Ghana Airways Goes To Court

Ghana Airways is going to court on Monday, seeking a reversal of a court order for funds in seven of the airline’s local accounts to be used in settling its debts to CDH Discount Limited. The order was issued after CDH sued Ghana Airways, demanding the repayment of debts of 13.7 billion cedis.

This debt is just a fraction of the Ghana Airways’ financial troubles, which has brought the national airline close to collapse. Ghana Airways’ debt stands at about $150 million – $90 million in overdue suppliers’ credit and $60 million in loans. But with each passing day, the debt situation gets worse, drawing the airline closer to bankruptcy.

Aviaton experts say the possible collapse of the Airline will have far-reaching negative consequences on Ghana’s economy. They identified areas such as export promotion, the Gateway project, tourism, regional integration, annual revenue of $100 million and the loss of 1,400 jobs as some of the areas that Ghana will lose out if immediate solution is not found to the airline’s current predicament.

The acting Chief Executive of the company, Captain Kofi Kwakwa says government has guaranteed $80 million of the debt and it is expected that it will bear the rest of the debt in case of an eventuality.

The current state of the airline has been blamed on the previous management who entered into questionable transactions to finance the airline’s expansion programme. The current management has requested a forensic audit into the company’s activities. Ghanair has already lost two-fifth of its passengers following the September 11 attacks.