The Business and Financial Times, the most relevant and credible business publication, has been adjudged the Business Newspaper of the Year 2012 at the maiden Gold Awards for Business Journalism. A  Chief Correspondent of the paper, Mr. Ekow Essabra-Mensah, was also adjudged the Investigative Reporter of the Year and the Mining, Oil and Gas Reporter of the Year. The awards, sponsored by the World Bank, Stanbic Bank, UT Group and the State Housing Company Limited, is aimed at rewarding outstanding journalists and media organisations in the areas of business, economic and financial reporting.  It is also aimed at improving the quality of economic and business reportage in the country. The event was put together by Masoe Productions West Africa in partnership with the Institute of Financial and Economic Journalists, the umbrella-body for business and economic reporters in the country. In all, about 14 awards were given out on the day. The organisers of the award said over 34 entries were received, with conspicuous similarity of style and occasional lack of depth in research and analysis in most of the works. However, the finalists had a marginal edge over the other entries, they said. A seven-member jury vetted entries for the various categories and selected the nominees.Speaking at the event, Mr. Adu Anane-Antwi, the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said: “The press is very important in providing information to the public. For the capital market, the work of the financial journalist is very crucial to expose market abuses such as insider trading. This is why we need trained and well-resourced reporters to continuously give us quality reportage.” Mr. Prince Kofi Amoabeng, the Group Chief Executive, UT Group, said there is need for financial and business journalists to upgrade themselves to be able to advance corporate Ghana and to keep government in check. Ms. Tash Morgan, Corporate Communications Coordinator of Finatrade Group of Companies who was part of the jury, said three entries were chosen per category -- except in categories where there was either insufficient entries/entrants or the quality of works submitted were not worthy of recognition. Samuel Doe Ablordeppey of Graphic Communications Group Limited was adjudged the overall Best Business Journalist of the Year. His prize package includes a trip to the United States for a training programme and an iPad. Other award winners were Mr. Lloyd Evans, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award in Financial Journalism; Mr. Kwaku Effah Amponsah, SME Reporter of the Year and Feature Writer of the Year; and Mr. Felix Dela Klutse, Reporter of the Year 2012. Citi FM won the Business Radio Station of the Year; TV3, the TV Station of the Year; and Business World won the Business Magazine of the Year. Ekow Essabra-Mensah receiving the award on behalf of B&FT

The Banker Magazine, a publication of Financial Times, has named United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), the Bank of the Year- Africa. UBA carted home the regional award for the continent  at the Banker Awards ceremony in London, joining the ranks of other regional winners like Scotiabank-Global Americas, Nordea-Western Europe, Raiffeisen Bank International -Central and Eastern Europe, DBS-AsiaPacific and Qatar National Bank-Middle East. The “Bank of the Year” is selected based on the overall performance of the financial institution and the opinion of leading financial analysts from the world’s financial markets. Winners were recognized and presented with awards in the presence of over 450 leading bankers across the globe. In a show of dominance, UBA also won the country awards for Senegal and Cameroon, bringing to a total of three, the number of awards received that night by UBA. The awards further attests to UBA's growing recognition as the leading pan-African financial services institution and as Africa’s global bank. The awards were received by the Bank’s Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka; MD, UBA Cameroon, Mr. Georges Wega; MD UBA Capital Europe, Mr. Ebele Ogbue and Head UBA Representative Office Paris, DeMontalivet Edouard. Explaining the rationale for the awards, the Banker said UBA was chosen on account of the Bank’s successful turnaround to profitability following the write-offs and clean-up of its balance sheet in 2011. The Banker also stated that other reasons for the selection of UBA were the notable consolidation of UBA’s business across Africa as well as its innovative cross border payment/remittance products and platforms, which have made trade and financial transactions easier and more convenient in the continent. Commenting on the awards, Group Managing Director/CEO, UBA Plc, Mr. Phillips Oduoza said they validate UBA Group’s leadership position in the continent and lends credence to its expansion across Africa and promotion of industry wide excellence in the global banking community. “Winning the three highly coveted awards is a great accomplishment and it also reinforces UBA Plc’s collective steadfastness and drive to becoming the bank of choice in Africa, in line with the Bank’s positioning as Africa’s global bank. We dedicate it to all our stakeholders across the continent and are further encouraged to work harder” he enthused. The UBA Group is an acknowledged industry leader in Commercial and Retail Banking across Africa with operations in 19 African countries serving over 7 million customer accounts through multiple channels and remote locations

Agricultural Development Bank, ADB for the third time in a row emerged as a winner at the prestigious 2012 Africa Investor (Ai) Awards which was announced in Johannesburg, South Africa  to the global agribusiness investment community. ADB was adjudged winner of the Agricultural Development Bank of the Year category which is to recognize achievements of the very best in both private and public sector players in the agribusiness sector. ADB won the 2012 Agricultural Development Bank of the Year category after placing tops over competition from other Banks and financial institutions which included Agriculture Finance Corporation, Kenya; Land Bank, South Africa; Principal Bank for Development and Agricultural Credit (PBDAC), Egypt; Agribank of Zimbabwe, Development Bank of Mauritius, National Bank of Malawi and PTA Bank. This marks the second time ADB has won the prestigious Agricultural Development of the Year at the Ai awards. It topped the same category at the maiden Ai awards in 2010.In the 2011 edition ADB won in the Agribusiness category. African Investor’s shortlist of Banks and financial institutions for the agricultural development of the year category were based on stable growth and performance between the period 30th June 2011 and 30 June 2012 and the future plans for banking structure and strategy in the markets of the competing institutions. Other criteria were financial and technological innovation, knowledge of local markets and use of local human and capital resources in pursuing economic development. Africa investor is a specialist investment group, advising governments, international organisations and businesses on investment strategies for capital market and foreign direct investments in Africa. Africa investor’s media division publishes Africa investor magazine, the leading international newsstand magazine for Africa’s investment decision makers; maintains the Africa investor 40 Investors’ Index, hosts the Ai Index Series Summit & Awards and the Africa investor Infrastructure Projects Summit & Awards, amongst other events.

TROPICAL Cable and Conductor Limited (TCCL) has been adjudged the best manufacturing company in the Electrical and Electronics sector by the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) in its maiden National Industrial Awards. TCCL came up tops in that sector after a team of experts detailed by the AGI award’s committee conducted assessments of industrial manufacturers in the sector in various areas including their financial records, good corporate governance structures and production levels. Tropical Cable and Conductor Ltd started operations in 1998, having been incorporated the previous year, to manufacture overhead conductors and a wide range of insulated cables for both electrical and telecommunication use, locally and for export. The company is ISO 9001-2000 standard Certified and currently has capacity to produce about 6,000 tonnes of cables and conductors a year. It supplies cables to Volta River Authority (VRA), the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the Energy Ministry, mining companies, real estate developers, electrical contractors and the general public. Commenting on the award, the Managing Director of Tropical Cable and Conductor Ltd, Mr Tony Oteng-Gyasi, said “For us, this is recognition of the fact that as a Ghanaian company, we are making impact in an area where not many manufacturing companies venture into.  And coming from AGI, it’s even more encouraging.” “This award should also serve as a spur for our efforts in the West African sub-region. We dedicate this to our workers. I also want to say ‘thank you’ to our distributors and customers who continue to keep faith with us.” Mr Oteng-Gyasi and management of TCCL believe that the company’s continued focus on uncompromising quality, which the company does not sacrifice for quicker sales, as its priority is to offer value for money to its clients and patrons. “At TCCL, our primary focus is to give value for money and we’re always bent on not sacrificing quality for financial gains or anything since electricity is a fundamental part of modern living. Electricity is useful but can be dangerous. Therefore, we believe quality and the use of appropriate standards are paramount,” Mr Oteng-Gyasi added. PRODUCTION CAPACITY TCCL has developed a robust documentation framework to cover all its processes from purchasing of raw materials, processing stages including production and stores, quality control, and human resource to marketing under the ISO standard. Recently, Tropical Cable and Conductor Ltd increased its production capacity to 6,000 tonnes per annum of various products but only about 60 per cent of this installed capacity is so far being utilised because of unbridled importation of cables which, although, cannot stand the quality of TCCL though. For Mr Oteng-Gyasi and his team, “Our general attitude as Ghanaians also needs to change for us to look at products made-in-Ghana. We need to have more faith in ourselves and ability to do things and this will greatly enhance the local manufacturing sector.” TCCL is part of the local cable manufacturing team of three that is implementing a credit line of GH¢80 million which the local companies arranged to meet government supplies. The company believes that the initiative is only a small step that should be enhanced and replicated across sectors by whichever president comes into power next year. MARKETS AND AWARDS The company exports its products to several countries in the sub-region such as Nigeria, Liberia, Togo, Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone. A member of the Ghana Club 100, TCCL has won several awards including the CIMG Manufacturing Company of the Year Award, the National Quality Awards, and the Ghana Standards Board Award for Quality. GOING FORWARD TCCL is joining hands with other industry players in discussing collaborations with some expatriate companies for the manufacture of ‘unbilical cables’ for the oil industry. An unbilical cable is an assemblage of various cables and pipes together that oil companies use to serve the wells. Since the oil and gas sector is a catalyst for development, TCCL plans to open its own distribution depot at Takoradi by the close of the first quarter of next year to serve the downstream market and real estate property such as warehouses, residential and commercials buildings.

By Juliet AGUIAR, Takoradi The Sekondi-Takoradi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (STRCCI) has launched the first ever private sector-led Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and Anti-Corruption Centre in Takoradi. The centre is to enhance access to justice by reducing the backlog of disputes before the court and create a better business environment for them to thrive. Mr. Ato Van-Ess the Western Regional Chairman of STRCCI speaking at the launch on the theme “Litigation has no business on today’s business” explained that with the ADR and Anti-Corruption centre, resolution of disputes is faster than mainstream court adjudication - - disputants make their own decisions, parties speak the language they best understand as well as parties choose their own neutral arbiter. He said, this creates a better business environment, lower direct and indirect costs of enhancing contracts and resolving disputes and also enhances dialogue and problem solving skills among business people. He pointed out that businesses must have a very simple and straight forward approach to solving disputes - - we need disputes that affect our business operations and relationships to resolve quickly and efficiently. According to Mr. Van-Ess, in the global world of commerce, this has always been possible because of the legal and procedural complexities that surround formal conflict resolutions such as judicial adjudications or court room trials. “The purpose of the Business Anti-corruption Portal is to provide a comprehensive and practical business tool and to offer targeted support to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in order to help them avoid and fight corruption, thereby creating a better business environment” he said. He added that working actively against corruption will furthermore enable companies to adhere to the United Nations Global Compact Principle 10 on corruption. He said the judicial administrators, legal practitioners and members of the business community around the world, have embarked upon on reforming the dispute resolution landscape to resolve the challenges by introducing less formal and non adversarial procedures to disputes resolution known as ADR. “The parliament of Ghana seeing the need of entrenching the ADR concept in Ghana enacted Act 789 to 2010 to provide legislative basis for its practice - - what Act 789 seeks to do critically is to demystify and decentralized access to justice thereby allowing individuals and institution such as STCCI to establish and practice ADR”, he added.  Justice Georgina Mensah-Datsa, of the Sekondi Commercial Court enumerating the benefits of ADR said it is cost effective, avoids public disclosure of personal matters because of confidentiality as well as quick  disposal of cases and less expensive than litigation.  â€œADR empowers the parties giving a greater satisfaction with outcome and a greater commitment to keeping the agreement, enforcement rate higher than in litigation”,  she added Mr. Vitus A. Azeem the Executive Director of  Ghana Integrity Initiative  (GII) explained that corruption is pervasive and has to do with motive and opportunity, and the opportunity (for corruption) usually comes about when there are weak systems and or institutions of accountability, lack of checks and balances as well as a general state of moral decadence. In the private sector, he said corruption increases the cost of business through the price of illicit payments and distorts the playing field, shielding firms with connections from competition and thereby sustaining inefficient firms. “In a society where bribery and corruption become the order of the day, competitive bribery may lead to certain members of the society being denied access to what should have been their entitlements, or what they could have gained or achieved under a system based on merit - - Admittedly, it is usually politicians and public officials who collude with private sector practitioners to enrich themselves” he added. Mr. Azeem further explained that he private sector pays bribes because they are either asked for it or they believe that that is the only way to get what they want - - the contracts, licenses, payments for work done, justice and getting out of trouble with law enforcement agencies, especially when there are unexplained delays in processing. “Red tapeism, delays in court cases, especially with regards to land acquisition, complex regulations and procurement procedures foster corruption - - It is sometimes difficult to distinguish between private sector corruption and public sector corruption” he said. He said professional groups, such as accountants, lawyers, journalists and other NGOs must see themselves as playing a watchdog role and providing a sustained and credible leadership on the anti-corruption front.

Mr. Paul K. Nsiah, a 37-year-old lecturer at the Sunyani campus of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), has won the maiden Quarry Life National Awards (QLA) organized by the cement manufacturer, GHACEM Ltd. The awards ceremony  held in Accra   saw Mr. Nsiah’s project  “The potentials of pennisetum purpureum as a biological geotextile stabilizing slopes to promote biodiversity in reclaiming quarry sites” win the  GHc 12,000 prize at stake His closest competitor, Japheth Roberts, who placed second with his project about the “Impact of quarrying on biodiversity: A case study of the Limestone Quarry at Akosombo,” took home GHc 7,200, as Vivian Arthur, the third placed, won GHc 3,600 with her project, “Topsoil characterization for sustainable rehabilitation work at the Akosombo quarry to promote biodiversity.” Five projects, including those of Abraham Allotey and Tarcisius Dapilah, were selected for the QLA initiative which seeks to source ideas towards the effective management of biodiversity in all mining sites of HeidelbergCement (HC) Group, the mother company of GHACEM. In his speech, the Managing Director of GHACEM, Mr. Morten Gade, congratulated the winners for their fantastic research works on promoting biodiversity, indicating GHACEM would implement the “fantastic creative ideas put before us by these noble researchers and students of ecology and land reclamation.” He noted that the QLA initiative testified that indeed, theHeidelbergCement (HC) Group had “set itself apart from its contemporaries of major, international cement manufacturers.” Mr. Gade expressed gratitude to the jury and coordinators of the QLA, especially Mr. Joseph Mensah, the National Coordinator and Benny Fiifi Ashun communications coordinator for their immense contributions that have propelled the success of the maiden competition. The Minister of Environment, Science and Technology, Ms. Sherry Ayitey, who was commended GHACEM for the resources and attention invested into the promotion of biodiversity at its mining concessions. This, she noted, signified the exceptional importance that the country’s foremost manufacturer attached to its work, and more importantly the welfare of communities where they operate. “This is what we should be doing, and I therefore urge every company engaged in the cement and quarry business in the country to do,” she said. Present at the event were top Executives of Ghacem and the QLA. They included, Mr. Daniel Gauthier, Chairman Ghacem Board and Management Board Member Heidelberg Cement Group, Germany; Jean-Marc Junon, Chief Operating Officer of Heidelberg Cement Africa; Mr. Akhilesh Gupta, Director of Manufacturing and Engineering HTC; Jens Wold, Quarry Manager Ghacem/ West Africa Quarries Limited; Mr. Daniel Amlalo , Ag Executive Director EPA and Dr. Erasmus Owusu, a National Jury member.

The Centre for Corporate Responsibility (CCR) has held its 4th Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Training Programme under the theme- ‘Corporate Social Responsibility and the Law: Corporate Liability in Ghana." In his opening address, Dr. Dan Ofori, Coordinator of the CCR, emphasized that the training programme fell within the CCR’s mandate of mainstreaming Corporate Responsibility in Ghana and creating a new generation of business leaders who are knowledgeable about and committed to corporate social responsibility. Dr. Ofori, who is also a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Organisation & HRM of the UGBS explained that the Centre's aim is to equip managers with key skills to enable them to place sustainability and responsibility at the heart of their operations through the integration of CSR behaviour within organisations. Dr. Olivia Anku-Tsede of the UGBS, who facilitated the programme, explained employers' liabilities with respect to statutory deductions; injury in the normal course of work; liability of torts committed by employees against third parties; right to work under safe and healthy working conditions; equal pay for equal work; rest, recuperation and leisure and joining a trade union. She also expatiated on employer liability on health and safety; forced labour; employment of young persons; bribery and corruption; noxious trade; environmental hazards; recruitment of children and trafficked persons. The CCR was established under a cooperation agreement between the UGBS and the Centre for Cooperation with the Private Sector, (CCPS) of the GIZ, South Africa. The CCR’s key thematic areas are: Streamlining Corporate Responsibility into Business Operations; Business and Human Rights; Business and the Environment; Anti-Corruption, Transparency & Business Ethics; Sustainable Supply Chain Management; Promoting & Hindering Factors for CSR; and CSR Reporting  and Audit.

One of the country’s  leading and multiple award winning leadership and management consultant, Dr. Donald Agumenu has been  appointed the Secretary General of the Youth Federation for World Peace.  By this appointment, Dr. Agumenu would be supervising the Ghana Chapter of the global body. He will be bringing his wealth of experience in leadership, youth development and peace building initiatives to bear on the activities of the organization. Dr. Agumenu  is an award winning motivational speaker, trainer, an entrepreneur, leadership and management consultant, certified programme planner, development communicator ,peace ambassador and youth empowerment specialist. He is currently the Director and Chief Executive of Direct Leadership Institute-a leadership and management training institute. He is also the founding President of  Direct Selling and Marketing Association, Ghana and the Regional Editor, Culture Digest International Magazine. Last August,he led a team of consultants to a management and leadership training for over 50 members of Rotary Club, District 9125 Nigeria.  He also won the club's prestigious professional excellence award. Donald has extensively travelled for training, consultancy and seminar facilitations.  Only recently,  he was inducted as a Peace Ambassador by the Universal Peace Federation (UN). He has received many professional, managerial and leadership training on how to be highly effective and competitive in the 21st century.   He is a member of many professional and non-governmental organizations and currently holds aPhD in Leadership and Management, Master of Business Administration-MBA, Master Project Manager and Certified International Project Manager Certification and also a designation as A Certified Program Planner, Trainer of Trainer in Quality Export Marketing Management . He is also a Fellow to the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management, UK and an Hon Global Advisor to the American Association of Project Management. He received other trainings in the area of conflict management, labour and employment law and many others. Coupled with that, he is the representative and an instructor for Certified Manager Certification Program for the Institute of Certified Professional Managers, James Madison University, USA for West Africa.

The National Communications Authority (NCA) on Monday directed Scancom Ltd, owners of MTN, one of Ghana’s biggest mobile telecom companies, to with immediate effect, cease selling and/or adding new SIM cards/subscribers to its network until further notice. A statement issued by NCA to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Accra, said following the recent spate of service disruptions on the MTN network, the NCA had engaged Scancom Ltd on several occasions on the issues of quality of service degradation being experienced by consumers of mobile services. It said these included network reliability, network availability, call drop, call set-up and denial of service. The statement said: “In spite of these engagements, network performance on MTN continues to deteriorate. “Consequently, the NCA has directed Scancom Ltd to, with immediate effect, cease selling and/or adding any new SIM cards/subscribers to MTN network until further notice”. MTN has more than 11 million subscribers in Ghana.

By Juliet AGUIAR, Prestea Golden Star Resources Prestea (New Century Mine) has prepared itself well to restart operations soon since it had its fair of challenges when it took over the Pretsea underground mine in 2002. Some of the challenges which plagued the company over the last couple of years are the main shaft structures which serve as a main access were unsafe to use - - refurbishment of this structure has been going on  for the past ten years. Also, the pumping system inherited by the company was old and inefficient to safely deliver water the mine - - new pumps have been purchased and three new ones are on the high seas to be delivered soon among others. “To fix these problems and render the place safe and viable for work, huge capital investments and time were required; it is in view of this that the New Century Mine (NMC) is rewarding 72 employees who have been in active service and have been loyal, dedicated and hardworking since the underground mine operations ceased in 2002” Mr. Jerry Agala the General Manager of Golden Star Resources Prestea (NMC) has said. Speaking at the first long service award on the theme “Re-start of operation: labour’s contribution towards operational excellence” he said - - all these sacrifices made by these employees have not been in vain and we are most grateful to them. “We are honoring them with certificate of recognition, 10 bags of cement and one packet of roofing sheet each, amounting to GHc72,000” he added. He noted that one pillar towards operational excellence is productivity - - in order to remain a profit making business entity, we expect our workforce to challenge themselves to produce more, adopt a can-do and smart approach  attitude to work and fully engage themselves in all that they do. “They must face every challenge that would pose a threat to increase in production with all seriousness and confidence as well as go the extra mile if we want to achieve our goals” he said. Mr. Neil Stevenson, the Human Resource and Administration Manager of Golden Star Resources Prestea New Mine Century said operational excellence is more of a serious business than the usual organizational rhetorical - - in this business, workers’ accountability and loyalty play a pivotal role. “We must therefore play leadership roles in safety, cost and production to ensure that our organization succeeds in its mandate of growth, viability and job creation for today’s generation as well as generation yet unborn”, he added

By Patrick PAINTSIL The Ghana Electrmeter (GEM), producers of credit and prepaid meters has organised a media tour to unveil its ultramodern metering facility in Accra. The new facility affirms GEM’s readiness and commitment to produce internationally-certified meters in the country to facilitate revenue generation towards the country’s development. The tour was also to educate the media on prepaid metering processes in order to deepen public understanding of the company and its products while expressing appreciation for the media’s continuous support in the development of the energy sector. Mr. Obed Solomon, Director of Operations and External Relations, Ghana Electrometer said the facility is evidence of the company’s position to provide the country with quality metering solutions in order to facilitate efficient and effective revenue generation from the energy sector. He said the company continues to invest in infrastructure and staff to ensure seamless satisfaction on products by clients, which is GEM’s topmost priority. “We recognise the media’s efforts and immense contribution to the energy sector and wish to deepen the relationship with you through constant engagement and interaction. “We also want to use this platform to express our appreciation to key stakeholders—Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Ministry of Energy and the Volta River Authority (VRA)—for the invaluable support they continue to show towards local initiative. “GEM has a competent and committed workforce whose efforts have brought tremendous growth to the company over the nine years of its existence. As a company we are committed to empowering our staff through constant training in order to improve their capacity as they continue to produce quality meters for the development of our country,” he said. Ghana Electrometer currently provides over 300 jobs—directly and indirectly—to the youth with plans to expand its work force to meet demands of the market. Mr. Duke Nelson, Deputy Director of IT and Projects said the facility will ensure that the country meets its metering demands, reaching out to other African countries. “This new facility will position GEM, which is the only meter assembling company in the country to continue providing ECG with globally competitive electricity meters. “Prepaid meters provide an advantage to consumers as it grants them control over their electricity consumption while making them avoid incurring high bills unknowingly because they can always monitor their consumption,” Mr. Nelson noted. The occasion saw the launch of the company’s re-designed website. The new website is user-friendly and more interactive, offering clients’ adequate and timely information and also the opportunity to receive prompt feedbacks from the company. Ghana Electrometer is a specialised local initiative established in 2004 in partnership with Elsewedy Electrometer in Egypt to provide fully integrated electricity metering solutions in Ghana and the West African sub-region. It is the only locally-based electric meter assembling plant in the country and one of two in the sub-region.

Samsung has been adjudged a ‘super brand in Ghana’ by Super brands, an international organisation and the world’s largest independent arbiter of branding. Superbrands pays tribute to the biggest brands by recognising their branding excellence and style that sets them apart from competitors. This award comes on the heels of Samsung’s recent rating as the 9th Best Global Brand by Interbrand’s Best Global Brands Report for 2012. Managing Director of Samsung Ghana, Sangbaek Kim remarked that ‘this award and recognition by Superbrands, undoubtedly is a recognition of our hard work and our quest for innovation over the years, which has mainly been driven by our customers. They are the ones who keep us dreaming and breaking frontiers in order to enrich their lives with innovative products. We could not have reached this far without them’.

A four-member delegation from Glico Life Insurance Company Limited, led by Mr. Edward Forkuo Kyei, Managing Director, has paid a working visit to the Business and Financial Times (B&FT). The visit was to strengthen the bilateral working relationship between the two entities. Welcoming the delegation, Mr. Raymond Ahiadorme, Business Development Manager of the B&FT, said the Paper has enjoyed a good working relationship with Glico and will continue to count on their support and co-operation for various programmes and activities planned for next year. Mr. Forkuo Kyei said the visit was to strengthen the mutually beneficial relationship that exists between the two organisations and a means of reaching out to “our clients as we celebrate our 25th anniversary under the theme, ‘Glico At 25: Our Customers, Our Focus’.” He said Glico will organise a special dinner and awards night to crown its 25th anniversary celebrations. Other members of the delegation included Mrs. Vera Kate Haizel, Head-Technical; Stephen Badu, Marketing and Business Development Manager; and Nana Efia Rockson, Corporate Affairs Manager. Glico Group Limited (GLICO) has its genesis in Gemini Life Insurance Company, which commenced business in January 1987 as a specialist life insurance company. With its continued commitment to innovation, integration and excellent products and services delivery as well as sound and prudent business management practices, the company’s structure has grown from a single business unit (Life Insurance) to group status. (L-R): Mrs. Vera Kate Haizel; William Selassy Adjadogo, Editor B&FT; Mr. Edward Forkuo Kyei; Raymond Ahiadorme; Nana Efia Rockson; Stephen Badu; and Elliot Williams, Special Projects Consultant of B&FT.