Advertisement

Denmark pledges to support three bodies

Denmark has pledged to provide US$10.4 million for three institutions to support rural and agricultural finance under its Danish Development Cooperation.

The three institutions are ARB Apex Bank, UT Bank and Sinapi Aba Trust.

Agreements to give meaning to the commitment of Denmark were signed between the Danish Ambassador to Ghana, Mrs Mirgit Thomsen, and representatives of the three financial institutions in Accra last Friday.

The ARB Apex Bank will receive US$4.4 million to support rural and community banks, while the UT Bank and Sinapi Aba Trust will receive US$6 million to support private sector development.

After signing the agreement, the Head of Legal in Compliance of ARB Apex Bank, Mr Curtis Brantuo, told the Daily Graphic that the fund would go a long way to help rural and community banks which could not afford to pay for their training in capacity building.

“ARB Apex Bank deals with only rural banks. At the moment we are going to use part of the fund to help 40 out the 138 rural banks by paying for their staff training to help achieve capacity building,” he said.

Commenting on the deal, the Chief Executive Officer of UT Bank, Mr Prince Kofi Amoabeng, said the fund had come in handy, since the UT Bank had until recently opened a new branch in the Northern Region. He added that “the Northern Region is a new area for us. This fund would help us reach out to the farmers to increase their productivity.”

Mr Amoabeng lauded the initiative taken by the Danish Development Cooperation and the Danish Government to provide support for the agricultural sector in the northern part of the country.

The Danish Ambassador to Ghana, Mrs Thomsen, said Denmark had the obligation to support Ghana’s private sector in general and the agricultural sector in particular to ensure that the private sector would truly become the engine of growth and job creation.

By Emmanuel Tawiah Forson/Daily Graphic/Ghana

Connect With Us : 0242202447 | 0551484843 | 0266361755 | 059 199 7513 |