Thursday 09 February 2023 Issue No.12
A NEW THINKING
Binance recognized for its innovative solutions and user-first approach at 2022 Ghana Fintech 2 Awards
Ghana seeks Indian investment in oil and gas sector Zeepay secures Mobile Money License in Gambia
Parliament to regulate 1D1F tax exemptions
Zeepay, the African fintech leader and game-changer in the mobile money space, has once again demonstrated its commitment to expanding access to financial services across the continent. The company has received regulatory approval to bring its revolutionary mobile money services to Gambia, making it the fourth country, alongside Ghana, Zambia, and Ivory Coast. This marks another significant milestone, as it continues to disrupt the traditional financial services sector and bring innovative and accessible financial solutions to Africa. At a time when Africa is focusing on the integration of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement and financial inclusion, Zeepay's entry into the Gambian market is a welcome development. With its award-winning fintech platform, Zeepay is transforming the way Gambians send and receive money, both domestically and internationally. The company's partnership with MoneyGram, a global provider of money transfer and financial services, will enable Gambians to receive money directly into their
Parliament is considering a legislation or legal framework to address tax exemptions regime regarding the One District One Factory(1D1F) policy aimed at shoring up local revenue. Parliament passed the Tax Exemptions Bill, 2022 last year to provide for a tax exemption regime in the country. The current law did not make adequate provisions that addresses the exemptions regime in relation to the 1D1F framework.
Ghana, which is struggling with its worst economic crisis in a generation, is seeking Indian investment in its oil and gas sector, William Owuraku Aidoo, its deputy minister of energy, said on Wednesday. Reuters reports that Ghana has asked India to consider exploration of three blocks in the western basin and to build refineries as the African
nation aims to construct a petroleum hub, Aidoo said. "There are some opportunities in Ghana specially in the oil and gas front. We have some oil blocks available and we came here hoping to attract Indian investments," Aidoo told Reuters after a meeting with Indian oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri at India Energy Week. He said Ghana will award ex-
ploration licences through direct negotiations if Indian companies are interested. Ghana wants India to consider three blocks in the western basin, he said. Apart from offering exploration opportunities, Ghana is also seeking Indian support to build refineries of about 300,000 barrels per day. "We have space for three of them ... we want to make a
Government introduced the 1D1F with the objective of boosting industrailisation with varied tax incentives but stakeholders have raised concerns about the excessive exemptions relating the 1D1F framework, which has caused the country several millions in tax reliefs. Civil society and other pressure groups have raised concerns regards these tax holidays, hence the need for a review of the regime. The bill, which would set clear eligibility criteria for tax ex-
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Business confidence improves last year, but challenges still remain - UKGCC report
The UK- Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC), a member-based trade association that promotes trade between the UK and Ghana, has released the 4th edition of its annual Ghana Business Environment and Competi3
tive Survey Report for the year 2022.
Over 300 companies from 16 industries, ranging from small to large companies, participated in the survey. The survey results indicate that
Increase in HIV case must not be blamed on tourism I came a across a news item and The Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) disclosed that illegal mining is a major factor in the increase of 3
HIV/AIDS infections in the country. The Director-General of the GAC, Dr Kyeremeh Atuahene also indicated that tourism may increase infection rates in the country. In stress-
Olaseni Alabede joins MFS Africa’s Global Technology Partners as new CTO Olaseni Alabede, a veteran of the payments technology sector with more than 18 years of experience, has joined Global Technology Partners (GTP), an MFS Africa company, as chief technology officer (CTO). Acquired by MFS Africa in June 2022, the US-based GTP is the largest processor of prepaid cards in Africa, with more than 80 banks – including UBA, Ecobank, BIA, Stanbic, Coris, NSIA and Zenith Bank – using its platform.
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Prior to joining the GTP executive team, Alabede was the Vice President of Product Development in MasterCard’s Installments business. In this New York-based role, he was responsible for the design and development of Buy-Now-Pay-later products on the Mastercard network. His history in the payments sector, however, dates back to the beginning of his career in 2003, when he started working as a web designer at the now-defunct City Express Bank in Nigeria. After that, he spent nearly a decade at Interswitch, growing from a project engineer to head of enterprise ser-