Ghana to introduce bankruptcy law

Accra, Jan.21, GNA - The Companies Code of Ghana is being updated to provide bankruptcy protection to distressed indigenous companies. Mr Kwamena Bartels, Minister of Private Sector Development who announced this in Accra, on Wednesday, said the new Code was expected to operate alongside a proposed Insolvency Law to create a legal framework to facilitate sound corporate growth.

" We need to give Ghanaian business persons an opportunity to perform better even as we are prepared to support them to bounce back when forced by circumstances beyond their control to fail", he said. He said the re-evaluated Act 179, enacted 41 years ago, would be similar to the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Law of the US.

The Minister was speaking at the launch of a 77-paged book: " Turning Fortunes: Overcoming the Challenges of A Loss-Making Company: The Case Study

Of The Cocoa Processing Company (CPC)" authored by Dr Paul Kwame Awua, a Ghanaian Biochemist, Food Scientist and Managing Director of CPC. Mr Bartels said the Executive was also pursuing a National Medium Term Private Sector Development Strategy that sought to boost the market system to promote private sector development.

"This is in line with the vision for the Golden Age of Business to create a world-class business environment in Ghana."

The book, divided into seven chapters, traced the historical background of cocoa processing in Ghana, summary of benefits and advantages of processing cocoa in Ghana, secrets of the success story of CPC and the Cocoa industry in Ghana-the way forward.

Mr Bartels commended Dr Awua for writing the book, saying, " I am reliably informed that elsewhere corporate turn-around is a billion dollar industry."

He lauded the need for corporate turn-around adding, "in a very complex, rapidly changing and uncertain global environment... one does not need to be a prophet to know that some companies may run into structural difficulties."

Dr Awua said the book, a product of his 29 years service in the cocoa industry, was a vital tool for growth, policy formulation and strategic planning.

"The steps taken and the strategic plans adopted to achieve the turning around are clearly and well-documented in this book, which could serve as a useful and essential reference book for strategic planning studies."

Dr Awua said between 1996-2003, CPC contributed to the promotional, social and community service to the total of 516,000 dollars, including the 500 million cedis CPC Endowment Fund invested in distressed Science Faculties at the country's universities and other disciplines of study.

"Cocoa processing in Ghana is therefore, viable and profitable. Turning fortunes is not a myth but an actual event which happened in Ghana."

Professor Stephen Adei, Director-General and Rector of the Ghana Institute for Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), who previewed the book said the success story of CPC should be an inspiration to the 270 publicly owned establishments, many of which were not churning profit to the state.

He said the story of CPC was also an affront to classical perception by the Bretton Wood Institutions that state institutions could not make profit.

The first six copies, autographed by the Author were auctioned at 60 million cedis.