The 18th annual conference of the African Econometric Society opened in
Accra yesterday, with a call on economic researchers to link research
work with everyday economic realities on the African continent.
The three-day conference, which is being attended by representatives of
member-countries, is on the theme: “The Relevance of Policy Modelling
in an Uncertain World with Specific Application to Africa”.
The Vice President, Mr Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur, who opened the
conference, said it was unfortunate that the unpopularity of econometric
as a subject had resulted in the lack of proper analysis in the
formulation of policies.
He noted that policy was, therefore, unduly based on theory without
critical analysis based on economic realities on the ground.
Mr Amissah-Arthur said it was heart-warming, therefore, that topics
lined up for discussion during the conference had been based on African
economic realities.
He called on policymakers to be well grounded in econometrics to avoid
the situation where economic forecasting is not based on empirical data.
In a keynote address read for him, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana,
Dr Henry Kofi Wampah, said since its inception in 2002, the inflation
targeting (IT) framework had contributed greatly to monetary policy
conduct, with positive economic outcomes in the country.
He explained that IT had helped to keep the bank’s focus on price
stability and, to a large extent, made the bank to deliver on its price
stability mandate, while economic growth rate had accelerated.
Dr Wampah said over the past decade, Ghana had seen a remarkable
decline its inflation rate explaining that from 40.5 per cent
(year-on-year) in December, 2000, inflation fell to 12.7 per cent in
December, 2007, having touched single digits in April, 2006.
Inflation, according to him, crept to 20.7 per cent in June, 2009,
following external shocks, but after adjusting the policy rate along
with other measures, inflation fell to 9.5 per cent in July, 2010, and
remained in single digits before moving into low double digits in
February, 2013.
He said monetary policy decisions had also created the right conditions
for economic growth, as evidenced by strong growth records, following
the adoption of inflating targeting.
Dr Wampah added that the low inflationary environment together with
other prudent and complementary macroeconomic policies stimulated high
growth rates that averaged 7.1 per cent per year between 2002 and 2012,
compared with a 4.5 per cent average growth between 1986 and 2001.
The BoG Governor said that achieving the price stability objective had
been facilitated by supportive fiscal policy, adding that sustained
achievement of price stability would require a contradictory fiscal
policy and strengthen co-ordination between fiscal and monetary
policies.
Dr Wampah said the bank had since 2002, implemented a number of
structural and regulatory reforms to develop the financial sector.
The money and capital markets, the banking and non-bank financial
institution as well as the settlement and payment systems had seen
structural reforms, he said.
In addition, the financial sector regulatory framework had been
extensively reviewed alongside the enactment of new laws to strengthen
the bank’s supervisory powers.
In his remark, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana,
Professor Ernest Aryeetey, urged policymakers to use policy to shape the
country’s trade and economic development.
He told the delegates that the University of Ghana was in a process of a research-based institution.
Prof Aryeetey said the university would establish centres of excellence
in areas such as malaria, climate change adaptation, food production
and processing and policy monitoring and evaluation.
Showing posts with label ghananija. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ghananija. Show all posts
Saturday, 27 July 2013
Friday, 26 July 2013
ghana uerobond over subscribed
Ghana’s second bid to raise US$1 billion from the international capital
market to finance key development projects has been over-subscribed by
US$1.2 billion. The first bond of US$750 million was raised in 2007 with
a coupon rate of 8.5 per cent and a maturity period of 10 years.
This current bond of US$1 billion has a maturity period of 10 years, with a coupon rate of 7.875 per cent which will be paid semi-annually.
The bond will be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) and the Irish Stock Exchange (ISE).
This will be the first listing of a sovereign bond on a local stock market in sub-Saharan Africa.
The over-subscription shows the level of confidence the international financial community has in the Ghanaian economy.
The economy, over the past year, has received positive ratings from international rating agencies. Moody Ratings rated Ghana B1; Standard and Poor’s B, while Fitch rated the economy B+.
The Minister of Finance, Mr Seth Terkper, who led a team of experts for the road show, said he was satisfied with the results.
He said Ghana should now be accessing the international capital market to finance its long-term projects and said part of the fresh capital would be used to refinance the first bond which had a higher coupon rate of 8.5 per cent.
The foreign lead managers for the transaction were Barclays Bank and the Citi Bank Group, while SAS and EDC were the co-managers.
Parliament, on June 25, 2013, approved a request by the government to issue its second Eurobond to raise US$1 billion from the international capital market to finance development projects.
Proceeds from the bond are expected to be used to finance infrastructure projects and restructure maturing debts and interest payments.
They are also to be used as counterpart funding for capital projects such as the Atuabo Gas Processing project, as well as to finance capital expenditure approved in the 2013 budget, with priority given to self-financing projects such as ports and power projects.
The request was approved amidst serious debate from both sides of the House over the quantum of the amount, the timing of the issue, as well as the specific terms and conditions of the bond.
The Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Mr James Klutse Avedzi, who moved a motion for the adoption of the committee's report on the bond, had said the purpose of the bond was to diversify the country's sources of funding.
According to him, the bond was to provide counterpart funding for projects already approved amounting to US$103 million, as well as provide US$284 million to finance capital expenditure in the 2013 budget statement, with priority given to government financing projects.
Some MPs called on the government to present the specific terms of the bond to the House for its perusal.
They also criticised the government for not pursuing fiscal scrutiny, arguing that the timing for the request was not appropriate because the government was going to the market at a time when the country's credit rating was low.
They said the country's debt stock stood at more than GH¢30 billion and warned that borrowing from the capital market would increase the debt stock faster.
This current bond of US$1 billion has a maturity period of 10 years, with a coupon rate of 7.875 per cent which will be paid semi-annually.
The bond will be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) and the Irish Stock Exchange (ISE).
This will be the first listing of a sovereign bond on a local stock market in sub-Saharan Africa.
The over-subscription shows the level of confidence the international financial community has in the Ghanaian economy.
The economy, over the past year, has received positive ratings from international rating agencies. Moody Ratings rated Ghana B1; Standard and Poor’s B, while Fitch rated the economy B+.
The Minister of Finance, Mr Seth Terkper, who led a team of experts for the road show, said he was satisfied with the results.
He said Ghana should now be accessing the international capital market to finance its long-term projects and said part of the fresh capital would be used to refinance the first bond which had a higher coupon rate of 8.5 per cent.
The foreign lead managers for the transaction were Barclays Bank and the Citi Bank Group, while SAS and EDC were the co-managers.
Parliament, on June 25, 2013, approved a request by the government to issue its second Eurobond to raise US$1 billion from the international capital market to finance development projects.
Proceeds from the bond are expected to be used to finance infrastructure projects and restructure maturing debts and interest payments.
They are also to be used as counterpart funding for capital projects such as the Atuabo Gas Processing project, as well as to finance capital expenditure approved in the 2013 budget, with priority given to self-financing projects such as ports and power projects.
The request was approved amidst serious debate from both sides of the House over the quantum of the amount, the timing of the issue, as well as the specific terms and conditions of the bond.
The Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Mr James Klutse Avedzi, who moved a motion for the adoption of the committee's report on the bond, had said the purpose of the bond was to diversify the country's sources of funding.
According to him, the bond was to provide counterpart funding for projects already approved amounting to US$103 million, as well as provide US$284 million to finance capital expenditure in the 2013 budget statement, with priority given to government financing projects.
Some MPs called on the government to present the specific terms of the bond to the House for its perusal.
They also criticised the government for not pursuing fiscal scrutiny, arguing that the timing for the request was not appropriate because the government was going to the market at a time when the country's credit rating was low.
They said the country's debt stock stood at more than GH¢30 billion and warned that borrowing from the capital market would increase the debt stock faster.
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