The relationship between academic institutions and industries needs to be reconsidered, according to Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, first deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana.
Dealing with unemployment and problems associated to it will be made possible by this.
He said this at the Congregation of College of Humanities at the University of Ghana, Legon, where he charged academic institutions to create linkage with industry.
Dr. Opoku-Afari, who is also the Chairman, Advisory Board, of the College of Humanities, challenged the university, students and industry to make maximum use of technology to the benefit of the country.
The 2023 University of Ghana Congregation ceremonies was held for graduates who completed their programmes of study during the 2021/2022 Academic year. It is the first in-person graduation since the outbreak of COVID-19.
The first Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Maxwell Opoku-Afari, said with the constant change in the world, there is the need for academia to infuse technology in all spheres of training to equip students with skills for the world of work.
He also charged the graduates to imbibe the principles of hard work, perseverance and integrity to make a meaningful impact in the world.
In a speech read on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, Prof Nana Aba Amfo, the Pro Vice Chancellor Academic and Student Affairs, Prof Gordon Awandare, said from July 2022 to date, 62 research grant contracts and agreements with a value of Four million dollars were executed.
According to him the university will continue to play a pivotal role and position it as the number one researchinstitution.
Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Mrs. Mary Chinery-Hesse, applauded the University for adapting to the challenges during Covid-19. She urged the management of the University to keep up the good work and continue to tap into technology as they prepare the students for the world.
Mrs Chinery-Hesse said there are numerous problems facing society and challenged the graduates to play a major role in creating a better future for all.
Eleven thousand, seven hundred and eleven people graduated from four Colleges and Graduate Studies with Jacklord Agyabeng Amponsah as the valedictorian for the College of Humanities with a final GPA of 3.93.
Senyo Hosi, a financial and economic policy specialist, has narrowed down a list of Ghanaians who are knowledgeable about economic issues and could succeed Ken Ofori-Atta as finance minister.
Senyo thinks that the moment has come for the President to appoint someone who will boost investor confidence while fostering national political stability.
“It is time for a technocratic and meritocratic selection of one truly acknowledged and approved by the financial markets and across the political divide,” he wrote in an open letter to the president.
For the now vacant position of a minister of state in charge of finance after Charles Adu-Boahen’s sack, Senyo Hosi noted that the Finance Ministry must lead the charge as the size of government remains a challenge and a cause of worry for many Ghanaians.
He said: “As the size of government remains one of concern, there is no doubt that the Ministry of Finance should lead the way in its resizing.”
“ I recommend the following for consideration as the replacement for the Minister of State for Finance,” he added.
1. Mr. Kwamena Asomaning – CEO, Stanbic Bank Ghana Limited
2. Mansa Nettey – CEO, Standard Chartered Bank Ghana
3. Alex Emmanuel Asiedu – Head of Investments, Africa Region, Standard Bank
4. Prof. Festus Ebo Turkson – Economist & Lecturer, University of Ghana
5. Josephine Anan-Ankomah – Group Executive- Commercial, Ecobank Group.
He however concluded by adding that “Your Excellency, the above names are just to give tangibility to the concept advised. I believe there are other equally competent candidates you may consider, but I, nonetheless, urge you to consider the guiding principle expatiated above – put the national interest above all else. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. Your current position is truly not envied.
“I have often said the presidency is easily the loneliest job in the world. Almost everyone, including your conjugants, is in pursuit of your influence for their private gain. You still will have to make a call!” Senyo noted.
“Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, on account of your noteworthy contribution to policy-relevant research and modernization of monetary policy frameworks in low-income and developing countries, you were elected Fellow of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences on 20th October 2022. Congratulations”, Vice President (Arts Section) Prof. Kofi Opoku Nti said.
Speaking after the ceremony, Dr. Opoku-Afari expressed gratitude to the President and Council of GAAS.
The Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences was founded in 1959 on the initiative of Ghana’s first president, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah. Its aim is generally to promote the pursuit, advancement and dissemination of knowledge in all branches of the sciences and the humanities.
At the time it was established, the Academy was the first in Black Africa.
According to Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, the First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, the current SIM Card registration activity aims to assure the centralization of KYC data to enhance the supply of financial services free from fraud.
He claims that in order to prevent theft, potential for money laundering, and the financing of terrorists, the exercise has become vital.
Dr. Opoku-Afari stated, “The consumer should be at the center of our joint efforts,” at the Standard Chartered Bank-organized 2022 Digital Banking, Innovation, and Fintech event. As a result, the Bank will not give up trying to safeguard them.
“It is in this vain that the Bank of Ghana has developed an artificial intelligence-powered automated customer complaint system, I believe this community refers to it as a chatbot; dubbed ‘Akushika’,” he disclosed.
“The chatbot is currently in its pilot phase and I would like to use this opportunity to encourage you all to interact with it to ensure that it becomes fit for its purpose,” the Deputy BoG Governor added.
Touching on the introduction of the central bank digital currency known as the eCedi, Dr. Opoku Afari said the comprehensive pilot testing process has been completed.
He noted that the pilot process saw the testing of online and offline versions of the eCedi in Accra, Tarkwa and Sefwi Asafo.
“The pilot has unearthed useful insights on the impact of the initiative of the Bank which will prove instrumental in the event of a full-scale deployment of the eCedi.”
The deputy central bank governor in his conclusion said as part of the effort to build stronger collaboration and cooperation with industry, the regulator has embarked on an engagement drive through the FinTech and Innovation Office.
He further said the central bank remains resolute in its commitment toward a cash-lite agenda in Ghana.
According to him, this will prove to be a key step in the restructuring of the domestic economy because the strong credit system it will lead to will increase consumption, investments, job creation, and overall prosperity.
He stated this during remarks at the second annual Digital Banking, Innovation and FinTech Festival presented by Standard Chartered Bank, with the theme “Powering Africa’s Digital Economy: Platforms, Players and Policy.”
Highlighting some of the tangible benefits of government’s ongoing digitalisation agenda, he said: “It is comforting to note that even the credit reference agencies are leveraging on these digital infrastructures we have put in place – the digital address system, national ID and so on; and we are expecting that individual credit scoring by the agencies will start taking place by the first quarter of next year. This will allow and underpin the development of a real credit system in Ghana, which is very critical in terms of the country’s development.”
“The costs are high, but we are unwavering because we believe the benefits will outweigh the cost – and they already are,” he said, citing among other things Ghana emerging as the only country to have a 100 percent score for financial inclusion on the back of mobile money interoperability, as captured by the ‘State of Inclusive Instant Payment in Africa’ report launched at the ongoing Mobile World Congress Africa 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda.
Touching on additional benefits of the drive, Dr. Bawumia further disclosed that 1,018 out of the 1,052 government institutions including ministries and metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) have been successfully migrated onto the digital service and revenue collection platform – ghana.gov.
With the remaining 34 institutions expected to be onboarded in the near term, the Vice President expressed optimism that the estimated more than US$3billion lost to corruption would have been saved – in addition to increased tax revenue and enhanced productivity from persons requiring the services of these bodies.
“We are really seeing the impact of these digitisation initiatives, including efficient public service deliveries – as middlemen, ghost-names, the need to pay bribes and long waiting times will all be eliminated,” he explained.
While reiterating government’s commitment to ensuring a stable socioeconomic environment for further digital investments, and calling for enhanced collaboration and robust regulatory regimes, he commended the scale and depth of the Festival; describing it as “a game-changer which significantly contributes to the efforts government is making in driving growth of the digital economy”.
Customer focus and nimble feet
The banking industry was implored to be agile in the face of the rapidly developing financial technology landscape by the First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Maxwell Opoku Afari, who warned that failure to do so will see them left behind.
While chronicling how the BoG has pioneered leading innovation and relevant policies to make Ghana a fully-digitised economy – through the development of an effective and efficient retail payment ecosystem that is anchored on robust interbank infrastructure – he said the protection of consumers remains its overarching goal.
“The consumer should be at the centre of our collective efforts. As such, the Bank will not relent in its efforts to protect them. It is in this vein that the Bank of Ghana has developed an artificial intelligence-powered, automated consumer complaint system – a chatbot – known as Akushika. This consumer experience solution is being developed as an additional mechanism to manage complaints and consumer protection,” he said of the tool that is currently in its pilot phase.
Broad scope
Chief Executive Officer at Standard Chartered Bank, Mansa Nettey, said the impact of the Festival’s maiden edition, coupled with the opportunity digitalisation presents for the economy to leapfrog in terms of development, resulted in broadening the scope and scale of discussions to cover Africa’s digital transformation – and touches on the very important theme of gender and inclusiveness.
“We will explore opportunities that exist in using digital technology to unlock Africa’s economic growth and focus on regulations which protect and enhance digital trade, and delve into the future of banking, money and payment systems in solving the complex financial inclusion challenges on our continent,” she explained.
“In a session dedicated to women in technology, we will discuss the urgent need for women-owned businesses to tap into the enormous opportunities offered by technology-adoption and explore investment opportunities to help female-owned businesses scale further and faster,” added Mrs. Nettey, who doubles as president of the Ghana Association of Banks (GAB).
Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, has said the ongoing SIM Card registration exercise seeks to ensure the centralization of KYC data to boost the delivery of financial services devoid of fraud.
According to him, the exercise has become necessary to curtail theft, opportunities for money laundering and financing of terrorism.
Speaking at the 2022 Digital Banking, Innovation and Fintech festival organised by Standard Chartered Bank, Dr. Opoku-Afari said, “the consumer should be at the centre of our collective efforts. As such, the Bank will not relent on its effort to protect them.”
“It is in this vain that the Bank of Ghana has developed an artificial intelligence-powered automated customer complaint system, I believe this community refers to it as a chatbot; dubbed ‘Akushika’,” he disclosed.
He explained that this customer experience solution is being deployed as an additional mechanism, to manage consumer complaints and promote consumer protection.
“The chatbot is currently in its pilot phase and I would like to use this opportunity to encourage you all to interact with it to ensure that it becomes fit for its purpose,” the Deputy BoG Governor added.
Touching on the introduction of the central bank digital currency known as the eCedi, Dr. Opoku Afari said the comprehensive pilot testing process has been completed.
He noted that the pilot process saw the testing of online and offline versions of the eCedi in Accra, Tarkwa and Sefwi Asafo.
“The pilot has unearthed useful insights on the impact of the initiative of the Bank which will prove instrumental in the event of a full-scale deployment of the eCedi.”
The deputy central bank governor in his conclusion said as part of the effort to build stronger collaboration and cooperation with industry, the regulator has embarked on an engagement drive through the FinTech and Innovation Office.
He further said the central bank remains resolute in its commitment toward a cash-lite agenda in Ghana.
The Bank of Ghanahas engaged players in the financial space to address possible threats to the sector in order to achieve a sound and safe financial system.
To this end, the Central Bank, says it is committed in ensuring that its financial inclusion agenda is achieved in no time.
Speaking at the maiden edition of the Regulatory Sandbox Engagement Forum held in Accra on Wednesday, on behalf of the first Deputy Governorof the Bank of Ghana, Dr Maxwell Opoku Afari, Head of FinTech and Innovation Office, Kwame Oppong, underscored the importance of such engagements with financial sector players.
He said digital financial services was promoting financial inclusion and bring the unserved and underserved segment of the society in the financial system.
“Ghana’s recent remarkable performance in financial inclusion from 58 per cent in 2017 to 68 per cent in 2021 as reported in the 2021 Global Findex has been largely facilitated by digital financial service,” he said.
The forum, sought to elicit the views of the players in the aforementioned sector in the implementation of the BoG Regulatory Sandbox.
BoG recently introducedthe Regulatory Sandbox to create an enabling environment for innovators to test innovative financial products, services and business models in a controlled but live environment under the supervision of the Bank.
Dr Afari said the emergence of new technology had fuelled the digitalisation drive in the Ghanaian financial services industry with tremendous impact on efficiency and convenience.
He said to meet the changing needs of customers as well as address the challenges of the industry called for pragmatic and innovative solutions that confront the status quo.
“I must state that innovation and retooling of regulatory framework are not new to the Bank of Ghana. In fact, the bank has been at the forefront of innovation in the financial service industry for decades,” the First Deputy Governor, stated.
Dr Afari said the passage of the Payment Systems Act 2003(Act 662) in 2003, which had culminated in the establishment of the Ghana Inter-bank Payment and Settlement System infrastructure and the promotion of electronic payments laid a strong foundation for digital financial service in Ghana.
“Since then, many more innovations and corresponding enabling regulatory regime have been provided, of which Act 987 is the most recent. Clearly, these and many commitments, including the regulatory sandbox are evidence of the Bank’s response to the prevailing industry dynamics and encourage stakeholders to take advantage of the opportunities Bank of Ghana has presented to inject some dynamism into their offerings through innovation,” he said.
He said the adoption of responsible innovation presented Fintechs opportunity to attract investments to expand and finance their business operations.
The First Deputy Governor stressed that the stakeholders’ engagement forum presented an opportunity to have an ongoing collaboration with industry to explore different perspectives and to work towards a common goal.
Dr Afari pledged that as a regulator of financial service, BoG maintained the highest level of confidentiality and secrecy, and would not expose the ideas of the Fintechs participating in the bank’s Regulatory Sandbox, to third parties.
The representatives of the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications, Technology Chamber, Ghana Microfinance Institutions Network, Ghana Association of Savings and Loans Companies, in their remarks commended BoG for the implementation of the Regulatory Sandbox to nurture new ideas.
They also lauded the BoG for the forum to engage the players in the banking, fiancé and Fintech sectors to discuss ideas on how to move the sector forward.
First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, encouraged the innovators not to overlook the advantage they stand to gain when they incorporate sustainability into their products and services in a speech given on his behalf at the bank’s regulatory sandbox engagement forum in Accra. The forum brought together various Fintechs, partnering banks, and other financial institutions.
“Let me underscore the importance of responsible innovation in this endeavour. Globally, sustainability has taken centre-stage in all spheres of human activity. The need to assess possible negative impacts from our innovations on present and future societies has become more critical than ever.
“The plethora of phrases such as ‘green finance’, responsible investment, sustainable finance; environment, social and governance; and climate finance in current discourse indicate the seriousness modern society attaches to sustainable innovations.
“Adoption of responsible innovation presents in FinTech design ethos a unique national advantage, with the potential to attract investments into our FinTech ecosystem for the creation of employment and wealth,” he said.
The Bank of Ghana’s Regulatory Sandbox has been designed for innovators to test innovative financial products, services and business models in a controlled but live environment under supervision of the central bank.
To this end, Dr. Opoku-Afari emphasised that the Bank of Ghana will continue exercising strict oversight over the industry in order to protect integrity of the financial sector and investments of customers.
“To meet the changing needs of customers, as well as address challenges of the industry, calls for pragmatic and innovative solutions which confront the status quo. This we consider a shared responsibility of the regulator and the innovators to create a conducive environment for experimentation.
“This approach, though useful, has its own risks; and if not properly directed could be disastrous to society. A laissez-faire attitude to innovation and financial service delivery is therefore an unsuitable approach to accommodate.
“With regard to developments in virtual assets, the Bank continues to monitor developments on a regular basis; and the many cautionary notices issued indicate the presence of significant inherent risks.
“While we do stand by these cautions, we are open to dialogue geared toward the potential exploration of regulatory outcomes keenly focused on consumer interest and protection. The Sandbox could potentially present us with these opportunities,” he said.
Chief Executive Officer of the Telecom Chamber, Ken Ashigbey, commended the central bank for the Regulatory Sandbox project and urged regulators of other industries to also introduce similar programmes which will promote innovation in their respective sectors.
He urged the industry to come out with practical solutions and suggestions that support government to generate revenues from the digital space, and which will not bring about any disruption to their businesses.
Prior to Ghana’s Fund-supported program, the new Mission Chief was in the nation to interact with various government agencies and other important players.
First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Maxwell Opoku-Afari, and Directors of the Bank’s Research, Financial Markets, Financial Stability, and Banking Supervision Departments made up Governor Addison’s team.
