The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has indicated that the enforcement of its Corporate Governance Directive for banks relating to the training of Board members – inclusive of CEOs -as part of the sector’s reforms, has led to over 50 percent completion and the compliance of a total of 184 bank directors who went through the mandatory certification training programme.
The rest who are currently at various certification stages according to the BoG, will have been certified by the deadline of March 2020.
The enforcement of another corporate governance directive, implemented since last year, has led to the resignation and replacement of chief executives, board members and board chairs who had served for prolonged periods in several banks across the country.
A key aspect of the reform agenda was the issuance of the Corporate Governance and the Fit and Proper Persons Directives. The BoG itself maintains that a recent survey has indicated the willingness of bank directors to comply with the directives.
Governor Dr. Ernest Addison, at the launch of Absa Bank Ghana in Accra said, “results of a recent survey indicate full compliance with requirements of the Corporate Governance Directive on the size, structure, composition and qualification of bank Boards; due diligence in the appointment of key management personnel; and separation of the positions of CEOs and Board Chairs”.
Indeed, Dr. Addison, reiterated that the Central Bank would continue to commit resources towards ensuring that financial institutions improve their internal controls and risk management systems since the safety and soundness of institutions pivots on these principles.
He noted that Absa Bank Ghana exhibited strong performance even during the critical time of transition, explaining that Absa Bank Ghana, was one of the first banks to meet the new minimal capital requirement through internally-generated funds.