The Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) and ARB Apex Bank Limited, on Friday signed a $15 million agreement for Ghana’s private sector development. Mr Jan Poulsen, Head of Mission at the Danish Embassy, who signed for DANIDA, said DANIDA was interested in helping to create sustainable jobs for people in the private sector to improve their living conditions. He said the agreement signified a continued partnership between Denmark and Ghana and everything would be done to further build stronger relations between the countries. Mr Poulsen said the $15 million package, an equivalent of about GH¢22 million, was to help the Bank to operate from 2011 to 2014 to develop the private sector and expressed the hope that the assistance would achieve its intended purpose. Mr Eric Osei-Bonsu, Managing Director of ARB Apex Bank, who initialed for the Bank, said DANIDA’s assistance to rural banks begun in the 1990’s when the banks were supported with funds to undertake training needs and assessments. He said human resource development of rural banks as well as capacity building of the staff of ARB Apex Bank was critical to any developmental initiatives, therefore, the assistance to improve the private sector would go a long way to enhance rural banking. Mr Osei-Bonsu said if the Rural Community Banks (RCB) were merged, it would help serve the purpose of creating a very solid financial institution capable of meeting the various business improvement requests by RCB clients in their catchment areas. He expressed the hope that the ideas and intentions envisaged in the Bank’s programmes would serve as a positive driver in the operational sustainability and progress of the rural banking sector. Mr Osei-Bonsu thanked the Government and people of Denmark for their continuous support to Ghana and gave the assurance that the bank would build stronger bridges to ensure that the relations were strengthened. Source: GNA