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Hayford Siaw Appointed Member of International Advisory Board of Book Aid International
Hayford Siaw
The Chief Executive of the Ghana Library Authority has been appointed as a member of the International Advisory Board of Book Aid International.
Book Aid International, founded in 1954 is an international charity with headquarters in London. The charity provides books and supports libraries around the world. Every year, the charity sends books to public and community libraries as well as libraries in prisons, refugee camps, hospitals, schools, and universities.
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh was the charity’s patron from 1966 until his death in April 2021. Her Majesty The Queen Consort, formerly Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall has since May 2022 become the Patron of the charity. The Board is chaired by The Rt Hon. Lord Boateng, the first UK’s Black Cabinet Minister.
Hayford Siaw was appointed by H E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo- President of the Republic of Ghana in December 2017 as Chief Executive of GhLA. Prior to his appointment into public service, he founded Volunteer Partnerships for West Africa that successfully worked with development partners from around the world setting up projects in Education, Health, and Youth Development. Hayford has been supported on various initiatives by UN Agencies, European Union, Global Fund for Children(USA), Reach for Change, Sweden, and many others. He is also the founder of Damang Community School and the award-winning Street Library Project.
At GhLA, he has led unparalleled institutional growth by expanding the network of libraries from 61 to 114 and books on shelves from 349,941 to 1,275,894. In 2021, GhLA was declared Library of the Year by the London International Book Fair Excellence Award. The United Nations Public Service Awards Programme also awarded GhLA for its innovation and inclusive approach to promoting technology education in Ghana.
Hayford Siaw currently also serves as a trustee of Central Aid, the charity arm of International Central Gospel Church (ICGC). He is a 92Y Ford Motors Fellow and a Change Leader of Reach for Change. In 2018, Hayford was awarded as the 15th Commonwealth Points of Light by Queen Elizabeth II. Hayford has received education and training from the University of Ghana Business School, Sikkim Manipal University, Oxford University, and Columbia University. -GNA
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
