The business and economic happenings of 2023 were characterized by various occurrences ranging from the country’s debt challenges to various agitations coupled with protests, and the approval of the International Monetary Fund loan among other scandals.

Based on GhanaWeb’s analytics these are the most-read stories for the year.

GRA halts two helicopter 'gifts' to KNUST over unpaid taxes – Report

The Ghana Revenue Authority was at the neck of the aerospace engineering department of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to pay taxes worth thousands of Ghana cedis on two helicopters donated by PHI Century Ltd.

The Helicopters were to be used for practical lessons to improve their ability to train young aeronautical engineers.

The two old helicopters were initially brought into the country by PHI Century Limited a joint venture between PHI Aviation and Century Aviation Company Limited to support the requirement for transportation to offshore drilling rigs and production platforms offshore at Cape Three Points in the Western Region.

At the time of their importation, they were rated as tax-free since they were to be exported once they had performed their assigned duties.

As the two pieces of equipment have aged, PHI Century, instead of transporting them back to the US and gifting them to an aviation school in the US for practical purposes, offered to gift the two helicopters for the training of aerospace engineers at KNUST.

The Ghana Revenue Authority, however, wants KNUST to pay thousands of cedis in taxes to be able to receive the two helicopters for academic use and for the benefit of the new School of Aeronautical Studies at KNUST.

Sack of onion worth GH¢1,300 now selling at GH¢100 due to Benin border closure
In August this year, political unrest in Benin led to the closure of the Benin border.

This affected Ghanaian onion traders who imported onions from the country.
Due to the closure of the border, over 500 sacks of onion reportedly went bad in the Ashanti region.

The closure led to a delay in the movement of the goods for several days.
The onion sellers, according to reports were forced to either dispose of the rotten onions or sell them at reduced prices.

A sack of onion which was being sold at GH¢1,300 was sold at as low as GH¢100 at some markets in the Ashanti region.

Here are some countries that have 'stopped' using the US dollar for trade

The US greenback has been considered one of the most powerful currencies in the world.

But in recent times, some countries have decided to de-dollarize.

De-dollarisation refers to countries reducing their dependence on the U.S. dollar as a reserve currency, medium of exchange, or unit of account.

Developed economies like China and Russia currently trade in their currencies.

Also, Brazil has dropped the dollar in bilateral trade.

According to geopoliticaleconomy.com, the UAE is selling China its gas in yuan through a French company.

On the other hand, Southeast Asian nations in ASEAN are de-dollarizing their trade and promoting local payment systems.

Currently, an African country, Kenya, is buying Persian Gulf oil with its currency.

Egypt is building €400m CNC factory while Ghana builds $400m cathedral

Ghana and Egypt have strong historical ties dating back to post-independence. Gamel Abdel Nasser and Kwame Nkrumah were pivotal in the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), now renamed African Union Commission.

The relationship between the two countries is so strong. While citizens require visas to travel to either country, the visa is free.

Egypt has a population of 104 million and Ghana has a population of about 30 million. In Ghana, inflation is above 50 percent, while in Egypt inflation is inching above 18 percent.

In December 2022, Egypt received International Monetary Fund (IMF) Board approval for a $3 billion extended facility programme for 46 months, while Ghana reached a staff level agreement for $3 billion financing awaiting Board approval.

In May 2021, Egypt signed a deal with a German company. The Egyptian government signed an agreement with DMG Mori for German technology. The partnership contract between the Arab Organization for Industrialization and DMG Mori company would lead to the establishment of a Computer Numerical Controls (CNC) factory in Egypt. The project is estimated to cost €400 million.

Africa's first female billionaire lost $1 billion in a day, here's how

The Angolan Supreme Court recently ordered a preventive seizure of assets worth $1 billion belonging to the daughter of the former President of Angola, José Eduardo Dos Santos, as requested from Angola’s Public Ministry.

Isabel Dos Santos, the first female billionaire in Africa, often referred to as ‘Princess’, is under investigation for embezzlement of state funds, influence peddling, and money laundering, of which she has denied the accusations as a politically-induced witch-hunt.

Since 2018, Isabel has been in a legal battle with the Angolan government for corruption. On January 19, 2020, the New York-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) published a detailed report on how Isabel made her fortunes.

On Monday, November 28, 2022, Angop, the Angola Press Agency reported that the Attorney General’s office (PGR) in Angola issued an international arrest warrant against Isabel Dos Santos with Interpol.

A court order signed by Justice Daniel Geraldes, dated December 19, 2022, stated “all the balances of the current accounts with title or co-title, headquartered in all the banks, including term deposit accounts, other financial applications that are associated to those, including dossiers of securities in the name of the defendant Isabel Dos Santos, are seized.”

SSD/NOQ