It said investment into gas infrastructure, in particular, is needed to optimise domestic gas utilisation; while a comprehensive plan to seize opportunities in the emerging decarbonisation solutions will position the country to accelerate oil production and increase the sector’s contribution to economic development amid the global energy transition process.
The need to incentivise exploration, accelerate appraisal and development, the Chamber’s Chief Executive Officer David Ampofo explained during the maiden oil and gas conference in Accra, is underpinned by the prospects of multi-billion-dollars-worth of domestic petroleum assets being stranded due to the energy transition. “It is all about discoveries that actually enter production. We have 14 petroleum agreements with only three producing fields,” Mr. Ampofo said.
While the norm has always been incentivising new international oil companies (IOCs) to take up opportunities in the upstream industry, the Chamber believes those already operating in the space should be encouraged to increase their stake.
Gas as transition fuel
Ghana is endowed with tremendous gas resources, globally considered a transition fuel. Against this backdrop, Mr. Ampofo said a comprehensive gas strategy to link the upstream sector to the downstream is urgently required.
For his part, the Minister of Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, in a speech read on his behalf said efforts should be channelled at establishing adequate infrastructure for processing, transportation and utilisation of gas in the county, as the availability of adequate infrastructure will open up gas’ enormous potential. “Gas is already playing a critical role in our domestic and industrial activities, and the availability of additional infrastructure will give it a further boost,” he said.
He added that National Energy Transition Framework anticipates the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles in place of petrol/diesel vehicles in the coming years, thereby presenting opportunities for the monetisation of natural gas.
Dr. Opoku Prempeh further revealed that a Gas Master Plan, which is still under review, anticipates that gas will be utilised for fertiliser, ceramics, methanol, steel, aluminium and glass production among others. “Increasing gas production and establishing additional infrastructure will be indispensable if this potential gas demand is to be met,” he said.
Maiden oil and gas conference
Organised by the Ghana Upstream Petroleum Chamber, the conference was themed ‘Transitioning to a Low Carbon Economy’.
It brought together explorers, oil and gas producers, and indigenous suppliers and manufacturers in the industry as well representatives from the Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Public Enterprises and the Petroleum Commission.
Speaking at the event, Chamber Chair and Senior Vice President of Kosmos Energy, Joe Mensah said: “This event is coming at an important time. As we seek to harness the country’s hydrocarbon resources in a time of global energy insecurity, it’s worth pointing out that with the right investment climate Ghana can contribute to providing energy security for the world”.
PHOTO:From left Dr Riverson Ghana Gas, Kwame Boakye Agyei Upstream Petroleum Chamber advisor, Dr Ben Asante CEO Ghana Gas, David Ampofo CEO Upstream Petroleum Chamber, Theo Ahwring MD MODEC and Joe Mensah ,senior vice president Kosmos Energy
The move by the Ministry is to sell foodstuff directly from the farmers in the rural areas to persons in the urban areas.
The PFJ market is sponsored by the Ministry and is purposed to cushion persons from the increasing cost of food commodities in the capital.
Speaking at a meeting with farmers in Sefwi Wiaso in the Western North Region, sector Minister, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto said; “the ministry itself is going to take its own initiative.”
“We are going to link up with the farm gate so that we make all the arrangements to ensure that we put up kiosks on our compounds at the ministry, specifically for food from here [Sefwi Wiaso] and we are going to give it a lot of publicity,” the minister said.
With a 122% increase in food prices, the nation has achieved the toughest achievement in sub-Saharan Africa.
In recent months, food costs have risen significantly since the beginning of the year in a number of nations throughout the world, primarily as a result of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
According to the World Bank, Ghana is the nation in Africa with the highest food prices. According to the World Bank’s October 2022 Africa Pulse report, Ghana is the sub-Saharan African nation with the highest rate of food inflation.
Energy Minister, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has revealed that the implementation of government’s energy transition plan will help save the lives of over 48,000 Ghanaians, who on the other hand would have died prematurely due to air pollution.
According to the Minister, the energy transition plan will, among other things, “mitigate 200 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from greenhouse gas emissions, minimising energy-related indoor air pollution and associated diseases.”
With the expected improvement in air quality, he said, “it is estimated that forty-eight thousand, two hundred and eighteen (48,218) premature deaths will be avoided annually.”
Using 2012 data, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated the annual health impacts of ambient air pollution in Ghana (approximately 28 million people) to be 5,729 premature deaths.
Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh disclosed this information in a Facebook post on Wednesday when he announced that Ghana’s framework on energy transition was showcased at a High-Level Event organised by Bloomberg Philanthropies on Sustainable Energy for All on the sidelines of the ongoing COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
The Minister also indicated he and the National Energy Transition Committee were “delighted to witness the outdooring of the framework” done by President Akufo-Addo on November 8, 2022.
In his address, the President noted that it has become imperative for Ghana to develop plans and strategies toward the creation of a net-zero energy sector while aggressively pursuing the nation’s economic development.
Ghana is required to reduce her carbon dioxide emission levels as she is a signatory to the Paris Agreement and other international conventions.
The Energy Minister has assured the public that in preparing the energy transition plan, all existing policies and programmes that are being implemented towards achieving Ghana’s nationally determined contributions were considered.
According to Dr Opoku Prempeh, the Energy Ministry “will continue to work hand-in-hand with other stakeholders to ensure that we are able to meet our energy transition targets and help improve the quality of life of Ghanaians.”
The National Energy Transition Committee was instituted in December 2021, by the Energy Minister, to engage all relevant and related stakeholders across the length and breadth of the country.
Since its establishment, the Committee, led by Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, has engaged the National House of Chiefs, Judicial Service, Council of State and National Union of Ghanaian Students (NUGS), among others on the country’s energy transition plan.
The Head of Research at the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), Benjamin Nsiah, stated that fuel taxes are not to be used for development.
He said: “One thing that worries COPEC is that we don’t mind paying taxes on fuel to develop Ghana but paying these taxes to offset debts of institutions that are not pulling their weight is a worry. Officials in these agencies do not execute their mandate and lazy about only being paid GH¢40,000 and GH¢25,000 a month.”
Instead of developing with its petroleum and oil resources, the country is only retrogressing, he posits.
In Ghana, there are 11 taxes, levies and margins on every litre of fuel purchased and this totals GH¢2.43 pesewas which are purposed towards the smooth operation of the government and its agencies.
“One thing that worries COPEC is that we don’t mind paying taxes on fuel to develop Ghana but paying these taxes to offset debts of institutions which are not pulling their weight is a worry. Officials in these agencies do not execute their mandate and lazy about only being paid GH¢40,000 and GH¢25,000 a month.”
“The Ghanaian pays 49pesewas on every litre of fuel purchased and this goes into the Energy Debt Recovery Levy. This money is used to pay the debt of TOR, people who mismanaged the economy and their work, and this debt only keeps on rising. The debt incurred by the Energy Sector is being paid by the struggling trotro driver although employees in the sector are being paid to make profits for the nation.”
In the midst of the upward adjustments, the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) has urged drivers not to increase lorry fares.
These developments have made drivers agitated. They have stated their unpreparedness to continue to put up with the high cost of fuel.
Sixteen driver unions are demanding that the government scraps some taxes on petroleum products otherwise they will withdraw their services.
Speaking in an interview with Don Kwabena Prah on Happy98.9FM’s Epa Hoa Daben political talk show, he indicated that a pesewa is paid to the Energy Commission for every litre of fuel purchased.
“The Energy Commission is to advise the government and citizenry on the efficient use of energy but when was the last time you heard them promote the safe use of energy? The Commission makes GH¢23 million annually from taxes but they sit and do nothing and only pay themselves huge sums, using the rest to attend conferences in Glasgow whiles the petroleum consumer suffers.”
According to Benjamin Nsiah, the Ghanaian is tired and can no more take this insensitiveness from the government and pay for government inefficiencies.
“It is quite clear, in our case, that it was the desire to win elections at all costs that got the government to engage in unbudgeted consumption expenditure to create an artificial feel-good factor before the election 2020. It is this overspending that led to the very large deficit that has undermined the economy,” he said.
Read the full story originally published on November 11, 2021, by rainbowradioonline
The former leader says the current administration is only blaming their poor management of the economy for the economic effects of the Covid -19 pandemic.
Addressing the nation at the Kempinski hotel to end his tour of the 16 regions, Mr. Mahama said: “The government has attempted to conceal its appalling incompetence and recklessness in the management of the economy with the Covid-19 pandemic while the pandemic pose a global challenge to the global economy including ours.
“It is quite clear, in our case, that it was the desire to win elections at all cost that got the government to engage in unbudgeted consumption expenditure to create an artificial feel-good factor before election 2020. It is this overspending that led to the very large deficit that has undermined the economy.”
He further stated that all African countries were hit by the outbreak, but they managed their economy effectively.
“Data from our neighbours and other comparative countries in sub-Saharan Africa who were also ravaged by the Covid -19 clearly shows that almost all of them kept their economies within manageable limits and have not been through the economic crisis that Ghana finds itself in today.
“Covid-19 did not affect us any more extraordinarily than it did to Cote D’ Ivoire, yet their budget deficit for 2020 was 5.9 per cent, and their debt to GDP ratio stands at 49 percent. Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Niger and others have deficits below 7 percent while their debt to GDP is nowhere near the 80 percent that Ghana has recorded,” he said.
He added: “The undeniable effects of Covid-19 notwithstanding, it is evident from the above that the government placed its inordinate desire to win elections above prudent economic management, and that is why Ghanaians are going through much suffering now.
“Long before Covid-19 struck, red flags had emerged, signalling mismanagement of the economy, we drew attention to this, but no corrective action was taken.”
In 2021, the Ghana Revenue Authority announced that effective November 13, 2021, the removal of benchmark values on some 32 categories of items will commence.
A letter from the Authority said, “We write to inform you that following discussions on various fora, it has been agreed that discount on some commodities currently being enjoyed should be reversed to achieve revenue effect.”
The items included sugar, (pasta, spaghetti, noodles, macaroni), palm oil – crude and refined oils, aluminum finished products (roofing sheets), toilet paper, facial tissue and towel, chocolate, portland cement, clinker, etc., and mosquito coil.
Read the full story originally published on November 13, 2021 by classfmonline
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has announced that the implementation of the removal of benchmark values on some 32 categories of items, will begin from Monday, 15 November 2021.
A letter written to Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to that effect dated 11 November 2021 and signed by Commissioner-General Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, said: “We write to inform you that following discussions on various fora, it has been agreed that discount on some commodities currently being enjoyed should be reversed to achieve revenue effect”.
The items include sugar, (pasta, spaghetti, noodles, macaroni), palm oil – crude and refined oils, aluminium finished products (roofing sheets), toilet paper, facial tissue and towel, chocolate, portland cement, clinker etc., and mosquito coil.
The others are vehicles, ceramic tiles, aluminium products, cartons, boxes of paper, paperboard cases of corrugated paper, machete, water, soft (including mineral and aerated with sugar (including sweetened)), plastic – chapter 39, tile cement, textiles and textile articles, iron steel bars, rolls forged and structures, fruit juices, tomato paste & ketchup, cement paper bags, furniture and parts.
The rest are toilet soap, laundry bar soap, detergents – washing powder, lubricating oil, alcoholic beverages, soft drinks and carbonated drinks, flexible packing materials, biscuits/wafers, cigarettes, pharmaceuticals, machinery and equipment, plant.
Our letter on the “brief on the removal of the benchmark on selected items” dated September 27, 2021, refers.
We write to inform you that following discussions on various fora, it has been agreed that discount on some commodities currently being enjoyed should be reversed to achieve revenue effect.
To this end, November 15, 2021, is, therefore, slated for the effective date for the implementation of the removal of the benchmark values on some selected items.
Copy of the list is attached.
For ease of reference, a copy of the letter with reference CG/GRA/MOF/110/21 is also attached for your consideration.
We count much on your usual cooperation.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah
Commissioner-General
A few months ago, the President of the Ghana Union of Traders Association, Dr Joseph Obeng, warned that any intention by the government to scrap the 50% Benchmark Value at the ports “will be suicidal”.
In a press statement, Dr Obeng said: “Any attempt to remove this good policy of the government that brought relief will be suicidal for the state because it will not only collapse business but also cause an unbearable rise in prices of goods and services beyond the reach of consumers, especially, low-income earners and the unemployed”.
Member of Parliament for Ajumako-Enyan-Esiam, Cassiel Ato Forsonhas accused the Majority caucus in Parliament of employing a double standard approach in dealing with the plight of Ghanaians.
Speaking to the media in Parliament on Thursday, November 10, 2022, Mr Ato Forson intimated that the NPP MPs lack the wit in opposing the interest of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
In his view, the displeasure registered by some 80 NPP MPsand their call for the removal of the Finance Minister are mere antics to deceive the public.
Mr Ato Forson noted that the group failed to put their words into action after publicly calling for the sacking of Ken Ofori-Atta and the Minister of State for Finance, Charles Adu Boahen.
He stated that the MPs crawled back into themselves after the President asked them to hold their horses until the IMF dealwas sealed.
He said, “it is clear that the NPP majority in Parliament is playing a double standard, they have chosen their party’s interest over the country’s interest. The People of Ghana really want the Finance minister to go, unfortunately, they have decided to disappoint the people of Ghana and clearly what they did the last two weeks was nothing but politics.”
Ato Forson further added that the Majority Caucus “never meant it; they were doing it to shield the vice president and the president, and they never meant it. So they know that the economic prices that we are going through obviously are not good enough, but they are clueless, and they have no solution.”
The Ajumako-Enyan-Esiam MP’s recent outburst comes on the back of a press release signed by the NPP General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong directing the Majority Caucus in Parliament not to partake in the vote of censure against Ken Ofori-Atta.
To ensure the MPs comply with the directives, Mr Frimpong directed the chief whips of the Caucus to take charge of the matter.
Nonetheless, Mr Ato Forson stated that, with or without the support of the NPP MPs, the minority group will not back down on its quest to ouster the Finance Minister from his post.
He also disclosed that the Minority Caucus will turn their guns on the President, Akufo-Addo for failing to restore the country’s economy.
The group, according to him, will start an impeachment process against Akufo-Addo
He said: “Economic policy after policy ever since Ghana subscribe to International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Ghana has seen, what they have done is that they gave us omnibus policy; what they have done in some country, they would bring it here and the evidence abound. IMF and World Bank have not been able to salvage any economy anywhere in the World.”
The National Chairman for the People’s National Convention (PNC), Bernard Mornah has stated that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not been able to save any economy of a country across the world.
His response comes on the back of a press conference on Wednesday, 8th, November, 2017 held by the Minority in Parliament at which they proposed that government’s inability to raise the initial amount ($2.25 billion) was due to its mismanagement of the economy.
Sharing his thoughts on the Energy Sector Bond, he stated that, ”Economic policy after policy ever since Ghana subscribe to International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Ghana has seen, what they have done is that, they gave us omnibus policy; what they have done in some country, they would bring it here and the evidence abound. IMF and World Bank have not been able to salvage any economy anywhere in the World.”
He stated that,”They will praise you for good policies that are treason and in no time you will see that the consequences on your nation are so telling.”
”So evidently the IMF has never been the solution to a nation’s difficulty. So it was at this point Gov’t of Ghana decided that may be needed policy confidence from the IMF and decide IMF gave us thumbs up in the raising of a loan from the International Community,” Bernard Mornah stated.
The Eastern Regional branch of the Electricity Company of Ghana Limited (ECG) has recovered an amount of GH¢2,457,747.25 stolen power by some customers in the region.
The power theft may have occurred between January to October 2022.
36 of the meters discovered were by-passed, 24 tampered with hence recording low units, 19 meters connected without authorisation and three (3) people had connected power directly to their premises.
The power usage was quantified for the customers to pay.
Other customers with challenges on their meters were rectified to ensure that the company raked in the needed revenue to sustain its operations.
The General Manager of ECG, Eastern Region, Ing. Mrs. Sariel Adobea Etwire, revealed this in Koforidua.
Sariel Adobea Etwire said ECG has a vision to become financially viable and was not relenting in Revenue Protection activities to ensure that all customers using power without payment would be smoked out for prosecution.
Ing. Mrs. Etwire said the Eastern Region has undertaken various initiatives, which have in the past helped the Region to enjoy a relatively stable power supply.
She assured Customers that her outfit will continue to work hard to keep the light on and urged Customers to do their part by paying their bills promptly.
“However those who have not been receiving bills for some time should do well to report to the nearest ECG office to avoid piling up of their monthly bills”.
Nicknamed the landlord, Ghanaian rapper Michael Owusu ‘Sarkodie’ Addo has revealed he has no desire for a property in the capital Accra but rather has his mind, unwaveringly, set on remote areas of flora and fair weather.
He was speaking on the 3Music Culture Daily radio/TV programme.
The conversation came up because lead host, Jay Foley, wondered why Track 9 on his upcoming album is called ‘Countryside’.
“You need to ask Blacko,” Sarkodieresponded. “I don’t know [how] he came up with that.”
The Culture Daily team: Lerny, Mz Gee, C-Real and Jay Foley laughed in unison.
“He said [on the hook]: ‘Dem go see me for the countryside’,” the superstar rapper reflected on the unreleased song’s lyrics and attempted the melody a cappella.
Black Sherif’s point was, “People will doubt him but they’ll eventually see him [living] on the countryside,” Sarkodie further revealed.
The team reflected on possible reasons for the song title and hook.
C-Real offered: “Countryside be big money. You know it’s flipped in the Western world. When people have money,” he chorused with Mz Gee: “They are on the countryside.”
They get an “estate [with] horses,” he continued and cited US rapper Rick Ross’ countryside property with a stable.
“I don’t have money like that,” Sarkodie in his trademark shades disclaimed and agreeing to the explanation, opened up about his plans: “Mentally, my mind is on the countryside. You know why? For some reason, I don’t want a property in Accra. I don’t know why I keep thinking about Axim and I went to [a place] further [inside] Aburi.”
Mz Gee suggested: “Adukrom,” noticing the ‘Labadi’ hitmaker was struggling to recollect the name. Pointing in her direction in excited affirmation, he said: “Yes.”
King Sark, as he is sometimes hailed, recalled going to the area and observing the beautiful “weather” and scenic “mountains.”
“I told them I don’t want land that has been cleared [of vegetation]. I want the trees and everything on there,” he revealed his instructions on the said trip.
When the team remarked: “Rich man mentality,” the artiste and businessman’s only response was, “It’s like here [Accra city] is too polluted.”
Currently, Sarkodie is on a promotion campaign leading up to the release of his eighth studio album titled ‘Jamz’. The long play (LP) is out tomorrow 11 November 2022. Track 9 ‘Countryside’ features Ghana’s current international sensation Black Sherif.
Meanwhile, the rapper has shared with fans his visit to the Boomplay Ghana office where he was informed he has almost hit the 100 million streams mark to join the Boomplay Golden Club. In a tweet he rallied his fans to make that happen when the ‘Jamz’ album comes out tomorrow.
In September 2022, Black Sherif, alias Blacko, received a golden plaque from the African audio streaming giant having achieved the feat.
Ghanaian music sensation, Kofi Kinaata is set to thrill patrons at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar slated for 21st November to 18th December, 2022.
Organized by Kenpong Travel and Tours, Ghanaian fans expected to travel to Qatar for the month-long football festival would be treated to an incredible fan experience filled with boundless excitement.
Chief Executive Officer of Kenepong Travel and Tours, Kennedy Agyapong (Kenpong) on Wednesday, reached an agreement with the camp of the award-winning hip-life artist, paving the way for him to entertain Ghanaian fans during the Mundial, sources familiar with the arrangement have disclosed.
Kofi Kinaata,whose real name is Martin King Arthur is set to perform at all eight venues across the five cities in Qatar, as football-loving fans throw their weight behind the Black Stars, who are one of Africa’s five representatives in the tournament.
Some of his hit songs include, “Obi Ne Ba” “Sweetie-pie” “Confession” “Things Fall Apart” “Thy Grace.”
“Kinaata is a wonderful musician who has mastered his craft, so he would add colour to the tournament.
“We all know his exploits, his talent and his immense contribution to the industry in recent years. We settled on him to give patrons a wonderful experience,” an unnamed official said in a telephone interview.
However, reports say the East Legon Executive Fitness Club, led by their president, Dr. Ernest Ofori Sarpong and assisted by Dr. Osei Kwame Despite and other members have made payments for the platinum package, as they consider their support for the Black Stars as part of their civic responsibilities.
The exclusive travel and tour company was appointed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MOYS) to organise Ghanaian football fans to the Qatar World Cup.
Kenpong Travel and Tours has shown over the years that it has the experience and proven track record for organising supporters to major sporting events such as the World Cup, Olympic Games, boxing bouts etc.
Fans wanting to travel for the November showpiece will need GH¢37,443.4 ($4,710), the cheapest of the packages.
The $4,710 package comes with no feeding while in Qatar, it also covers economy class flight tickets, accommodation of four persons in a room, Category Two tickets for Ghana group matches, COVID-19 testing, travel insurance, medicals, internal transport and police report.
The most expensive package christened Platinum Category A- GH¢84,350 ($10,610) covers business class flight tickets, feeding, single occupancy accommodation in a five-star hotel, Category One tickets for Ghana group matches, COVID-19 testing, travel insurance, medicals, internal transport and a police report.
Rapper Medikal has said categorically that he is off social media App Twitter and he will not be creating a new account.
He disclosed this in what appears to be a Snapchat correspondence with social media notable Kalyjay.
Earlier this week, the Medikal, alias MDK’sverified (blue tick) Twitter account of 320,000 followers was suspended.
The specific reason is not known but it was observed that the ‘Stubborn Academy’ hitmaker prior to his suspension changed his account name to ‘Mr President’ and tweeted a picture of Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo with the caption: #NewProfilePic.
On Sunday, November 6, 2022, the new Chief Executive Officer of Twitter, Elon Musk, announced via a tweet that “going forward” impersonation would not be tolerated on the App.
“Going forward, any Twitter handles engaging in impersonation without clearly specifying ‘parody’ will be permanently suspended,” he said.
“Previously, we issued a warning before suspension, but now that we are rolling out widespread verification, there will be no warning,” he added and revealed: “This will be clearly identified as a condition for signing up to Twitter Blue.”
The richest person in the world, the South African billionaire also warned: “Any name change at all will cause temporary loss of verified checkmark.”
Twitter recently announced it will be charging users a fee of $US7.99 per month to have the verification icon, aka blue tick.
The move is apparently meant to shore up the social media giant’s flagging revenue generation.
Anas Aremeyaw Anas, an investigative journalist, is set to premiere his latest undercover investigative piece on how illegal small-scale mining, galamsey, is destroying the environment in Ghana.
Dubbed ‘Galamsey Economy,’ the undercover investigation according to a flyer released by the journalist indicates that it is a collaboration between Anas’ Tiger Eye PI and some Civil Society Organisations [CSOs].
On Thursday, November 11, 2022, the journalist released a teaser of what Ghanaians should expect in his latest exposé.
The video starts with some people in an aircraft implying that they are flying to Kotoka International Airport [KIA].
There are scenes from KIA, Jubilee House, some galamsey sites and interaction between Anas Aremeyaw Anas and Most Rev. Charles Gabriel Angela Palmer-Buckle, Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast.
“It is an eyesore…the dark secrets…not everything you see will happen” – these are some of the inscriptions in the one minute thirty-three seconds video posted on his social media handle.
Hours after the video was posted, popular Ghanaian YouTuber Wode Maya shared Anas’ video with some screenshot of a galamsey site and wrote:
“Big man Anas! Is that my shot??? Did this amateur galamsay content 5 years ago!”
When his followers replied and asked him to take action, Wode Maya in another post wrote after deleting the earlier post:
“My YouTube channel videos are licensed under ‘common creatives’ which gives everyone access to use my content without a strike! The goal is the message to spread Not To Make Money!
“Btw my first copyright Strike on my YouTube channel was from a Ghanaian brother.”
Anas’ ‘Galamsey Economy’ investigative piece will be premièred on November 14 and 15 at 8pm each day.
Kim Min-jae, according to an analysis, will determine whether South Korea advances to the round of 16 in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
In a report on South Korea’s four teams in Group H, ESPN recently stressed that in order for South Korea to move to the round of 16 or higher, Son Heung-min will have to perform well in attack, but it will rely on how effectively Kim Min-jae can block Luis Suarez, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Ghana’s attack.
“Heung-Min Son must be a star player. However, his health is questionable. Given that he will face powerful strikers such as Ronaldo and Suarez, this will have the biggest impact on how far the Taegeuk Warriors can go,” said ESPN.
“With a tall and solid build, Min-jae Kim has the perfect weapon to face any striker. It’s surprising that he has already emerged as one of the main centre-backs in Serie A, just a few months after his move from Fenerbahce to Napoli. No,”
South Korea will play the Black Stars of Ghana on the 28th of November,
The President of the National House of Chiefs, Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, has called on the government to ensure more Ghanaians own shares in mining companies to help improve the fortunes of the country.
According to the Sefwi Anhwiasohene, most mining companies in Ghana are owned by foreigners and proceeds are always sent outside the country, which negatively affects the country’s economy.
Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II said allowing the majority of Ghanaians to own mining companies will provide the economy with a significant boost.
Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II made this statement at his palace when the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) disclosed to him that the Ghana Bauxite Company is now fully Ghanaian-owned, as a businessman has bought 80% shares from the Chinese.
Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II also urged GIADEC to as a matter of urgency ensure the bauxite mined in Awaso and other parts of the country is refined to ensure value addition.
“For years, foreigners have been mining the gold, so we were excited when we heard that Ghanaians are taking over in the Central Region. It was encouraging to have the Ghanaians with 5 percent shares, but that 5 percent shares were later taken away from them, and no Ghanaian has a percentage in Newmont.”
“Now a Ghanaian has a percentage in Chirano and Bibiani. This will encourage other Ghanaians to go and acquire shares in Obuasi and Talensi. We have to ensure the commanding height of the economy in the hands of the Ghanaian,” Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II said.
Reacting to this, the Chief Executive Officer of GIADEC, Michael Ansah, said the company is working frantically to ensure it starts refining bauxite as early as possible, to help promote development in the area.
He said that even though the increase in transportation cost is a factor in the price buildup of food commodities, that alone cannot be the reason for the astronomical increase prices.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday, November 9, Dr. Afriyie Akoto added that the government will be investigating allegations that traders are engaging in profiteering.
“Some are speculating that the marketers are making supper normal profit. That is something that has to be looked at. When you take the actual cost from the farm gate, how much the farmer is paid, the collection, the handling, the transportation, the price you get is multiples of what retailers are paying.
The minister reiterated the plans of his ministry to transport food from rural communities to urban centres including Accra, to ensure that the prices of food items come down in these areas.
Former Ghana captain, Stephen Appiah, says the Black Stars will perform at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar
The playing body of the team has been under intense criticism following their unimpressive performance in recent times.
The Black Stars suffered a defeat against Brazil but recorded a narrow win against Nicaragua in the friendly games played in September as part of the preparations for the Mundial.
The team will come up against Switzerland in a friendly on November 17 before heading to Doha on November 19.
Despite the criticisms, Appiah, who captained the side to the 20006 World Cup in Germany says the players will come good at the tournament.
According to him, Ghanaian players in Europe have been performing well, and expect them to perform.
“We will. Watching our players now they are all in top form and this is the time I have been seeing Ghanaians playing watching the Champions League and the Europa League,” Appiah told Joy Sports.
“That means they are doing well and I hope they will take the same form to Qatar,” he added.
Otto Addo, who is the head coach for the side will announce his squad on November 14.
Ghana has been housed in Group H alongside Portugal, South Korea, and Uruguay.
The 22nd edition of the Mundial has been scheduled to kick off from November 20 to December 18.
The current political, social and economic situations are pushing some Christians to source for solutions from witch doctors, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference has revealed.
Addressing the annual plenary session of the Conference at Donkorkrom in Afram plains North District in the Eastern Region, the President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Most Rev. Phillip Naameh said despite the advancement of the gospel through various mediums, some Christians are unable to withstand the current economic crisis.
“We also observed that some of our members still patronize the services of witch doctors for solutions to their problems,” Bishop Naamey said adding that “We are confronted in the news with uncontrollable appetite for wealth by Christians particularly the youth who will go any length to ensure that they make money.”
Bishop Naameh explained further that “Our country is experiencing a growing shift away from the gospel values in the lives of the people despite the increasing number in the religious population of the country. The changes being experienced in the cultural, political, social and economic situations in Ghana, present a serious challenge to Christians”.
The Catholic Bishops Conference pointed out that Poverty is on the rise albeit and called on the government to put in place measures to help mitigate the effects on citizens and improve the standards of living.
“There is also a widening gap between the rich and the poor. We find children on our streets begging for alms”.
“I call on the government as a matter of necessity to engage the Civil Society Organisations to improve the economic and social situations of the country. The CSOs because of the nature of their work have the knowledge and competent people in every sector of the Economy who will be more than willing to offer their expertise in the service of the nation. Some of these CSOs can be part of negotiations or the signing of economic agreements between the government and other agencies. For instance, the government could involve some of them in the IMF negotiations or programmes”.
According to the MP, the Minister for Interior, Ambrose Dery, made this revelation when he appeared on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, November 10, 2022.
“In an answer to a Question in Parliament, the Hon Ambrose Dery says that the NIA has registered 34,935 Chinese in Ghana. Registered Nigerians are 26,342,” parts of a tweet Dafeamekpor shared on the same day read.
Some countries on the list Dafeamekpor shared include India, the United States and Germany.
It is not clear whether the MP was indicating foul play because foreigners are entitled to acquire a Ghana Card for non-Ghanaians at a fee if they are going to stay in the country for a long period.
According to him, Ghana’s economy is in this state because the president refuses to listen to sound advice.
Dr Wereko Brobby, who made these remarks in a Neat FM interview monitored by GhanaWeb, added that Akufo-Addo and his appointees are doing the same things he (Akufo-Addo) criticised the NDC government for when he was in opposition.
“(The country) is in this current state because of stubbornness. Because from the beginning, we at Alliance for Change used to criticise the NDC for the size of their government, accusing them of squandering the country’s resources with the number of ministers they had appointed.
“Now, this my brother (Akufo-Addo) comes to power, and the 85 ministers of Mahama we were complaining was too much, [he] increased it to 125. So, is this progress?
“When we spoke about it, he said that the number of his ministers is insignificant but what matters is their output. This means that we criticised the NDC only to come and do worse than they did. This is why we are where we are today… If you decide not to take the advice on things we have spoken about, this is what happens. Today, inflation is over 40 percent, and it will be worse,” he said.
The First Vice Chairperson of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Alhaji Said Sinare, has thrown his support behind the current National Chairman of the party, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo.
The National Chairman is seeking a re-election bid in the party’s pending national delegates congress, scheduled for December 2022.
He is expected to face stiff competition from the outgoing General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, and Samuel Yaw Adusei, a former Ashanti Regional Minister.
But in a statement made available to GhanaWeb, Alhaji Said Sinare, who has also indicated his non-intention to run again for his current position, said the National Chairman has his unalloyed support.
“I am endorsing Chairman Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo for a number of reasons, including his widespread acceptance throughout the nation, his loyalty to the party, as well as the competence, brilliance, and tenacity demonstrated over the past four years while serving as a National Chairman.
“In addition, I admire the chairman for being honest, unifying, and open in both his professional and personal lives. You can be sure that I didn’t make this choice on the spur of the moment. After giving each of the other candidates an equal evaluation, I have determined that Hon. Samuel Ampofo is, in a lot of ways, far superior to the others,” portions of his statement said.
The NDC will hold its national delegates congress on December 17, 2022.
See the full details of Alhaji Said Sinare’s statement below:
As far as our internal elections are concerned, our goal must be the success of our party, and the candidates we choose must inspire confidence and a sense of victory among Ghanaians and among the good members of our party even before the crucial general elections of 2024.
I am endorsing Chairman Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo for a number of reasons, including his widespread acceptance throughout the nation, his loyalty to the party, as well as the competence, brilliance, and tenacity demonstrated over the past four years while serving as a National Chairman.
In addition, I admire the chairman for being honest, unifying, and open in both his professional and personal lives. You can be sure that I didn’t make this choice on the spur of the moment. After giving each of the other candidates an equal evaluation, I have determined that Hon. Samuel Ampofo is, in a lot of ways, far superior to the others.
He is a politician who has been de-tribalized, a man whose humanity, philanthropy, and respect for everyone, regardless of tribe, religion, or political affiliation, define him. He truly embodies national harmony and puts his party’s interests first.
Lawyers for Patricia Asiedu popularly known as Nana Agradaa have asked the Accra Circuit court 10 to vary the bail conditions given to the self-styled evangelist.
She was granted a GH¢150,000 bail with three sureties, one of whom must be justified with landed property.
She was further directed to deposit her passport at the court registry.
In court on Thursday however, her lawyer, Paul Asibi Abariga prayed the court to vary the conditions.
He told the court that it’s been difficult getting civil servants to stand as sureties for the television personality.
The lawyer thus prayed the court to vary the condition to allow any “ordinary Ghanaian “to stand as surety for her.”
The lawyer also accused the Police of frustrating the bail execution process, as documents submitted two weeks ago have still not been attended to.
Prosecution led by DSP Slyvester Asare, however, opposed the application.
He told the court that Nana Agradaa had submitted the payslip of the sureties, which were being verified by the Controller and Accountant General.
He wondered who an ordinary Ghanaian would be in the prayer of Nana Agradaa’s lawyers, and prayed the court not to vary the terms.
The case is adjourned to Friday, November 11, 2022, to determine bail variation.
Southgate wants to take England and the country on another journey.
England manager Gareth Southgate says it is “optimistic” of Fifa to expect nations to concentrate solely on football at the World Cup in Qatar.
World football’s governing body Fifa wrote a letter telling the 32 teams to “now focus on the football” following a controversial build-up to the World Cup, which begins on 20 November.
“I think we have always spoken when we have felt it is appropriate,” Southgate told BBC sports editor Dan Roan.
He added: “I don’t see that changing.”
Former Fifa president Sepp Blatter said this week that it was a “mistake” to award the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.
Qatar has been criticised for its stance on same-sex relationships, human rights record and treatment of migrant workers in the lead up to the tournament.
Speaking following England’s World Cup squad announcement on Thursday, Southgate said it was “highly unlikely” England would comply with Fifa’s plea to “let football take the stage”.
He told the BBC: “We would also like to concentrate on the football, frankly, because to go to a World Cup is an unbelievable honour and a privilege.
“And for the players it is a massive moment. You don’t want it tarnished by having to think about off-the-field things.
“But we recognise those things are there and we should discuss them when asked.
“Of course we have also got to focus on the football and trying to make it a success for our country.”
Why is Qatar 2022 controversial?How has Qatar treated foreign workers?Qatar ambassador comments on homosexuality ‘harmful and unacceptable’
Peaceful protests have been planned by some players, while England’s Harry Kane and the captains of nine other European teams will be wearing ‘One Love’ armbands.
Fifa’s letter to the World Cup teams has been criticised by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and LGBTQ+ campaigners in England and Wales.
Meanwhile, 10 European football associations – including those of England and Wales – said “human rights are universal and apply everywhere” in response.
Amnesty International saysexternal-link that since 2010, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers have faced human rights abuses while employed to build wider infrastructure necessary to host the tournament.
Asked whether hosting a World Cup can inspire social change in a country, Southgate said: “I think we have seen that. There have been improvements, there has been change.”
The England boss added: “We have released statements already saying that change could improve in certain areas and we are very clear on that.
“But I think the process of the World Cup being in Qatar will of course put them under the spotlight and that will be uncomfortable for them.
“At times that will be a bit harsh for them but I think the whole thing has improved certain areas that I think everyone will recognise has helped.”
England’s Lotte Wubben-Moy will not watch the men’s World CupAfrican football governing body supports Fifa’s call for unityUkraine FA wants Fifa to ban Iran from tournament
Human rights organisation Equidem has alleged further abuses and exploitation of migrant workers in Qatar before the World Cup, claiming construction firms working on tournament infrastructure projects evaded labour inspections.
The organisation has called for a migrant workers’ centre to be set up in Qatar and a compensation fund to help those affected by the alleged abuse.
This echoes the FA and Uefa’s Working Group, who have backed calls for compensation to be awarded to migrant workers and their families – while a survey in September by human rights organisation Amnesty International found that almost three quarters of UK adults would support a compensation fund.
Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy has criticised Equidem’s report, claiming it is “littered with inaccuracies” and added they were “committed to fair and lasting labour reforms”.
The 2022 World Cup will be the first to be hosted in the Middle East in the tournament’s 92-year history – and the first during the Northern Hemisphere winter.
How to follow the Fifa World Cup on the BBCWhat the stats tell us might happen in Qatar
Are natural deodorants healthier? Sliced Bread breaks into a sweat to find out’He isn’t the monster people think’: The fascinating story of ‘Michael X’ – a preeminent Black Power leader of his age
The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Justin Kodua Frimpong, has been spotted in parliament as the house considers a motion by the Members of Parliament on the opposition side for the removal of Ken Ofori-Atta as the Minister of Finance.
The National Democratic Congress MPs filed a motion in parliament on October 25, 2022, to be debated and voted on 14 days after its receipt by the Speaker of Parliament.
Upon the maturity of the period, the house is considering the motion moved by the NDC MPs, and they have hoped that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs would support their call.
This expectation is based on the fact that some weeks ago, some 80 NPP MPs took a historic stance when they called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to immediately sack Ken Ofori-Atta over his poor performance.
The MPs stated in their press conference that should the president fail to do this, they would begin boycotting government business in the house, including the reading of the 2023 budget statement and economic policy.
This call has since been placed on hold after the president met with the NPP MPs and urged them to give the Minister of Finance time to complete some pressing government business, including his IMF request.
But ahead of the hearing of the motion for a vote of censure against Ken Ofori-Atta, the General Secretary of the NPP, Justin Kodua Frimpong, wrote a letter to its MPs, directing them to stay away from the vote.
In the statement dated November 9, 2022, the national leadership said that “While the National Executive body acknowledges the prevailing socio-economic conditions in the country and the need for urgent remedial interventions, it is our utmost position that the demand of the NDC-led Minority Caucus is ill-intended and aimed at derailing government’s efforts at resolving current socio-economic upheavals.
“The leadership acknowledges that the Minister for Finance is the leader of government’s negotiation team with the International Monetary Fund. Considering that negotiation with the IMF is nearly completed, the National Executive body of the Party strongly believes that the removal of the lead person spearheading the negotiation may adversely impact the progress made thus far.”
On the day of the vote of censure, the NPP MPs, led by the MP for Effiduase-Asokore, Dr. Nana Ayew Afriye, stated in an interview that while they are bent on getting Ken Ofori-Atta out, they would not support the motion of the NDC MPs for a vote of censure against the minister.
“We are here to reiterate that, however much you heard us speaking that based on the intervention of the president, we will have to see the minister of finance do his work, read budget, see through appropriation and then the president will act.
“Over the days, we have heard the finance minister speaking and his speaking has influenced majority of us in the caucus, not only to state that we are back to the original position that we took, and that position is that the minister of finance must not be the one to read the budget, and must not be the one that would do the appropriation.
“We are here to tell you this morning that this will be very soon for you to see, the position of us and we are going to be positively defiant about that posture until that action is taken. However, we are not going to support the cause of the NDC in the chamber this morning.
“The cause of the NDC is premised on falsehood, propaganda and reasons that are not justifiable. Their position might look like ours but is not the same,” he said.
The presence of the NPP General Secretary in parliament is therefore believed to be a sort of ‘supervisory’ one to ensure that the NPP MPs go by the directive for them to stay away from the vote of censure to take out the embattled Ken Ofori-Atta.
Ibrahim Sulemana Karikari will enter the stadium Marcantonio Bentegodi against Juventus on Thursday with every reason to be joyful.
The budding Hellas Verona starlet should not even be on a football pitch.
A promising trial period with fellow Serie A side Atalanta courtesy Ghanaian agent Oliver Arthur’s ArthurLegacy Sports was scuppered by a devastating injury. Chances of ever making back were limited and he was released. Such is the reality of top flight football.
“Those were tough times for me. Filled with many moments wondering if this was it for me as a footballer he recalls. Fortunately for him he had support from his family in Ghana and also his management team at ArthurLegacy.
“It’s quite amazing to see Sulemana enjoying his football again. For most it’s a big moment for him today to start against a team like Juventus but I see it from a transformation perspective” .
“What was almost truncated has been fixed through his hard works and the benefits are being reaped . These are the best moments for me as an agent” says Oliver Arthur .
Salvatore Bocchetti’s team have not had many bright lights this season in what has been a difficult season so far.”
Sulemana has been one of the few , paying back the team that took a chance on him to pay for his surgery and recuperate him.
“I spent a full year away from football after my injury, recovering from surgery and then the hard work of getting back into active shape.”
Whatever the outcome of the game against Juventus tonight, Sulemana has come full circle and looks set for a path towards greatness.
According to the MPs, they are not in agreement with President Akufo-Addo’s request for Ofori-Atta to read and see the 2023 budget through appropriation.
The MP for Effiduase-Asokore, Nana Ayew Afriyie, who spoke on behalf of the over 80 NPPs at Parliament on Thursday (November 10), said that they have decided that Ofori-Atta should not be the one to read the budget or lead the subsequent process.
“Over the days, we have heard the finance minister speaking and his speaking has influenced majority of us in the caucus, not only to state that we are back to the original position that we took, and that position is that the minister of finance must not be the one to read the budget, and must not be the one that would do the appropriation.
“We are here to tell you this morning that our position will be very soon for you to see, and we will be positively defiant about that posture until action is taken,” he said.
The MPs, however, stated that they will not support the vote of censure being spearheaded by the minority caucus of the House because they do not agree with the reasons the National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs cited.
The Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo Markin, sought to object to the motion when the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, moved it a few minutes to 2 p.m. on Thursday, September 10, 2022.
The motion hinged on Article 82 of the 1992 Constitution and, according to the minority, is influenced by issues such as the mismanagement of the Ghanaian economy by the minister.
Midway through the minority leader’s presentation, the deputy majority leader asked the speaker for permission to raise a preliminary objection to the motion.
However, his attempt was met with heckling from members on the minority side who shouted at the Deputy Majority Leader to “sit down.”
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, intervened immediately and caused the members of the house to take into consideration the importance of the exercise being undertaken.
The speaker implored the MPs to exercise decorum in the discharge of their mandate.
The speaker, however, refused the objection request by the deputy majority leader and granted the minority leader the opportunity to go ahead and move the motion.
Traditional leaders and residents of Gomoa Akraman in the Gomoa East District of the Central Region have appealed to the Inspector General of Police to intervene as a matter of urgency as they say land guards are taking over their community.
One person was shot dead whilst several others were injured following an invasion of the community by alleged land guards on Tuesday, November 8.
Head of the Asena Royal Family at Gomoa Akraman, David Acquah narrated the incident to JoyNews.
“On Tuesday, I was in town when they called me that Rahman with land guards has been on our lands. So the youth of the town also said they cannot sit down for Rahman to come and take our land.
“There was a clash between the land guards and my citizens. In fact, there was a gunshot and one of the land guards lost his life. As I speak now, four of my citizens have been arrested and detained at the Regional Police Headquarters,” he said.
According to David Acquah, the land guards are demolishing their structures and have laid claim to their lands.
He told JoyNews that the leader of the land guards, Rahman has been invited by the Police on several occasions but ignored the invite.
“We called on him at the Regional Police Command, he failed to come. The Police sent him to the Director-General of CID, but he failed to come. At the Director of Operations too, Rahman failed to respond. So it means that Rahman is bigger than Ghana Police that is why I am calling on the IGP to intervene in our issue.”
The decision to close down the Ghana and Africa office of Twitter comes after the platform was acquired by billionaire Elon Musk.
Earlier this month, Twitter fired nearly all its staff in Ghana, which was home to its only office in Africa.
The layoffs according to sources close to the business were part of a global staff cull introduced by new boss Elon Musk.
Twitter’s new owner, Elon Musk, has been laying off staff worldwide. He said he had “no choice” but to slash the company’s workforce as the firm was losing more than $4m (£3.5m) a day.
Last year, Twitter opened its Ghana office amidst some fanfare with the Ghana president Nana Akufo Addo touting its immense benefits.
Twitter in a statement after arriving in Africa said it was motivated by the desire to “be more immersed in the rich and vibrant communities that drive the conversations taking place every day across the African continent.”
News of the closure of the Ghana and Africa office was shocking and saddening to many but Dr Kofi Amoah says while it is a painful reality, he wants the episode to spur young African techies to create their own platform.
In a Twitter post on Thursday, 10 November 2022, Dr Amoah wrote, “Yes, the strength of a continent lies in her people. Can the story of Twitter closing its African office end more beautifully: A group of techie young Africans, Nigeria/Kenya/Ghana, have announced the formation of Twitter-Africa named AKASANOMA, funded by the AfDB.”
Dr Amoah has in recent years been leading a charge for Africa to have its own homegrown solutions to the many problems that bedevil the continent.
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has referred a vote of censure motion filed by the minority cause of Parliament for the removal of Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, to an 8-member ad hoc committee
The committee is expected to make a determination on removal of Ofori-Atta within 7 days.
The speaker announced that the committee will be chaired by Member of Parliament (MP) for Adansi Asokwa, Kobina Tahir (K.T.) Hammond and the MP for Bolgatanga Dominic Akuritinga Ayine.
Alban Bagbin added that the determination of Ofori-Atta’s removal will be made in consultation with the leadership of the House.
The committee members from the majority caucus are MP for Okaikwei Central, Patrick Yaw Boamah; MP for Asante-Akim Central, Michael Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi; and MP for Sekondi, Andrew Kofi Agyapa Mercer.
“The clerk to the committee is Mr. Puaman Kamilo… The proposal is in consultation with the leadership, I hope that it will be accepted by the House,” the speaker added.
The minority, led by Haruna Iddrisu, moved the motion on Thursday, November 10, 2022, seeking to pass a vote of censure against the under-fire minister for finance.
Arguing against the motion after it was moved by the minority leader, Deputy Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin said admitting the motion in the house would amount to injustice being dealt against the minister for finance.
An attempt by the majority in parliament to raise a preliminary objection against the motion for a vote of censure brought by the minority against Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has been rejected.
The minority, led by Haruna Iddrisu, moved the motion on Thursday, November 10, 2022, seeking to pass a vote of censure against the under-fire minister for finance.
Arguing against the motion after it was moved by the minority leader, Deputy Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin said admitting the motion in the house would amount to injustice being dealt against the minister for finance.
“As it stands now, if this motion is allowed to proceed, it would amount to injustice in a sense that the minister wouldn’t be given enough time to prepare a defence,” the deputy majority leader said.
The majority, among other things, argued that the minister would be denied a fair trial and that the house would be overstepping its remit if it decided to go ahead and admit the motion.
However, ruling on the objection by the majority, Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin said the minister will duly be granted an opportunity to defend himself as part of the process in dealing with the motion.
The speaker further hinted that the motion will be referred to a committee of the house, upon whose recommendation the house will act.
The minority is asking, among other things, for the removal of the minister of finance over what they say is his mismanagement of the economy, leading to high cost of living, and inflation.
Wilson Arthur, MTN FA Cup committee chairman has urged Ghanaians to support Black Stars coach Otto Addo ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
Some Ghanaians and pundits have described Otto Addo as a part-time coach and others have questioned his coaching abilities.
According to Wilson Arthur supporters should have faith in Otto Addo and also allow him to select players for the tournament.
“The coaches we have given them a job their job is to take Ghana and perform. God been so good they have secured qualification for us. The matches we played with Nigeria we thought we will not qualify especially playing a goalless draw here. We went there and played a formation and system which gave us the qualification,” he said on Peace FM as monitored by footballghana.com
“He has plotted his formation and system he will use at the World Cup. When you analyze his second half is always good. It tells you that at least he can read the game and change things. Left to me we should have faith in him he should select players that are strategically fit to his system he wants to play,”
“When he goes and the team doesn’t perform if they know how to play we always know how to watch. If we see that what he is doing is not good then we can question him but those he will select that is not our area,”
Anyidoho in a tweet said, “I just want simple answers to my questions about the economy: My senior brother, Seth Tekper, given the opportunity, what would you do differently? Pls pls pls convince me I beg u”.
He said “Hi Koku, doing well? Ready to engage, been discussing a few (also what we did). 3 egs: i) if you borrow, learn to repay (Sinking Fund & debt/ratings wahala); ii) crisis are inevitable, prepare, w/ fields (Stabex/Contingency Fund, my crisis is bigger than yours is fallacy)”.
“3rd, if tax revenue is stagnant, reduce expenditure, however lofyvor well-meaning (recall E-schools in 2016?). Can’t borrow perpetually to finance them. Be targeted when you receive $6b (unprecedented, not even HIPC flows) for a crisis like COVID, topping 3 oil fields.”
“1st, negotiations were long in coming and not even the WB could have predicted the BRIC/EM meltdown in 2015. 2nd, Saudi etc withdrew funds from the markets for domestic needs at the time. 3rd, Ghn’s 2015 budget was based on a healthy $99 pbl, which crashed to sub-$35 pbl”
“4th, recall we suspended pricing for 2 wks, then realized some major non-resident holders of Ghn’s domestic Bonds, due in 2-to-3 mths, were bidding high or not bidding at all (potential arbitrage?). Clearly, we face a high local rate hike to rollover, @ about 30% plus?”
“5th, got 2 oilfieds in 2017 but failed to (i) put more money in Sinking Fund for credible buyback or swap/exchange (as w/ 1st Bond); (ii) messed PRG with PDS saga (blame MCC too for exit?). 6th we messed up using ESLA to pay IPPs; and yet 7th kept borrowing with no repmt plan.”
The Gomoa Dominase District Police Command led by DSP David Osei Fofie has arrested 26-year-old Bakusu Maria at Gomoa Potsin for allegedly dumping her two-week-old baby boy into a public toilet.
A resident who first saw the baby said he had gone to ease himself when he heard the cry of the baby and found him inside the toilet.
He said, with the help of neighbours, the baby was rescued and taken to the Potsin Polyclinic while a complaint was lodged at the Police station.
Bakusu was arrested based on Police intelligence.
The case has since been transferred to Kasoa Divisional Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) for further investigations.
The Central East DOVVSU Coordinator, DSP Doris Laryea said the suspect has been detained and would be processed for court.
Speaking on Peace FM’s ‘Kokrokoo’ discussion programme, the former NDC Central Regional Chairman admitted that times are really tough but urged the citizenry not to be dismayed.
He asked them to strengthen their faith in God in these times of difficulty.
“Things have become very tough but there’s always hope at the end of the tunnel because you can’t go hungry from morning till you go to sleep. It is the responsibility of God to feed you, so it shall be well,” he briefly advised.
MTN FA Cup committee chairman Wilson Arthur has stated that the 2022/23 cup tournament is very competitive and going well as planned.
Accra Hearts of Oak is currently the reigning champions, the Phobians beat Bechem United 2-1 to win last year’s edition at the Baba Yara Stadium.
Caleb Amankwaa cancelled Emmanuel Avornyo’s opener before Daniel Afriyie Barnieh smashed home the winning goal for the Phobians. The win took Hearts of Oaks’ record to 12th FA Cup trophies in history.
According to Wilson Arthur, the Ghana Football Association has paid some money to the teams in advance which is helping them balance their finances.
“I can confirm 2022/23 MTN FA Cup has gone well for us 1) The FA made the team’s money, appearance fee and transport support those that travel in advance. This helped a lot previously we go and play then after a week we receive our money. But this time we got the money in advance the team that a struggling financially it helped them,” he said on Peace FM as monitored by footballghana.com
“Everything moved smoothly we have played 40 matches with six remaining we will play five tomorrow then play one last one. 2) The level of competition is very high we haven’t had any bad performances from match officials, referees. I am very happy about that because football it is not only the footballers that perform. Match officials performance can also affect teams just like if some players don’t play well it affect the team. The match officials performance affects the entire game we thank God we had a reasonably fair game,”
They say some of their members are undercutting the prices and selling a bag of sachet water at GHS5.00 instead of the agreed price of GHS8.00.
They described the situation as unfortunate and borne out of greed and selfishness.
Secretary of the Association, Moses Nsoh, raised these concerns about the attitude of members while speaking to Class 91.3 FM’s regional reporter, Moses Apiah, via the phone.
“As regional leaders, we had a meeting and agreed not to go by the national figure (GHS10) in order not to overburden the consumers in the region.
“So, we decided to keep our retail price at GHS8.00. This was to enable consumers to buy a unit for 50 pesewas,” Moses Nsoh said.
The artist made this information known to the public through a press release that was shared online by his management team.
Just two weeks ago, on Monday, October 31, 2022, the musician and his fiancée, Chioma Rowland, lost their three-year-old son in a drowning accident at the singer’s house in Banana Island.
The unfortunate tragedy, however, has forced the “Aye” singer to postpone the AWAY festival.
According to the statement, the choice to postpone the event was tough, but it was essential, and also all ticket purchasers would be honored on the rescheduled day.
Davido’s management also expressed regret for disappointing his fans and pledged to return on Saturday, November 18, 2023, with a bigger and better performance.
The statement reads: “We have decided to postpone A.W.A.Y Festival to Saturday, November 18, 2023. This was a painful but necessary decision.
“To all ticket buyers, your tickets will be honored for the 2023 date. We understand that you must be disappointed but we promise to come back with a bigger and better show.
“Thank you for understanding and we look forward to seeing you all in the near future.”
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has confirmed that there will be a live telecast event for Black Stars head coach Otto Addo to announce his final squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
In a communiqué on Thursday, the GFA said Coach Otto Addo will announce his final 26-man squad for the tournament on Monday, November 14.
“Black Stars Coach Otto Addo will announce his squad for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 at 11 am on Monday, November 14, 2022.
“This follows the announcement of the provisional 55-man squad last week. The 26 players will represent Ghana at the mundial in Qatar,” the GFA statement has said.
The statement added, “There will be live broadcast of the event on DSTV channels 222 and 229, GOTV channel 134, the Ghana Football App, and the YouTube channel of the Ghana Football Association.”
At the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Ghana has been drawn in Group H to face off with Uruguay, Portugal, and South Korea.
The Black Stars will play their first match against Portugal on November 24.
Female nipples come in all shapes, colors, and sizes; people of every gender have them. Emily A. Klein(2019) a great science writer notes that for pregnant and lactating mothers, nipples can provide access to nourishment for a breastfeeding baby.
One article by O. Team(2019) explained that with regards to the nipple it has two structures: The nipple itself, which is a raised area with tiny holes that connect it to deeper tissues in the breast, and the areola, the relatively flat area of skin surrounding the nipple.
The nipple and areola are usually darker in color than the surrounding skin and have an irregular surface. Most people have two nipples, but it’s fairly common to have one or more extra nipples.
Why does nipple-sucking feel so good?
Nipples are made to be sucked on: During breastfeeding, tiny holes in the nipples allow milk to flow through ducts from milk-producing glands in the breast tissue. In response to a baby’s sucking, the pituitary gland of a breastfeeding parent releases the powerful hormone oxytocin, encouraging milk to flow and promoting bonding and caregiving behavior.
The O. Team(2019) article further explained that even in those who are not breastfeeding, sucking such nipples can stimulate the release of oxytocin, which also occurs during sexual arousal and orgasm.
They also held that oxytocin, which is also known as “the love hormone” has been found to reduce stress and increase sensations of trust and well-being. Because nipple sucking and oxytocin release are linked, nipple sucking may help to build feelings of closeness and intimacy with your partner. This is interesting for men to draw closer to their women by sucking their breasts.
As well as encouraging oxytocin to flow, the nipples are highly sensitive to touch and temperature and often become erect in response to sexual arousal. The nipples don’t have erectile tissue that fills with blood like the clitoris or penis; instead, they get hard due to the contraction (pulling together) of specialized muscles below the skin, similar to what happens when you get goosebumps(O. Team, 2019).
Nipple Stimulation and Labor
One study by Demirel et al. (2015) found that Nipple stimulation to induce labor is a safe and natural method of massaging nipples to release oxytocin, thereby increasing levels of the hormone that leads to labor. The study found that methodical nipple stimulation may be effective for starting contractions at full-term pregnancy, although there is limited research to prove its benefits. Another previous study(Chaudhry et al. 2011) found that 50% of the postpartum participants indicated they tried this or other non-medical ways to induce labor.
In pregnancy terms, when we say nipple stimulation, it means manually massaging the nipples, using a breast pump, or having another person (a nursing child or a partner) suck on the nipples to stimulate them. This works by increasing levels of the hormone oxytocin. Oxytocin is produced in a part of the brain called the hypothalamus and is secreted by the pituitary gland. Oxytocin stimulates the uterus to contract and begin labor. Oxytocin also increases the production of hormones called prostaglandins, which further increases contractions.
The synthetic version of oxytocin, Pitocin, is frequently administered to pregnant people to induce or help progress the labor process. The increase in oxytocin from nipple stimulation can cause contractions that may kick-start labor if the pregnant person’s body is prepared to give birth.
Efficacy of Nipple stimulation
Demirel et al.(2015) study found that nipple stimulation appeared to shorten the length of labor and decrease the instances of cesarean sections. The study involved 390 pregnant participants and divided participants into three groups:
Nipple stimulation
Uterine stimulation
No stimulation
Despite inconclusive evidence, many healthcare providers recommend it as an option for their clients who are full-term. A recent study (Hodgson and Latka, 2020) used 350 registered midwives in British Columbia and Ontario, Canada, and found that 96% of those surveyed had advised clients to use nipple stimulation as a way of releasing the hormone oxytocin, and 80% believed nipple stimulation to be effective. Ninety-two percent of the respondents named labor augmentation as their reason for suggesting nipple stimulation.
Likelihood of Success
One article by Heather Jones, (2022) provided this highlights the reasons medical workers recommend nipple stimulation especially when the woman gets to her time:
The cervix is favorable: Meaning that it is beginning to soften, thin, and open
The Bishop score is eight or higher: A tool used to predict how soon a person is likely to go into labor based on measures found during a pelvic examination
Braxton Hicks contractions: Practice contractions, not labor contractions
The baby “drops”: Moves down lower into the pelvic cavity
Show/bloody show: An increase in vaginal discharge, losing the mucus plug, sometimes brownish or pinkish
Natural nipple stimulation such as erotic nipple play (licking, sucking, fondling, etc.) can also stimulate the release of oxytocin. It’s also a nice way to connect with your partner and is generally safe for pregnant women. However, artificial methods such as using a breast pump and others are discouraged in pregnancy though some safety studies attached if performed at 40weeks of pregnancy.
Nipple sucking produces a sensational orgasm
A recent study (Tahir and Mastalgia, 2022) explained that a nipple orgasm may feel even more intense during mensuration. This is because the hormonal changes during menstruation can increase breast sensitivity and tenderness, which may heighten arousal. Additionally, when your nipples are stimulated, they shoot off sparks in the genital sensory cortex. This is the same area of the brain that’s aroused by vaginal or clitoral stimulation (Annamarya Scaccia, 2022). Due to the nature of the nipples, Emily A. Klein’s (2019) article suggests that the pleasure some people feel when having their nipples sucked is the same as that of direct genital stimulation — some people have even reported that they can have an orgasm just from having their nipples played with.
6 nipple-sucking tips
Just in case you are interested in incorporating nipple-sucking into your repertoire — or if you’d like to expand on your technique — there are many ways to get creative and promote greater pleasure for your partner and yourself according to the O. Team.
1.Be anatomically aware.
Nipples come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. They can be big, small, dark, pale, puffy, flat, or protruding (sticking out). Some people have inverted nipples—instead of protruding, their nipples are tucked inside the breast, appearing “inside-out.”
It can be helpful to pay attention to your partner’s unique anatomy: Some people have highly sensitive nipples and like a very gentle touch, while others prefer more intense sensations.
Those who have had breast or chest surgery, such as breast reduction or mastectomy (removal of the breast), sometimes experience a change in nipple sensitivity/ Particularly those who have experienced a medical procedure involving their nipples, chest, or breasts, make sure to check in about what nipple sucking means to them and how it feels.
Some people who are lactating (breastfeeding) experience changes in the way they perceive their breasts and nipples, as well as the way that they feel about nipple-sucking in a sexual context. If your partner is lactating, take some time to explore both of your feelings around nipple play.
2. Communicate.
When building a mutually enjoyable relationship, communication is key. Before you experiment with nipple play, ask about your partner’s preferences and boundaries.
3. Set the mood.
Setting the mood, or creating a sexy and relaxing ambiance, can help to maximize pleasure. There are a variety of sensual elements that can heighten the mood, including dimmed lights or lit candles. You might also consider adding in some background music or wearing something that makes you feel confident. It can be a lot of fun to explore and experiment with the setting — though it often takes trial and error to optimize what feels best for you and your partner.
4. Experiment with intensity.
Switching up the intensity of nipple sucking can be a great way to discover what your partner likes, as well as keep things interesting. Start by sucking softly, then increase the level of suction or alternate between a firm and gentle. Keep in mind that what feels gentle to one person can be unbearably intense for someone else: Always check in with your partner to see whether what you’re doing feels good and whether they’d prefer you to back off or increase the intensity.
5. Use your tongue.
The tongue is perfectly built for bringing pleasure to your partner during nipple-sucking. You can make gentle circles around the areola with the tip of your tongue, use it to stimulate the nipple itself, or even lick the entire breast or pectoral area to increase anticipation. You can also play with the erect tip of the nipple with your tongue, circling or flicking it while you suck.
6.Change the temperature.
Just as variations in pressure can increase pleasurable sensations during nipple-sucking, changing the temperature can feel great. Try taking a sip of warm tea before taking your partner’s nipple into your mouth. Or, try popping an ice cube into your mouth to instantly harden your partner’s nipple and create a delightful shiver.
7. Tease with your teeth.
For some people, nipple-sucking feels even better when the teeth get (gently!) involved. Try softly raking your teeth from the base of the nipple to the tip. For those who prefer a little pain with their pleasure, nibbling and biting the nipples can feel amazing. Whenever you use your teeth, take great care to avoid biting too hard—and always ask for your partner’s feedback to make sure what you’re doing is more “Wow!” than “Ow!”
Nipple-sucking can be a great way to enhance sex, or a satisfying, intimate activity in its own right. Experiment with a variety of techniques to discover what feels best for you and your partner. If you’re new to nipple sucking (or even if you’re not) go slowly, check in often, and enjoy the experience.
The bottom line
From studies, I found that despite popular belief, stimulating your clitoris, vagina, or penis is not the only way to have an orgasm. Nipples are rich with a network of nerve endings, the tenderness of which varies from person to person and from day to day. Nipple play can also bring you to that big O. And there are so many ways you can stimulate your nipples to make that orgasm explosive. Experiment with techniques, find out what makes you feel good, and just have fun!
NB:
Prof. Nyarkotey has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations to justify his write-ups. My articles are for educational purposes and do not serve as Medical advice for Treatment. I aim to educate the public about evidence-based scientific Naturopathic Therapies.
The writer is a Professor of Naturopathic Healthcare, Medical and science writer, President, of Nyarkotey College of Holistic Medicine & Technology (NUCHMT)/African Naturopathic Foundation. He is also an Honorary Professor, Vinnystia State Pedagogical University, Ukraine. E-mail: collegeofholisticmedicine@gmail.com. For more information, contact: Stephanie(PRO)on 0244433553
The local currency has become a major victim of an economic downturn that has been epitomized by massive depreciation against the United States dollar, galloping inflation (currently at over 40%) and the general rise in the cost of living.
The ‘Papa’ as he is known, however, believes that prayer was a good means of arresting and stabilizing the depreciating currency aside from economic and political interventions.
In a November 7, 2022 video posted on his official Twitter handle, Duncan-Williams implores his congregation to open their mouths and pray for the stability of the cedi.
“All things are possible to him that believes, I said all things are possible to him that believes. We speak to the cedi. We prophesy to the cedi, let the cedi stabilize.
“Open your mouth, put your hands together, prophesy, speak to the cedi… open your mouth, speak to the cedi, prophesy, arrest the cedi, stabilize it in prayer. In the name of Jesus,” he added.
The government is hoping to reach a deal with the International Monetary Fund, IMF, for an economic support programme aimed at shoring up the economy and easing the burden on ordinary Ghanaians.
President Akufo-Addo and his government have come under heavy scrutiny for failing to address the current economic challenges in the country.
The prices of goods and services have been continuously rising all year round, with inflation currently at over 40 per cent.
The Ghana cedi has been ranked the worst currency in the world among 148 currencies tracked by Bloomberg, overtaking Sri Lanka’s rupee, having depreciated by nearly 50 per cent so far in 2022.
What Akufo-Addo said about Ghana being in a crisis
Amid an economic downturn, calls for Akufo-Addo to resign has heightened with a November 5, 2022 protest dubbed ‘Kume Preko Reloaded’ making the loudest call as activists and politicians marched in Accra to press home that demand.
The government is meanwhile, grappling with an economic crisis, which along with the galamsey scourge and corruption are the major drivers for the call on Akufo-Addo to resign along with his Vice President, Mahamadu Bawumia.
Akufo-Addo in his October 30 address on the economy blamed the Covid-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war as causes for the country’s economic woes.
While admitting that the country was in crisis and rallying support for various government interventions to stem the tide, he said the situation was not peculiar to the country as many nations across the world were also experiencing difficulties.
“We are in a crisis, I do not exaggerate when I say so. I cannot find an example in history when so many malevolent forces have come together at the same time.
“But, as we have shown in other circumstances, we shall turn this crisis into an opportunity to resolve not just the short-term, urgent problems, but the long-term structural problems that have bedeviled our economy,” he said.
But like before, President Akufo-Addo blamed the Covid-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war as causative factors for the economic woes.
As compared to yesterday’s trading of a buying price of 13.0314 and a selling price of 13.0444. At a forex bureau in Accra, the dollar is being bought at a rate of 14.30 and sold at a rate of 14.90.
Against the Pound Sterling, the Cedi is trading at a buying price of 14.8450 and a selling price of 14.8624 as compared to yesterday’s trading at a buying price of 15.0890 and a selling price of 15.1054.
At a forex bureau in Accra, the pound sterling is being bought at a rate of 15.90 and sold at a rate of 16.75.
At a forex bureau in Accra, Euro is being bought at a rate of 14.00 and sold at a rate of 14.90.
The South African Rand is trading at a buying price of 0.7348 and a selling price of 0.7355 compared to yesterday’s trading at a buying price of 0.7351 and a selling price of 0.7359.
At a forex bureau in Accra, South African Rand is being bought at a rate of 0.65 and sold at a rate of 1.10.
The Nigerian Naira is trading at a buying price of 33.8835 and a selling price of 34.0337 as compared to yesterday’s trading at a buying price of 33.9387 and a selling price of 34.0200.
At a forex bureau in Accra, Nigerian Naira is being bought at a rate of 13.50 Naira for every 1 Cedi and sold at a rate of 17.50.
“Of course, the country is worse. We are in a serious crisis. People are suffering a lot,” he emphasised on November 10, 2022.
After being slammed for keeping mute over the seemingly poor living conditions of Ghanaian,s and somewhat contributing to the hardships as a result of his ‘Nana toaso’ statement during the 2020 general elections, Sarkodie has again stood by his statement.
“What I said he [Nana Addo] should ‘toaso’, I stand by it because I think I benefitted from Free Education directly and I have the right to say I endorse that because this is directly.
“My mom has these girls we’ve been supporting. At first, she would call, asking me to help. I am not saying it is much but just the fact that I am not even hearing that, it came from that place and I was specific about what I was endorsing,” he disclosed.
Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto has intimated that even though the high cost of fuel has contributed to food price hikes recently, prices in urban centres, particularly Accra, are over exaggerated.
The situation, he said, is creating the impression that food has become inaccessible in the country, which is not true.
The Minister, in responding to questions on the Floor of parliament said: “Food accessibility in Ghana is also more than satisfactory. In recent times, price hikes of food commodities in the urban centres particular Accra, is creating an erroneous impression that food has become inaccessible.
“I have just returned from a tour of regions in the southern belt of the country and I can assure you that prices in the urban centres particularly Accra, are a far cry from what obtains in particular production centres in the regions.”
He further added that his ministry, in a bid to manage the situation, is arranging to transport food from production centres directly to Accra.
The move, he noted, will provide food at reasonable prices to the public and workers in the area.
Meanwhile, the latest figures from the Ghana Statistical Service show inflation for October is more than 40 percent, a case which is largely driven by food and transportation prices.
The arrears, accumulated between 2021 and this year, stood at US$900million as at last May but have now risen to US$996million at the end of September 2022 due to ECG’s inability to fully pay for the power it buys from generation firms.
The debt had dropped significantly to about US$400million at a certain point last year, but has jumped close to the billion-dollar mark.
Meanwhile, between January and September this year the amount due the IPPs was US$1.5billion – of which only US$545million has been paid.
The Chamber of Independent Power Producers, Distributors and Bulk Consumers (CIPDiB), a mouthpiece for the IPPs, had earlier this year lamented that the situation was causing IPPs to record huge forex and interest losses.
“The problem is that looking at the cedi’s free-fall and the time of our reconversion to pay our suppliers or lenders, we end up making a lot of forex losses,” its Chief Executive Officer, Elikplim Kwabla Apetorgbor, told the B&FT.
He said this in May when the cedi enjoyed relative stability and the general economic outlook was somewhat positive, and insisted that companies which have contracted loans were recording huge interest and forex losses because of outstanding payments due them.
State-owned ECG, the country’s main power utility, buys electricity from IPPs and others and distributes to consumers in southern parts of the country.
However, due to weak revenue collection, the ECG is in some cases unable to pay for as much as half the power it buys from generation companies like IPPs and state-owned Volta River Authority, leading to a build-up in arrears.
For instance, its annual losses – technical and systemic – are about 30 percent of its revenue: far above the regulator’s allowable loss margin of 23 percent.
As a result, the company loses around GH¢3.2billion yearly, according to Minister of Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh.
If not addressed, it is feared that the arrears could pile up to unsustainable levels.
Ghana’s opponent for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Uruguay has travelled to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
The South American national team has arrived in Abu Dhabi where it will spend one week preparing for the start of the world cup.
The Uruguay side under head coach Diego Alonso has been training since October 31st to ensure the team prepares very well for the challenge ahead.
Although the national team is yet to have a full squad in camp, training has so far been good.
Veteran players Diego Godin and Luis Suarez are among the top stars in camp and will be joined by all other players included in the final 26-man squad this weekend.
At the world cup, Uruguay will not only face off with Ghana in Group H but will also compete with Portugal and South Korea in a bid to qualify for the knockout stage.
Meanwhile, Ghana’s Black Stars will also open camp in Abu Dhabi this weekend.
The national team of the West African country is scheduled to play a friendly match with Switzerland before moving to their base in Qatar for the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
✈️ 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐨́𝐧 𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐫𝐚́𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐨
La delegación, con cuerpo técnico, dirigentes y staff, parte desde Uruguay con destino Abu Dabi.
Wealthy polluter nations must pay up for climate-induced losses and damages suffered by most vulnerable and poor nations, Country Director of ActionAid Ghana John Nkaw has proposed.
Mr. Nkaw, who was addressing participants at the National Climate Change Seminar in Accra, said millions of farmers in vulnerable countries, including Ghana, are losing their investments due to alarming changes in the climate.
“These sad realities demand our collective action to prevent a further increase in the wealth gap. We must continue our campaign for the establishment of an international financing facility to help vulnerable countries recover and rebuild in the aftermath of climate disasters,” he indicated.
Indeed, Africa suffers most from the ongoing global climate crisis, though the continent is the least contributor to this phenomenon.
Africa only contributes about 3.8 percent of carbon emissions’ global volume, while the western world is responsible for 76 percent.
Since 1960, average annual mean temperature, according to the Ministry of Finance (MoF), has increased by one degree Celsius; with average number of hot days increasing by about 13 percent while the number of hot nights per year has increased by 20 percent.
In 2017 alone, the effects of climate change on agriculture and the environment, according to the MoF, was estimated at US$6.3billion.
A recent report by the African Development Bank states that the continent will need some US$3trillion for climate adaptation programmes by 2030, to enable African economies implement nationally determined contributions.
Already, a World Bank report on Ghana’s climate risk profile states that the country will continue to get warmer – with mean temperature projected to increase by 1°C to 3°C by mid-century, and by 2.3°C to 5.3°C by end of the century.
But Mr. Nkaw explained that regular and varied research on climate change is essential to enhancing stakeholders’ understanding of adaption and helping influence public and private actions to attract investment in vulnerable communities.
“The net effect of ongoing climate change is affecting agricultural production. These changes have impacted negatively on people already living in poverty, who have become vulnerable to prolonged droughts, floods among other climate-induced impacts,” he added.
Vice Chancellor of the University of Energy and Natural Resources, Professor Elvis Asare Bediako, spoke at the event and said the UENR is open to partnering with government and non-governmental institutions – including ActionAid, Care International, the World Bank and others – in the fight against climate change.
The conference’s theme, ‘Building Climate Resilience in Ghana Through Multi-stakeholder collaboration’, was meant to highlight the impact of climate change on smallholder farmers; engage government agencies; and disseminate research findings on Ghana’s climate change situation to influence policy.
A 2022 Fairwork report has disclosed that ride-hailing drivers in the country are struggling to make ends meet due to rising inflation, fuel price hikes and poor working conditions.
It said many of them struggle with everyday expenses and have to work longer hours to maintain a decent living standard.
The report was put together by researchers from the University of Ghana Business School and University of Oxford, and also noted that platform workers or ride-hailing drivers – drivers with apps such as Uber, Bolt and Jumia Food among others – in Ghana “face poor pay, dangerous working conditions, unfair contract terms, poor platform management structures, and an inability to organise and bargain collectively”.
“From the issues presented, we have done some calculations to show that workers are indeed not well off when it comes to platform work. If you take an average earning of GH¢350 a day, a driver making such an amount buys fuel of GH¢160 – not even half a tank as of today. The driver will pay the car owner GH¢75 a day and the platform will take their commission of 20 percent or 25 percent (GH¢87) in some cases,” he said, adding that if the driver buys airtime and bundles to connect with the app, coupled with maintenance and other miscellaneous costs, the total expenditure will amount to GH¢462 – though he only made GH¢350 that day.
The report was based on desk research and interviews with workers and managers using the ten platforms in Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi between May and October 2022.
The 10 platforms include: The Black Ride, Glovo, Swift-Wheels, Bolt, Uber, Jumia Food, Bolt Food, InDriver, Feenix and Yango; each were scored against five principles to assess whether they provided basic labour standards.
“There was insufficient evidence that workers on any of the ten platforms earned the living wage rate after accounting for costs (GH¢39.1/day). Therefore, we were unable to award a score to any of the ten platforms on this principle,” it stated.
Analysing the principle of Fair Condition, it said only one of the ten platforms, Glovo, was able to provide evidence that they took action to protect workers from risks that arise on the job.
It added that this year issues of safety and insecurity were reported as critical challenges for workers, requiring more effort from platforms to address them; however, they could not find sufficient evidence to award a score to any of the ten platforms for providing a safety net for workers.
The Fair Contract principle revealed that both the Black Ride and Glovo can provide evidence that their terms and conditions are clear and transparent, and subject to Ghanaian law.
Fair management principle revealed that only two of the ten platforms (Glovo and the Black Ride) were able to evidence the provision of due process for decisions affecting workers.
For Fair Representation, checks revealed only the Black Ride provided evidence that it ensures freedom of association and collective worker voice, and it has also formally and publicly recognised an independent collective body of workers by signing an MoU with various associations.
Recommendations
The group suggested that the country needs new Labour Laws, responsive to the specificities of digital labour platforms to ensure legal recourse is possible for all platform workers.
It also called on the Ghana Labour Department, Ministry of Labour and Employment and other stakeholders in the country to take immediate action on pushing for platforms to recognise their workers as ‘traditional’ workers covered by the country’s Labour Act – not as ‘independent contractors’.
It urged consumers of digital services to choose the services of those that treat their workers better, thus forcing the rest to reform if they want to stay in business.
In keynote remarks at the 26th National Banking Conference, where he was representing the Governor – Dr. Ernest Addison, Mr. Gyasi disclosed that all 23 universal banks have this year completed and submitted a template developed by the regulator in addition to its Sustainable Banking Principles and Sector Guidance Notes, to enable banks accelerate their ESG-compliance journey.
He said it marks an improvement on the number presented in September last year, and believes the development bodes well for the industry and wider economy’s long-term sustainability.
“As part of the efforts to promote sustainable banking, the BoG issued a monitoring guidance and reporting template to be completed by banks – which is used in monitoring levels of implementation for the principles and guidance notes. This self-assessment guide is meant to serve as a checklist that guides banks to take the necessary steps in developing the appropriate sustainable policies and procedures,” he explained at the conference, which had as its theme ‘The Future of Banking in Ghana: Ethics, Professionalism and ESG Imperatives’.
“In terms of compliance, reports submitted recently indicate that all 23 banks have completed and submitted the template; an improvement compared with the submission made in September 2021,” Mr. Gyasi added at the event organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers (CIB).
His submission was consistent with the outcome of PwC’s 2022 Ghana Banking Survey Report – which surveyed 21 out of the 23 registered universal banks and found that 62 percent of the bank executives it surveyed confirmed the existence of plans to incorporate dedicated ESG principles in the near-term.
With ESG issues guaranteed to colour the banking landscape’s future – as evidenced by projections that the value of global ESG-leaning institutional investment will soar by 84 percent to US$33.9trillion in 2026 from US$18.9trillion in 2021 – the BoG’s representative said domestic banks must double down on their efforts to attract sustainable investments.
“Investors are now concerned about ESG performance and how they are reported, especially the impact of ESG on the balance of banks… Data compilation and analysis of ESG activities have become imperative in this rapidly evolving industry,” he said, adding that banks will prove critical in bridging the financing gap required for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and net-zero commitments to be met in a respectable time.
While there is heightened focus on the environmental and social aspects, Mr. Gyasi said recent developments in the nation’s financial landscape prove that significant emphasis must be placed on corporate governance.
He thus charged stakeholders in the industry not to treat guidelines and directives as mere checklists, but ensure that they are implemented as intended.
“The business of banking is evolving rapidly, hence there’s a need to be intentional in strict adherence to individual codes of ethics and professionalism; as well as the CIB and GAB’s code of ethics and banking practice in our various banks,” he added.
On his part, Chief Executive Officer at CIB, Robert Dzato, said with the risks and opportunities ESG presents to banks, the institute – as the foremost trainer of bankers – has begun an extensive programme to ensure bankers are well-equipped in this regard.
“Our role at CIB is to educate, and currently we are running a programme in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to train bankers in ESG,” he said, while affirming that ethics and professionalism will be permanent features of the programme.
Chairman for the occasion and CEO of the Ghana Association of Banks, John Awuah, said banks will continue to comply with the prevailing sustainable banking regulatory provisions as well as lead conversations around the subject while driving innovation.
