Banks have been urged to organize their Annual General Meetings (AGMs) electronically to meet the Bank of Ghana requirement of meeting shareholders every year.
Per the Banking Act, banks are expected to publish their statements of account and also hold Annual General Meetings with shareholders annually.
But with the imposition of a ban on public gathering as one of the measures to check the spread of COVID-19, banks are challenged on how to meet their shareholders.
Speaking to Citi Business News, Banking Consultant, Nana Otuo Acheampong, suggested that banks can hold their Annual General Meetings electronically through the internet to fulfill the Bank of Ghana’s requirement.
“The ban on public gathering which has been given under the certificate of urgency is like when you are in a war and everything stops and gets substituted. That is why they have to go and implement the Imposition of Restriction Act passed by Parliament. So, once the law is in place, then everything else is on hold and therefore it will include holding Annual General Meetings. No institution can hold an Annual General Meeting unless they are doing it electronically. Nobody can hold an AGM with a 1,000 or so shareholders. It’s all under the Imposition of Restriction Act,” he said.
In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, several businesses and organizations have been badly hit. The three-week partial lock-down earlier announced by government also restricted movements and impeded the ability for businesses to go about their normal duties.
Although the three-week partial lockdown has been lifted, the ban on public gathering, as well as the closure of the country’s borders which are still in force, mean that businesses will not be able to run normal schedules; and also conferences cannot take place, thereby reducing revenue.
