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Ghana’s crude oil production sees average decline of 9.2 per cent

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Crude Oil production for the year 2023 has decreased by 6.78 per  cent resulting in an average decline of 9.2 per cent over the last four years.

In 2023, the country produced 48,247,036.61 barrels of oil as against 51,756,481barrels produced in 2022, the Public Interest Accountability Committee has noted in its 2023 Annual Report on the Management and Use of Petroleum Revenue.

It observed that since 2019 when Ghana witnessed its peak in crude oil production with a volume of 71,439,585 barrels, production had declined to 66,926,806 barrels in 2020, representing 6.32 percent.

It further indicated that crude oil production further declined to 55,050,391barrels in 2021, 51,756,481barrels in 2022, and 48,247,036.61 barrels in 2023 respectively, representing 17.75 percent, 5.98 per cent and 6.78 per cent.

“The 2023 production figure represents the fourth consecutive year of reduction in annual production volumes since 2010,” it highlighted in the report.

Crude oil in Ghana is currently produced from three fields – Jubilee, TEN, and the Sankofa Gye-Nyame (SGN).

The first oil from the Jubilee Field was produced in December 2010 while TEN and SGN came on stream in August 2016 and May 2017 respectively.

For the year under review, Jubilee field accounted for 63 per cent of crude oil produced with a volume of 30,444,217 barrels while SGN, accounted for 23 per cent of production with 11,086,541.61 barrels.

TEN on the other hand contributed 14 per cent of total crude oil production with 6,716,278 barrels.

Emerita Professor Ardayfio-Schandorf, Chairperson, PIAC, during a presentation at the launch of the report attributed the production decline to lack of investment in the discoveries of new fields and the natural aging of existing fields leading to reduced production.

Meanwhile, a total of 255,171.97 MMSCF of raw gas thus both Associated Gas [AG] and Non-Associated Gas [NAG]) was produced in 2023 from the three fields compared to the 2022 volume of 253,555.05 MMSCF.

This represents a 0.64 percent increase in gas production relative to that of 2022.

“The SGN Field, relatively gas-concentrated, produced the highest volume of combined AG and NAG of 127,203.02 MMSCF while the Jubilee and TEN Fields produced 77,900.05 MMSCF and 50,068.90 MMSCF respectively,” the report indicated.

Extending Voters registration exercise not feasible – EC

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The Electoral Commission (EC) says it is “not feasible” to extend the deadline for the ongoing voters registration exercise.

The Commission said despite the technical challenges encountered in the first two days of the exercise, the process has since been smooth across the country without any hindrance.

The Commission commenced the registration of new voters on May 7, 2024, and the exercise is scheduled to close on May 27, 2024.

Addressing a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, Mr Samuel Tettey, Deputy EC Chair in Charge of Operations, said the 21-day period allotted for the exercise was enough.

He said unlike the first week of the registration exercise, where large queues were recorded in some registration centres, the numbers had reduced in many registration centres with a week more to the scheduled date for closure of the process.

Mr Tettey said the Commission’s mobile teams had also been deployed to hard-to-reach areas to enable applicants who may not be able to access the district registration centres to do so.

“This is good enough to cover all difficult areas that the Commission earmarked,” he said.

“We don’t actually think that at this time it is even feasible for anyone to call for an extension,” Mr Tettey added.

Data released by the EC indicate that as of the close of registration on the 13th day of the exercise on Sunday, May 19, 2024, a total of 522,025 new voters had been registered, out of which 446,416 (85.52) are first time voters between the ages of 18-21.

Out of the total figure, 246,455, representing 47.21 per cent of the registered voters are males and 275,570, representing 52.79 per cent are females.

The EC had targeted registering a total of 623,000 voters by the end of the exercise.

Mr Tettey said a total of 813 persons living with disabilities had been registered across the country.

“The total number of challenged cases across the country stands at 7,821,” he added.

Regional breakdown

The Greater Accra region has registered 74,420 voters (14.3 per cent); North East, 14,147 (2.7 per cent); Upper East, 20,125 (3.9 per cent); Northern, 47, 948 (9.2 per cent); Bono, 20,886 (4.0 per cent); Bono East, 18,861 (3.6 per cent); Volta, 26, 486 (5.1 per cent); Upper West, 15, 652 (3.0 per cent); Eastern, 48,563 (9.3 per cent); Central, 56, 141 (10.8 per cent), and Ahafo, 10, 861 (2.1 per cent).

The remaining registrations are Ashanti, 90,480 (17.3 per cent), Western North; 16, 225 (3.1 per cent); Oti; 14, 844 (2.8 per cent); Savannah 12, 767 (2.4 per cent); and Western Region, 33, 609 (6.4 per cent).

The Commission urged the public to disregard claims by a group called the Election Watch Ghana that alleged that the EC was using “stolen” Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits “to register voters secretly.”

Mr Tettey described the allegations as baseless and unfounded and explained that five laptops were stolen from the Commission and not BVR kits.

“The five missing laptops on their own cannot be used to register voters,” he said.

Vinicius Junior is favoured to win the 2024 Ballon d’Or over Jude Bellingham because, according to the England player, he fell behind his Real Madrid teammate in that area during the 2023–24 campaign.

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After yet another outstanding season with Real Madrid, Vinicius Jr. is the favourite to win the 2024 Ballon d’Or ahead of Jude Bellingham.

Real Madrid supporters are ecstatic to see Vinicius and Bellingham succeed and provide compelling arguments for the prized individual prize. In comparison to the Brazilian, Bellingham’s 2024 performances have waned, despite his outstanding first half of the 2023–24 campaign.

Vinicius has been the standout performer in the UEFA Champions League, while Bellingham was decisive in both El Clásicos this season. However, the Brazilian’s electrifying performances in both legs of the semi-final against Bayern Munich in Europe were nothing short of spectacular, which could give him an the edge in the Ballon d’Or race.

Moreover, Vinicius’ journey this season has been remarkable, particularly considering his return from a serious ACL injury that sidelined him for the majority of the first half of the campaign. Since his comeback, he has quickly regained form, delivering match-winning performances in key fixtures which puts him ahead of Bellingham, according to former Real Madrid player Julio Baptista.

In an interview with Marca, Baptista stated: “He has achieved tremendous consistency in important games, and only the best do that. Golden Ball? This year I have no doubt I would give it to him. Between him and Bellingham, I think I would give it to Vini for being more differential in important games.”

Vinicius has 23 goals and 11 assists in 37 matches, whereas, Bellingham boasts of almost identical goal contributions with 23 strikes and 12 assists in 40 appearances. The race to the Ballon d’Or is tight and it could potentially be decided on their respective performances in the Copa America and European Championship in the summer.

With Neymar sidelined due to a season-ending knee injury, Vinicius is poised to be Brazil’s protagonist in the 2024 Copa America. Whereas, England’s chances of being crowned European champions could largely depend on Bellingham’s form. Moreover, the anticipation for the Champions League final adds another layer of excitement to this narrative. Should Vinicius deliver a standout performance at Wembley on June 1 against Borussia Dortmund, it could solidify his status as the frontrunner for the Ballon d’Or. Conversely, Bellingham’s continued excellence could tilt the balance in his favour.

Toni Kroos is retiring! Real Madrid icon plans to retire following Germany’s Euro 2024 campaign.

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Legendary Real Madrid player Toni Kroos has said that following Germany’s Euro 2024 campaign, he will hang up his boots.

According to reports earlier this month, Kroos and Real Madrid were on the verge of finalising an extension of Kroos’ contract, which would have kept him at Santiago Bernabeu until the 2024–25 season. The 34-year-old will make his farewell appearance on home soil in this summer’s European Championship, as he has officially declared he is ending his professional career.

Kroos has confirmed his decision in an emotional statement on Instagram, which reads: “July 17th, 2014 – the day of my presentation at Real Madrid, the day that changed my life. My life as a footballer – but especially as a person. It was the start of a new chapter at the biggest club in the world. After 10 years, at the end of the season this chapter comes to an end. I will never forget that insolent successful time! I would particularly like to thank everyone who welcomed me with an open heart and trusted me. But especially I would like to thank you, dear Madridistas, for your affection and your love from the first day until the last one. At the same time this decision means that my career as an active footballer will end this summer after the Euro championship. As I have always said: Real Madrid is and will be my last club. I am happy and proud, that in my mind I found the right timing for my decision and that I could choose it by my own. My ambition was always to finish my career at the peak of my performance level. From now on there is only one leading thought: go for 15!!! HALA MADRID AND NOTHING MORE!”

Kroos has won a grand total of 21 trophies at Real Madrid since joining the club from Bayern Munich in 2014, including four Champions Leagues and four La Liga titles. He will have the chance to add to his European haul when Real take on Borussia Dortmund in this season’s Champions League final on June 1, which will be his last game in the famous white shirt.

Kroos will go down as one of the greatest players in Real’s history, having recorded 28 goals and 98 assists in 463 appearances for the club across all competitions. The veteran midfielder has also enjoyed huge success at international level, becoming a World Cup winner back in 2014, and will hope to end his career on the highest possible note when lining up for Germany at the Euros, with Julian Nagelsmann’s side set to kick off their campaign against Scotland on June 14.

Banks urged to partner, invest in modern technologies  

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Ms Estelle Jacqueline Asare, Head of Digital and Innovation, Stanbic Bank, has asked banks to partner service providers and invest in modern technologies to help improve digital banking.

This, she said, would promote customer loyalty as banks provided “more personalized experiences.”

Ms. Asare said this when she joined a group of experts to discuss digital banking trends at the West Africa Digital Leaders’ Summit held at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City, Accra.

Sharing insights on the topic: “Making End-to-End Digital Banking a Reality”, she highlighted the importance of banks adopting “a customer-centric approach, learning from Fintechs’ agility and innovation”.

“Customer centricity and agility is what is driving fintech growth. They focus on customer needs and pain points…It is important that banks learn from them to enable the provision of better digital services.”

“If banks want to innovate and survive, we must look at how to partner complementary service providers and leverage each other’s strengths… “Integrating with platforms that enable us harness data, allows us to provide hyper customization to our customers and that is what makes them stick to us…,” Ms Asare stated.

She urged the “securing of [banking] systems through “enhanced biometric verification” and cybersecurity as digital banking evolved.

“The growth of digital banking and AI calls for heightened focus on cybersecurity. If we don’t keep our eyes on the risks and ensure that the bank is secure, we will end up losing more than our digitally active customers. We will lose the bank itself,” she noted.

The West Africa Digital Leaders’ Summit event was organised by technology firm, Temenos. It brought together specialists, experts and industry leaders to interact on diverse topics.

The discussions focused on digital banking trends, “leveraging cloud banking, opportunities and trends in the payments sector”, and “how digital transformation can increase revenue and grow a bank’s customer base”.

Limited Registration Exercise: nationality of 10 applicants challenged in Wenchi Municipality  

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Eligibility of 11 applicants have been challenged in the on-going limited Voters Registration Exercise in the Wenchi Municipality of the Bono Region, Mrs Christiana Opoku, the Wenchi Municipal Director of the Electoral Commission (EC), has said.

In an interview with the media in Wenchi, Mrs Opoku explained 10 of the applicants were challenged for their nationality, while the other one was challenged for being a minor.

So far, Mrs Opoku said the Commission had registered 2,446 eligible voters, comprising 1,274 females and 1,172 males, adding 555 out of the applicants registered with their Ghana card and five with their passports.

She said a total of 1,883 of the applicants also registered through the guarantor system and added only two people with forms of disabilities had so far registered in the exercise.

Mrs Opoku advised all eligible voters who were yet to register to do so, saying that would enable them to exercise their franchise in the December 7, Presidential and Parliamentary Elections.

Mahama’s achievements in Savannah region are phenomenal- Abu Kangsangbata

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Mr Abu Kangsangbata, a former Deputy Upper West Regional Minister has stated that former President John Dramani Mahama during his administration played a significant development role in the Savannah region.

“Former President John Mahama’s vision for the Savannah Region was comprehensive and inclusive, spanning crucial sectors such as education, healthcare, infrastructure, and economic empowerment”.

In a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra, Mr Kangsangbata said former President Mahama’s pledges encompassed the establishment of a regional hospital to enhance healthcare accessibility and quality, construction of district hospitals for Daboya and Salaga North to address specific community needs, and the commitment to establish a fully-fledged university to cater for the educational aspirations of the region’s youth.

He said the former President also pledged to develop a road network connecting all districts, including alternative routes, to improve connectivity and facilitate socio-economic growth.

“He demonstrated dedication to seeing projects through to fruition, including revamping the Buipe Shea nut Factory to stimulate job creation and supporting the agricultural sector, establishment of farmer service centres to provide vital support for agricultural development, and ensuring the women’s bank has branches in all seven districts to promote financial inclusion and women empowerment”.

He said former President Mahama also committed to rehabilitating key roads such as the Bamboi through Bole to Sawla route and the Fufulso-Damongo-Sawla road, focusing on critical sections for improved transportation infrastructure, and creating sustainable jobs for the youth, addressing unemployment challenges and fostering economic empowerment.

“Moreover, he pledged to construct the Savannah Region House of Chiefs office complex, underscoring the importance of preserving cultural heritage and facilitating traditional governance.

Mr Kangsangbata said former President Mahama’s proven track record of progress and development was there for all and reminded the electorate that as political contenders make promises, it was imperative to scrutinise their commitments critically, ensuring they were rooted in genuine dedication rather than electoral expediency.

“Voters must prioritise tangible results over rhetoric, fostering collaborative efforts devoid of partisan biases to uplift the region towards prosperity”.

Finance Ministry announces Parliament’s approval of US$150 million for flood control

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The Ministry of Finance has announced the approval of US$150 million in additional financing for the implementation of solid waste management, drainage improvements, and other flood mitigation measures in Accra.

The Ministry announced this in a press release copied to the Ghana News Agency on Tuesday, May 21.

It indicated that the World Bank facility would support ongoing Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) projects, including repair works on sections of the Odaw Basin.

There would also be the construction of storm drains in Kaneshie and Nima-Paloma, and the creation of water detention ponds.

Additionally, there would be the establishment of a Flood Early Warning System in the Greater Accra Region, and the construction of a waste transfer station and an engineered landfill site.

These efforts are expected to alleviate flooding along the Odaw River Basin by improving drainage, solid waste management, and infrastructure services in high-risk informal settlements within the basin.

“As a result, approximately half a million people dwelling in low-income communities around the Odaw basin are expected to benefit directly and indirectly from these projects,” the statement added.

Beyond that, the disbursements under the project and other expected inflows from the IMF, World Bank and African Development Bank, would further support the exchange rate and macroeconomic stability, it stated.

“The Ministry of Finance hereby assures all stakeholders that, the Ministry will continue to work with relevant institutions to ensure that the facility is well-utilised to achieve its project development objectives,” the statement added.

Government urged to provide regular updates on the state of the economy

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A professor of finance with the University of Ghana, Godfred Alufar Bokpin, has urged the government to regularly update Ghanaians on the state of the economy.

That, Prof Bokpin, who is also an Economist, said would spark confidence in the economy and reduce the “let’s wait and see” attitude that many investors adopt during election years.

He said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency amid concerns by industry and the trading community on the continuous depreciation of the Cedi against major trading currencies, particularly, the Dollar.

“We’re in a crisis; COVID-19 was a pandemic, but we saw a certain level of leadership that recognises that we face some kind of existential threat, therefore, the President mobilised,” he said.

The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), for example, has indicated that members had lost about 20 per cent of their capital to the depreciation of the Cedi against the Dollar since the beginning of 2024.

The Cedi, which was trading against the Dollar at about GHS11.98 at the beginning of the year, is now around GHS14.85 in many forex bureaus in Accra.

Prof Bokpin said that the government, led by President Akufo-Addo, could do little about the structural challenges of the economy, but engineer confidence that would help in stabilising the depreciating Cedi – “the pulse of the economy.”

“If there’s anything that the President can do right now, it is to begin to update regularly Ghanaians. Where we are now requires regular updates from the government, and that update will entail what they are doing on a daily basis and results,” he said.

He explained that such regular updates from the government on the state of the economy and actions being taken to address the challenges could be the starting point of instilling confidence and restoring hope in the economy.

That, Prof Bokpin said, would also be a way of the President telling Ghanaians that though there is limited time left for him to leave office, he is determined to ensure that he would “leave a legacy that we will all be proud of.”    

He urged businesses and households to be moderate in their expectations about the fall of the Cedi before the year ends, saying, “There’s no significant inflows or supply of foreign exchange that will help to offer the kind of stability needed.”

Over 100 farmers register for PFJ phase two

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Over 200 farmers have registered with the New Juaben South Municipal Department of Agriculture for the Planting for Food and Jobs Phase Two (PFJ 2.0) as of May 17, 2024.

Ms Tharzia N. Akwetey, the New Juaben South Municipal Director of the Department of Agriculture, explained that farmers only needed access to farmland to participate in the PFJ 2.0 programme aimed at providing input-credit assurance for farmers.

The programme aims to improve agricultural productivity and increase food security in the region.

According to her, it is designed to provide farmers with the necessary resources and support to ensure a successful harvest.

“Initially, only farmers with two acres of farmland were being considered, however, after various deliberations with the authorities, farmers who don’t meet such expectations are being considered.”

Ms Akwetey told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that currently, the aggregators who were registered with the system provided input-credit opportunities such as tractor services, seeds, and fertilizers for only maize farmers.

However, she noted that in due time other cereals, vegetables and poultry would be added to ensure that all other farmers involved in different crop production would also benefit.

Under the arrangement, aggregators in return for their funding will receive some harvested maize equivalent to the cost of the credited inputs they supplied to the farmers.

Ms Akwetey said the aggregators would be paid in kind after the price of the produce had been determined by the farmers, aggregators and Agricultural officers.

Apart from funding from the aggregators, Ms. Akwetey disclosed that the old subsidy system from the government had been put on hold due to the introduction of the input-credit system for farmers who registered for the PFJ 2.0.

She, therefore, entreated all farmers to take advantage of the opportunity to be registered for the PFJ 2.0 to benefit from the funding from the aggregators as registrations were still ongoing.

The PFJ 2.0 was launched in Tamale on August 28, 2023, and aims to transition from a direct input subsidy to a direct credit system linked to a structured market arrangement.

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