Strengthen Regulatory Framework — Mumuni
Foreign Minister, Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni, has called on the central bank to continuously review and strengthen the regulatory framework governing the operations of banks in the country to ensure that they operate within the laws at all times.
He said if the negative incidents which had rocked the banking sector in Nigeria was anything to go by, then the onus lay on Ghana's central bank to ensure that banks operating in the country strictly played by the rules to protect depositors’ interest.
Alhaji Mumuni made the call at the formal opening of six new branches of Sahel Sahara bank, one of the latest entrants to the Ghanaian financial market.
The branch offices which have all been fitted with state-of-the-art equipment, have serene atmosphere to ensure convenient banking are at Nima, Accra Central, Tema Community 1, Madina, Spintex Road and North Industrial Area. This brings to seven, the number of branches of the bank since it began operations a year ago.
Headquartered in Libya, the bank is present in 14 other African countries including Niger, Benin, Togo, The Gambia, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Central African Republic, Sudan and recently, Ghana, a situation which allows customers of the bank in any of the operating countries to do business anytime, wherever they found themselves.
The foreign minister made reference to the impact of the global financial meltdown on many countries and partly attributed the phenomenon to the lack of strict risk management practices on the part of financial institutions.
“Although many financial institutions in developing countries including Ghana still remain robust, we need not be complacent”, he advised.
An audit into the financials of the banks in Nigeria revealed a startling incidence, a situation which forced the central Bank Governor of that country to call for the dismissal of six managing directors of the affected banks, some of which either have shares in or are affiliated to banks in Ghana. In the end, the Nigerian Government was compelled to dole out more than 26 million Niara to bail those affected.
Alhaji Mumuni reiterated that lessons of Nigeria stared Ghana in the face and noted that only a well calculated regulatory framework and its enforcement could save Ghana from experiencing a similar incident.
He commended the management of Sahel Sahara Bank for the bold initiative it had taken to open six branches within two years of its operations.
Alhaji Mumuni said considering the rationale for the setting up of the bank, which is spread across 14 African countries with headquarters in Libya, “there is no doubt that the integration process is on course”.
In a speech read on his behalf, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, Finance and Economic Planning Minister, was hopeful that banks would play their role by avoiding speculative behaviour that would send wrong signals to the market.
“”We should be informed by the lessons of the global financial crisis and organize our businesses as such”, he said and added that; “it is of collective interest to safeguard the gains made, the confidence built, the respect earned and the stability we all need to build a sound and strong private sector that creates jobs and contributes to economic growth”.
He also called on the banks to be innovative in mobilizing savings because “there is too much cash in the hands of traders in the informal sector”.
Mr Youssef Turkman, Deputy Managing Director of the bank had earlier mentioned the bank's intention to spread fast across the country, saying “we are increasing our branches to 10 by the end of the year”.
He said the bank was ready for the competition and would continue to introduce tailor-made products and services that would make the bank the most attractive within the competition. Share Your Thoughts on this article Name Email Location Comments Graphic Ghana may edit your comments and not all comments will be published