President Akufo-Addo has appealed to the incoming President of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), to give urgent consideration to Ghana’s application for funds to develop her rail sector.
The President articulated this interest of government when the outgoing President of EBID, Mr. Bashir Mamman Ifo, together with other executives of EBID called on him at the Jubilee House to introduce the newly appointed President of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development, Dr. George Agyekum Nana Donkor, to the President.
“It is good that one of the first things you will be working to consummate is our application for money for our rail sector. The process has begun already and I gather with the attitude of the outgoing President that it is one that has found sympathy with him. We need the assistance so if it can be done it will be welcomed” President Akufo-Addo said.
Role of the EBID President
President Akufo-Addo drew the attention of the new EBID boss who is a Ghanaian to know that even though he is from Ghana, he will be occupying an office that will request him to serve the purposes of the entire ECOWAS region and not a section of it.
“You are not there just as a Ghanaian but you are also there as a West African, as somebody serving the purposes of the region. You will have the full support of my government and of the Minister who fought so violently to make sure that you get what was your due. We will continue to give you the maximum support” President Akufo-Addo noted.
New EBID President
President of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development, Dr. George Agyekum Nana Donkor, in his brief comment registered his appreciation to the President and the Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, for supporting and standing with him during the rather difficult and challenging process of selecting a successor for the outgoing President of the EBID.
“I will never undermine the confidence that you have placed in me. I will make sure that I lift the flag of Ghana very high. I also promise with a deep sense of humility to engage with all stakeholders in this journey with the view to promoting resilient growth for the benefit of our people. Your Excellency, the Bank will support your development agenda in this country” Dr. Donkor stated.
EBID
The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) is the financial arm of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) comprising fifteen (15) Member States namely, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and TOGO. EBID emerged as a banking group (the EBID Group) after the transformation of the erstwhile Fund for Cooperation, Compensation and Development of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS Fund) in 1999.
The ECOWAS Fund was established in 1975 at the same time as the erstwhile Executive Secretariat of the Economic Community of West African States (the present ECOWAS Commission) and commenced operations in 1979. ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) started operations on 1st January 2004 as a holding company with two specialized subsidiaries, namely ; ECOWAS Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for financing the public sector and ECOWAS Regional Investment Bank (ERIB) for financing the private sector. The vision of the Bank is to be the leading regional investment and development financial institution in West Africa and an effective instrument for poverty reduction, wealth creation and job promotion for the well-being of the people of the ECOWAS region.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM
