Aveyime Cattle Ranch documents presented to Judgement Debt Commission
A senior official of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, last Thursday, presented detailed documents on the operation of the Fifth European Development Fund to the Judgement Debt Commission.
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The fund was used to support the operation of the Aveyime Cattle Ranch, a government project established in 1973 for the rearing of cattle and production of fresh milk.
A Principal Economic Officer at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr James Adomako Addai, presented the document following a request by the commission.
The commission had requested for the documents on the fund from 1993 to 2003, but Mr Addai indicated that the fund operated only from 1983 to 1993.
Viability of the project
The Sole Commissioner, Mr Justice Yaw Apau, asked Mr Addai whether the Aveyime Cattle Ranch had been viable since its establishment in 1973.
Responding, Mr Addai said the Aveyime Cattle Ranch project was viable in terms of cattle rearing and fresh milk production when it was supported by the Italian government.
He said following the withdrawal of the support by the Italian government in 1993, the project had been transferred to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA).
Mr Addai said he could not tell the current state of the Aveyime Cattle Ranch since it was under the care of MOFA.
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Calf Cocoa International
Mr Addai was also scheduled to answer questions in relation to the payment of compensation to Calf Cocoa International.
Calf International, which was a joint venture between Caridem Development Ghana Limited and the Chinese International Company for Agriculture and Fisheries, secured a concessionary loan from the Chinese government to go into the production of cocoa products, such as cocoa powder.
Following the failure of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to release the loan for the start of the project, Caridem sued the state and was paid GH¢4.9 million compensation in 2008.
When the case was called, the counsel for the commission, Mr Dometi Kofi Sokpor, said the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning had written a letter asking the commission for a week’s adjournment.
He said the request was to enable the officials of the ministry to locate some documents on the matter.
The case was therefore adjourned to July 24, 2014.
CarMichael family
A representative of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), who was billed to appear before the commission to answer questions with respect to compensation paid to CarMichael family, could not do so.
The CarMichael family was paid $2,640,000 compensation in 2009 for the confiscation of the Aveyime Livestock Project belonging to it.
Mr Sokpor said MOFA’s representative had told him on phone that he had been invited to appear before the Public Accounts Committee last Thursday.
Consequently, the case was adjourned to July 17, 2014.