PRIVATE school owners have been urged to adopt good business practices in their institutions to attract the needed funding for the development of their institutions.
The lack of good business environment has been identified as one of the challenges facing most private schools particularly those operating within less endowed communities in the country.
The Project co-ordinator of the Mitchell Group International (IMG), Mr Baba Donatus Anaba, said this in an interview with the Daily Graphic at a four- day -training programme for private school owners in Accra.
The training programme is being funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and co-ordinated by IMG with Opportunity Industrialisation Centre International (OICI) as the facilitating agent.
Mr Ananba said three main observations had been made with regards to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goal of education for all.
Some of the observations were that the governments were not likely to achieve the target of education for all even with the significant assistance being received from donor communities.
Mr Anaba again mentioned the challenges of springing up of private mushroom schools of varying qualities particularly within less privileged communities in developing nations.
It is to address these difficulties that the USAID is sponsoring the programme aimed at teaching private school owners best business management practices, to enable them to strengthen and broaden their financial management capacities.
Mr Anaba said the programme for owners of the 40 selected schools would cover basic records keeping, credit and financial Management and skills in entrepreneurial development.
Facilitators are also expected to take participants through the basic requirements needed to be credit worthy in the above mentioned areas.
Participants would also learn how to develop a good business plan in order for them to write good business plans to access loans from financial institutions.
In 2008, TMG and USIAD carried out a private school need assessment in twenty of the poorest schools in Accra to identify the basic needs and challenges of private schools in the country.
As a result of that assessment and also of likely funding partners and training institutions, this project was developed at a stakeholders meeting in May 2008.
Some stakeholders who attended this meeting included districts and circuit supervisors, Opportunity International; the lending institution, Ghana National Association of Private School (GNAPS), OICI; the trainer, TMG and USIAD as the sponsors.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Women urged to take interest in decision-making
A GENDER and Social Development Consultant, Mrs Dede Bedu-Addo, has said that in spite of the remarkable achievement made by Ghanaians on gender issues, women remain underrepresented in all sectors of the country.
She said for instance, the presence of women in parliament had not increased over the last decade and explained that it did not represent the total population of women in the country as compared to their male counterparts.
Mrs Bedu-Addo was speaking at a day’s public forum organised by ABANTU for Development for women within the Teshie-Nungua community in Accra.
The about 60 participants who attended the programme were women who have shown considerable willingness to partake in the decision-making process of the country.
Mrs Bedu-Addo said the 2000 parliamentary elections resulted in the election of only 18 women into the 200-seat parliament of the country.
She said when the number of seats were increased from 200 to 230, only 25 women were elected into parliament.
Mrs Bedu-Addo was not happy that the number of female regional ministers, metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCE), as well as those in parliament and the Cabinet was dropping.
She expressed her dissatisfaction that though a large number of women aspirants contested in the 2008 general election, most of them were not elected due to some unfavourable factors on the political terrain.
She mentioned some of these factors as the process of socialisation that prepared men rather than women for leadership positions, the inadequate exposure of women to public life and the demands of women’s reproductive roles.
The Senior Programmes Officer for ABANTU for Development, Mrs Hamida Harrison, said that participation by women in politics should not be limited to only to supporting the political aspirations of their male counterparts.
“Women have the ability, just as their male counterparts to take up any position in politics, leadership, management and all other sectors of the economy”, she said.
Mrs Harrison was worried that in situations where women indicated their willingness to contest political positions, their efforts over the years had been thwarted by the male-dominated political and administrative structures.
She indicated that just as the women had the right to vote, so do they also have the voice to speak on issues of national development.
She noted that the need for women’s participation in the decision-making process had become more relevant as most of the decisions taken impact more on women and children than any other person.
She said Ghanaians must begin to practise true democracy. “If we are truly democratic, then the minority should not be controlling the majority in the country”, she added.
Mrs Harrison said that women formed about 52 per cent of the country’s population and added “if this information is true, then it should be expected that women should constitute about 50 per cent in all leadership positions in politics both at the local and national levels”.
She emphasised that if politics was truly all about sharing, the women must be allowed to form an integral part of the sharing process in order to address their peculiar needs.
To address these imbalances in the society, both presenters called for affirmative actions, which Mrs Harrison defined as an action to balance the imbalance brought about by, economic cultural, political and educational issues.
This call for affirmative action was buttressed with examples of the free education for children in the north and the School Feeding Programme as affirmative actions taken by governments to correct certain imbalances in the society.
She said for instance, the presence of women in parliament had not increased over the last decade and explained that it did not represent the total population of women in the country as compared to their male counterparts.
Mrs Bedu-Addo was speaking at a day’s public forum organised by ABANTU for Development for women within the Teshie-Nungua community in Accra.
The about 60 participants who attended the programme were women who have shown considerable willingness to partake in the decision-making process of the country.
Mrs Bedu-Addo said the 2000 parliamentary elections resulted in the election of only 18 women into the 200-seat parliament of the country.
She said when the number of seats were increased from 200 to 230, only 25 women were elected into parliament.
Mrs Bedu-Addo was not happy that the number of female regional ministers, metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCE), as well as those in parliament and the Cabinet was dropping.
She expressed her dissatisfaction that though a large number of women aspirants contested in the 2008 general election, most of them were not elected due to some unfavourable factors on the political terrain.
She mentioned some of these factors as the process of socialisation that prepared men rather than women for leadership positions, the inadequate exposure of women to public life and the demands of women’s reproductive roles.
The Senior Programmes Officer for ABANTU for Development, Mrs Hamida Harrison, said that participation by women in politics should not be limited to only to supporting the political aspirations of their male counterparts.
“Women have the ability, just as their male counterparts to take up any position in politics, leadership, management and all other sectors of the economy”, she said.
Mrs Harrison was worried that in situations where women indicated their willingness to contest political positions, their efforts over the years had been thwarted by the male-dominated political and administrative structures.
She indicated that just as the women had the right to vote, so do they also have the voice to speak on issues of national development.
She noted that the need for women’s participation in the decision-making process had become more relevant as most of the decisions taken impact more on women and children than any other person.
She said Ghanaians must begin to practise true democracy. “If we are truly democratic, then the minority should not be controlling the majority in the country”, she added.
Mrs Harrison said that women formed about 52 per cent of the country’s population and added “if this information is true, then it should be expected that women should constitute about 50 per cent in all leadership positions in politics both at the local and national levels”.
She emphasised that if politics was truly all about sharing, the women must be allowed to form an integral part of the sharing process in order to address their peculiar needs.
To address these imbalances in the society, both presenters called for affirmative actions, which Mrs Harrison defined as an action to balance the imbalance brought about by, economic cultural, political and educational issues.
This call for affirmative action was buttressed with examples of the free education for children in the north and the School Feeding Programme as affirmative actions taken by governments to correct certain imbalances in the society.
CAL Bank launches rights issue
CAL Bank has launched its rights issue to raise an amount of GH¢30 million through the issue of 150 million new ordinary share to investors.
The offer that opened last Monday will run till Friday, October 23, 2009.
In an address at the launch, the Managing Director of New World Renaissance and lead managers of the offer, Ms Abena Amoah, said the 150 million shares were being offered at GH¢ 0.20 per share.
Ms Amoah said though there was no minimum shares to be bought by investors, each investor was expected to purchase at least 200 shares.
She explained that the offer was an affirmation of the bank's resilience to overcome the challenges in the industry and chart a new future full of opportunities for the bank.
She was confidence that the offer would again enhance the bank’s profitability, boost its lending capacity and strengthen existing processes at the bank, geared at serving their customers better in the years ahead.
A Director of the bank, Mr Paarock Vanpercy, who launched the offer, said it would enable the bank to expand the number of branches which currently stood at 13 and also expand the number of ATMs from 40 to 50 by the close of the year.
He commended investors who invested in the bank in 2004 and had stayed with the bank throughout the period of growth and encouraged them to buy more shares.
The Managing Director of the bank, Mr Frank Adu Jr, said the bank's re-capitalisation process had coincided with the government's desire to reposition itself to gain local and international recognition.
Mr Adu said shareholders in March this year approved an increased in equity capital of up to GH¢ 100 million to enable the bank embark on a new strategic growth.
In 2004, CAL Bank came onto the financial market with an Initial Public Offer (IPO) of GH¢ 5.4 million. Since then the bank has consistently and steadily grown its market share and assets base.
The offer that opened last Monday will run till Friday, October 23, 2009.
In an address at the launch, the Managing Director of New World Renaissance and lead managers of the offer, Ms Abena Amoah, said the 150 million shares were being offered at GH¢ 0.20 per share.
Ms Amoah said though there was no minimum shares to be bought by investors, each investor was expected to purchase at least 200 shares.
She explained that the offer was an affirmation of the bank's resilience to overcome the challenges in the industry and chart a new future full of opportunities for the bank.
She was confidence that the offer would again enhance the bank’s profitability, boost its lending capacity and strengthen existing processes at the bank, geared at serving their customers better in the years ahead.
A Director of the bank, Mr Paarock Vanpercy, who launched the offer, said it would enable the bank to expand the number of branches which currently stood at 13 and also expand the number of ATMs from 40 to 50 by the close of the year.
He commended investors who invested in the bank in 2004 and had stayed with the bank throughout the period of growth and encouraged them to buy more shares.
The Managing Director of the bank, Mr Frank Adu Jr, said the bank's re-capitalisation process had coincided with the government's desire to reposition itself to gain local and international recognition.
Mr Adu said shareholders in March this year approved an increased in equity capital of up to GH¢ 100 million to enable the bank embark on a new strategic growth.
In 2004, CAL Bank came onto the financial market with an Initial Public Offer (IPO) of GH¢ 5.4 million. Since then the bank has consistently and steadily grown its market share and assets base.
Firm introduces high-tech security products
A foreign firm, in partnership with a Ghanaian company, has introduced a wide range of security products into the country to ensure general security in the banking industry.
The products introduced by Godrej and Boyce Company Limited and Hysen Data System
included burglar and fire resistant safes, strong room doors, security alarm systems and safe deposit lockers for jewellery and other valuable items.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic, the Vice President and Head of Business of Godrej Security Solutions, Mr D E Byramjee, and the Associate Manager in charge of Africa, Mr Deepak Kumar Khara, said the need for security solutions in Ghana, and particularly for the banking sector was necessitated by the increasing numbers of fire outbreaks, theft and burglary and their associated loss of money and valuable property.
He said armed robbery attempts in corporate institutions could not be avoided; rather, measures could be taken to minimise their impact on the affected institutions and individuals in the process.
Furthermore, he explained that the company also offered fire resistant record and filing cabinets which provide total protection for all important files and other valuable documents.
Mr Byramjee said his company’s range of fire and burglar alarm systems, surveillance system, currency handling solutions, and other security systems were among the best in the world.
He emphasised that long before coming to Ghana their security products had captured the markets in the banking sector in Asia, America, Germany, and other continents, adding that the focus now was to make an impact on the African market within the non-banking sector which includes super markets, shops and homes world-wide.
Mr Byramjee explained that to reinforce its global confidence in its products that were rigorously tested and stringently manufactured, the company had implemented an Integrated Management System (IMS) comprising ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14000:2004 and OHSAS 18001:1999, thus making the company the only one in the industry to have tested three certifications.
He assured would-be customers in Ghana that the focus of the company was to give their them total peace of mind while going about their everyday duties.
Mr Byramjee added that the company had duplicate keys and combination keys of all the products they had sold since 1907 when it commenced business in India.
The company has over the last few months trained technicians to handle all the after-sales service needs of their clients in Ghana.
He, therefore, called on the public and corporate organisations to spend some of their budget allocations on acquiring the company’s security systems for their homes and organisations.
The products introduced by Godrej and Boyce Company Limited and Hysen Data System
included burglar and fire resistant safes, strong room doors, security alarm systems and safe deposit lockers for jewellery and other valuable items.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic, the Vice President and Head of Business of Godrej Security Solutions, Mr D E Byramjee, and the Associate Manager in charge of Africa, Mr Deepak Kumar Khara, said the need for security solutions in Ghana, and particularly for the banking sector was necessitated by the increasing numbers of fire outbreaks, theft and burglary and their associated loss of money and valuable property.
He said armed robbery attempts in corporate institutions could not be avoided; rather, measures could be taken to minimise their impact on the affected institutions and individuals in the process.
Furthermore, he explained that the company also offered fire resistant record and filing cabinets which provide total protection for all important files and other valuable documents.
Mr Byramjee said his company’s range of fire and burglar alarm systems, surveillance system, currency handling solutions, and other security systems were among the best in the world.
He emphasised that long before coming to Ghana their security products had captured the markets in the banking sector in Asia, America, Germany, and other continents, adding that the focus now was to make an impact on the African market within the non-banking sector which includes super markets, shops and homes world-wide.
Mr Byramjee explained that to reinforce its global confidence in its products that were rigorously tested and stringently manufactured, the company had implemented an Integrated Management System (IMS) comprising ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14000:2004 and OHSAS 18001:1999, thus making the company the only one in the industry to have tested three certifications.
He assured would-be customers in Ghana that the focus of the company was to give their them total peace of mind while going about their everyday duties.
Mr Byramjee added that the company had duplicate keys and combination keys of all the products they had sold since 1907 when it commenced business in India.
The company has over the last few months trained technicians to handle all the after-sales service needs of their clients in Ghana.
He, therefore, called on the public and corporate organisations to spend some of their budget allocations on acquiring the company’s security systems for their homes and organisations.
Global women attend workshop
THE Women’s Ministry of the Global Evangelical Church has initiated moves to empower women in the church to be economically viable to contribute to poverty eradication among women.
As part of the initiative, the women have undergone a day’s training in wealth creation in Accra aimed at making them economically independent.
The programme brought together about 600 hundred women from various congregations of the church in Accra.
Speaking on the theme, “How to create and maintain wealth in an economic downturn”, the Secretary of the Accra Presbytery of the Women’s Ministry of the church, Mrs Patricia Tegbe-Agbo, said God had endowed Ghanaian women with a lot of creativity “but our problem is our inability to identify this potential and make ample use of it”.
She said women must not see wealth creation as the preserve of a certain class in society.
“You have immense abilities capable of transforming your own lives and that of the country,” she added.
She led the participants through some principles of wealth creation and how to sustain it, adding that until a person got the fundamentals of wealth creation right, it was impossible for anyone to create wealth for herself and her family.
Mrs Tegbe-Agbo told the women that wealth creation started with what one loved doing or would like to do and the first step, therefore, must be directed at doing what one loved to do or loving what one did best.
She encouraged them to be focused on whatever they were doing, adding that many people were not able to make it because they had divided attention, as a result of which they were unable to accomplish any of the many things they aspired to do.
She urged the women to be creative and original in all their doings in order to have a competitive edge at the market for the products they would create.
As part of the initiative, the women have undergone a day’s training in wealth creation in Accra aimed at making them economically independent.
The programme brought together about 600 hundred women from various congregations of the church in Accra.
Speaking on the theme, “How to create and maintain wealth in an economic downturn”, the Secretary of the Accra Presbytery of the Women’s Ministry of the church, Mrs Patricia Tegbe-Agbo, said God had endowed Ghanaian women with a lot of creativity “but our problem is our inability to identify this potential and make ample use of it”.
She said women must not see wealth creation as the preserve of a certain class in society.
“You have immense abilities capable of transforming your own lives and that of the country,” she added.
She led the participants through some principles of wealth creation and how to sustain it, adding that until a person got the fundamentals of wealth creation right, it was impossible for anyone to create wealth for herself and her family.
Mrs Tegbe-Agbo told the women that wealth creation started with what one loved doing or would like to do and the first step, therefore, must be directed at doing what one loved to do or loving what one did best.
She encouraged them to be focused on whatever they were doing, adding that many people were not able to make it because they had divided attention, as a result of which they were unable to accomplish any of the many things they aspired to do.
She urged the women to be creative and original in all their doings in order to have a competitive edge at the market for the products they would create.
New Scan, X-ray machine commissioned
AKAI House Clinic has commissioned a scan and a digital X-ray machine at a ceremony in Accra.
The light-speed 64-Slice Volume CT scan is a 64-channel detector which can cover the anatomy with an extremely fast speed while simultaneously providing an exceptional resolution.
Due to its record breaking coverage speed, it has the capacity to attain 43 millisecond temporal resolution, which means that doctors can effectively freeze the motion of the heart, thereby ensuring a more accurate diagnosis in the treatment of heart diseases and other life-threatening illnesses.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kumbour, who commissioned the new facilities, assured the private sector of the government’s support for developing health facilities in the country.
Dr Kumbour said that the health of the public was important to the present government so every help would be given to the private sector to enable it achieve this single objective.
The sector minister called on the administrator of Akai Clinic to take good care of the facility to ensure that the facilities have a longer lifespan.
Dr Kumbour said the government’s support to the health sector was part of the government’s policy of making Ghana a health tourism centre in the sub-region.
The Medical Director of Akai House Clinic, Dr Adrian Oddoye said the installation of the new facility was to achieve the clinic’s objective of providing a world-class diagnostic service and becoming a leader in preventive healthcare in the country.
Dr Oddoye said his administration had spent a lot of time and money in training all clinicians at the centre to ensure accurate patient diagnosis.
In the past, a lot of time was spent on examinations to ensure that they did not miss anything, he said, but now with this new facility they can obtain high resolution images and that enables them to make quicker decisions.
The facilities were supplied by GE Healthcare, whose President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr John Dineen was present to grace the occasion.
The light-speed 64-Slice Volume CT scan is a 64-channel detector which can cover the anatomy with an extremely fast speed while simultaneously providing an exceptional resolution.
Due to its record breaking coverage speed, it has the capacity to attain 43 millisecond temporal resolution, which means that doctors can effectively freeze the motion of the heart, thereby ensuring a more accurate diagnosis in the treatment of heart diseases and other life-threatening illnesses.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kumbour, who commissioned the new facilities, assured the private sector of the government’s support for developing health facilities in the country.
Dr Kumbour said that the health of the public was important to the present government so every help would be given to the private sector to enable it achieve this single objective.
The sector minister called on the administrator of Akai Clinic to take good care of the facility to ensure that the facilities have a longer lifespan.
Dr Kumbour said the government’s support to the health sector was part of the government’s policy of making Ghana a health tourism centre in the sub-region.
The Medical Director of Akai House Clinic, Dr Adrian Oddoye said the installation of the new facility was to achieve the clinic’s objective of providing a world-class diagnostic service and becoming a leader in preventive healthcare in the country.
Dr Oddoye said his administration had spent a lot of time and money in training all clinicians at the centre to ensure accurate patient diagnosis.
In the past, a lot of time was spent on examinations to ensure that they did not miss anything, he said, but now with this new facility they can obtain high resolution images and that enables them to make quicker decisions.
The facilities were supplied by GE Healthcare, whose President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr John Dineen was present to grace the occasion.
NYK Launches Ghana operations
An international shipping company, Nippon Yusen Kaisha Line (NYK), has launched its operations in Ghana in partnership with a local shipping company, Antrak Ghana Limited.
By this relationship, Antrak thus becomes the sole agent of NYK Line in Ghana, the second in Africa after South Africa and the first in the West African sub-region.
Customers of both shipping giants will by this relationship have the opportunity of a direct transportation of their goods from any part of the world to Ghana and the West African sub-region.
At a reception to celebrate the launch of NYK Line in Ghana with their clients, the President and Chief Executive Officer of NYK Group Europe Limited, Mr Masaniichi Morooka, said NYK could pride itself with 124 years of extensive experience in the shipping of goods across the world and had the history of providing quality carriage globally.
Mr Morooka said other benefits to be enjoyed by this partnership included direct services between main markets in Asia and South Africa and a direct connection to global network.
He said his organisation offered the most competitive transit times in the world thereby reducing the time and cost of doing business across its operational areas globally, as well as established networks in Asia.
Mr Morooka added that NYK was the biggest shipping line in Japan and the ninth largest shipping company globally making it an ideal agent for any local company worldwide.
With this advantage on it side, the president said any shipping line that forged any relationship with NYK stood the chance of rocking shoulders with the other giants in the industry while serving its clients.
Mr Morooka commended Ghana for making significant strides in the industry over the last three decades after 30 years of absence from Ghana.
He was hopeful that the new relationship would be a step towards building another bridge between Asia and West Africa by helping importers and exporters of Ghana to have their goods transported in a safe and timely manner.
The General Manager of Antrak Group Limited, Mr Alexandre Freland, told the Daily Graphic that the relationship with NYK had become necessary due to the increasing demand in the shipping industry.
"The recent discovery of oil in Ghana and the government’s quest to expand cocoa production has further increased the need for marine transportation,” he said.
Mr Freland explained that his company was not affected by the financial crisis because it was able to maintain its volume and also added other shipping lines.
He said Antrak with about 55 years of experience in the industry was repositioning itself with this relationship to serve customers better.
By this relationship, Antrak thus becomes the sole agent of NYK Line in Ghana, the second in Africa after South Africa and the first in the West African sub-region.
Customers of both shipping giants will by this relationship have the opportunity of a direct transportation of their goods from any part of the world to Ghana and the West African sub-region.
At a reception to celebrate the launch of NYK Line in Ghana with their clients, the President and Chief Executive Officer of NYK Group Europe Limited, Mr Masaniichi Morooka, said NYK could pride itself with 124 years of extensive experience in the shipping of goods across the world and had the history of providing quality carriage globally.
Mr Morooka said other benefits to be enjoyed by this partnership included direct services between main markets in Asia and South Africa and a direct connection to global network.
He said his organisation offered the most competitive transit times in the world thereby reducing the time and cost of doing business across its operational areas globally, as well as established networks in Asia.
Mr Morooka added that NYK was the biggest shipping line in Japan and the ninth largest shipping company globally making it an ideal agent for any local company worldwide.
With this advantage on it side, the president said any shipping line that forged any relationship with NYK stood the chance of rocking shoulders with the other giants in the industry while serving its clients.
Mr Morooka commended Ghana for making significant strides in the industry over the last three decades after 30 years of absence from Ghana.
He was hopeful that the new relationship would be a step towards building another bridge between Asia and West Africa by helping importers and exporters of Ghana to have their goods transported in a safe and timely manner.
The General Manager of Antrak Group Limited, Mr Alexandre Freland, told the Daily Graphic that the relationship with NYK had become necessary due to the increasing demand in the shipping industry.
"The recent discovery of oil in Ghana and the government’s quest to expand cocoa production has further increased the need for marine transportation,” he said.
Mr Freland explained that his company was not affected by the financial crisis because it was able to maintain its volume and also added other shipping lines.
He said Antrak with about 55 years of experience in the industry was repositioning itself with this relationship to serve customers better.
Abedi commends Graphic
THE Chief Football Ambassador for the Africa Nations Cup trophy tour, maestro Abedi Ayew Pele, has commended the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) for its role in the promotion of sports in the country, particularly football over the years.
He specifically lauded the role played by newspapers of the graphic stable for his personal rise to international fame and urged the company to do same for the other up and coming sports men and women in the country.
Mr Abedi Ayew said this when he presented the CAF trophy to the Managing Director of GCGL, Mr Ibrahim Awal in his office in Accra.
Mr Abedi Ayew recounted his experience with GCGL some 30 years ago, when in 1978 the late S K Mainoo in deposited an educational sponsorship fee with the GCGL for his education up to the University level.
“This gave me the opportunity to be part of the Graphic family and to bring the trophy here today is not only an honour but a sweet homecoming,” he added.
Mr Abedi Ayew also used the occasion to commend the study growth in the organisation of football on the continent and urged the media to provide the needed support and motivation for the development and growth of sports on the continent.
Mr Abedi Ayew said he was honoured to be touring Africa with the trophy for the second time and commended Standard Bank’s (the parent company of Stanbic Bank) for giving him the opportunity and the support for the past two years.
The Managing Director of Stanbic Bank, Mr Alhassan Andani, assured of Standard Bank’s support for the development of football , which he indicated would run till 2016.
Mr Andani indicated that the purpose of organising the trophy tour for the second time was as a result of the success of the first tour and added that, “we also want to bring the trophy to the fans who are the true custodians to them have a feel of it.”
Mr Andani said the bank’s financial commitment to CAF was in line with the bank's effort at supporting sports development in Africa.
The Managing Director (MD) of Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), Mr Ibrahim Awal, who received the trophy, assured the trophy tour team of GCGL’s support during the tour and to bring Angola 2010 to Ghanaians.
He commended Stanbic Bank for supporting the development of sports in Ghana since it inception in the country and on the continent.
Mr Awal said since Ghana was the first stop of the trophy, it must motivate the Black Star to bring the trophy back to where it took off.
He specifically lauded the role played by newspapers of the graphic stable for his personal rise to international fame and urged the company to do same for the other up and coming sports men and women in the country.
Mr Abedi Ayew said this when he presented the CAF trophy to the Managing Director of GCGL, Mr Ibrahim Awal in his office in Accra.
Mr Abedi Ayew recounted his experience with GCGL some 30 years ago, when in 1978 the late S K Mainoo in deposited an educational sponsorship fee with the GCGL for his education up to the University level.
“This gave me the opportunity to be part of the Graphic family and to bring the trophy here today is not only an honour but a sweet homecoming,” he added.
Mr Abedi Ayew also used the occasion to commend the study growth in the organisation of football on the continent and urged the media to provide the needed support and motivation for the development and growth of sports on the continent.
Mr Abedi Ayew said he was honoured to be touring Africa with the trophy for the second time and commended Standard Bank’s (the parent company of Stanbic Bank) for giving him the opportunity and the support for the past two years.
The Managing Director of Stanbic Bank, Mr Alhassan Andani, assured of Standard Bank’s support for the development of football , which he indicated would run till 2016.
Mr Andani indicated that the purpose of organising the trophy tour for the second time was as a result of the success of the first tour and added that, “we also want to bring the trophy to the fans who are the true custodians to them have a feel of it.”
Mr Andani said the bank’s financial commitment to CAF was in line with the bank's effort at supporting sports development in Africa.
The Managing Director (MD) of Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), Mr Ibrahim Awal, who received the trophy, assured the trophy tour team of GCGL’s support during the tour and to bring Angola 2010 to Ghanaians.
He commended Stanbic Bank for supporting the development of sports in Ghana since it inception in the country and on the continent.
Mr Awal said since Ghana was the first stop of the trophy, it must motivate the Black Star to bring the trophy back to where it took off.
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