The Market Place with Daryl Kwawu (29-8-23)
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Hi, good afternoon. Welcome to the Marketplace.
00:02 Coming up, members of the Ghana Hotels Association petitioned the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission
00:08 over recent increases in electricity and water tariffs.
00:11 Immediately after this conference, we are marching to the head office of the PRC to present
00:18 a petition to the Executive Secretary.
00:22 We have notified the police of this march in line with the Public Order Act.
00:29 Also, coming up, prices of petroleum products remain unchanged in the first two weeks of September,
00:35 we hear from the Institute for Energy Security.
00:38 Plus, the Chartered Insurance Institute of Ghana concerned about the current state of the economy,
00:45 saying it may affect the industry's quest to expand insurance coverage.
00:49 Some of the risks faced by insurers in challenging times like these are increased claims and
00:58 claims costs, increased fraudulent claims, and under-insurance.
01:03 My name is Darrell Powell. Thanks for being with us. Details coming up.
01:10 [Music]
01:30 And first up, members of the Ghana Hotels Association have petitioned the Public Utilities
01:34 Regulatory Commission over recent increases in electricity and water tariffs. The PRC
01:39 announced an increase in electricity and water tariffs by 4.22 percent and 1.18 percent respectively,
01:45 effective the first of September. Here's President of the Association, Dr. Edward Akanyamike Jr.,
01:51 who addressed a press conference before the petition was presented.
01:55 The administration of the Tourism Development Fund has denied tourism trade associations
02:01 the needed financial support to be in the public-private sector collaboration space.
02:09 Another worrying trend, and this is very important, another worrying trend over the past few years
02:13 has been the lack of accountability in the disbursement of the fund. We call on the board
02:20 of the Ghana Tourism Authority to revisit the proposal for a portion of the fund to be allocated
02:26 to functional tourism trade associations every year to support the aspiration of the associations.
02:34 We also call on the board to revert to the old practice where the stakeholders were updated
02:40 regularly on the inflows and outflows of the fund.
02:43 The Public-Private Partnership Forum, this is the last one. The Public-Private Partnership Forum,
02:53 which we all use as PPPF, is a provision in the Tourism Act 817 that is structured to ensure
03:02 regular, and that's quarterly, engagement amongst stakeholders in the tourism and hospitality sector
03:11 with the aim of discussing challenges facing the sector and looking for ways to addressing them
03:17 thereof. The association believes that the enormous benefits embedded in the PPPF
03:23 is yet to be tapped and steps must be taken urgently to address it.
03:30 A case in point is a recent presidential summit on tourism held on 30th and 31st May 2023, which
03:38 had the impact of the PPPF. The president was there, the private sector was there, academia was there,
03:47 all the groups in the industry were there. A number of important issues were raised at the summit,
03:55 which when addressed would go a long way to advance the growth in tourism in the country.
04:00 Unfortunately, almost three months after the summit, there seems to be no roadmap
04:08 for addressing the issues that were raised at the presidential summit. The association has also
04:14 raised a number of issues, such as mandatory membership of hotels, association by hotels,
04:22 copyright royalty, funding of trading activities, of which have not received the needed attention.
04:30 The association is calling on the ministry and the Ghana tourism authority to work towards getting
04:36 the most out of the PPPF.
04:39 Well, joining us is Jacqueline Azmayewa, who has been following the press conference held by the
04:47 Ghana Hotels Association. She joins me on phone. Jacqueline, what more did the hoteliers say at
04:53 the press conference?
04:54 Okay, Daryl, so first of all, we have three plans to suggest the PURC, which started in January 2023,
05:02 when they announced an 8.3 upward adjustment in water tariff, which was effective in 1st February
05:08 2023. And also, they talked about the fact that the actions and inactions of government in keeping
05:14 the COVID-19 levy in their taxes, when even the World Health Organization had declared that the
05:21 pandemic was over. So basically, we want that and script off. And also, they talked about the fact
05:28 that the actions and inactions of government in implementing a new property rate payment regime
05:33 that had also increased property rates astronomically. And furthermore, they talk
05:39 about the fact that the Ministry of Roads and Highway is not making conscious efforts of making
05:44 the highway safe for tourists, that is both domestic and international. And the other issue
05:53 that they talked about was the fact that the actions and inactions of the board of the Ghana
05:57 Tourism Authority in the administration of the Tourism Development Fund that has denied tourism
06:04 trade associations the needed financial support to be effective partners in the public-private
06:10 sector collaboration mix. So basically, these were the issues that came up amongst the hoteliers.
06:16 Were they able to hold the intended march?
06:19 No, they didn't. So Dr. Edward Nyamekwa refused that, even though they informed the police about
06:26 this, about the protest, no one showed up. And therefore, the members could not continue with
06:32 the protest. So rather, what happened was, they sent their executives, led by Dr. Edward Nyamekwa,
06:39 to present the petition to PURC. And what has the PURC said in response to the concerns of the
06:46 hoteliers? Okay, so in response, the Director of Water Services and Performance Monitoring at PURC,
06:54 and he is the person of the manual of the RT review, that he has no idea of what the petition
07:00 entails. So once he's done, he will be read back to the members of the association. In fact,
07:05 he seems to be oblivious of the details of the petition, even though the association says that
07:12 they've had countless interactions with him since January. And what next for the Ghana Hotels
07:20 Association after presenting this petition? So what was revealed afterwards was that they are
07:27 not given PURC's timeline, but rather they are asking them to correct it, and if possible,
07:33 refund some of the payments that were made earlier. And so basically, Dr. Nyamekwa emphasized on the
07:39 fact that they are waiting patiently on PURC to respond. So once they respond, that is when they
07:46 will see the next action from there. All right, Jacqueline Asmaye-Oboa, Journalist Reporter,
07:52 thank you so much for bringing us the latest from the Ghana Hotels Association's press conference
07:59 over high utility tariffs. Let's move on to fuel prices. Prices of petroleum products will remain
08:05 unchanged in the first two weeks of September. According to the Institute for Energy Security,
08:10 this is due to a slowdown in prices of finished petroleum products on the world market and a
08:15 stable CD against the US dollar. Petro is likely to still sell at 13 cities two passwords on the
08:21 average, while diesel will go for 12 cities 85 passwords on the average. Here's Adam Yakubu,
08:26 a research and programs officer at the IES. This, the institute is given as a result of
08:35 international price slowdown after consistent price increment over the past three windows
08:42 and the slowed depreciation of the Ghana city. The IES is believing that given that there's
08:49 Ghana's CD depreciation of 0.52% coupled with marginal increments in petroleum prices on the
08:57 international market, there will be no significant increment and for which reason prices are likely
09:06 to be maintained at current rates. Now, the Ghana CD is expected to continue its stability against
09:15 the US dollar this week following expected foreign exchange auction for bulk oil distribution
09:20 companies. Here's more. While analysts envisage an increase in corporate demand and a possible
09:30 offshore forest repatriation from the coupon payment on the new bond, the CD will remain
09:36 steady this week. Last week, the local currency remained firm on the spot market while posting
09:42 a mixed performance on the interbank market amidst tining foreign exchange liquidity.
09:47 This is despite increased corporate demand drying up liquidity, although the market experienced
09:54 minimal activities from offshore investors. It opened the week at a mid-rate of 11 cities 43
10:01 passwords to a dollar and traded steadily gaining 0.44% on the retail market. On the interbank
10:09 market, the CD slid marginally against the American greenback.
10:14 Now, the Chartered Insurance Institute of Ghana is concerned about the current state of the
10:28 economy saying it may affect the industry's quest to increase its penetration rate.
10:33 The institute explains that persistent economic woes could lead to a hike in unemployment
10:37 as insurance players may close down their businesses. President of the institute,
10:41 Solomon Lati, called for stringent policies by the government to support the economy.
10:46 You're speaking at the 2023 Chartered Institute of Insurance Excellence Awards.
10:50 The institute said it will continue to push for a high penetration rate
10:57 across the country. President for the institute, Solomon Lati, urged members
11:02 to be more resilient and professional regardless of the current economic challenges.
11:07 Indeed, we are faced with challenging times. Just about two weeks ago, fuel prices went up
11:15 close to 14 cities per liter for diesel and 13 cities 50 passwords for petrol. Food prices
11:25 have gone up again. Transportation prices would go up again. Water and electricity bills have gone
11:33 up as an IMF bailout conditionality. The value of the Ghanian city keeps dropping. Inflation
11:43 keeps rising at over 40%. And a possible military intervention by ECOAS could escalate matters as
11:52 many traders have already lost significant amounts of money due to the closure of borders and the
11:59 inability to transport their already packaged onions for export into Ghana. We pray for peace
12:07 in Africa. Some of the risks faced by insurance in challenging times like these are increased
12:16 claims and claims costs, increased fraudulent claims, and under insurance, among others.
12:24 There could also be business closures, downsizing, and general loss of jobs.
12:30 Other important activities like corporate social responsibility would suffer as companies find
12:38 ways to cut costs. This year's award was under the theme, professionalism in challenging times.
12:44 Vanuatu's Trade Commissioner to Ghana, Professor Hugh Ayi, has entreated government to ensure
12:53 diversification in trading activities. Speaking to Joy Business, he urged government to take
12:58 advantage of untapped opportunities from other countries in boosting economic growth.
13:03 I encourage Ghanian businesses that now is the time to explore other areas for business. We have
13:13 a lot of business potential in Vanuatu which is untapped. And so the commission is here. We are
13:20 telling you that instead of trying to look for other places to do business, Vanuatu is opening
13:27 its doors to you to bring your business in there because we are providing you a task having. In
13:32 fact, Vanuatu is acclaimed by the UN as one of the most happiest places on the planet. And it's not
13:39 only for business. You can also visit Vanuatu for pleasure. You can decide to go for your honeymoon,
13:45 you can decide to go for your holidays in Vanuatu. So there are so many opportunities that are not
13:51 time. And so we are encouraging all businesses in Ghana to explore the island of Vanuatu
13:57 for their own gains. We have enabling opportunities by the government and we are trying as much as
14:05 possible to get that exposed to the Ghanian public. Now the population of Africa is set to increase
14:13 by a double by the year 2050. Now however, this projection presents the continent with
14:18 food security challenges coupled with a further surge in already high import bills which stand
14:24 at 84 billion dollars as of 2022. However, one of Africa's biggest farms, ZZ2, says it's hoping to
14:33 leverage the continental free trade area to contribute its quota to addressing the food
14:39 security challenge. Blessed Sugar has more in the following report. Africa is known for its green,
14:46 vast and arable lands. Yet the continent continues to grapple with the challenge of growing enough
14:52 food to feed its population. At an estimated growth rate of 2.5 percent, the continent's
14:59 population is set to increase by more than double in the year 2050. And this is beginning to raise
15:06 concerns about how Africa can deal with its food security problems in the coming years.
15:12 In the Limpopo province of South Africa, ZZ2 farms, one of Africa's largest exporters, say
15:19 they want to be the vehicle that would drive change in dealing with Africa's imminent food
15:24 security challenges. With a workforce of about 800 workers, Tommy Van Zeel, the chief executive
15:31 officer and his farm workers, believe they are ready for the green agenda once the enabling
15:38 environment is created. I'm convinced food security is going to be or will be less of a problem if we
15:49 have well-functioning markets. And well-functioning markets need trade flow. So if we have trade
15:57 agreements and we have marketing structures, the price signal that comes from there
16:03 motivates people, inspires people to do rational things like planting more or even planting less.
16:11 I would say the biggest problem is to get public-private partnerships or inter-government
16:19 agreements. The red tape is too much. It takes too long time. And if we could solve the time
16:27 it takes, if we can shorten the time it takes to take product from one country to another,
16:32 I think it can create a lot of food security. Globally, there's certain products that have to
16:43 grow in certain areas. And I think that counts for Africa as well. You can't grow apples and
16:48 pears in Kenya or in Ghana, I think, but you can grow them in Cape Town. Although Tommy Van Zyl is
16:54 hopeful that an intervention from the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement will create
16:59 a single market that will address supply chain issues, another heddle may be the factor of
17:06 climate change. Climate is definitely impacting on us. In farming, we're very accustomed to
17:16 the seven dry years and the seven fat years, or cycles of 25 years of very dry or very wet.
17:24 Sometimes we get a lot of frost and other times there's no frost. So farmers are pre-adapted to
17:31 climate change. And we're closely observing the phenomena. What is happening? Is it going to change
17:41 how we used to grow? Will we have to adapt? And we're thinking about it all the time and
17:49 we're resilient. We're looking at technology, we're looking at different regions,
17:52 we're adapting our processes, our technology. It's a process. Luckily, it won't happen overnight.
18:03 We think so. Experts argue that more private sector investment is needed in Africa's
18:08 agricultural sector to boost production and to procure more advanced technology in order to
18:14 significantly reduce the high volumes of the continent's import bills, which stands at 84
18:21 billion US dollars as of 2022. Blender Zogan's report for JOY News, Limpopo Province, South Africa.
18:33 While back home in Ghana, the Born Original Director of Food and Agriculture, Dennis Abugiri
18:38 Amenga, has urged women in agriculture not to let perceptions and beliefs founded on traditions
18:44 prevent them from coming out to access interventions. Speaking at a Deba at Indio in the
18:49 Thane District on barriers to women in agriculture, Mr. Amenga says stakeholders will continue to work
18:54 to eliminate the barriers to enable women improve their livelihoods and contribute to the community.
19:00 Presenter for Hesmo. According to research conducted by the Center for Agriculture and
19:05 Biosciences, CABI, some social cultural practices continue to hinder the involvement of women in
19:11 agriculture. Women are not allowed to go to the farm on some days. These practices continue to
19:19 affect our progress. Women and their children lose their farmlands to the
19:30 family when the husband dies after working hard with the man. We need help to change these practices.
19:36 Some of the barriers, including land access and fewer female extension offices, were discussed
19:43 at a community Deba at Indio in the Thane District of the Born Original by stakeholders interested
19:49 in the affairs of women in agriculture to improve their lives. Bajita Opon Mensa is a scientist,
19:54 agricultural advisory services at CABI. Gender roles that women have makes it a bit difficult
20:02 for them to get the free time that they need to attend some of these trainings or access some of
20:08 these agricultural advisory services. Issues surrounding power and decision making also came
20:15 up where women feel that their voices are not heard because they don't have access to power
20:20 and resources. She said discussions are also ongoing with key stakeholders to empower the women
20:25 to improve productivity. We need to look at the service providers and for us as the Ministry of
20:30 Food and Agriculture, we have spent time with them going through trainings that would make them a bit
20:35 more aware and sensitive to some of these needs and therefore some of the things they need to
20:40 look at and consider when they are engaging female farmers. One of the things that the study
20:44 highlighted was the fact that the women said they were more comfortable with female extension
20:50 officers but you don't have enough of them in the system. We are hoping that once all of these
20:55 things and hypothetically are in place, the women feel more empowered. They feel their voices are
21:02 heard. They are able to put in a lot more effort. You expect that productivity would go up. You
21:08 expect that things related to marketing and processing would also improve. Speaking to Joy
21:14 Business, Bono Regional Director of Food and Agriculture, Dennis Abugri-Amenga said some
21:19 women in agriculture do not assess interventions due to some cultural beliefs despite their efforts.
21:25 He called for collaborations towards improving their yields and livelihoods. The women who when
21:31 interventions come and they see that it's good and they come forward, at times they are given
21:35 different types of labels, sort of superstition and beliefs. Because of that, hard-working women
21:41 who you even want to recognize and give the necessary push are not able to come out. They
21:45 are always at the back and doing so much for the development of the communities. So we are
21:50 encouraging the women wherever you are that would not even know you, call the extension officer of
21:57 that place to come and visit you and when they know your problems, they can then suggest
22:02 interventions that can alleviate those problems. Precious Semevo Joy Business in jail.
22:09 Now, Vice President of Ghana National Tailors and Dressmakers Association,
22:13 Thomas Buma-San has said that the fashion industry is one of the largest sectors that
22:17 employs the youth. He is calling for government support to enable them to pull through with their
22:22 challenges. Mr. Buma-San noted that the cost of subsidized industrial machines is extremely high
22:29 due to the taxes that are imposed on imports and appealed to government to reduce the taxes which
22:34 will reduce the cost for them. Now, Thomas Buma-San made the statement at the launch of the
22:40 12th biannual congress of the association slated for next month. Joining us is Upper West Regional
22:46 correspondent Rafik Salam. Has more. The launch is to create awareness to the general public
22:53 about the impending congress slated to take place in Erbil next month. The 12th biannual congress
23:00 of the GNTDAE according to organizers will help showcase their products and also to elect new
23:08 leaders to share their face of the situation for the next four years. National Vice President of
23:15 GNTDAE Thomas Buma-San together with the regional executives launched the congress by marching
23:22 through the principal streets of Erbil to create the awareness and also to keep faith. They were
23:28 joined by schools of apprentice and master trainers who defied an early downfall and later
23:34 conveyed at the forecourt of the Upper West Regional Coordination Council to be addressed
23:40 by the leadership. Thomas Buma-San opined that the fashion industry is one of the largest sectors
23:48 that employ the youth and government should turn their attention to them. He appealed to the
23:53 government to subsidize industrial machines as the cost is too high for them to buy. We are
24:00 rather reducing employment than governments but if you look at the number of children who are
24:07 under our care that we are training to become self-dependent on their own. So we are calling
24:14 that the challenges we have is especially the assemblies and government we don't receive any
24:22 support from them that will enable us to push those who are behind especially when you look
24:27 at there are others who doesn't have money to come into the training aspects so we need to push that
24:33 they should bring them to come in so that we can all help whatever trade especially you see nowadays
24:39 industrial machines the price is too high so if governments can do something to rather reduce it
24:47 the taxes on it so that it will come down for our people can purchase so they'll do you use it for
24:52 their businesses. Upper West Regional Chairperson of GNTDA Said Abdul Mumin expressed worry over the
25:00 low number of men in the fashion industry using the Upper West Regional as an example the situation
25:06 has a total membership of 2,256 comprising of 1,558 females and 698 males despite the 1,000
25:18 Ghana cities apprenticeship fee waived for the males their number according to the Upper West
25:23 Regional Chair is still not encouraging. Whenever we go for a pass out we send this message to the
25:32 parents and the guardians of the boys but they don't listen to us we know we have just appeared
25:37 to them boys if they come we will take them free we won't take anything from but they don't like
25:42 the the the the business with that the decision that you trade we don't know what is the reason
25:47 we can't tell just look at us as we are standing here they know that we are all tailors look at
25:54 all all the men here we are all tailors are we not good people in the city in the society.
26:00 A view equally shared by the Regional Elder of the Association Masoud Sadugu who aid the youth
26:07 to venture into tailoring as its a lucrative business venture. I didn't do any business
26:13 I'm only a tailor but all my children they're all completed university I never borrow
26:19 it's what a tailor went that I used to let them or now they're all engineers and others
26:25 the men if they come to us we are not charging them anything we are not charging them we are
26:30 taking them free of charge in the lifetime we do give them money to eat but the ladies they
26:36 pay thousand cities thousand cities but the ladies they make them we just take them free so we are
26:42 encouraging everybody who should bring them to us we will take them and teach them how to do their
26:49 work. Report to the 4day news. Rafiq Salam.
26:58 Well there's more news on our website myjoyonline.com/business including airlines one of
27:03 UK flight delays over air traffic control fault you can read more about it on myjoyonline.com/business
27:11 my name is Daryl Carl thanks for watching we will be back same time tomorrow.
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