Whether you run a start up microfinance institution or an established microfinance bank, driving down the cost of doing business should be your preference to maximize sustainably. There is a solution. Open source software can help you reduce your operating costs. It’s free, has constant updates and is continually improved by millions of users around the world.
Here is the list of incredible five:
OpenOffice.org 3:
OpenOffice.org 3 is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is available in many languages and works on all common computers. It stores all your data in an international open standard format and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose.
To learn more, please visit: http://www.openoffice.org/
Ubuntu:
Ubuntu is the most popular desktop Linux operating system. Enjoy the simplicity of Ubuntu's stylish, intuitive interface. Fast, secure and with thousands of apps to choose from, Ubuntu gives you a clean and streamlined experience that you can really make your own. And now you can even decide how you want it to look. Simply choose between our new and classic desktop experiences.
To learn more, please visit: http://www.ubuntu.com/
Mozilla Thunderbird
Mozilla Thunderbird is a free email, new group and news feed application that is easy to set up and customize - and it's loaded with great features!
To learn more, please visit: http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/
Limesurvey:
Limesurvey is a free open source survey application that can be used for any type of data collection. It offers an unlimited number of surveys simultaneously, unlimited number of questions in a survey and unlimited number of participants to a survey.
To learn more, please visit: http://www.limesurvey.org/
PDFCreator
pdfforge.org is a site dedicated to our OpenSource projects that will help you in creating PDFs just as they are supposed to be. PDFCreator is one of the best known programs to create PDF files from any application. Start converting your documents and add encryption with PDFCreator to secure them against modifications.
To learn more, please visit: http://www.pdfforge.org/
About three years ago, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) initiated a participatory process to address the challenges stifling the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the country. The process culminated in the formation of the SMEs Agenda which comprises the SME policy, SME charter as well as regional action plans. This project was initiated against the backdrop that SMEs constitute over 85 per cent of businesses in the country, yet have been saddled with numerous challenges that threaten their survival. Government in recent times has incorporated the policy aspect of the SME agenda into the Ghana Industrial Policy and the Private Sector Development Strategy phase II. Following the frequent high-level dialogue AGI had with government on the need to enhance the business environment for SMEs, the Western and Central Regional AGI came out with a Regional Action Plan and made recommendations for policymakers to consider. The Regional Action Plan is to help improve the business environment for SMEs, and among the recommendations were that there was no national SME policy as at 2008, in spite of the several challenges limiting development of SMEs in the country. In view of this, a survey was conducted in all 10 regions of the country and 1,000 companies surveyed throughout the country. Data on selected factors such as infrastructure, economic activities among others were collected at regional level, after which the survey results and hard data were combined to develop the SME Agenda. On the way forward, it recommended the presentation of a detailed position paper on the agenda, the formation of coalitions to advance the cause of the Regional Action Plan as well as collaboration with government/ agencies to ensure its success. Nana Owusu-Afari, the President of AGI, in an address read for him at the “Implementation of the AGI SME Regional Action Plan” for members in the Western and Central Regions, explained that the lack of policy direction for development of the SME sector prompted AGI to commission the development of the SME Agenda in 2008. He noted that SMEs employ about 60% of the overall workforce in the country, yet contribute only 6% to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). He said access to credit and cost of credit are major challenges facing industries in Ghana, according to the AGI Business Barometer Report for the 2nd quarter of this year. He said the spotlight is in the Western Region as it gains international prominence on account of its endowment with oil. “Unfortunately, the road infrastructural deficit coupled with the financial constraints put many SMEs at a disadvantage in spite of the high prospects in the oil industry,” he said. He said the emerging oil industry presents a window of opportunity for infrastructural development but there is a common perception that government cannot do it all alone. Therefore, he said, public-private partnerships are a key component of the SME Agenda and a strategic option for implementing the solutions to the socio-economic challenges and infrastructural development problems in the Western Region. “AGI has made significant input into the Oil Revenue Management Law regarding local content and capacity development in the oil and gas industry, and I encourage our SMEs to take full advantage of the oil and gas industry.” He pointed out that it is not everyone who will be able to benefit from many of the high-skilled job opportunities in the industry, but said there are numerous ancillary jobs that can be taken advantage of, and urged all to support the roll-out of the Regional Action Plan.
Dr. Tony Aubynn, the Head of Corporate Affairs of Tullow Ghana, noted that the Western Region continues to suffer in the midst of plenty resources such as gold, bauxite manganese, oil among others.
He said Tullow Ghana is committed to promoting businesses in its operational area, hence the establishment of a Local Content and Supplier Development Unit. Last year, the company spent US$194 million on local SMEs to develop and expand their businesses, and he urged local companies to position themselves to take advantage of the opportunities as well as think about the long-term in expanding and sustaining their businesses. Mr. Paul Evans Aidoo, Western Regional Minister, in an address read for him, observed that the contribution of SME’s output to the country’s GDP has remained stable over the years in spite of the numerous challenges confronting their operations. He mentioned among the challenges poor infrastructure such as “roads, rail, and irregular power supply; difficulty in accessing credit; high cost of materials which are mostly imported; unfair competition from imported goods among others. The regional minister said government is concerned about the challenges in the industry and is doing all it can to find solutions to them. Source: B&FT
|
The association is expecting 100 more to come on board as it begins building the capacity of the companies to meet the requirements.
Susu companies taking deposits and making profits are to operate under the second tier of regulated microfinance institutions.
The GAMC is recognized by the Bank of Ghana as an umbrella professional body to instill discipline in the industry.
Registered firms are presently being schooled in an 18-day crash programme to successfully sail through the new licensing regime, which takes effect from January 2012.
Regional Secretary of the association, Obed Asare, tells Luv Biz Report the group wants to ensure operators efficiently manage their businesses in line with the Bank of Ghana requirements.
“It’s our responsibility to make sure that we build our members capacity, we help them with all the guidelines that they’re supposed to do in order to get their licensing form the Bank of Ghana”, he said.
Under the new guidelines, operators under the category are required to amend their company names to take on the word ‘microfinance’ as a distinctive identification from other susu operators.
Mr. Asare says the association has had arrangements with the Registrar General’s Department to fast-track the process for members.
He said there are discussions and collaborations with other interest groups to prepare business plans for members, provide fire and security certification and improve the business environment of the companies.
The Central Bank expects firms under the microfinance category to hold an initial minimum paid-up capital of not less than Gh¢100,000.00.
Source: Ghanaweb.com
Plans are far advance to pass the Credit Union Bill to ensure best practices and appropriate governance structures in operation of the unions, Finance Minister Dr Kwabena Duffuor, said on Thursday.
The Bill when passed would enable Credit Unions to be more competitive and prevent poor performing unions from operating. Dr Duffuor said this in a speech read on his behalf at the Sixth Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Revenue Authority Co-operative Credit Union (GRACCU) in Accra.
It was on the theme: Wealth Creation for Lifetime Benefits in an Integrated Environment."
Dr Duffuor said his Ministry together with the Bank of Ghana was at the forefront in driving the passage of the Bill into law adding that Government was committed to collaborating with the Credit Union Association to build the capacity of members and to strengthen and expand their operations.
He said Government recognised the contributions made by GRACCU towards solving personal needs and the welfare of members and urged management to contribute to sustain the scheme.
"Government recognises your contribution to efforts towards wealth creation and poverty reduction and would therefore ensure that Credit Unions are assisted accordingly."
Dr Duffuor said the Finance Ministry regularly conducted National Financial Literacy Week celebrations to educate the public on basic financial literacy to protect them against financial fraud. "Experience in more developed economies has shown that financial education early in a person's life leads to financial independence and sound investment decisions," he added.
Mr George Vincent Blankson, Commissioner General of Ghana Revenue Authority, described credit unions as vehicles by which aspirations and plans of the future were ran and secured to support productivity and to improve the well-being of members.
He commended pioneers of the GRACCU and charged members to contribute their quota towards sustaining the scheme. Mrs Rejoice Kwao, Regional Director, Department of Co-operatives, appealed to members of GRACCU to observe the borrowing policies of credit union, stressing that if members were allowed to 93over-borrow", it would adversely affect liquidity of the scheme
Source: GNA
The Chief Executive Officer of the Standard Chartered Bank, Kweku Bedu Addo, has called on government to consider pushing the limit on Treasury bond issues to beyond the current 5-year fixed note in order to create room for other products to be developed in the economy.
This, he explained, will provide the incentive to develop the country’s mortgage market and keep up investor interest in the economy.
“I think that creating a 5-year note is very good for the market. We should even look at creating 7-year, 10-year or 15-year notes to extend the yield curve.
“On the back of that, you can see a real mortgage market take-off. There’s pricing for long-term money,” he told journalists in Accra on Friday.
Last week, government through the Bank of Ghana auctioned a five-year bond at an interest rate of 14.25 percent, in order to raise GH¢300million for financing four major on-going road projects in Accra and Kumasi.
The last five-year bond that was issued in June 2007 yielded 13.67% while another -- a maiden issue in 2006 that is due to mature in December -- yields 14.47%.
Mr. Bedu Addo is convinced that the latest pricing on the government bond is what the economy needs to sustain its growth and stability. There’s a lot of foreign investor interest in Ghana’s market because of the yield, and a lot of dollars have come into the system because of that interest.
“If our medium-term loan rates start to come down as well -- as much as the short-term loan rates have come down -- the investors will reverse those flows out of Ghana and the currency will move along with it,” he added.
Announcement of the government’s bond auction reportedly pushed dollar inflows and heightened investor interest as foreign investors pitched camp for the sale. As a result, the cedi has been firm in the weeks after the bond sale was announced.
Foreign investors already hold more than one-quarter of outstanding government securities -- up from one-tenth in less than two years.
Slowing consumer inflation and a stable currency have supported a threesome of three-year bonds issued since the year began. In June, year-on-year growth in consumer prices fell to 8.6%, from 8.9% in May and 9% in April.
Inflation had risen to 9.1% in the first quarter of the year following a surge in pump prices, but has been tamed subsequently by falling food inflation which slowed further to 2.8% last month.
With the outlook for inflation stable, especially as the economy enters the harvest season when historically inflation slows, most analysts expect the yield on future bonds to be lower.
The drop in the Central Bank’s benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 12.5% last month gave an early indication of money market easing, which should support analysts’ forecasts.
Mr. Bedu Addo is however wary of the drop in interest rates, especially the medium-term rates which he says must stay up a bit even as the short-term rates decline.
He said any move to bring the medium- to long-term rates on par with short-term loan rates will see investor interest in the economy wane.
He explained: “It is a very delicate balance we have to be mindful of. I think what we are seeing is that the short-term rate is coming down, which is around 10 percent for the 91-day Treasury bill. So the short-term is coming down, which is more relevant for us here at the moment in terms of pricing of our assets and everything.
“So, for about much of last year and a bit of this year, we had a very flat yield curve wherein there wasn’t much difference between the short-term and medium-term. Now we are seeing the short-term go down -- it’s gone down to about 10 per cent now -- and if we are seeing the medium-term go up a bit, I think that is about right. That is about how our yield curve should be.
“Over time, it will create opportunities for other products to come into the market; because now if you have a 5-year benchmark, very soon, corporate institutions can issue bonds.
“If we have seven-year and 10-year notes, all those are good developments for the economy so we should look at it that way: but we should also be mindful that the movements there also have an impact on our exchange rate, so it is a very fragile stability that we ought to be mindful of.”
source: Business and Financial Times
