Top 10 Companies in Ghana 2016

Top Companies in Ghana

Top 10 Companies in Ghana

The top 10 list of the most profitable companies in Ghana is compiled and published by the Marcopolis.net research team. The numerical rankings are calculated from the latest economic reports, companies’ annual reports, and assets and market capitalization information from the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE). The Republic of Ghana is the 11th largest economy in Africa and 85th per the World Bank rankings. According to the World Bank data, the 2016 GDP of Ghana equaled to 42.690 billion US dollars. Ghana is a lower middle income country with a population of over 27 million people, more than half of which live in rural areas. The country is susceptible to natural disasters, high levels of poverty and unemployment, and economic mismanagement, in addition to being highly dependent on financial aid and loans from international organizations and financial institutions. After several decades of high interest rates, inflation, and public debt, Ghana participated in and received a debt relief under the World Bank’s Heavily Indebted Poor Country initiative. Even with a steadily growing economy, growth in the workforce and employment lags behind. This is partly because of a high population growth rate, educational reform, globalization, and limited absorptive capacities in the job market.
Much of Ghana’s wealth is concentrated in mining and agriculture, like cocoa and gold, but many prominent Ghanaians are entrepreneurs and businessmen in addition to holding public positions in government.

Farming and subsistence agriculture comprise one of the largest segments and employers in the economy – employing more than half of the workforce, 25% of the country’s GDP, and over 50% of its exports. Ghana is one of the largest producers of cocoa, gold, and diamonds, and exports many other natural resources and agricultural products like aluminum, timber, and coffee. The Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States, Spain, Belgium, and France are the largest recipients of Ghanaian exports. Ghana is the world’s second-largest producer of cocoa, after the Ivory Coast, and cocoa is the country’s largest agricultural export. According to Ghana Investment Promotion Center (GIPC), “the Cocoa Industry has been the backbone of the Ghanaian Economy through its contribution to the economy of the Country in terms of foreign exchange earnings, Government revenues, employment creation and poverty alleviation/reduction and extension of development projects and social services to farmers. Exports account for 30% of the Country’s GDP with Agriculture contributing around 40% of export earnings. Cocoa is the largest contributor to these earnings providing up to 75% of it. Cocoa offers direct employment (Farmers, Farm Laborers, etc) to over two million people and indirect employment (Support to the Industry) of beyond three million.” The mining industry makes up almost 50% of Ghana’s economy. The country is also the second largest gold producer in Africa, after South Africa. In 2015, the top exports of Ghana are Gold ($4.33B), Cocoa Beans ($1.98B), Crude Petroleum ($1.7B), Cocoa Paste ($369M) and Cocoa Butter ($239M).

A growing industry in recent decades is crude oil, and Ghana is projected to have the 5th largest petroleum reserves in Africa and 25th in the world (5-6 billion barrels), in addition to having 6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves. The sector is comprised of the Petroleum Commission and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC). The Petroleum Commission was established in 2011, after the discovery of Jubilee, to regulate and manage petroleum exploitation and policies in Ghana, and the Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) is the state agency that oversees and is involved in petroleum-related activities in the country, including a controlling stake in the Jubilee oil field. Ghana exports crude oil, natural gas, and other forms of energy as electricity to other countries. The Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) markets and distributes these petroleum products, provides fuel for bunkering, and builds storage tanks and fuel and LPG pipelines. Main oil competitors are Shell, Mobil, Total, Elf, and Unipetrol.

GNPC’s joint discovery with Kosmos, Anadarko, PetroSA, and Tullow of the offshore Jubilee oil field in 2007 was one of largest discoveries in West Africa in recent decades (700 million barrels). Additional oil and gas discoveries followed at Tweneboa Enyenra and Ntomme (TEN), Sankofa Gye Nyame (SGN), and production was being targeted for 2017 and 2018, respectively. Jubilee oil production began in 2010, with exports beginning in 2011, and has produced around 128 million barrels of oil since; however, unseen setbacks, drop in global oil prices, and lack of international investment have prohibited the growth of the sector. In 2015, GNPC signed a $700 million loan from Trafigura to revamp and upgrade production facilities and refineries. This follows a $7 billion investment earlier in the year for an offshore oil and gas project from Vitol and ENI. All of the gas produced will be sold domestically, while crude oil will be sold in international markets. The Offshore Cap Three Point project is the largest of its kind since the country gained independence from the Commonwealth realm.

The following list is primarily based on the list of « Les 500 Premieres Entreprises Africaines » that was recently published by Jeune Afrique.

Top 10 Companies in Ghana