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Office rent chokes businesses

Business

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May 5, 2016

Rising cost of office space rental in major business districts in the capital, has significantly increased the cost of doing business for medium to large scale businesses, while small businesses are pushed to the brink.

A decent office space in the Kotoka International Airport area is offered for rent at an average of US$40 per square meter (m²), Spintex Road for an average of US$24/m², Osu-US$20/m², and US$20/m²for office space in Tema area.

This means that, for minimum of 100 square meter (m²), businesses in the Airport area will have to pay US$ 4,000 as rent, US$ 2,400 in Spintex, and US$2,000 in Osu and Tema area. The situation is compounded by the number of years rent advance businesses are required to pay.

Most landlords quote their prices in dollars, though payable in cedis at the prevailing rate, due largely to the instability in the local currencies to ensure they don’t suffer any foreign exchange losses.

Though the high rental charged by owners of commercial properties is not captured by the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) Business Barometer—which expresses the state of business confidence–cost of doing business has increased for large small and medium scale enterprises with the steep increases in the cost of commercial space rental.

The worst affected are SMEs and start-ups who are struggling to stay in business amidst the high rent payment, high cost of utility, inadequate supply of electricity, and the increasing tax burden.

Registrar General’s Department data shows that 92 percent of companies registered in Ghana are micro, small and medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEs also provide about 85 percent of manufacturing employment and contribute about 70 percent to Ghana’s GDP.

Indeed, a key indicator of a growing economy is a vibrant Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector that contributes significantly to a country’s GDP.

A PwC survey found that the bulk of SMEs in the country are within the services sector, particularly hotels, restaurants, transport and storage, business and real estate.

This sector was the hardest hit in the two-year load-shedding regime the country was plunged into as a result of power generation challenges. Though the situation has improved significantly, the cost of power is so huge that small businesses who need constant electricity are folding up.

The AGI’s updated Business Barometer cites exchange rate volatility, poor access to credit and cost of credit, and the plethora of taxes heaped on businesses by government in its frantic effort to increase revenue.

High rental charges in the capital and other major commercial centres in other parts of the country, is inimical to the growth of businesses and the creation of jobs on the back of the economic challenges they have had to grapple with for the last three years.

The Rent Control Department, which is under the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing, is not well-resourced to investigate and address this challenge facing businesses.

Indeed, to encourage graduates to venture into business, a conscious effort must be made to offer decent affordable business operating spaces to budding entrepreneurs, similar to the one created by some East African governments for start-ups and small businesses.

Source: B&FT

Kotokuraba market to be ready in August – Mahama

Business

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May 5, 2016

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Kotokuraba Market

President John Dramani Mahama has assured traders in the Central Region that the Kotokuraba Market will be ready by the end of August this year, two months behind schedule

The market, which has been under reconstruction since December 2014 after a court in Cape Coast ordered the demolition of the old one, was initially scheduled for completion next month.

However, President Mahama, while interacting with traders during his visit to the Kotokuraba market on the second day of his accounting to the people tour in the region, assured traders that the reconstruction would be completed in three months.

“It is left with three months for works to be completed at the market,” he said.

“We will commission this market to honour the late President John Evans Attah Mills,” he maintained.

“We promise that the traders who were already in, selling here will be given priority when the allocations are being made at the new market,” he added.

Onua FM’S correspondent, Timothy Kwame Kwakraba reports that the traders, who were delighted to meet the president, commended him for re-assuring that original occupants of the stalls at the old market would be given preference when allocations are being made at the newly reconstructed ultra modern market.

The new Kotokuraba market include space for shops, banks, hospitals, schools, a drainage system and properly marked walkways to ensure free movement of traders and customers.

It also has a car park, an office block, restaurants and a fire department.

The famous Kotokuraba Market is the center of trading activities in the region attracting farmers and traders from other regions such as Western and Greater Accra.

Nii Okai Tetteh | Onua FM | 3news.com

Rawlings tells me ‘honey you’re looking good’ – Konadu speaks fashion

Showbiz

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May 5, 2016

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Former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings says her husband, Jerry John Rawlings, is a big fan of her sense of fashion and usually gives her flattering compliments.

The former first lady, who is noted for her good sense of fashion usually with African prints, was a special guest on TV3’s New Day on Wednesday, May 4 in an exclusive interview with Bright Nana Amfoh.

The National Democratic Party (NDP) flagbearer spoke about her love for her mirror, which she claims, makes her go wild when she sees what she loves most looking into it.

When asked if anything had changed with her sense of fashion, she replied in the affirmative.

“My fashion sense hasn’t changed because I’m just myself and anytime I look into the mirror and I love what I see, I go wild.

“I don’t go out of my way to do extraordinary stuff with dressing but I just do things that I think will look pretty and I like it then I’m out but if I don’t like it then that’s it.

“If I dress up and any of my children say mum we don’t think this will go with the program you are going for and there is a need to change it then I will.

“My husband usually says ‘Honey you are looking good’ and if he says aren’t you a little over dressed because we are not going for anything important I go like ‘I’m not overdressed’ and if he insists that he thinks I am then I will change”.

By Nana Afrane Asante|3news.com|Ghana

Prof. Yankah advocates a blend of 3yr & 4yr SHS system

Education

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May 5, 2016

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Prof. Yankah advocates a blend of 3yr & 4yr SHS system

The debate surrounding the duration of Ghana’s secondary level education has been resurrected by the vice chancellor of Central University College, Professor Kwesi Yankah who is proposing a blend of the 3-year-4-year system.

According to the Professor the implementation of his proposal should be dependent on the capacity, infrastructure and placement of a particular school.

Prof. Yankah said these at the occasional lecture organised by the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, where he bemoaned the social inequalities in access to education.

Senior High School or SHS education was introduced in 2007 after a heated debate amongst educationists in the country over the expansion over the system to four years.

The policy was however reversed after three years of implementing the 4-Year system, as a result, there was no graduation in 2010, and two separate year groups graduated in 2013.

Per his analysis, students from the 4 year period performed considerably better than their 3 year colleagues.

National performance trends from 2006 to 2015 indicated the 4 year students performed better. Examination mal practice reduced during the period.

Professor Kwesi Yankah further indicated that the success rate however depends on the contact hours spent in the various schools.

He said “the one size fit all policy where the duration of SHS is fixed by policy, either 3 or 4 years, promotes and exacerbates prevailing social inequalities. The shorter duration creates stress for poor schools and deprived students while the 4 year duration which is generally less stressful, creates unnecessary redundancies and is time consuming for high flyers.”

Professor Yankah believes the success of either of the two policies depends on access to adequate social inequities in education.

“The flexibility of the proposed scheme is a blend of the three year and the four year systems. It’s in itself a source of stability. It is all inclusive and acknowledges a profound social inequity in the country which cannot be remedied in a one size fits all policy.”

Professor Kwesi Yankah was speaking at the 2016 edition of the occasional lecture organized by the Ghana academy of arts and sciences on the topic: “The three year-four-year school pendulum: towards a stable public policy on Senior High Education.”

By 3news.com|Ghana

NPP raises cocnern about security at registration centers

Politics

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May 5, 2016

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The New Patriotic Party (NPP) says if security at centers mounted for the limited registration exercise is anything to go by, then all cannot be said to be well for the 2016 elections.

“If you cannot provide adequate security for 3,500 centers, how are you going to do that for 29,000?”

Speaking on TV3’s News @10 on Wednesday, May 4, Director of Elections for the NPP Martin Ajdei-Mensah Korsah said some centers have been invaded by machomen against the protocol of the exercise.

“In Brong Ahafo Region [and] other places, machomen have taken over the place. EC officers are being touted as opponents. You have Electoral Commission equipment being damaged…it is a real problem.”

The exercise, which began on Thursday, April 28, has been characterized by violence at some centers. Accusations have also been traded between the two major political parties over registering ineligible persons.

Mr Adjei-Mensah Korsah called for a beef-up in security and even the opening of additional centers in some electoral areas where numbers of prospective voters are high.

He cited the case of University of Ghana, where only one center has been mounted for the exercise.

This suggestion was agreed to by National Organiser of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Kofi Adams, who was also called into the programme.

He said the NDC has liaised with the Electoral Commission, Ghana (EC) and centers have been increased in some areas.

“We have been engaging with the Electoral Commission. Indeed the number of centers has been increased in some circumstances where it came very necessary that centers are created in areas that the EC has not been creating centers.”

He urged potential voters to take advantage of all the days during the exercise and not wait till the last minute to register.

By Emmanuel Kwame Amoh|3news.com|Ghana

Twitter: @kwame_amoh

Zimbabwe to print own version of US dollar

World

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May 5, 2016

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Zimbabwe to print own version of US dollar

Zimbabwe abandoned its own currency in 2009 after hyperinflation made it worthless

Zimbabwe is set to print its own version of the US dollar in order to ease a cash shortage in the country.

Central bank governor John Mangudya said the cash, known as bond notes, will be backed by $200m (£140m) support from the Africa Export-Import Bank.

The specially-designed two, five, 10 and 20 dollar notes will have the same value as their US dollar equivalents.

Zimbabwe introduced the US dollar after ditching its own currency in 2009 following sustained hyperinflation.

Since then Zimbabweans have been using the dollar as well as a number of other foreign currencies including the South African rand and the Chinese yuan.

Africa Live: More on this and other African news stories.

But the BBC’s Brian Hungwe in the capital, Harare, says that bank customers are not always able to withdraw the amount of US dollars they want because of a shortage of dollar notes in Zimbabwe.

The governor stressed that the issuing of bond notes was not the first step on the way to reintroducing the defunct currency, the Zimbabwe Herald newspaperreports.

Mr Mangudya also introduced a number of other measures to steer people away from using US dollar cash.

This includes setting a $1,000 limit on how much cash can be taken out of the country.

He wants to encourage people to make greater use of the rand since a large portion of Zimbabwe’s trade is with South Africa.

But our correspondent says that people are reluctant to hold rands as they are not confident that the currency will maintain its value against the dollar.

He adds that not all shops and traders accept the full range of currencies officially in use.

The central bank brought in so-called bond coins of one, five, 10 and 25 cents, pegged to the US dollar, in 2014.

Mr Mangudya said the bank was still working on a design for the new notes, but they should be in circulation “within the next two months”, the Herald reports.

Source: BBC

Zimbabwe to print own version of US dollar

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