Chairman-Banque Misr

The rule of law: The role of the national petroleum corporation is being adapted

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With the era of oil and gas under way in Ghana, the country’s legal and regulatory regime is still evolving and the roles of state agencies are changing. Yet amid the reforms the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), which is now more than three decades old, will continue to play a major part. GNPC is mandated to incorporate other agencies under its corporate structure, such as the state’s gas company. As new projects begin producing and revenue grows, GNPC will look to boost technical capacity, build a domestic gas market and gain credibility in international debt markets to finance its operations. Funding & Structure GNPC

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

A small fortune: The government is focusing on reforming small-scale mining

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The role of galamsey, or artisanal, small-scale miners, in Ghana has become increasingly important. This group is currently responsible for all diamond production and its share of gold production has more than doubled since 2008, as the rise in gold prices has attracted more people to try their hand at mining. These operators are currently not heavily regulated and do not pay taxes. Reforms aimed at changing this are likely in the coming years. Categorisation Ghana’s small-scale artisanal gold mining sector was first legalised in 1989 with the promulgation of the Small-scale Gold Mining Act, which established the Precious Minerals Marketing Corporation (PMMC), the industry’s

Sheikh Ahmad Duaij Jaber Al Sabah-Chairman-Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Keep it simple: New regulations are set to aid the fight against illegal mining

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The country has been attempting for several years to combat the problem of illegal mining, in which foreigners join or compete with indigenous, small-scale miners in an untaxed activity that is meant to be the preserve of Ghanaians. An update to the legislation covering the mining sector, if approved, will provide law enforcement agencies with additional powers to tackle the problem. The proposal is expected to be voted on in late 2015. While it is unclear how many people are involved, as many as 50,000 foreigners are alleged to have been working illegally in the sector in the past, according to press reports. George AbraduOtoo,

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

Bittersweet: Cocoa has struggled in recent years, but industry players are hopeful about the prospects for a turnaround

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Cocoa has traditionally accounted for a significant proportion of Ghana’s GDP, and while other commodities like gold and oil now bring in more money, cocoa remains a key contributor to rural development. According to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), agriculture contributes around 40% of Ghana’s export earnings, with cocoa accounting for the largest part of this, providing up to 75% of agricultural export earnings. The country grossed around $1.9bn from exports of cocoa and its derivatives in the first nine months of 2014, according