Legal team size: 28

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Covid taught us many lessons about the importance of agility and resilience. As a bank, we have business continuity policy which is reviewed periodically by a committee. The Legal Department ‘s strategy is embedded in, and therefore aligns with this wider strategy. The Department is set up to be able to work completely remotely or in teams, where there are people physically on site and others working remotely. We have the necessary technology to enable us transition into this work mode, even though we currently have a full onsite operation. The Bank, as a whole, in the process of deploying systems that will minimize the movement of paper and ensure that processes are largely digitalized. This will go a long way to further promote our agility and resilience in times of crisis and instability.

In your opinion, what are the main trends that are salient in your country currently?

Our country has just come out of very peaceful elections, and we are in the process of transitioning to a new government. The country has also been through and is recovering from a deep financial crisis. The Bank of Ghana has seen its share of difficulties, having conducted a comprehensive clean up of the banking sector, leading to the closure of several banks and specialized deposit taking institutions. The Bank of Ghana has therefore spent the last few years strengthening the legal framework within which it operates, to reposition itself to better regulate the banking space. The legal Department has been very instrumental in supporting this effort.

Are there any causes, business or otherwise, you are passionate about?

I am passionate about youth mentoring because the youth are the future. Times are changing fast, and knowledge abounds but there are many things that life teaches us along the way, that are best passed down outside of classrooms and within informal settings. I am interested in promoting this form of learning.