GCB DONATES GH¢200 MILLION TOWARDS GRAPHIC GOVERNANCE DIALOGUE

9/17/07
Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru & Raymond Baxey
THE Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) yesterday presented a cheque for GH¢20,000 (¢200 million) to the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) towards the organisation of the Second Daily Graphic Governance Dialogue.
The dialogue, to be organised by the GCGL, provides a platform to highlight governance issues in Africa with the view to improving the quality of life of the people. Issues to be discussed include political, social, economic and corporate governance.
This year’s dialogue, which is on the theme: “Accelerating Regional Integration for Wealth Creation and Sustainable Development”, is scheduled for September 25-26, 2007.
The Managing Director of GCB, Mr Lawrence N. Adu-Mante, who presented the cheque to the Managing Director of GCGL, Mr Ibrahim Awal, said the gesture was part of GCB’s social responsibility and in line with its desire “to see democracy entrenched in Ghana and other parts of Africa”.
“We are happy to be part of this year’s Daily Graphic Governance Dialogue and through this donation, it is our hope that the relationship between GCB and Graphic will continue to grow from strength to strength,” he said.
Mr Adu-Mante stressed that as the lead and the largest commercial bank in Ghana, GCB could not sit aloof when issues of regional integration and wealth creation were going to be discussed in Ghana and Africa, especially when no other institution like its partner, GCGL, was organising it.
Besides, he said, the dialogue was going to identify strategic goals, objectives and actions to facilitate an effective common market within the ECOWAS sub-region.
Mr Adu-Mante said the participants would be exposed to the opportunities of a common currency and steps to achieve it, identify barriers to attracting investment, explore mechanisms for promoting investment and to examine the lessons of the European Union (EU) with the view to using them as a guide to the West African integration process.
“The topics are dear to us GCB because increased investment, common currency and common markets revolve around GCB’s core business. It is for this reason that the Board and Management of GCB have decided to donate GH¢20,000 towards the successful organisation of this year’s dialogue,” he said.
Mr Awal said as the biggest media house in the country, GCGL felt duty-bound to contribute towards sustaining the macroeconomic environment in the country and Africa as a whole.
He said GCGL had more than two million readers daily, and the management used the publications to support efforts at promoting good governance and sustaining the macroeconomic environment in the country and on the African continent.
Mr Awal said this year’s theme was chosen against the backdrop that Africa had a large market and the need to contribute towards exposing the market potential of the continent with the view to creating wealth and achieving sustainable development.
He thanked the Board and Management of GCB for the gesture, and expressed the hope that the relation between GCGL and GCB, as well as their co-operation towards the Governance Dialogue, would be further strengthened in the coming years.