Thus, such institutions that have
shown a record of deepening financial intermediation in the country and
elsewhere, he said, should be given the needed support to stimulate wealth
creation and bring prosperity to the people.
President Akufo-Addo made the
commendation when he cut the tape to commission the new Ridge headquarters
Complex of the Zenith Bank, off the Independence Avenue in Accra.
The bank, which offers a wide
range of financial services, has had 12 years of operations in Ghana. It has
some 35 branches and business outlets spread across the country.
The President said the Zenith
Bank was truly “a pan-African Bank”, operating in several places on the
continent, and in the ECOWAS region.
He said: “these are the
institutions, with encouragement and support, are going to bring our continent
together and bring us that integrated, united West Africa and Africa, that, I
believe, is the platform for the future prosperity of our people”.
Applauding the bank further,
President Akufo-Addo stated that “what is going on here [at Zenith Bank] ticks
of so many boxes that are important to me, and I thought I should come here and
show my solidarity with what is going on here.”
The President noted that, in the
example of Mr Jim Ovia, founder of Zenith Bank, “We have, first of all, the
example of a dynamic entrepreneur, who has built this company, which has gone
global. It is in South Africa, England, China, and several places in Africa.”
“The initiative and sense of risk-taking and
entrepreneurship that Zenith Bank represents is what, I believe, will drive our
country and our continent forward. We need many more Jim Ovias. The more the
merrier.”
President Akufo-Addo praised the
bank for participating and investing in Ghana's educational sector, with its
(Zenith Bank), committing two million dollars to support students at the Ashesi
University as part of its cooperate social responsibility.
“Paying attention to such an
important, other aspect of our development, that is the education of our young
people. This scholarship to Ashesi University is a tremendous initiative, and I
applaud him very much for it.”
The President assured the bank of
Government’s support, and wished the institution well in its endeavours.
An elated Jim Ovia, founder and
Group Chairman of Zenith Bank, said he had found Ghana to be one of the best
countries to invest and do business on the African Continent.
He said the conducive business
climate in the country had enabled the steady growth of the Zenith Bank in the
sector.
Mr Ovia observed that Ghanaian
students were a brilliant lot and that is the motivation behind the decision to
invest heavily in university education in Ghana through Ashesi University.
He was optimistic that the Bank's
success would spur it to greater heights and achievements in the banking
sector.
GNA
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