The Bank of Ghana has organised a Financial Literacy
porgrammefor Officers of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) in the Volta
Regional capital, Ho.
The programme, dubbed ‘Public SensitisationProgramme on
Banking Services, Consumer Rights and Responsibilities’, seeks to help officers
of the Ghana Immigration Service understand the financial system and empower
them with relevant knowledge to assist them make the right financial decisions.
Speaking at the Financial Literacy programme, the Head of the
Conduct Supervision Unit of the Financial Stability Department of the Bank of
Ghana, Mr. Augustine Amoako Donkor, cautioned the public on certain financial
products which promise huge returns on investments, saying such offers are
usually fraudulent. He advised the Officers to always consider the safety of
their funds as they get attracted to the unreasonably huge returns promised by
some financial institutions.
Mr. Amoako Donkor stressed the need for customers of
financial institutions to exercise due diligence before signing on to
investment products, indicating that most people are lured into investments
without adequate knowledge of the critical components of the financial
instrument and how it works.
He encouraged the officers and public to avoid any suspicious
financial product or company and report same to the regulator for it to take
quick action.
Mr. Amoako Donkor stressed the need for customers of
financial institutions to read and understand the agreements and terms and
conditions of products and services given them by service providers before
signing for them. He urged the GIS Officers to ensure that they receive clarity
on all information on products and services provided by financial institutions,
particularly on fees and charges, and requested them to report all undisclosed
fees and charges to the central bank.
Mr. Amoako Donkor further encouraged the GIS Officers to
continuously monitor their accounts and the activities of the institutions they
do business with, and not to go to sleep after signing on to financial products
and services. In this way, they are able to promptly observe or detect any
unauthorized or illegal happenings on their accounts to enable them raise the
necessary alerts.
He urged customers of financial institutions to demonstrate
responsibility by sticking to signed agreements and terms and conditions,
especially in the area of credit facilities. He called on borrowers to endeavor
to pay off credit facilities, adding that the credit reporting system which
facilitates credit information sharing among lenders could make other lenders
refuse to grant further credit to borrowers who default in loan repayment.
Speaking on Customer Complaint Handling Procedures, Mr.
Daniel Mensah Sarpong of the Market Conduct Office of the Financial Stability
Department of the central bank stated that it is the right of every customer of
a financial institution to make a complaint to the service provider and receive
resolution anytime they are not satisfied with a product or service. He added
that customers may seek the intervention of the Bank of Ghana where they are
not satisfied with the resolution provided by financial institutions.
The Officers were also encouraged to update their bank
records with the Ghana Card.
The programme focused on topics such as the regulatory
authorities of Ghana’s financial sector, institutions regulated by the Bank of
Ghana, responsible borrowing, identifying Ponzi schemes, complaint reporting
guidelines, and anti-money laundering/countering the financing of terrorism
matters.
Source: Peacefmonline