Ghana Airports Company outlines developmental projects
Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) has outlined a number of projects it intends to undertake as part of its plan to position Ghana as the preferred aviation hub in West Africa.
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The projects, expected to be executed and completed in three years starting from this year, will include work on the second phases of the Kumasi and Tamale airports and rehabilitation of the Sunyani Airport runway.
The Ho and Wa airports in the Volta and Upper West regions respectively will also be operationalised during the period.
Other projects that will be undertaken include the construction of a new head office building, airline offices to provide accommodation for airlines operating in the country and the completion of the Terminal Three.
The Managing Director of GACL, Mr John Dekyem Attafuah, made these known at this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the GACL in Accra.
The occasion also marked the inauguration of the new Board of Directors of GACL, which is chaired by Mrs Oboshie Sai Cofie.
GACL determined
Mr Attafuah said over the past few years, a lot of investment had been channelled into the company towards its transformation to enable it to deliver world-class services.
He said in the next three years, more projects would come on board, adding that once the company completes the entire projects, GACL would stand out in the West African sub-region.
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Mr Attafuah indicated that GACL would also focus on the creation of a culture that would make the company commercially oriented and customer service focused.
“We will improve the technical and operational efficiency of the organisation by continuing to collaborate with the Airports Company of South Africa and other sister airports,” he said.
Touching on the financial gains of the company, Mr Attafuah said a decade after its decoupling from the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, the company had grown 17 fold in revenue, from GH¢21 million in 2007 to GH¢363 million.
“Furthermore, total capitalisation has remarkably surged over 44 times, from a position of GH¢130 million to GH¢5.8 billion,” he added.
Concerning the establishing of a national airline, Mr Attafuah said the company was ready and prepared to support the government’s ambition.
Board’s response
Giving the financial highlights of the company for the year ended December 31, 2016, Mrs Cofie said the company posted profit after tax of GH¢153 million, representing a 13 per cent drop against the 2015 figures.
“Core revenue appreciated by 12 per cent but was eroded by the 38 per cent increase in expenses during the period,” she stated.
She attributed the challenges encountered to a number of issues, including elevated security concerns and the ever-present threat of terrorism, as well as currency complications, protectionism and slow growth in income levels in some of the continent’s key markets.
Going forward, Mrs Cofie said a lot of effort would be made to ensure that GACL attained all of its set targets.