Accra, March 19, GNA - A new financial directory that seeks to provide holistic financial information to investors, shareholders, banks as well as the public was launched in Accra on Thursday with a call on managers of financial institutions to take advantage of it to reduce fraud. Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, former Minister of Education and Sports, said managers of financial institutions could rely on the adequate details provided by the directory to reach every bank in the country on issues involving cheque clearance. He said in the financial sector, relevant information was crucial for planning and sustenance of operations and the directory would help address such inadequacies.

Mr Osafo-Maafo lauded the initiative of Design House Project, publishers of the directory, and urged the public to avail themselves of the relevant pages on how to invest for future growth. Apart from the telephone numbers and location of the various financial institutions, including non-banking institutions, the directory also contains the Banking Amendment Act, 2007 Act 738, Non-Banking Act, Financial Administration Regulation, definition of terminologies and articles as well as a step-to-step guide on how to invest.

Professor Atukwei Okai, Secretary General of Pan African Writers Association, commended the publishers for their entrepreneurial spirit, adding that, the directory was very informative and instructive. Mr. Dominic Donkor, Director of the Ministry of Finance, said the financial directory offered unique opportunity to the public to enable them to find even in the remotest villages, financial institutions they could deal with.

Mr Dominic Oduro-Antwi, Managing Director of Design House Project, publishers of the Directory, said it would serve as a one-stop shop for information for the public in the face of the increasing number of financial institutions. He said the initiative stemmed from the desire to give the public access to various financial institutions, enable them to learn more about banking, stock and investment all in one document. "The idea is to give to the public not only a directory with phone numbers but one that will provide them with the knowledge of the law and environment in which the institutions are operating," Mr Oduro-Antwi said. He said understanding the rules and regulations governing the operations of the various financial institutions were critical to enable the public to appreciate the role of those institutions in the country's development agenda. The publication of the Financial Directory follows on the heels of a directory on institutions in the Health Sector.