The media has been cautioned to take its time and investigate stories properly before publishing them as the kind of information sent out will either make a lot of good or bad impact, on the consumers of the information.
Speaking at a press conference to herald the 20th anniversary celebration of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Accra, Ghana, Rev. Daniel Ogbarmey Tetteh, CEO of SEC, said that information put out could affect the business and security atmosphere in the country and either help boost or dampen investor confidence in the country. He urged the media to help in the development of the capital market by cross-checking information before putting it out.
He also cautioned investors to be very critical of the investment facilities they sign onto and warned that Fund Managers are not to give guaranteed returns to customers but rather profile their customers and recommend what best suits their needs.
The theme for the 20th anniversary celebration is “Ghana Beyond Aid: The Role of the Capital Market”. Speaking about the programme, the Head of Policy and Research at SEC, Mr Emmanuel Ashong-Katai, said that the celebration is really to take stock of what has happened in the past 20 years and determine what the future should be.
Twenty years ago in 1998, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was established under the auspices of the Bank of Ghana to have regulatory and developmental oversight of Ghana’s Capital Market. This was after 8 years of the establishment of the Ghana Stock Exchange and 5 years after the promulgation of the Securities Industry Law, 1993 P.N.D.C. law 333.
To commemmorate this milestone, a Capital Market Conference and Exhibition is being organised on the 21st and 22nd November at the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences to engage in policy discourse towards the development of the capital market and to strengthen the SEC as an institution to deliver on its statutory mandate to protect investors.
One of the aims of the Conference is to create awareness among the general public and among the investor community, policy makers and other stakeholders about the usefulness of the Capital Market in wealth creation, national economic growth and development. It also aims at generating and sustaining public and investor interest and participation in the securities industry.
Billed to speak at the two day event are His Excellency, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the Vice President of the Republic of Ghana; Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister of Finance; Dr Ernest Addison, Governor of the Bank of Ghana; Mr Seth Terkper, a former Minister of Finance; Mr Samuel Atta Akyea, Minister of Works and Housing; Dr Gideon Onuma of the University of Greenwich in London, UK and Dr Ayowa Afrifa, CEO of Soroma Capital.