The facility, with five years tenure, comes in two parts; the fixed five year term facility of GH¢ 345 million with 24 months moratorium to support capital expenditure plans; and the Revolving Credit Facility of GH¢165 million over the five year period for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Speaking at a ceremony to sign the loan agreement, the Chief Finance Officer and Ag. Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Modupe Kadri, said, “MTN Ghana requires flexible funding to meet our esteemed stakeholders’ expectations. We are therefore pleased that today through this syndicated facility, we have succeeded in partnering nine (9) local banks to raise GH¢ 510 million”.

“The huge interest in MTN’s business is a clear testament to how successful our business is, and the excellent financial health the business enjoys” he added.

The signing of the loan facility follows an initial debt raising transaction in 2012 of $300 million, and its successful repayment by MTN Ghana in May 2017.

MTN’s track record and strong leadership position paved the way for yet another successful capital market transaction.

This big-ticket Ghana transaction was arranged jointly by Ecobank Ghana Limited and Ecobank Development Corporation (EDC), as Mandate Lead Arrangers with Barclays Bank Ghana Limited as joint facility and Security Agents.

The syndicate banks are: Ecobank Ghana Limited, GCB Bank Limited, Standard Chartered Bank Ghana Limited, Barclays Bank Ghana Limited, Stanbic Bank Ghana Limited, Societe Generale Ghana, Zenith Bank Ghana Limited, Guaranty Trust Bank Ghana Limited and Fidelity Bank Limited.

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post MTN Ghana signs GH₵ 510m loan facility to expand infrastructure appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He argues that the bank’s credit committee was responsible for  the ultimate approval or otherwise.

[contextly_sidebar id=”P4atpPUu9k8auD27M3KE2EgZlx21zjP1″]The Minority has accused Ken Ofori Atta for flouting public procurement rules by approving the GHc 10,459,500 loan for the company to undertake a government contract.

But speaking to journalists, the Finance Minister denied breaking the law.

“That will be the purview of the credit committee of the bank…with banking transaction, the credit committee goes through and then makes their recommendation. I would imagine that on my part it was the right thing,” he explained.

According to the Minority, the failings stem from the failure of the President to constitute the requisite governing boards, including that of adb, to oversee such transactions.

Addressing the press in Accra on Tuesday, the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, appealed to the media “to probe further whether this contract was awarded through an open competitive tender process to guarantee and ensure value for money.”

He also accused Mr. Ofori-Atta of reducing “the mandate and role of the Ministry of Finance to some credit disbursement entity in order that they can reward the political cronies.”

“The minister usurped the authority and functions of the Bank and its Board of Directors, which has curiously not been constituted so we are concerned. So where are the Board of Drectors of the major financial institutions of our country?” Mr. Iddrisu queried.

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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana

The post Ofori Atta defends McDan’s GH¢10.45m adb loan appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to the Economic Adviser to the Vice President, Dr. Gideon Boako, government through the agreement will construct bauxite refineries which will generate enough income to settle the loan.

“… Ghana told the government of China that we are not coming here for loans. We also told them since our tax revenues are not quite enough to be able to raise the kind of money in the short-term, we want to form strategic alliance with China and they agreed. We told them we have a lot of mineral resources so we want to build the railways along the lines of the mineral resources so that we can cart the bauxite and everything. If we are able to get the bauxite out of the ground and we refine the bauxite, that alone is going to generate an export value around 460 billion dollars” Dr. Boako explained.

[contextly_sidebar id=”yoohq3JNXq86JtGtshRNFaiSl9kChIVm”]He further clarified that, the agreement between the two countries was not “a loan from China to Ghana but a join venture.”

Justifying government’s decision to accept China’s offer, Dr. Boako said “Government has been looking out for opportunities that it can explore to make sure that this stream is realized and part of the avenues to get this is to form strategic alliances with countries who have been able to get there so that we can learn from experiences and also tap into the kind of goodies that they have. Globally, China has the second largest economy in the world. Ghana was among the first group of Sub-Saharan African countries that established diplomatic relations with China, and the two countries have enjoyed decades of strong ties so if you are developing a nation you would want to align yourself with those who have made it.”

“China, if you look at its economic performance globally, is now the centre stage and that is why today, you will see big automobile and telecommunication companies setting up plants in China. The global company is moving towards China and America. They have the technology, resources etc so you want to tap into that so at the invitation of the China government, the President asked the Vice President to lead a Ghanaian delegation to China to try and have conversations with the people of China to see how best we can develop our two nations together.”

The offer from the Chinese government was made during the Vice President’s four-day official visit to the country, at the invitation of the Chinese government.

It is the first by a high level government official since the New Patriotic Party took office in January 2017.

Dr. Bawumia led a delegation of Ministers and government officials to the Asian country in a quest to deepen diplomatic and economic ties, as well as create opportunities for Ghanaian businesses to form partnerships with their Chinese counterparts.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post China loan will be used to leverage bauxite industry – Gov’t appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Poultry farmers are threatening legal action should government refuse to refund the GHc6 million cedis that was used in financing the pilot phase of the Ghana Broiler Revitalization Program (GHABROP) launched in 2014.

According to them, all efforts aimed at getting a refund have proven futile.

The loan, which was taken from Barclays Bank by Boris B’s Farms and Veterinary Supplies Limited, was to help boost the growth of the poultry industry.

Although the principal of the loan and its interest have risen to 8 million cedis, Boris B’s and the poultry farmers say the proceeds have yielded just GHc 2million which is not enough to retire even the principal.

The poultry sector has seen a huge decline over the years, and farmers believe it may totally collapse if government continues to ignore the sector.

Vice Chairman of the Poultry Farmers Association of Ghana, Napoleon Agyeman Oduro, says the refusal by government to pay the loan is causing huge discomfort and challenges to the borrowers.

He further pleaded with government to investigate and reimburse the financiers as the industry is collapsing.

“This did not happen in this current government’s hands. However, we want to plead with them to investigate. The entrepreneur deserves some form of compensation, some form of reimbursement.”

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By: Jessica Ayorkor Aryee/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana.

The post Poultry farmers livid over delay in GH¢6m loan refund appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The Agreement was however passed amidst opposition from the Minority on concerns over the terms by which government will lend the money to ECG to implement the project, which is expected to extend electricity to rural areas.

The loan will also be used to upgrade the distribution network of Ghana’s power distributor but the opposition in Parliament insists the terms and condition of the facility are too costly for the ECG.

Speaking on the floor of the House, the Minority Spokesperson on  Finance, Dr Anthony Akoto Osei described the terms of the on-lending agreement to ECG as unfair.

“The interest is too onerous, 5% is too commercial…is government now a commercial bank?” he asked, adding that ECG is too “broke” to pay back the loan.

He wondered why the government will adopt such a strategy to procure loans for an institution that is facing financial challenges.

ECG can pay loan – Mona Quartey 

The Deputy Minister of Finance, Mona Quartey however justified the terms of the agreement saying the ECG has the capacity to pay back the money on the terms government is offering.

“The ECG is not broke. It may have some cash management issue but it is not broke. They will be able to service this particular facility and therefore they will be able to pay the interest rate that we have agreed with them and within the grace period therefore there is no transactional problem,” she said.

Parliament approves four loans

On Monday, four loans sent to Parliament by government was approved by the 275-member body.

The four loans included an 11 billion Japanese yen (equivalent to 112 million dollars), through its International Corporation Agency (JICA), for the construction of a bridge across the Volta River at Volivo, $83 million for the Accra Urban Transport Project and a 13 million euro loan and another 3 million euro for the provision of facilities and ICT equipment for the offices of the Ghana Audit Service nationwide.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Parliament divided over $60 million loan agreement appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Before the agreement was passed however, the minority raised concerns about value for money for some of the components of the agreement.

[contextly_sidebar id=”a0ZCVXPNR0l7TVHTTLR76fOk6W6ymY5j”]The Minority leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu cited the proposed use of about 1.7 million euros for the construction of a residential facility for the Vice Chancellor of the University saying it is “dangerous for the economic health” of Ghana.

“I’m informed on authority that the Vice Chancellors bungalow alone is going to cost us as a nation more than 1.2 million euros. That should be around $1.5 million. Mr. Speaker, that amount transforms to about GHc6 million which is about 60 billion old cedis. Where are we heading as a nation? This is dangerous for the economic health of this country,” he said.

Though Mensah Bonsu noted that the university was necessary he said there was the need to have value for money projects.

“I have said that we should be very conscious about what we are doing in these last days…We agree that there is the need to establish the university of Environment and Sustainable development in the Eastern Region, but what would be going into that is dangerous for the economic health of the nation. And I believe that at the appropriate time the critical issues would be raised and if we have to resist it to ensure that the proper thing is done so that we will have value for money,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Majority Leader of Parliament, Alfred Agbesi justified the agreement saying it will open up access to higher education in the country.

“Mr. Speaker we are all one mind, one idea that we need this university and what is necessary is what is contained in the report of the committee that the university was envisaged to operate as a multi-campus institution. By that I understand it to that apart from Somanya and Donkorkrom, other campuses…and I’m hoping that very soon, a campus will come to Sogakorpe because that is the purpose. Mr. Speaker, the committee went further to state that the project is in line with development vision to establish a public university in each region. So if the government has envisaged this and which is provided in the constitution and we are doing so, then all that we have to say is that this is a government that has ideas…and that we need such government to continue to give us more ideas.”

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By: Godwin A. Allotey & Duke Mensah Opoku/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Minority questions €38M loan agreement for Eastern Region university appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, the act is likely to impact on the share price of the bank on the Ghana Stock Exchange if it goes unresolved.

Media reports had suggested that, the Board of GCB Bank led by Daniel Owiredu together with two other officials from the bank, the Credit/ Risk Manager Sam Aquah and George Fuachie, Head of Corporate have been giving out ‘uncollateralized’ loans to cronies, thereby putting the bank’s finances in awkward positions.

The bank has since dismissed such reports.

A statement issued on the matter urged the public to “treat the allegation with the contempt that it deserved”.

Commenting on the matter to Citi Business News, Nana Otuo Acheampong, also the Head of the Osei Tutu II Centre for Executive Education and Research; described the issue is an internal one and should be addressed as such.

“This is an internal problem which can best be resolved internally; it must therefore be taken out of the public domain,” he observed.

Nana Otuo Acheampong added, “As a listed company, when such alleged information is put in the public domain, the effect on share price is negative which causes the shares to drop in its price on the stock exchange.”

Meanwhile GCB Bank says it is committed to protecting its reputation and would, therefore, file a complaint with the National Media Commission (NMC).

But sources within the bank have suggested the fact the board chairman chairs the Credit sub-committee, where loans are approved, and also the chairman of the board, which finally approves of the loans.

Meanwhile Citi business News has gathered that the Bank of Ghana has taken over the issue by causing an investigation to ascertain the full truth behind the alleged allegations that involves the board chairman and two other officials of the bank.

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By: Norvan Acquah – Hayford/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana

The post Solve ‘non-collateral loans’ allegations internally – Nana Otuo to GCB Bank appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.