The outgone Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa, has thanked all the directors and staff of the Service who worked under him for helping him better his résumé.
Making his first public statement since he was relieved of secondment duties at the GES by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the professor said that since his removal, he has received countless well-wishing calls and messages.
“I have and continue to receive your calls and numerous messages. I have not been able to pick up your calls or reply to your messages due largely to the sheer volume.
“What gladdens my heart is that the messages are not dirges but goodwills and prayers and very soothing and reassuring messages.
“I wish to take this opportunity to thank every one of you for your dedication and the extremely good work relationship that existed between us,” he wrote.
Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa added that it gladdens his heart that from his work at the GES, he has been able to upgrade his Curriculum Vitae (CV).
“I highly appreciate your unfathomable love to me. We worked as a team and together we’ve changed the face of not only pre-tertiary education but also GES.
“You supported me in many ways to enhance my resumé to bring it to a distinguishing first-class, world-class CV. And I am highly grateful to you all,” he added.
In a letter dated October 17, 2022, and signed by Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, President Akufo-Addo terminated the appointment of the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa.
This brought the appointment of the GES boss, who was appointed in 2017, to an end.
According to ges.gov.gh, Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa was appointed as Acting Director-General by President Akufo-Addo in April 2017 and he assumed office on the May 15, 2017.
He was subsequently confirmed as Director-General in October 2017.’
The Circuit Court in Accra has issued a stern warning to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Consumer Protection Agency, (CPA), Kofi Owusu Hene, popularly known as Kofi Kapito who was a subject matter of a bench warrant.
The court presided over by Her Honour Christiana Cann yesterday issued a bench warrant against the CEO of the CPA, for failing to appear before it.
Kofi Kapito however appeared in court on Thursday, October 20.
The judge while rescinding the arrest warrant, warned the accused not to repeat his action of not coming to court.
“I will rescind your bench warrant. But, this should be your last time. Next time you won’t be luck.”
He is alleged to have deprived his late brother’s wife of a house the couple had jointly acquired at Ogbojo, and he is said to have threatened to dispose of the said property which the late brother’s wife has an interest in.
Kofi Kapito has denied all the charges, and he is currently on bail.
The wife of the deceased while testifying, told the court how she and the late husband acquired the property in question.
The case has been adjourned to October 25 for continuation.
The Chamber of Pharmacy Ghana has announced the adoption of the Cash and Carry regime for the supply of pharmaceutical products to government and other institutions.
The Chamber, including the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers, Importers and Suppliers say, the current economic downturn including the exchange rate is telling on their business hence the move.
Addressing a Press Conference in Accra, chairman of the Ghana National Chamber of Pharmacy, Harrison K. Abutiate explained that, the move has become necessary to save their ailing businesses.
“The Pharmaceutical Industry is credit-driven. Public Sector pays on the average 6-12 months, because of delayed payments of the National Health Insurance Scheme(NHIS). Majority of private facilities make payments for all supplies within 3-4 months. In the current circumstances of daily devaluation of the cedi, it’s imperative to state that pharmaceutical supplies on credit under this time has led to erosion of operational capital of pharmaceutical importers and manufacturers,” he said.
He said the fast depreciation of the cedi has affected the price of medicines on the counter as some pharmaceutical supplies are up by 100 percent as a result of the devaluation of the local currency.
He also bemoaned the reversal of the discount on benchmark value which has negatively impacted the cost of doing business in the country.
According to him, if the situation remains the same, local manufacturers will be forced out of business to create room for fake products to dominate the market.
“On the industry front interest in continuous investment in official and pharmaceutical business is waning. Very soon a sizeable number of industry players may be forced to fold up or lay off staff. This becomes a dangerous recipe for criminals to engage in nefarious activities and flood the market with fake and sub-standard products just to compromise quality and efficacy of medicines, thereby putting the health of all Ghanaians at risk.
“The National Chamber of Pharmacy, the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana, and the Pharmaceutical Importers and Wholesalers Association of Ghana, therefore call for an immediate action to save the industry.
“The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning should release funds to immediately to pay for the long-standing debt of over 9 months and to push to clear all overdue debts.”
The Ashanti Regional branch of the opposition NDC has criticized President Akufo Addo’s just-ended tour of the Region describing it as full of tantrums and empty promises.
It argued that the Ashanti Region is no more a stronghold for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), but has now turned into a strangling hold for the governing party.
The opposition NDC said it observed a cold reception that turned into booing and jeering when the president visited the Ashanti region on his four-day working tour.
Addressing the media, the Regional Communications Director of the NDC, Nurudeen Abass contended the president had nothing substantial to show to the Ashanti region for all the revenues and votes the Nana Addo administration enjoyed from the region.
“Distinguished friends from the media, it goes without saying that President AkufoAddo’s latest tour of his favourite political backyard was nothing short of
underwhelming. With nothing by way of any worthy accomplishments, President AkufoAddo went about inspecting and commissioning mediocre and mundane projects which ordinarily should be the work of DCE’s and other government officials. To imagine that the President was driven in a convoy of nearly 70 V8’s to commission a magistrate court building at Toase, sums up what miserable spectacle of a tour it was.
“It is important to remind ourselves that when President Mahama and the NDC constructed a brand new High Court building at Obuasi in 2016, the then Regional Minister and MCE for Obuasi at the time did the honour of commissioning same. This is for us, the difference between the Nation-Builder, President John Dramani Mahama and the Family Builder, His Excellency William Akufo-Addo. Whereas one of them – President Mahama, built legacy projects in the Ashanti Region, such as the $234 million Kejetia Central Market project, the largest investment in the history of the Ashanti Region, the Kumasi Airport Phase II, Rattray Park, Konongo-Kumawu-Kwahu Water Project, the 500-bed Military Hospital at Afari, the 250-bed Regional Hospital at Sewua, the other – President Akufo-Addo, has very little to show for all his unprecedented borrowing and the huge votes he enjoys from the people of the region.
“Indeed, the popularity of the New Patriotic Party and President Akufo-Addo for that matter is so low in their own stronghold that they have resorted to emulating the NDC’s hugely successful membership drive in the Ashanti Region in order to try and revive their sinking fortunes. For a party that garnered as much as 1.8 million votes out of a total of 2.5 million valid votes cast in the 2020 elections to be conducting a membership registration drive in their supposed comfort zone two years down, is clear indication of their waning popularity in the region.”
Radio and TV presenter Blessed Godsbrain Smart, popularly known as Captain Smart, has been released on bail hours after he was picked up by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).
The Media General journalist was picked up by operatives of the NIB on the evening of Wednesday, 19 October 2022 as he went home from work.
His car was allegedly crossed by the operatives in traffic and then whisked away.
The journalist was subsequently interrogated in the presence of some senior officials of Media General.
It is unclear why he has been detained by the intelligence agency.
On Tuesday, 18 October 2022, the government, through a statement from the ministry of information, threatened to sue the journalist for alleging in a video published and circulated by Onua TV on 17 October 2022 that President Akufo-Addo was actively involved in illegal mining activities.
The publication, according to the statement signed by Deputy Information Minister Fatimatu Abubakar, impugns the character and integrity of the president, as well as the credibility and commitment of his fight against illegal and irresponsible mining.
In response to the content of the said video, the government stated that:
ii. The content propagated in the video is false, malicious and without basis. It is nothing but an act of unethical and irresponsible journalism;
iii. The video is intended to court disaffection for the government and undermine efforts to fight illegal mining in the country; and
iv. Government’s commitment to the fight against illegal mining is unwavering.
The statement disclosed that the government had decided to refer the matter to the National Media Commission for review and adjudication.
“It is, however, imperative to note that the aforementioned action is without prejudice to the government’s right to seek further legal action against Mr Smart, Onua TV and Media General,” the statement added.
The government further noted that it is “concerned about the spread of disinformation and misinformation, clothed under the pretext of journalistic discretion and free expression and will continue to hold Media General in high esteem and urge them not to compromise their standards for validating information, ethical practice, and avoiding conjecture in the presentation of Radio and TV presenter Blessed Godsbrain Smart, popularly known as Captain Smart, has been released on bail hours after he was picked up by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).
President Akufo-Addo must immediately withdraw the appointment of Dr Eric Nkansah as the acting director-general of the Ghana education service, the National Association of Graduate Teachers has demanded.
Dr Nkansah’s appointment will be made permanent after the advice of the Governing Council of the GES and the Public Services Commission.
A letter from the office of the president announcing his appointment said Dr Nkansah is expected to indicate his acceptance of the role within 14 days.
However, the teacher unions say they are not happy with their new boos.
“The teacher unions started press conferences yesterday [Wednesday, 19 October 2022]. I did mine yesterday and this morning, my brothers in GNAT were supposed to do theirs until there was a development that annoyed and surprised all of us; that a new director-general has been appointed to the Ghana education service”, the President of NAGRAT, Mr Angel Carbonu told journalists at a press conference.
He said: “The authority to appoint a director-general is the president of the land. Unfortunately, contrary to what the teacher unions indicated – that we would want a director-general who is a professional teacher, who has passed through the mill, who can bring his knowledge, skills and influence to bear on the activities of teachers and non-teachers in the Ghana education service, contrary to that, the gentleman who was appointed yesterday, is not a teacher”.
“He is a banking officer who was a special assistant in the office of the minister, and has been appointed as the director-general of the Ghana education service”, he indicated.
“We are not happy with this development. It is as if we don’t have professionals and well-educated people who have gone through the mill in education in this country, to run education”, Mr Carbonu added.
He bemoaned: “It is as if we are being told that we, educationists in the Ghana education service, are not good to manage education in this country.
We are calling on the president to rescind this decision; that the gentleman who has been appointed, is not qualified by any standard, to be the director-general of the Ghana education service”.
Mr Carbonu said Dr Nkansah is an outlier.
“If you look at the history of directors-general of the Ghana education service, they are either senior officers within the Ghana education service or professors from universities who have an education background and we can take them one after the other and you’ll see and know their credentials”.
“The gentleman who has been appointed is qualified as a banking officer, who has done some small stints of teaching with Kumasi Polytechnic in those days”.
“When the minister was appointed, he became a special assistant to the minister and does not have any credentials or qualification to be director-general of the Ghana education service”.
The union of teachers demanded the withdrawal of Dr Nkansah’s appointment.
“We are calling for his removal, he is not qualified to be director-general of the Ghana education service and his presence will not motivate professionals who have been in this Service for more than 20 to 30 years and have risen to higher ranks within the Ghana education service”.
President Nana Akufo-Addo must immediately stop all plans to sell parcels of prime Giffard Road land to private developers, Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu has said.
According to the minority caucus, the ministry of agriculture and the lands commission intend to sell a portion of the area, which hosts the agriculture mechanisation centre.
“To think that this land will suffer the wanton dissipation of compulsorily-acquired state land breaks my heart and I think that President Akufo-Addo must stop this,” Mr Iddrisu said.
He said the president must call his “good friend” the Minister of Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, “to order” if the latter has plans to sell the property.
“That land must be preserved in our national security interest,” he added.
“The President, if he has doubts as to what I am saying, must commence a full-scale public investigation into the status of this land.”
Established in May 2020, the DSSI expired at the end of December 2021.
The DSSI, put together by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank offered countries an opportunity to freeze debt servicing, whiles they concentrate on using their minimum funds to deal with other commitments.
Mr. Malpass was responding to questions at a programme in Washington DC, on suggestions that the Bretton Wood institutions are not doing enough to help cancel the debts of some African countries in distress.
But reacting to the question, he pointed out that Ghana and Nigeria failed to apply for the DSSI, which would have provided some financial space for the repayment of loans.
“Kristalina (IMF Boss) and I were talking yesterday with the Group about the Common Framework. If countries could have a situation where the common framework clause allow the country to have a standstill on debt, that would help the country choose their path forward on debts restructuring. That would mean they would get a break on debt repayment while they work on debt restructuring,” he explained.
Mr. Malpass stated that such initiatives are designed to help reduce the impact of economic hardship on developing countries.
He, however pointed out that some developing countries refused to take advantage of the initiative to minimise the impact of the current global hardship on their citizens.
“Nigeria and Ghana both, did not ask for the common framework treatment”, he said, adding that the situation has made it difficult for such countries to overcome the negative impact of current global economic hardship on trade and currencies of developing countries.
Debt to GDP to hit 90.7% – IMF
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had already projected that Ghana will end 2022 with a debt-to-Gross Domestic Product of 90.7%.
This was captured in its Fiscal Outlook Report released on the sidelines of the on-going IMF/World Bank Annual meetings in Washington DC, USA.
The report, also forecasts that the debt–to-GDP could reduce to 87.8% in 2023.
According to the IMF, revenue expressed as a ratio of GDP could also hit 14.1% at the end of 2022.
It will subsequently increase to 14.7% in 2023 and 15.4% in 2024”, the report said, classifying Ghana as a Low Income Developing Country.
The Accra Regional Security Council has begun the demolition of several unauthorized structures at the Sakumono Ramsar site.
The exercise, being led by the Accra Regional Minister, Henry Quartey, will span a 3-day period, during which all buildings and structures that have been unlawfully erected within the core zone of the Sakumono Ramsar site will be destroyed.
This follows several cautionary measures and announcements issued out to property owners and inhabitants of these structures by the Council.
The move is in line with efforts to preserve the ecological state of the site.
“Leading the team on Wednesday morning, the minister, Henry Quartey said, “There are people deliberately encroaching on government lands. Lands that have been acquired by Executive Instrument for the purposes of the state. One of that you know was the CSIR, by the grace of God, we have been able to do that. Today we are here, during Kwame Nkrumah’s time, lands from this area all the way to Tema was acquired by Executive Instrument, where the head leads was under TDC.
“Some part of the acquired lands was ceded for Ramsar lands. We are told that the total acreage is over 3000 acres. We are talking about 18,000 plots. As we speak, we are reliably informed that well over 2,500 acres of government land has been encroached upon with impunity,” he said.
The Sakumono Ramsar Site is a wetland with a core area of about 1200 hectares, according to the Forestry Commission.
The site, which is of international importance, has been designated for ecological purposes including migratory animal life for especially birds among others under the Ramsar Convention. It is also supposed to serve as a holding base for gallons of flood water from the adjoining communities.
But over time, the Ramsar site has been encroached on by real estate owners and is being used for purposes of farming, fishing, recreation, among others, thereby posing danger to the ecology.
Currently, the core area of the site is less than 600 acres, according to the Forestry Commission.
Former Minister of State and former Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines Dr. Joyce Aryee has said the actions of Patricia Asiedua, popularly known as ‘Nana Agradaa, is a clear indication that she is not from God.
According to her, money doubling in Church is a sin that contradicts the teachings of God.
She also stated that Nana Agraada doesn’t carry the spirit of God because of her actions in her Church.
Dr. Joyce Aryee urged Ghanaians to read the Bible to help them identify the true men of God and unscrupulous ones.
Speaking with Kwaku Owusu Adjei on Adwenekasa on Accra-based Original FM 91.9, she said, “We saw the real man of God which is Elijah, and the fake ones. There are a lot of fake pastors in this country so Ghanaians must read the Bible well to be able to identify the real men of God because you will be able to know the true men of God through their actions. ”
Nana Agradaa is facing seven counts of defrauding by false pretence and charlatanic advertisement on TV and in a newspaper to lure her victims.
A viral video last Saturday showed aggrieved members of the Church alleging that their leader, a one-time traditional priestess, had swindled them.
The Mankranso District Forest Services Division Manager, Mr. Godwin Agyemang has categorically stated that Forestry Commission has not issued permits to anyone to mine at Desiri Forest Reserve at Numesua near Tepa in the Ahafo Ano North Municipality of the Ashanti Region.
Adding that his outfit and the forestry commission have no hands in the ongoing illegal mining, farms, and illegal loggers which present a major threat to the Reserve so they will ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book.
According to him, some stakeholders are doing community mining in the Desiri forest reserves which government and private developers have invested and they have made part of the reserve as a community and have erected temporal structures but the illegal activities have affected the water bodies and farmland.
Speaking to the media, Mr. Agyemang vowed that they will not allow some people to destroy the forest for their parochial interest.
He, therefore, appealed to residents and the media to collaborate with the commission to protect and preserve the reserve which has a collateral benefit for not only the area but the entire nation.
Forest reserves in the Asunafo South, Asunafo North, Asutifi North, Asutifi South, and Ahafo Ano South for a long time has been under siege by illegal loggers and farmers who with support from influential opinion leaders are destroying the reserves with impunity.
This has resulted in severe economic repercussions as some people have lost their livelihood to these activities and sometimes resulted in deaths due to violent attacks on them.
Broadcaster Paul Adom-Otchere has accused the Paramount Chief and the Agbogbomefia of the Asogli, Togbe Afede XIV, of stealing from Ghana.
According to him, Togbe Afede stole from the state by taking allowances for the 55 per cent of Council of State meetings he allegedly did not attend.
The broadcaster made these remarks while reacting to a publication by investigative journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni.
The investigative journalist challenged Adom-Otchere’s allegation that Togbe Afede attended only 18 per cent of Council of State meetings when he was on the council.
According to the publication, Togbe Afede missed 55 per cent of Council of State meetings and not 82 per cent of the meetings.
But Adom-Otchere, during his Good Evening Ghana show, on October 19, insisted that the publication by Azure is not an exoneration of Togbe Afede.
“… your friend Azure in presenting a defence for you (Togbe Afede), said you did not attend 55 per cent of Council of State meetings. But Togbe Afede with your great stature, how can you join the Council of State as the president of the National House of Chiefs and not attend meetings?
“Togbe Afede’s position on the Council of State was an important one. He was not just an elected member or appointed by the president. Togbe Afede was representing the National House of Chiefs. So Togbe, you let the taxpayer down and you let the National House of Chiefs down.
“You don’t attend 55 per cent of Council of State meetings and you expect us to call you righteous because you returned Council of State money (ex-gratia). No way we are not going to call you righteous, we are going to call you out and ask you to return the money (the allowances), and return the car to the Council of State.
“If you tell people that you didn’t take the ex-gratia and we find that you actually took allowance for meetings you did not attend, then that is robbery of the taxpayer,” he added.
Togbe Afede XIV, in June 2022, rejected his ex-gratia payment for his work on the Council of State which became a matter of public discourse.
According to him, serving on the council should be seen as a privilege and not an avenue to demand compensation.
He added the GH¢365,000 ex-gratia was too much since the work was largely part-time and is for only four years which is why he rejected the money.
Rachel Décoste landed in West Africa’s Republic of Benin in August 2018, anticipating an important journey of self-discovery, but not predicting the extent to which the trip would change her life.
On her first day exploring Benin, Rachel asked a passerby for directions. Two weeks later, Rachel and the stranger were engaged. Within six months, they were married.
Rachel grew up in Ottawa, Canada, the daughter of Haitian parents who’d immigrated to Canada in the late 1960s. As an adult, Rachel relocated to Washington DC for college, later working for a bipartisan tech program associated with the United States Congress.
Rachel loved this job, she loved the diversity of Washington and loved working in public service. When her US visa was up for renewal, Rachel, then in her early 40s, figured she’d work remotely for a few months before returning to DC.
But rather than working from Canada, she hatched a plan to set up her desk further afield.
Earlier that year, Rachel had submitted her DNA to an online ancestry site. Rachel had long known she was the descendent of enslaved Africans, but until she got the results, she hadn’t known where her forebears had lived. Now, she had a list of countries where she had roots: Senegal, Ivory Coast, Togo, Ghana and Benin.
“DNA tests for a descendant of enslaved Africans has very deep significance for us,” Rachel tells CNN Travel. “Even though it’s not a precise science when you get the map of where your ancestors came from, it’s an emotional journey.”
Rachel arrived in Benin towards the end of her five-month remote working trip. She’d already visited the other countries on her list, and her African trip was shaping up to be an extraordinary journey of self-discovery. Nevertheless, Rachel didn’t know what to expect from Benin.
“Honestly, I don’t know if I could find Benin Republic on a map before this,” she says.
She booked a room in a bed and breakfast in the port city of Cotonou, planning to stay there for two weeks — working from the B&B and exploring the country in her spare time.
Following a couple of days settling in, Rachel ventured out for the first time. She planned to visit Ouidah, once one of the most active slave trading ports in Africa. She expected this would be a moving and thought-provoking experience.
“I’m sure that one of my ancestors passed by there, just because of my DNA test,” says Rachel.
Exiting her room, Rachel searched around for the manager of her bed and breakfast — she was looking for guidance on how best to travel to Ouidah.
“She’s nowhere to be found. And then I look for the security guard, and the security guard is on break.”
Rachel figured her next best bet was asking a passerby outside, so she opened the gates and glanced around.
The first person she spotted was a man about to get on a motorcycle, parked just outside.
Rachel greeted the stranger in French — as a French Canadian, French is her first language and it’s also the official language of Benin — and politely asked him how to get to Ouidah.
“You have to go to a certain intersection downtown, where all the bush taxis are,” explained the stranger. “You find the taxi going to your destination, you pay for your seat, and then you’ll get there.”
He started passing on directions to the intersection, but then, realizing they were a bit complicated, changed his tune.
“If you want. I can bring you there, it’s about 10 minutes away,” he suggested, gesturing to his bike.
It was about 9 a.m. Rachel was wary of trusting someone she didn’t know, but she decided she was unlikely to come to harm in broad daylight. She agreed.
“I take a chance, hop on the back of his motorcycle, no helmet,” she recalls.
Traveling together
Honoré and Rachel explored Benin together.
The motorbike-riding stranger was Honoré Orogbo, a single father and business owner in his thirties who’d lived in Cotonou all his life and just happened to be passing by that morning.
When Rachel opened the bed and breakfast door, Honoré had just finished eating some breakfast he’d grabbed from a nearby street kiosk.
From the outside, Rachel’s accommodation wasn’t obviously a B&B. Honoré says he assumed she was the owner of the house. It was only when she asked for directions that Honoré realized Rachel was a visitor.
When Rachel and Honoré arrived at the taxi rank in Cotonou city center, they realized the one heading to Ouidah was pretty empty. Honoré explained it would be some time before it departed — the driver wouldn’t leave until the taxi was full.
Rachel was disheartened. She didn’t have time to wait around — she wanted to spend the whole day in Ouidah without feeling rushed and to safely return to Cotonou before sundown.
Sensing her disappointment, Honoré came up with a suggestion. He had a friend in Ouidah he’d been hoping to visit — while he hadn’t been planning to go that day, he could, he had a day off.
“I’m like ‘Cool. I’ll pay for gas. Let’s go,’” recalls Rachel.
Just over an hour later, they arrived in Ouidah.
“He shows me how to get back — where the bush taxes are that I can get back that afternoon — and he shows me where the Slave Museum is. And I’m like, ‘Okay, good to go. Thanks, sir,’” recalls Rachel.
But before they were due to go their separate ways, Rachel asked Honoré if he wanted to get brunch. She wanted a bite to eat before she started her tour — and extending the invite to Honoré felt like the polite choice, he’d gone out of his way to help her, after all.
Honoré agreed, touched by the gesture. The two sat down to eat.
Rachel was aware that she was a woman traveling alone, and while Honoré had been nothing but polite and respectful, he was still a stranger, so she told him she was married.
She also didn’t share details of her job or her life in the US. But she did explain how she was hoping to travel around Benin over the coming days.
She asked Honoré if he had any friends or contacts who worked as chauffeurs or tour guides, and who might be interested in escorting her around over the next couple of days. She figured that might be easier than relying on taxis.
Honoré contacted a tour guide friend, but he was fully booked
“So I said, ‘Well, how about you? Can you be my escort? You helped me out this morning, can I just pay you to do that for three days?’” recalls Rachel.
“No, I’m not a I’m not a tour guide,” said Honoré. “I don’t know my country’s history by heart, and that’s not what I do.”
Rachel backtracked. She didn’t really need a tour guide — there would be experts at all the historical sites she planned to visit — she just needed a ride.
After a bit of back and forth, Honoré agreed to drive Rachel.
“When she insisted, I said ‘Why not?’” Honoré recalls today.
He wanted to help Rachel, Honoré says. She seemed like a “good person,” based on the way she’d approached him, the way she’d asked him questions and the way she’d invited him to brunch.
The two agreed Honoré would drive Rachel around for the next few days, starting that day in Ouidah, and Rachel would pay him for his services.
Growing closer
Here’s Rachel at Ganvie Lake Village in Cotonou, Benin.
For the rest of the week, Honoré took Rachel to Benin’s most important sites.
Touring Benin was a powerful experience for Rachel. She says visiting the slave fort, inside Ouidah’s Museum of History, “is a pilgrimage that every afro-descendant should visit to remind us of the cruelty that our ancestors survived.”
“I didn’t know this before going there in person, but if Las Vegas was taking bets on the survival of enslaved Africans, the odds of my being alive today would have been slim to none,” says Rachel. “I am a walking, talking miracle. I am the ‘one percent.’ I owe it to those who didn’t make it to live my best life.”
While traveling around Benin, Rachel and Honoré talked. While Rachel still didn’t disclose many details about her personal circumstances, but she found herself opening up to Honoré about her thoughts and feelings. Honoré opened up in turn.
“First conversations were about learning about myself, my family, my situation, who I am, who I really am,” he says.
“We were very open and very candid because we were strangers and we’ll never see each other again,” recalls Rachel.
She remembers being touched when Honoré explained that he didn’t have a new model of motorcycle because he put all his money towards his son’s education.
“He says ‘I’d rather have my kid have those opportunities than drive a fancy motorcycle.’ And I thought, ‘Wow, those are the values of my parents.’ I saw myself in those values,” says Rachel.
In one of their many conversations, Honoré mentioned his brother was a tailor. On their fourth day together, Honoré took Rachel to a market to help her buy fabric that his brother could make into a dress.
Rachel was overwhelmed by the choice — so much so that she asked Honoré to pick his favorites. He opted for two pieces of colorful, bright Ankara fabric. The third option was a white, gray, lace style, called lessi. Rachel loved it, and figured the resulting dress could be “appropriate for a baptism or some kind of special occasion.”
Honoré’s brother made clothing for Rachel and Honoré out of the fabric he picked for her at the market.
In one of their many conversations driving to Benin landmarks, Honoré mentioned to Rachel that he would usually travel to Lomé, the capital of the neighboring country of Togo, when he and his friends wanted a night out.
Rachel was intrigued.
“I can’t guarantee that I’ll ever come back here. This is a once in a lifetime trip where I’m getting paid while I’m working in a foreign country. I want to take advantage of every opportunity,” she remembers thinking.
“So I said, ‘Well, I have to go back to work this week. But next weekend, if you’re willing, I could get two hotel rooms and we could go to Togo together.”
The following weekend, Honoré took Rachel to a poetry slam night in Lomé, followed by a bar with live music. They stayed out all night.
“We’re dancing. It’s just pure joy,” says Rachel.
It was around this time that Rachel started to feel things shift. She felt comfortable around Honoré in a way she’d never felt before.
“We get along great. He laughs at my jokes,” she recalls thinking. “I had a bit of a meltdown a couple times — which I’m not proud of — where he didn’t freak out, because usually angry Black women scare people. But he took it all in his stride.”
Rachel even briefly met Honoré’s son.
Rachel and Honoré, pictured here on a beach in Cotonou, grew closer and they soon realized they had feelings for each other.
She described the situation in an email to one of her close friends back in Ottawa.
“I think I think this person should be my husband. But am I crazy? I’ve known this guy for a week. Is that stupid? Tell me if I’m crazy,” she wrote.
Her friend wrote back: “Rachel, you are not a stupid person. You have good judgment. You are a good judge of character. If he’s the one, grab him.”
For Honoré, the trip to Togo was a turning point too.
“I think it’s that night that the lightning struck,” he says. “It was not lightning but it was a feeling of love. I think that’s where the feeling of love started.”
Rachel only had one more week in Benin before she was set to return to North America. She decided she had no time to waste.
“I told him that I really wasn’t married. And he was very happy to hear that. And we got together,” she says.
“I was kind of surprised,” says Honoré now. “I thought a woman like that would probably have a husband.”
“Next day I saw her differently,” he adds. “Not like a tourist but my soulmate. That’s how the relationship started. Step by step.”
For the remainder of Rachel’s time in Benin, Rachel and Honoré spent as much time together as they could.
Long distance engagement
Honoré and Rachel often wear clothing made from matching fabric, a Benin tradition.
On the evening of Rachel’s departure, Honoré recalls sitting with her on a beach. He was enjoying the moment, but also considering Rachel’s impending return to Canada, and what it meant for their burgeoning romance.
“We were facing the ocean. In my head, I was thinking ‘the past two weeks that I’ve spent with you, I have no regrets. We had a great time together. I was really happy to meet you.’”
The two talked about the future, and if and how they could make a long-distance relationship work. They realized they were both equally committed, and so they decided to get engaged, and that Honoré would relocate to North America.
It was a big decision. They’d only known one another for a couple of weeks. And for Honoré, emigrating had never been a goal. It would be a big change for his son. But Honoré says he decided to “follow my instincts, to follow my heart.”
Meanwhile, Rachel quit her life in DC and went back to Canada. Rachel says her friends were shocked, but supportive and happy when she told them about the whirlwind romance. Her parents were more skeptical, she says. But they came round when they met Honoré and saw how in love he was with their daughter.
Rachel returned to Benin six months later, in January 2019, for her wedding to Honoré. She wore the dress made from the white lace fabric Honoré had picked for her in the market the summer before. It felt like fate.
Here’s the couple at Canadian wedding celebrations.
Meanwhile, the couple planned a Canadian wedding celebration for the following year, navigating Honoré and his son’s immigration journey in the meantime.
“I took the time during the separation to start preparing myself mentally and psychologically for a big move,” recalls Honoré. “I had to think about the huge life change that was going to be ahead of me, the cultural differences. I know people who went to the Americas and it wasn’t necessarily easy.”
Honoré also prepared his child for the move.
“I explained to him that, ‘My son, we will go to a different country and we will start over together. With time, you will have new friends, you will have new cousins. You will have everything you wish for. everything that you have here you will have over there, in time.”
Canadian reunion
Today, Honoré and Rachel live in Canada together. Here they are pictured at Niagara Falls.
Honoré and his son arrived in Canada in the middle of winter.
“It was really really really cold,” he recalls. “I just didn’t understand how cold it could be outside. Because the cold of Africa is a whole different kettle of fish, than the cold in Canada.”
Still, once Honoré was kitted out with Canada-appropriate boots, coat and mittens, he started adapting to life in a new country.
Rachel and Honoré say they were over the moon to be together. The months apart waiting for Honoré’s visa approval had been long.
Honoré’s son settled in very quickly, and Rachel adapted to becoming his stepmother, a role she says she loves.
“I’m embracing the challenge and the joys of motherhood,” she says now.
“It’s not easy when you’ve been single since forever to adjust to having to share your life. But he’s a good kid.”
Today, Honoré and Rachel live in Ottawa. Rachel works as a diversity and inclusion expert, while Honoré is studying.
Here are Honoré, Rachel and their son in Ottawa together
Rachel and Honoré are also bringing up their son together, and run a business selling warm, Canada-winter-appropriate pajamas with African prints, called Woke Apparel.
The pandemic put a stop to their big Canadian wedding celebration plans, but they enjoyed a small ceremony in summer 2020.
Reflecting on their journey together, Honoré says their story makes him consider that “sometimes you shouldn’t force fate.”
He sees meeting Rachel as “destiny” but considers moving across the world to be with her as proof of the importance of trusting your gut.
“Just follow your heart,” he says. “Follow your heart with reckless abandon.”
As for Rachel, she says their love story is a reminder to her that “it’s never too late.”
“You’re not too old to just travel alone by yourself, in a country that you don’t know, where you don’t know anybody. You’re never too old to find love. You’re never too old to become a mother.
There is no expiration date on opportunity. And grab life by both hands. If I can do it. You can.”
In recent times, government appointees have not been spared for either their poor performance or involvement in corrupt acts.
Even though there have been several dismissals by Akufo-Addo since he assumed office, Ghanaweb compiles a list of some government appointees who have been sacked in the last quarter of 2022.
Sarah Adwoa Safo
In July, 2022, Akufo-Addo relieved Dome-Kwabenya Member of Parliament, Sarah Adwoa Safo, of her position as Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection.
Director of Communications at the Office of the President, Eugene Arhin, in a July 28, 2022 statement, indicated that the termination of her appointment was in accordance with Article 81 (a) of the Constitution.
“In accordance with Article 81 (a) of the Constitution, the President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has revoked the appointment of Hon. Sarah Adwoa Safo, Member of Parliament for Dome Kwabena, as Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, with immediate effect.
“The Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah, will continue to act as caretaker Minster for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, until such a time that President Akufo-Addo appoints a substantive Minister,” the statement read.
Her dismissal came at a time when Parliament was debating her continuous stay in the house after absenting herself for more than 15 sitting days without approval from the Speaker of Parliament.
Aside from the above, she was absent in her role as the Gender Minister as she was out of the office for a very long time after she requested an extended leave of duty.
Customs boss, Col. Damoah
On August, 2022, president Akufo-Addo asked the Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Colonel Kwadwo Damoah (rtd), to hand over his duties to the acting deputy commissioner.
In a letter signed by the Secretary to the president, Nana Bediatuo Asante, the notice of handing over was due to the expiration of his contract on October 13, 2021.
The dismissal of Colonel Kwadwo Damoah (rtd) came at the time he was being investigated by the Office of the Special Prosecutor, for his role in corruption-related acts involving Labianca Company Limited.
A finding from the Office of the Special Prosecutor dated August 3, 2022, and titled: “Report of Investigation into Alleged Commission of Corruption and Corruption Related Offences involving Labianca Group of Companies and the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority indicated among other things that the frozen foods company owner used her position to evade taxes.
Initially, while reacting to the report, the customs boss said any attempts by the Special Prosecutor to bring him down will not work.
“Three days ago a report purported to be coming from the Office of the Special Prosecutor trying to indict the Deputy Commissioner of Operations and myself [but] anybody who has read that report very well will know the basis of that,” he said while addressing some Senior Customs officers at a retreat in Kumasi.
“And luckily for Me, God is always on my side, before that report came that person had made a comment to some people who had come to tell me [that] he [Special Prosecutor] was going to publish that will discredit me…and I sent people to go and tell him that he is a small boy and I am older than him, I have lived a meaningful life and if he attempts to destroy me it won’t be easy for him. People have tried and I have survived and this one too I will survive it,” Col Damoah added.
Prof Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa
Prof Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa, The Director General of Ghana Education Service is the latest victim of the sacked appointees.
Prof Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa was sacked by the President on October 17, 2022.
In a letter dated October 17, 2022, and signed by the Secretary to the President, Nana Bediatuo Asante, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo terminated the appointment of the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa.
This brought the appointment of the GES boss, who was appointed in 2017, to an end.
According to ges.gov.gh, Prof. Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa was appointed as Acting Director-General by President Akufo-Addo in April 2017, and he assumed office on May 15, 2017.
He was subsequently confirmed as Director-General in October 2017.
At least six vehicles reportedly crashed in an accident at Airport Hills, a suburb of Accra, on Thursday, October 19, 2022.
A viral video sighted by GhanaWeb showed the crashed vehicles, including a dump truck (articulated truck), a commercial transport (‘trotro’), and at least three private vehicles, including a KIA Picanto, scattered all over the Airport Hills road.
One of the witnesses could be heard saying in the video that at least six cars were involved in the accident.
“About six cars were involved in the accident. Some of the vehicles are over there,” he said in the Twi dialect.
In the video, the KIA Picanto was seen to have crashed into another private car.
The dump truck had also pushed a four-wheel drive off of the road. Parts of the ‘trotro’ were also completely dented.
Some people at the scene can also be seen crying even though there is no report of injuries or deaths.
Reports indicate that the accident happened because the brakes of the dump truck failed.
The Ghana Police Service is yet to comment on the accident.
Watch the video below:
JUST IN; Accident involving about 6 cars at Airport Hill. pic.twitter.com/3LqxGyfPrA
— SIKAOFFICIAL???? (@SIKAOFFICIAL1) October 19, 2022
Supreme Court judge nominee, Justice Barbara Frances Ackah-Yensu, has acknowledged that some Ghanaians have lost trust in the country’s justice delivery system.
Speaking during her vetting at Parliament on Tuesday, October 18, Justice Ackah-Yensu, who is currently an Appeals Court judge, however, noted that, the situation is not as bad as some persons are asserting.
The Supreme Court judge nominee made these remarks while answering a question on ex-President John Dramani Mahama’s view that Ghanaians have lost trust in the judiciary.
Ex-President Mahama, at a forum held for lawyers of the National Democratic Congress on August 28, lamented that the judiciary has a ‘broken image under the leadership of the current Chief Justice.
He said that Ghanaians have lost trust in the judiciary, owing to some of its unanimous decisions, a situation he explains as dangerous to the country’s democracy.
He stated that it would only take a new Chief Justice to chart a path to regaining public trust in the judiciary.
“There is therefore an urgent need for the Ghanaian judiciary to work to win the trust and confidence of the citizenry and erase the widely held perception of hostility and political bias in legal proceedings at the highest courts of the land.
“Unfortunately, we have no hope that the current leadership of our judiciary can lead such a process of change. We can only hope that a new Chief Justice will lead a process to repair the broken image that our judiciary has acquired over the last few years,” Mahama said.
But, Justice Barbara Frances Ackah-Yensu intimates that the former president’s view is wrong.
“I am aware of some loss in trust and confidence but from where I am sitting as a judicial officer, I can confidently say that it is not true, with all due respect, that generally, the populace is losing trust,” she said.
The President of Ghana, President Akufo-Addo, is currently in the Ashanti Region as part of a tour of the region.
According to communication that was made public ahead of his four-day tour that started on Sunday, October 16, 2022, the president is expected to commission projects, inspect ongoing ones, and confer with traditional leaders of the area.
On Sunday, 16th October, President Akufo-Addo visited the Manhyia Palace to interact with the Asantehene and Asantehemaa.
As part of his itinerary, the president was also supposed to honour a number of radio appointments in the region.
Having already done three days of his tour, there have been a number of concerns raised by some Ghanaians over how the president’s activities in the region have gone so far.
Among those are a number of utterances the president has made in either his addresses at some of his scheduled engagements, and then others he made during his radio interviews.
In an earlier interview, the president also courted the disaffection of Ghanaians over some statements he made.
Below are some of the things Ghanaians wished President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo should not have said, or, could have said better:
I am not afraid to be voted against
During an interview on OTEC Fm in Kumasi, President Akufo-Addo made a comment that got many people literally in stitches.
In the interview, the president stated that he is not moved by threats of electoral consequences by some supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
He explained that he knows that people will vote for their preferred candidates in an election and that voters can also not be forced to make choices in a democratic dispensation, hence there was no need to threaten a government with votes.
The president was responding to concerns raised by people in Manso and Kwabre, who had threatened to vote out the NPP in 2024 if their roads are not fixed.
Their concerns were conveyed by the journalist who conducted the interview on OTEC FM.
“The people of Kwabre and Manso, we know they voted massively for Nana, they have asked me to inform the president that if their roads are not fixed, they will be pained and in 2024, they will vote against the NPP,” the journalist asked after the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Attah, had responded to a question.
“No problem, no problem. I am saying people make those kinds of threats, me, they don’t frighten me. Somebody votes for you, somebody supports you, it is because they want you to do things for them, so I understand that,” the president quickly weighed in with a response.
I will shame you all
Still in the Ashanti Region for his tour, the president took an opportunity while making an address to send a statement to persons he believes are his political detractors in the region.
According to him, these people will be shamed one by one by the numerous work he has done for the people of the region, which is considered the ‘political world bank’ of the governing party; the NPP.
President Akufo-Addo stated that for the past six years that he has been in office, the people of the Ashanti Region have benefitted enough from his government, therefore, his detractors cannot say otherwise.
“And to those of you going around saying bad things about me in the Ashanti Region, one after the other, they are all going to be shamed convincingly, today, tomorrow and the day after.
“In spite of our present difficulties which I know will be gone as soon as possible, I continue to be excited about the future prospects of the nation and I urge all Ghanaians to join hands in building the Ghana that we want, we can realize it if we all work at it,” he said.
The president was speaking during a sod-cutting ceremony for the Suame Interchange, on October 18, 2022.
You can vote for NDC
While still speaking in his interview on OTEC Fm in Kumasi, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo made another comment about how unfazed he is about his party losing the next general elections.
He explained that while there are threats to vote against them, he is unmoved, adding that intimidations of voting against the NPP due to unfulfilled promises or lack of development under his tenure, is a personal decision he cannot be bothered about.
“People make those kinds of threats; they don’t frighten me. Somebody votes for you, and somebody supports you. It’s because they want you to do certain things for them. I understand that. But there is no need for people to say that if I am unable to do this and that… those are their own issues to deal with. Of course, I will do it (the road).
“But if it comes to the election and you choose to vote for the NDC, that is your own issue that is not my worry because nobody holds your thumb to vote; it is your own work. The important thing is that I understand my responsibility, and we will deal with it,” the president said.
I’m not so sure if Aisha Huang was deported
In September, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo granted an interview to Stone City Radio in Ho during his tour of the Volta Region.
During the interactions, he made a statement about the case of the embattled Chinese galamsey ‘kingpin,’ Aisha Huang (En Huang).
The statement came under a lot of public scrutiny because it was determined to have contradicted what some of his appointees had said on the same subject, to the effect that Aisha Huang had actually been deported from Ghana in 2018.
But speaking in that interview, President Akufo-Addo said it is likely that the ‘galamsey’ queen may not have been deported, but rather fled the country in 2018.
“… I am not still sure whether she was, in fact, deported or whether she fled the country the first time and has now come back or whatever. There still seems to be some uncertainty about it.
“Whichever way it is, she has become a sort of nickname for all that the ‘galamsey’ represents and also, unfortunately, for the involvement of Chinese nationals in this illicit trade,” he said.
Energy Minister and Member of Parliament for the Manhyia North Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh has accused media practitioners in the Ashanti Region of taking money from some people to denigrate the governing NPP in the region.
The MP who was not specific with which media persons said, “Journalists have taken money and they sit on radio to insult the government. Their agenda is mainly to make the NPP look bad in the area but the truth is that the government is doing well for Asanteman.”
Speaking at the sod-cutting ceremony of the Suame Interchange on Tuesday, October 18, 2022, Dr. Prempeh also known as NAPO touted the achievements of the governing NPP in the Ashanti Region. According to him, the party is the only one that has the development of the region at heart and numerous projects are ongoing in the region curtsy the governing NPP.
He urged the residents in the region to be thankful to the government saying, ” even God who created us requests for thanks from us anytime he does something good for us hence we the people in the area must be thankful to the Nana Addo government for what he continues to do for us”.
He took a swipe at individuals who use the absence of the Suame Interchange to accuse the government of not developing Asanteman by saying, “Suame Interchange is not Asanteman, other roads and infrastructure are being developed in the region”.
The Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Professor Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa has been relieved of his duties.
His dismissal was announced in a letter from the Presidency signed by the Secretary to the President, Nana Bediatuo Asante, on Monday, October 17.
According to the letter, the circumstances that required his skills at the GES no longer exist.
“The Ministry of Education has informed this Office that the exigencies that required your skills and expertise as Director-General of the Ghana Education Service do not exist any longer.
“The President thanks you for your service to the nation and wishes you the very best in your future endeavours”, the letter added.
Prof. Opoku-Amankwa was appointed on secondment from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in January 2021. His contract was extended again in June 2021.
However, according to his dismissal letter, the extension was in “contravention of the Human Resource Policy Framework and manual of the Public Services Commission as it purports to extend your secondment beyond the 3-year maximum limit.”
Before his appointment, Prof Opoku-Amankwa was the Dean of the International Programmes Office (IPO) at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) before he was replaced by Mr Jacob Kor who was Director-General of the GES from January 2015 – April 2017.
Prof Opoku-Amankwa has a PHD in Language and Education from the University of Reading in the United Kingdom. He studied Social Sciences at the KNUST.
He was also was an Associate Professor in the Department of Publishing Studies at the KNUST and has knowledge about the social, political, economic, and cultural life in Ghana, having studied, worked, and researched in a number of communities across the country for over three decades.
Reports gathered by GBC News suggest that at least, 20 gold miners have been trapped in one of the pits of Anglogold Ashanti at Obuasi in the Ashanti region.
Our Ashanti Regional Correspondent, Nicholas Osei-Wusu, reports that the people were allegedly trapped in the pit some five days ago.
Confirming the information, the Assembly Member for the Ahansony3wodea Electoral Area, Vincent Donkor, told GBC News that he was informed by some relatives at about 3 am on Tuesday, October 18, 2022, that their loved ones had gone missing for five days after leaving their respective homes in search of gold.
Mr. Donkor said he followed it up with the Security Office of Anglogold Ashanti who in turn asked that the matter be formally reported at the Local Police Station for action.
According to him, he receives briefing on the situation routinely.
The President said he is ruling the country from within and not outside. So, whatever happens in the country, he is aware.
Speaking on Kumasi-based OTEC FM as part of his Ashanti Regional tour on Monday, President Akufo-Addo said his government is working assiduously to ameliorate the plight of Ghanaians.
He cited the government’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of the plans to resolve the crisis.
“I know times are hard for Ghanaians. The data comes to me. So I’m very much aware. I know things are hard for Ghanaians. But two things I can say is that we have a plan and programme to help us resolve this.
“That is why we are in negotiations with the IMF. It’s part and parcel of a larger programme of development we want to embark upon to solve the current hardship in the country.
“So it is not like the government is not doing anything about it,” the President said.
Meanwhile, he has assured Ghanaians that his government is committed to ensuring they are cushioned.
“We are working hard to try and find a solution to these problems because we know Ghanaians are suffering.”
Earlier, the President said he is not threatened by calls for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to be voted out of office in the 2024 election.
He said such threats do not frighten him.
“No problem. I am saying people make those kinds of threats; me they don’t frighten me.”
According to him, although he understands the masses may support a party with an expectation, he, however, does not see the need to threaten the government if it fails to deliver.
“If you decide to vote for the NDC in the general election, it is your choice and that is not my problem. No one will force you to vote for someone,” he stated.
Ambassador Virginia Evelyn Palmer, United States Ambassador to Ghana, has called on stakeholders in the agribusiness sector to leverage partnerships to tackle challenges hindering the growth and development of the sector.
She noted, particularly the difficulties in accessing agribusiness financing in the country and, therefore, said working together could possibly expand access to affordable and commercial financing for farmers and agribusinesses, thereby promoting food security and sustainable economic growth.
Ambassador Palmer made the call when she addressed the 2022 Agribusiness Investment Summit held in Accra on the theme: “Strategic Partnerships for Sustainable Agricultural Financing,” organised by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-supported Feed the Future Ghana Mobilizing Finance in Agriculture (MFA) Activity.
The Summit provided a platform for stakeholders in the agribusiness space to share information and knowledge on innovative agricultural financing in the country and showcased economically viable agribusiness investment opportunities in the maize, soy, groundnut, cowpea, mango, pineapple, cashew, and shea value chains.
Ambassador Palmer expressed concern about economic challenges confronting the country and called on the government to adopt steps to improve the nation’s macro-economic conditions.
“It is a challenging time for farmers and the finance sector, in particular because of high inflation and depreciation of the cedi. Additionally, fertilizer prices have been high, reducing usage which could lead to smaller yields in the coming months”, she said.
The US government, she indicated, was creating opportunities to promote job creation and support of incomes in the country.
“In just the past two months, our programmes facilitated US$16 million in financing through 15 financial institutions.
This financing in turn supported more than 7,500 agribusinesses, including 3,600 female-led enterprises”, Ambassador Palmer added.
In a speech on his behalf, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister for Food and Agriculture, entreated financial institutions to support the development of climate-smart agriculture interventions to increase food productivity.
This would help financial institutions to manage climate change risks in agricultural lending, he said, adding “agricultural financing needs to be innovative to attract private capital and deepen the resilience of agriculture finance markets.”
Dr. John Apontuah Kumah, a Deputy Minister of Finance, said the government had adopted a paradigm shift to transform agricultural financing to reposition the sector and make it a true driver for sustainable economic growth and development.
He said the Ministry had created a special unit to liaise with key sector players for collection of data, policy analysis on the agriculture sector, and research on agribusiness financing options to boost commercial agriculture in the country.
Dr. Victor Antwi, the Chief of Party of MFA Activity, said the Activity would help mobilize more than US$260 million in financing for the agribusiness sector.
He announced “in approximately two years of the activity, MFA has mobilized over US$178.5 million (72.5 percent from commercial banks) for 18,636 farmers and agribusinesses, including 54 per cent female-led agribusinesses in the country.
The Activity is also implementing a US$2.77 million COVID-19 Relief and Resilience Challenge Fund to benefit more than 29,000 smallholder farmers with 66 per cent being women, Dr. Antwi stated.
The Coalition for Cocoa Sector Reforms (CCSR) GH has called on government through COCOBOD to reconsider the 2022/23 producer price announced to avoid negative implications impact the new GH¢800.00 per bag of cocoa beans will have.
“Farmers over the last two decades were always assured of over $100.00 out of the world market price for each bag of cocoa sold through the FOB pricing mechanism used in setting the price for the commodity. It is however unfortunate and surprising that government this year awarded to farmers, less than $80.00 for a bag of cocoa”
“This is rather a decrease in producer price than an increase hence COCOBOD must come again. In these times of increasing inflation, prices of inputs, fuel and economic hardship, this treatment to our hardworking cocoa farmers must change”.
This was in a statement jointly signed by Ayisi Kumah Thomas Kwesi, and Mr Hedidor Alexander Yaw, President and Secretary of the coalition respectively and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra.
The statement said the producer price announced by the Minister of Food and Agriculture was not only low, but demotivating and should therefore be reviewed.
It said the analysis carried out by the Coalition showed that, further reduction of Cocoa price was disincentive to cocoa farmers and would lower productivity, given the fact that both Cost of living and Cost of production had increased astronomically in Ghana, owing to inflation and rapid depreciation of the cedi against the Dollar.
It said hopes of cocoa farmers would be shattered by the new price especially when neighbouring Ivory Coast who had comparatively maintained relative stable currency and economy.
“It is clear and beyond all doubts that with this lowering of cocoa prices (dollar terms), Government and COCOBOD will render Cocoa farming unattractive to the youth by worsening the economic plight of cocoa farmers.”
“Cocoa farmers are already impoverished and overwhelmed by our current economic situation and to further reduce the price of Cocoa will worsen their plight.”
“This is an industry that has supported this country for over 30years with revenue from exports, but there seems to be a clear lack of foresight, or an ill-will in the management and sustenance of the sector by its current managers: COCOBOD. ”
The statement said the decision of reducing cocoa price (in dollar terms) came in the midst of reports of cocoa farmers selling their arable land to illegal mining operatives (Galamsey), neighboring country Ivory Coast raising its farm gate price to CFA900 equivalent to GH¢852.00, increasing prices of inputs, increased unemployment, and ageing farmer population.
The statement said about 19,000 acres of cocoa lands were lost to galamsey activities last year and it would not be surprising that the figure would be tripled in the ensuing year, while cocoa beans would be further smuggled along the border towns, with farms receiving little or no investments.
It said the credibility of COCOBOD in acquiring future loans would be impaired and eventually the industry would suffer existential threat and called on government to review the current situation
“We believe that any government interested in discouraging smuggling, fighting against galamsey, increasing annual cocoa volumes, and improving the lives of its gallant cocoa farmers should rather increase prices to discourage negative tendencies and sustain the economy.”
“Before the dust could settle on the topic of this Cocoa price reduction, BOG came with a hike in monetary policy rate to tighten the economy”.
“This came after drawing down on the $1.13bn syndicated cocoa loan to be used to shore up its Forex reserves and stabilize our currency. The hike in monetary policy rate which will directly or indirectly increase lending rates, the cost of goods and services including cost of cocoa inputs. Closure of shops in Kumasi and the intentions of GUTA to also close shops in Accra is evident of an expected increased cost of living which farmers cannot escape”.
It said the once revered once revered cocoa industry that had pillared the country for over three decades and hitherto provided dignified living conditions to its farmers, purchasing clerks and District
Managers of LBC’s, Depot Keepers and Port Officers, was suffering an imminent collapse if good measures were not taken.
“In this period of rising youth unemployment, it will be sad to witness the collapse of another vibrant sector of our economy and we therefore call on all stakeholders in the supply chain to throw their weight behind CCSR GH to compel government and COCOBOD to review the price or come out with a bonus package.”
“Though the significant depreciation of the cedi has been a major contributory factor to the degrading economic fundamentals, the dichotomy is that increased exchange differential gives government room to relieve cocoa farmers with a higher producer price for the season. The voices of Cocoa farmers must be heard for if there’s No cocoa, there will not be COCOBOD.”
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Unique of Kingdom Communication Limited, Dr. Jonathan Kwame Amofa has quashed reports by Gh Mouthpiece saying that she was dismissed from Kingdom FM on the orders of President Akufo-Addo.
According to him, those reports are false, untrue and they must be treated with the needed contempt it deserves.
Dr. Amofa said, he is really surprised by the kind of posturing being put up by Gh Mouthpiece and Ola Michael hence is a calculated attempt to disgrace President Akufo-Addo and himself.
“Is never true President Akufo-Addo ordered the sack of Gh Mouthpiece, the truth of the matter is that she resigned from Kingdom FM citing personal reasons for her resignation which we could not stop her. Gh Mouthpiece sent a WhatsApp message to the General Manager of Kingdom FM citing her inability to continue her job in which I have WhatsApp evidence to support that, I don’t understand why she decided to bring President Akufo-Addo’s name into this issue to disgrace him. I never sacked her she resigned herself, “Dr. Jonathan Kwame Amofa told Fiifi Pratt on Accra-based Kingdom FM 107.7.
“Ola Michael and Gh Mouthpiece should be very careful in life because in these media jobs you don’t where you will end one day. Today you can trend on social media but one day it will affect you in your life why must you tarnish someone’s image to trend on social media? “he asked.
Background
A former radio presenter at Kingdom FM, known as Gh Mouthpiece, has alleged that Ghana’s president, Akufo-Addo pressured her director to sack her over comments made against his government and economic hardship under his leadership.
According to Gh Mouthpiece, the CEO of Kingdom FM, Jonathan Kwame Amofah, was put under pressure to take her off air based on an “order from above”, he told Neat FM.
The founder and leader of the United Progressive Party (UPP), Akwasi Addai Odike, has urged Ghanaians to seriously start praying for divine intervention with the rapid depreciation of the Ghana Cedi.
According to him, the current government seems to have no clue as to how to stabilise the cedi against the major currencies, including the US dollar, and without God’s intervention, one might need GH¢50 in order to acquire $1 before 2025.
He added that the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who, as the head of Ghana’s Economic Management Team, is supposed to outline measures to get the country out of the current situation, has suddenly gone quiet.
“During the time of Atta-Mills, the dollar to cedi rate was relatively better. During the time of Mahama, it depreciated, but now the depreciation is worse.
“We have to pray because if care is not taken, the dollar will be falling at GH¢50 before Akufo-Addo leaves power.
“We need someone who will come and tell us that these are the measures we are implementing to stop the cedi from depreciating. Because this can’t continue. Is the vice president still alive,” he said in Twi in a Power FM interview monitored by Ghanaweb.
Meanwhile, the Ghana cedi is currently the world’s worst-performing currency against the US dollar, Bloomberg reports have indicated.
The currency has continually depreciated against the dollar in the last couple of months.
This has been attributed to the situation where “wait-and-see investors continued to squeeze foreign capital to the west African country before its deal with the International Monetary Fund.”
Bloomberg noted that the cedi lost about 45.1% to the US dollar this year to sell at GH¢11.2625 per dollar.
This makes the cedi’s depreciation the worst among 148 currencies tracked by Bloomberg, overtaking Sri Lanka’s rupee, whose depreciation has been 44.7%.
Ghanaian based in Lebanon, Ghanaian based in Lebanon, Samira Mohammed has shared her three-year-old experience as a house help in Lebanon, the struggles, and the meager salary she earns.
In an interview on Daily Hustle Worldwide, Samira mentioned that she works 12 hours a day, all week but earns GHS600. Besides the meager salary, the 22-year-old revealed that living in Lebanon feels like a prison.
“The monthly salary equivalent to Ghana cedes is GHS600. I send it all to my family because my father lost his cocoa farm, and my mom needs money for her health. The family I work with don’t maltreat me, but the workload is too much, and the salary isn’t enough,” she said.
Samira implied that she regrets her decision to travel to Lebanon sometimes, but “I thank God because I get something small to send to my family. I want my younger siblings to get an education.”
Speaking about the living atmosphere in the city she lives in, the young lady revealed that it isn’t as peaceful as Ghana.
“It hasn’t been peaceful since the explosion. We often hear gunshots and bombs. So we only go out to buy groceries. Many people die here every day. It’s more than living in prison. Everybody is scared. You won’t even hear a car pass by,” Samira noted.
Miss Mohammed travelled to Lebanon in 2019 and has worked with two families. She was convinced by travel agents who promised good-paying jobs in the Middle East.
has shared her three-year-old experience as a house help in Lebanon, the struggles, and the meager salary she earns.
In an interview on Daily Hustle Worldwide, Samira mentioned that she works 12 hours a day, all week but earns GHS600. Besides the meager salary, the 22-year-old revealed that living in Lebanon feels like a prison.
“The monthly salary equivalent to Ghana cedes is GHS600. I send it all to my family because my father lost his cocoa farm, and my mom needs money for her health. The family I work with don’t maltreat me, but the workload is too much, and the salary isn’t enough,” she said.
Samira implied that she regrets her decision to travel to Lebanon sometimes, but “I thank God because I get something small to send to my family. I want my younger siblings to get an education.”
Speaking about the living atmosphere in the city she lives in, the young lady revealed that it isn’t as peaceful as Ghana.
“It hasn’t been peaceful since the explosion. We often hear gunshots and bombs. So we only go out to buy groceries. Many people die here every day. It’s more than living in prison. Everybody is scared. You won’t even hear a car pass by,” Samira noted.
Miss Mohammed travelled to Lebanon in 2019 and has worked with two families. She was convinced by travel agents who promised good-paying jobs in the Middle East.
The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, says the National Chairman of the party, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo’s courage as a leader was tested during the violent Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election.
According to him, Mr Ofosu Ampofo’s announcement of the NDC’s withdrawal from that crucial by-election was an outright wrong move.
The Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election held in 2019 was marred by violence after National Security Operatives brutalized voters resulting in some having their legs broken and being admitted to the hospital.
Mr Ofosu Ampofo has said he arrived at the decision for the NDC to pull out based on the advice given by the party’s security experts, adding that both ex-President John Mahama and Asiedu Nketia were consulted before the decision was made public.
But Asiedu Nketiah in an interview on Kasapa 102.5FM/Agoo TV denied consenting to that decision.
“I was attending a conference in the Dominican Republic as the Vice President of Socialist International when Chairman Ofosu Ampofo called me saying that some vigilantes had fired gunshots all over the place and so he thinks the NDC should withdraw from the election. I told him don’t, it is a bad decision, and that he’ll set a bad precedent in the NDC. I told him with violence or not, the NDC will win so the party shouldn’t withdraw.”
He added: “Right after I was done with him, I received a call from ex-President Mahama telling me he’s picked up information that Ofosu Ampofo intends to announce the party’s withdrawal, it’s a bad move, tell him he shouldn’t do it. I told him I’d spoken to him (Ofosu Ampofo) not to do so. Shortly after, I saw news flashing of Ofosu Ampofo flanked by the party’s security capos announcing the NDC’s withdrawal from the election. One of the reasons he cited was that the NDC Parliamentary candidate is unable to step out of his room. So if the candidate is not able to come out, should the party withdraw from an election,” Asiedu Nketia asked.
Asked by the host, Bonohene Baffuor Awuah whether he sees Ofosu Ampofo as a weak leader, Asiedu Nketia responded: “his (Ofosu Ampofo) courage was tested at the battlefield and we all saw the results.”
“During the election in Jaman North and Banda, I was there at the forefront confronting security officers. The good thing about this is that when you are a leader and there’s any frightening situation where soldiers or police officers are intimidating people and the leader steps up and confronts the situation, your followers become empowered and also stand their ground. It is easy for foot soldiers to be attacked when the leadership abandons them,” Asiedu Nketia added.
Oleg Nivievskyi, a professor at the Kyiv School of Economics where he serves as vice-president of economics education, is encouraging Ghana and other African countries to support Ukraine in the fight against Russia.
On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in an unprovoked act of aggression.
The aftershocks of the war are being felt by people around the world, including Africa.
Speaking on The Big Bulletin on Monday (17 October 2022), Nivievskyi said: “At the moment we have to find a way to win [over] Russia, otherwise it’s going to be difficult; it’s going to last for God knows how long.
“So, Russia has to be defeated, otherwise the world will be insecure. Because what I would like to stress is we, as a civilised world, we need trustful partners, secured partners that we can trust.
“Russia at the moment is not a trustful partner and it really undermines the world order.”
Rallying behind Ukraine
Nivievskyi said that African countries need a “unified voice” to back Ukraine in the fight against Russia.
“I think African countries can have a stronger voice,” Nivievskyi told Asaase 99.5’s Beatrice Adu. “There was a summit recently in UN in terms of recognising the ‘fake referendum’ which was recently done in Ukraine by Russians, and in that vote there were a couple of African countries that were kind of voting against although the majority were supporting Ukraine.”
According to him, Russia has to be defeated for the world to get back to normal.
“So, I will like for the African countries to be more united so that everybody understands the consequences and who is to blame. So, that’s the purpose of this visit. And by establishing platforms for discussions, we really hope the message is getting through and everybody is on the same page.”
Russia’s war in Ukraine has disrupted the promise of Africa’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by raising food and fuel prices, disrupting trade in goods and services, tightening the fiscal space, constraining green transitions and reducing the flow of development finance around the continent, said United Nations Assistant Secretary General Ahunna Eziakonwa.
Eziakonwa, who serves as the UN Development Programme’s assistant administrator and regional director for Africa, said the war has put households, communities and countries across Africa in a “very precarious situation”.
While the level of trade between the African continent as a whole and Russia/Ukraine is insignificant, some African countries rely heavily on these two countries for critical imports, particularly wheat, fertilisers and steel. Disruptions to supplies of these imports has adversely affected African countries.
More than half of banks in the country have approved plans to adopt and integrate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategies into their business operations, a recently-released study by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) has shown.
In its 2022 Ghana Banking Survey Report – wherein it surveyed 21 out of the 23 registered universal banks – the advisory notes that 62% of bank executives it surveyed confirmed the existence of such plans, with 86% indicating that the subject is discussed at board level, at least, once every year.
“Insights from the survey show a clear-cut interest in embracing ESG strategies by banks, both at the board and senior management levels,” PwC’s Country Senior Partner, Vish Ashiagbor, noted in remarks accompanying the report.
Additionally, 71% of the survey’s respondents believe ESG should be an integral part of their credit decision-making; 63% say the concept is at its nascent stage, and 48% of them describe regulatory leadership and initiative as the main drivers of implementing ESG.
The top executives pointed to customer satisfaction and employee engagement as the top-two non-financial metrics they are prioritising – ostensibly because these have the most direct consequences on their bottom line.
PwC attributes the growing ESG focus, in part, to the Sustainable Banking Principles and Sector Guidance Notes introduced as a consequence of sustained collaborative efforts from key industry stakeholders – including the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB).
“Even though some banks seem to have had some form of ESG strategies in place prior to the release of the principles and sector guidance notes on the subject matter by the regulator, many woke up to the issue only after the regulator’s publication – with only a very few having in place a clear strategy which goes beyond just satisfying the regulator compliance matters required as at now,” Ashiagbor elaborated.
Despite gains made in awareness and adoption of self-initiated ESG frameworks by the banks, the survey showed that only 48 percent of them have more than 50% of their management team with formal training on the subject. This prompted a call from PwC to accelerate training.
“There is a need for banks to intensify training on ESG for their staff to advance the ESG agenda and harness its full potential… It may be difficult to achieve more in ESG if key decision-makers in the industry lack adequate knowledge on the subject,” PwC noted.
This further prompted the advisory firm to advocate the development of a roadmap for implementing sustainable banking practices, with the conviction that “banks will show more commitment and be more accountable to the implementation process”.
On his part, the chief executive officer of the Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB), John Awuah, said the growing interest in ESG is unsurprising, as banks had even before lessons from the pandemic begun shifting away from a narrow focus on shareholder investment maximisation to a broader scope that incorporates long-term sustainability, healthy financial systems and the transition to a green economy.
“Banking institutions’ strict adherence to sustainable banking principles in prior and recent years has seen some demonstrable improvements. The adherence is a reflection of society’s desire to engage and transact business with banks characterised by strong ethical standards and values,” he said, noting that charting this course will see banks lower their costs, have stronger governance structures, attract environmentally-conscious capital and contribute to sustenance of the world.
He is confident that the medium-term will see growth in the subject, as the approach adopted by local banks is not only consistent with global best practices but also fits into the country’s development needs.
Tax lead at PwC, Ayesha Bedwei Ibe, also believes that in addition to policies which incentivise sustainable finance and provide punitive measures for harmful practices, the pressure from investors will see more banks embrace sustainability and enhance their tax transparency.
These developments come as concerns over sustainability of the planet have come into sharper focus, with a growing interest in ESG. Sources such as the ESG and Thematic Investing unit for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at Bloomberg Intelligence is forecasting that ESG assets will grow 10x between now and 2025, from US$530 million to more than US$53 billion.
Supreme Court Justice nominee Barbara Frances Ackah-Yensu has shocked some members of the appointments committee including the chairman Joseph Osei-Owusu with her advocacy for applying Alternative Dispute Resolution, (ADR) in environmental crimes including galamsey.
She opined that the current ADR laws must be amended to that effect.
“Speaking as a Judicial officer, we will determine if any case comes before us on the harmful nature of galamsey, we’ll look at the particular circumstances of each case and apply the law and make a determination. But as a propenent of ADR, I think that a section of environmental matters in the ADR Act, probably will have to be looked at again so that we can try applying ADR mechanisms in resolving galamsey.”
The Supreme Court nominee made the suggestion when answering questions from minority leader Haruna Iddrisu on the galamsey menace during her vetting Tuesday.
When asked the role ADR will play specifically in dealing with galamsey cases, the nominee said:”ADR will come between the communities and the perpetrators if they are made to sit together and have a conversation.”
Her answer drew in chairman of the committee Joseph Osei-Owusu who questioned whether the nominee has ever been to a galamsey site before to appreciate the level of devastation, but the Justice nominee answered, No!
On the dwindling confidence in the judiciary by the public, Barbara Frances Ackah-Yensu though conceded some level of confidence has been lost argued majority of the public still has trust in the judicial system thus the increasing number of cases judges have had to deal with every day.
The project, which is an integral part of the West Africa Power Pool Project, seeks to reinforce the Ghana Transmission System, and ensure the export of, at least, 100 megawatts of electricity to Burkina Faso, as well as increase the reliability of the Ghana-Burkina Interconnection project.
To help achieve this objective, GRIDCo also constructed a 330kV Transmission line from the Aboadze Power Generation enclave through Prestea to Kumasi.
The 330 kV Kumasi-Bolgatanga Transmission Line Project consisted of the construction of approximately 550km of 330kV Transmission Line from Kumasi to Bolgatanga, the construction of 330kV substations at Kumasi, Kintampo, Tamale and Bolgatanga, as well as the expansion of the existing 161kV Substations at these locations, and the implementation of Environmental Mitigation Measures and a Resettlement Action Plan for the Project.
The French Development Agency (AFD) financed the project at a total cost of US$173.9 million.
Not only has the project succeeded in supplying 150 megawatts of power to Burkina Faso, but it has also increased transmission capacity to meet growing demand in Ashanti, northern Ghana and beyond.
The Minister of Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, also noted that the projects have also contributed to the reduction of transmission line overloads and associated high transmission losses and improved voltages, particularly in Ashanti, Bono and Bono East regions.
He stressed that the 330kV transmission lines have also helped to improve the quality and reliability of power supply in the country.
History of WAPP
The West Africa Power Pool ( WAPP)projects commenced with the Coastal Transmission Backbone Projects (CTB) which involved the construction of 330kV Aboadze-Volta (Tema)-Momehagou (Togo) Transmission Line and associated substations as well as the upgrade of Power Generation facilities in Ghana.
The projects were jointly implemented by the Volta River Authority (VRA), Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) and Communauté Electrique du Bénin (CEB) of Togo/Benin and completed in 2014.
The developmental objective of the CTB project was to increase access of WAPP “Zone A” coastal states (Cote-d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin & Nigeria) to more stable and reliable electricity to alleviate power supply deficits and to reduce their collective vulnerability to drought-induced power supply disruptions.
The subsequent project was the Interzonal Hub Transmission Project. The development objective of the first phase of the project was to reduce the cost of and improve the security of electricity supply to Burkina Faso while increasing Ghana’s electricity export capacity.
The Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi, was on Monday, October 17, the scene of jeers and catcalls for President Akufo-Addo, who was inspecting the Phase II of the Kejetia/Central Market Project.
On their way to the Kumasi Central Market, the president’s convoy was met by scores of traders at Adum in the central business district who had displayed their wares for sale.
On seeing the vehicles conveying the president and government officials, the group of market women, hawkers and artisans wasted no time in voicing their displeasure with the prevailing economic situation.
In a video posted on the microblogging platform, TikTok, the traders and passersby are seen in the chorus of boos as the convoy advanced.
In good times, the stronghold of the ruling New Patriotic Party would be most welcoming of the President, with residents waving their approval, with some offering their cloths for a carpet for him to walk on.
The economic downturn and its attendant increasing hardships appear to have eroded all of that love.
This is the second time the President has been booed in public. During the Global Citizens Festival, the youth who gathered at the concert jeered at him.
Social media users joined the discussion on whether or not booing President Akufo-Addo is was justified.
Meanwhile, the President has commissioned a 20-unit residential facility for justices of the Appeals Court in Kumasi.
The project, which comprises four bedrooms each, a swimming pool and recreational facilities, has been completed on schedule.
It is expected to ease the accommodation pressure of the justices and fast-track adjudication of cases at the Appeals Court in Kumasi.
This means justices of the court, who commute from Accra to Kumasi, can be accommodated in Kumasi to help reduce the cost and time to promote justice delivery.
Ahead of the commissioning, Project Manager of FeDems Limited, consultants for the project, Benjamin Fosuhene Asante, told JoyNews the facilities are tailor-made for the justices.
About three weeks ago (September 24, 2022) President Akufo-Addo was treated to a similar unfriendly reception by youthful partygoers at the Global Citizen Festival in Accra.
During the festival, the president who had been introduced to tout the government’s initiatives in prioritising vital causes in line with the organisers’ mission for social justice, was interjected by the youthful revellers who simply wanted him ‘away’.
The facility would accommodate justices who usually commute from Accra to Kumasi to sit on cases
Some government communicators later described the development as the doing of the opposition National Democratic Congress while, a Deputy Tourism Minister called the jeers as cheers for the President.
The African German Health Association (AGHA) have organised a Covid-19 workshop for healthcare service providers within the Ga East and Ablekuma North districts in the Greater Accra region.
This is in partnership with the German Development Cooperation implemented by GIZ and government through the Health Ministry and Ghana Health Service.
The project, which will span three months, will focus on five main working packages.
They include Infection Prevention and Control Knowledge Exchange and Capacity Building for Covid-19 Vaccines; Healthcare Waste Management Knowledge Exchange and Capacity Building for Covid-19 Vaccines; Supply Chain and Cold Chain Logistics for Covid-19 vaccines; Increase Acceptance of Covid-19 Vaccination for Clinical and Non-Clinical Healthcare Facility Personnel.
Addressing the media after one of the workshop sessions, the Project Manager for AGHA, Nana Ama Konadu Aning, said the team started the training with Infection Prevention & Control because they believe it is very vital at vaccination centres.
She explained that the outcome from the assessments, workshops and mentoring sessions at the vaccination centres will be shared with their counterparts in Germany, and the German team will also do the same to enable both countries to compare their approaches and where necessary, bridge the gap to improve Covid-19 vaccination.
“With funding support from the German Development Cooperation implemented by GIZ, AGHA undertook a Covid-19 vaccination campaign project. This is a training and workshop program that focuses on five main areas. Today we came to do the Workshop for Infection and Prevention Control at vaccination centres.”
“We are engaged in a knowledge exchange and capacity building between Germany and Ghana in order to better understand the situation at the vaccination centres in both countries and find ways to bridge any gaps that exist”
Among other things, the workshop will also aim at identifying the challenges that the districts face in discharging their duties which is the administration of the Covid-19 vaccines.
She said the two districts were settled on for the campaign because they were recommended by the Ghana Health Service. According to her, the workshop was also used to educate healthcare personnel on the need to get vaccinated.
What Has Been Uncovered?
Biomedical Engineer and Infection, Prevention & Control expert with AGHA, Josephine Owusu-Akyaw who represented Ghana as part of the campaign indicated that their visit to the two districts brought to light an array of issues that healthcare service providers are facing in administering the vaccines.
According to her, some vaccinators have to deal with being given very little space to operate and sitting under trees where they are exposed to harsh weather conditions.
“There are a lot of struggles at the various vaccination centres. For example, in Ablekuma North, there are no government hospitals so most of these vaccination centres are forced to attach to private hospitals where they are given just a small space to operate. Some have to sit under trees exposed to the weather, insects and other forms of conditions.”
She said the team from AGHA also took note of items that were lacking at the vaccination centres and are planning on contributing their quota to ensure that the vaccinations are carried out under strict adherence.
Outcome compared to Germany
Marcus Ricken, a German representative of AGHA said the same exercise took place in Germany where vaccination centres were assessed to check their compliance with international standards. He said;
“The concept was basically to exchange knowledge so that the participants could draw their own conclusion and witness how certain Covid-19 vaccination-related challenges were handled.
“We provided templates and guidelines to hygienic concepts which the participants used as free samples useful for adaptation purposes.”
Mr Ricken said that based on their visits, the major challenge faced by vaccinators is largely logistics hence their inability to fully discharge their duties.
Indeed, the Covid-19 Vaccination Campaign is timely and needs all the support as it will help increase acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination in Ghana to reduce the infection burden.
Some residents in the Eastern Region town of Apinamang are intimidated and frustrated as they are being forced out of their homes by illegal miners.
Activities of illegal mining popularly called ‘galamsey’ is beginning to wreak havoc and is threatening the livelihoods of residents.
In the case of Joyce Wowornyo, the ‘galamseyers’ have dug around her house in a bid to take over her land in search of gold.
She lives far in the Apinamang forest and has witnessed the terrible effects of illegal mining firsthand.
The miners offered to buy her out of her land.
“One day, the miners came and asked me to pack out. I refused. So they excavated the land around us. They made a circle round my house. Now my farm land has been destroyed. I put all my energy into it,” Joyce lamented.
The 43-year-old mother of five recounted that her experience with the illegal miners was scary.
“Many times they threatened me. They even told me they had already bought the land from someone. I still didn’t move. Sometimes, I would be cooking in my kitchen and they would digging just in front of me.”
The illegal miners leave the mining pits uncovered
Joyce Wowornyo says she is being threatened by the illegal miners because she refused to sell her land to them.
Touring some illegal mining sites in the area with the Christian Council, JoyNews discovered that Joyce Wowornyo is not alone in the Apinamang forest.
A galamsey site in the Apinamang forest
Many small households are seen abandoned with the lands excavated.
The chief of the area, Osabarima Bibiarawonemere Oware Asare Pinkro III, noted that activities of illegal mining is getting out of hand.
“I am helpless. If you go to check the extent of damage caused by these illegal miners and how they have left the pits uncovered, you will be sad. I will not, and cannot be part of the galamsey activities.
Osabarima Bibiarawonemere Oware Asare Pinkro III
“The streams and all the water bodies have been polluted,” he bemoaned.
Members of the Christian Council of Ghana also visited the area to assess the level of devastation caused by illegal mining as they prepare to take a stand against activities of galamsey.
Houses left abandoned in the Apinamang forest
Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo has given yet another verbal assurance his government will stop the illegal mining menace.
He was speaking at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi at the start of a four-day tour of the Ashanti region.
A 46-year-old man, Kwabena Mawuli, has been arrested for allegedly raping and killing his former wife at Suminakese in the Kwahu District of the Eastern Region.
The victim, Yaa Kesewaa, and the suspect were married for five years without a child and have been divorced for the last five years.
According to a report by Onuaonline.com, a nephew of the deceased, Kwasi Ofori, said Kwabena Mawuli, on Friday, October 14, 2022, went to his farm where he shares a boundary with his ex-wife.
The suspect waited for Kesewaa to arrive and pounced on her, and forcibly had sex with her. The suspect, fearing that his victim would file a complaint, subsequently slashed the back of her neck with a cutlass.
Mawuli then sneaked back home but was spotted by some residents who were sceptical about his unusual early return from the farm.
The suspect, however, confessed to committing the crime after being picked up and interrogated over the death of his former wife.
In Ghana, the name Hanna Reitsch may not readily mean much to most people, but it is a name that has relevance because of her direct link to Kwame Nkrumah.
The German pilot is considered one of the few people to have seen Adolf Hitler, the German dictator who ruled with iron hands, alive.
But more relevant to Ghana is that while Hanna Reitsch was Hitler’s pilot, she also served as Ghana’s presidential pilot, flying the country’s first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, until his government was toppled.
Hanna Reitsch’s link to Ghana:
The first time Hanna came to Ghana was in the 1960s.
This was after she was sponsored by the West German foreign office as a technical adviser in Ghana and elsewhere, according to wikipedia.com.
Other details shared by the Daily Graphic showed that Hanna Reitsch, described as a “mysterious” woman, arrived in the country during the 1962 independence celebration.
In its caption on her arrival, the newspaper captioned it as, “The Lady Who Dares the Heaven,” with the general assumption that she was in for a visit and would leave after the anniversary.
However, it emerged that Kwame Nkrumah had other plans. The details showed that Nkrumah had sold the idea of relocating to Ghana and overseeing the country’s aviation development to Hanna Reitsch.
As a German war hero, she is reported to have agreed and went on to pitch camp in Ghana for the rest of Nkrumah’s government.
With Reitsch in the saddle, Nkrumah is said to have set in motion his plans for Ghana’s aviation. Historical records also show that Reitsch founded the first African national gliding school at Afienya.
While overseeing her training of male and female pilots at the school, Hanna Reitsch also worked with the Ghana Armed Forces as an instructor and imparted her knowledge.
Reitsch’s operation in Ghana had the approval of the then-West German government.
Reitsch’s official role was as a technical advisor, but she went beyond that. History indicates that she became Nkrumah’s most preferred and trusted pilot.
Between 1962 and 1666, when the Kwame Nkrumah government was toppled, Reitsch lived in Ghana and flew with Kwame Nkrumah.
Who was Hanna Reitsch?
Born in Hirschberg, Silesia, of the German Empire, on March 29, 1912, to an upper-middle-class family, Hanna Reitsch, was the daughter of Dr. Wilhelm (Willy) Reitsch, who was an ophthalmology clinic manager, and his wife, Emy Helff-Hibler von Alpenheim, who was a member of the Austrian nobility.
Details on wikipedia.com show that her mother was a devout Catholic, and so she was raised as a protestant. She had two siblings, her brother Kurt, a frigate captain, and her younger sister Heidi. Reitsch began flight training in 1932 at the School of Gliding in Grunau.
While a medical student in Berlin, she enrolled in a German Air Mail amateur flying school for powered aircraft at Staaken, training in a Klemm Kl 25.
Along with Melitta von Stauffenberg, she flight tested many of Germany’s new aircraft during World War II and received many honours. Reitsch was among the very last people to meet Adolf Hitler alive in the Führerbunker in late April 1945.
Reitsch set more than 40 flight altitude records and women’s endurance records in gliding and unpowered flight, before and after World War II.
Ghana’s Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta has shared his sentiments on the firing of British-born Ghanaian UK chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng.
The Minister stated that it was painful to realize tha t a Ghanaian has strived to achieve such a feat but has had to lose the job just a few days after the appointment.
Kwasi Kwarteng was sacked as UK’s chancellor after 6 weeks in office.
According to a Reuters report attributing the development to the UK Times newspaper, Liz Truss is preparing to reverse a decision announced in the country’s mini-budget which was delivered by Kwasi Kwarteng.
The mini-budget has since sparked financial turmoil in the markets and caused a revolt among Conservative MPs in the UK.
Ofori-Atta added that he has reached out to Kwesi Kwarteng with a message that says God knows best.
“The pain or sadness is that he is a Ghanaian reaching almost the highest level, Chancellor of the Exchequer. Yes, we sat together three days ago.
“I am always very optimistic, if one is really doing things in truth there might be some waves but the Lord will see him through. I was surprised at what happened. I have sent an email to him, I told him the Lord knows best,” Ofori-Atta is quoted by 3news.com.
General Secretary for Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), Godfred Abubire has stated that government should have held on till next year before increasing the fuel price, noting very well that times are hard for Ghanaians.
This follows the recent increment in fuel prices.
The Institute for Energy Security (IES) projected that fuel price will increase by October 16, 2022.
This was due to the increases in price of the products on the international market, and the significant decline in the value of the local currency against the American greenback or US dollar.
Speaking on Atinka TV‘s morning show, Ghana Nie with Ekourba Gyasi Simpremu, Mr. Godfred Abubire said it is possible transport fares will be increased by 40 per cent.
He said anything less than 40 per cent would affect their businesses.
When asked if GPRTU does not care if the passengers can pay or not, he said, “If the situation in Ghana is something to talk about, then there is no need for the review of government fares. The government should have held on for next year after January 2023, but at this last moment that it has reviewed charges and all other things, all the insurance bills will also go up.” “We are looking at the action taken by the government and whatever happens, we will get back to the public,” he said.
Meanwhile, the President of Ghana Committed Drivers Association, Charles Danso also on Atinka TV predicted that the increment in transport fares will be about 18 to 20 per cent and not 4o percent as stated by GPRTU.
The Ministry of Energy has said it will soon meet the National Petroleum Association (NPA), the Ministry of Finance, and the central bank to find solutions to the rising cost of fuel in the country.
The Ministry’s assurance comes on the back of unprecedented hikes in fuel prices in recent times.
Petrol is currently selling at GHC13 and diesel has closed the Ghc15 mark as the current increment is likely to affect transport fares shortly.
However, speaking on the Morning Starr with Francis Abban Monday, the Deputy Minister for Energy, Andrew Egyapa Mercer indicated that the pricing methodology does not favor the consumer.
He added that the Ministry of Energy is therefore taking pragmatic steps towards ensuring that the pricing methodology does not affect the consumer.
“So the plan is to engage the NPA together with the Bank of Ghana and officials from the Ministry of Finance and Energy to see how these pricing methods will create value for consumers,” the deputy minister stated.
However, the Institute of Energy Security (IES) has predicted a further increase in fuel prices because of the continuous depreciation of the Ghana cedi.
IES also hinged a hike in fuel prices on the decision by Oil Producing Countries to scale down on the production of crude oil.
“I will not say there is an end in sight. I am not convinced because if you look at the international market, Italy and others are cutting down on production of supply. The key one being the crude oil that will impact on price negatively,” the Executive Director of IES, Nana Amuasi VII told Starr News.
The Food and Beverage Association of Ghana (FABAG) has served notice that its members within the retail sector will close down business effective Wednesday, October 19, 2022.
A statement issued by FABAG’s General Secretary, Samuel Ato Aggrey reiterated that the action has become necessary due to government’s failure to address issues affecting their businesses.
“From beginning of this year, businesses have accumulated losses through some of government’s unfriendly policies. All efforts to engage government to remedy the situation has proved futile,” the statement said.
FABAG in its statement berated the economic management team for no meaningful efforts towards remedying the situation in the face of the current economic hardship.
Banking Executive, Ramat Ebella Whajah Ellis has called on African financial systems to involve more informal sector players in the development of financial investment portfolios.
“We should not assume that all people understand stocks, bonds, treasury bills, fixed deposits, cocoa bills, trust accounts, shares, and mutual funds among others.
“As financial players, we must help people with a marginal understanding of the financial language to appreciate these terminologies, and translate them into the informal economy,” Mrs. Ellis who is an Investment Advisor to the Centre for Greater Impact Africa (CGIA) stated at the Ghana News Agency Tema Industrial News Hub Boardroom Dialogue platform.
Speaking on the topic, “Investment and Sustainable Development”, Mrs Ellis also called on players in the financial sector to explain certain financial and economic terminologies to the understanding of non-financial people.
Mrs. Ellis who is also a financial planner noted that understanding some basic information about financial investments can be a great first step in learning how to invest, “knowing your path to retirement or maximizing the rate of return on your money.
“A financial investment is an asset that you put money into with the hope that it will grow or appreciate into a larger sum of money, the idea is that you can later sell it at a higher price or earn money on it while you own it.”
She explained that investment is an asset that you put money into with the hope that it will grow or appreciate into a larger sum of money. The idea is that you can later sell it at a higher price or earn money on it while you own it.
Mrs. Ellis, therefore, called for the broadening of the scope of financial investment education to liberate citizens from poverty, adding that, “You may be looking to grow something over the next year, such as saving up for a car, or over the next 30 years, such as saving for retirement.
Mrs. Ellis, who is also a financial analyst stressed that it is important to note that there is also an economic definition of financial investments that deal with how businesses invest in products, equipment, factories, employees, and inventories.
She advised potential investors to “sit down and take an honest look at your entire financial situation – especially if you have never made a financial plan before.”
“The first step to successful investing is figuring out your goals and risk tolerance-either on your own or with the help of a financial professional.”
She explained: “If you get the facts about saving and investing and follow through with an intelligent plan, you should be able to gain financial security over the years and enjoy the benefits of managing your money.”
Mrs. Ellis stressed that all investments involve some degree of risk, and said, “if you intend to purchase securities-such as stocks, bonds, or mutual funds – it’s important that you understand before you invest that you could lose some or all of your money.”
However, she noted that the reward for taking on risk is the potential for a greater investment return, “if you have a financial goal with a long-time horizon, you are likely to make more money by carefully investing in asset categories with greater risk, like stocks or bonds, rather than restricting your investments to assets with less risk, like cash equivalents.”
On the other hand, Mrs. Ellis noted that investing solely in cash investments may be appropriate for short-term financial goals, the principal concern for individuals investing in cash equivalents is inflation risk, which is the risk that inflation will outpace and erode returns over time.
Francis Fosu Kwakye, Deputy Zonal Officer for Ashanti, Bono and Bono East regions, who stated this said improvement of standards of products of SMEs and exporting more, would help the country achieve the National Export Development Strategy (NEDS) target of 25.3 billion dollars by 2029.
He was speaking at a day’s export school organised by GEPA in Ashanti region for registered SMEs and prospective exporters in Kumasi aimed at equipping participants in the knowledge and skills needed for export.
They were taught contract negotiations, social media marketing, African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), trade agreements, skills in non-traditional exports (NTEs), among others.
Mr Kwakye said GEPA was building capacities of more exporters to expand production and add value to manufactured goods.
He said among the products that were being supported to help increase their export targets and improve the economy, were sugar, salt, cocoa products, pharmaceuticals and textiles.
Diana Bosompem, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of 360 Naturals Cosmetics, said the export school was a refreshing course to equip them with skills to enhance their exports activities.
She encouraged all SMEs to register their businesses with GEPA, to acquire the knowledge needed to improve their businesses and be export worthy.
Ghana’s cedi slumped to the world’s worst-performing currency to the dollar as wait-and-see investors continued to squeeze foreign capital into the west African country before its deal with the International Monetary Fund(IMF).
The currency of the world’s second-biggest cocoa producer depreciated 2% on Monday to 11.2625 per dollar, taking its losses this year to 45.1%, the most among 148 currencies tracked by Bloomberg.
The currency that derived its name from ‘sedie’, the local Akan language name for cowrie shell, switched position with the Sri Lankan rupee, which is now the second worst performer with a 44.7% drop to the greenback this year.
Ghana started engaging with the IMF in July but only began formal negotiations for an extended credit facility program with the lender last month.
The country is hoping to receive up to $3 billion in loans over three years under the arrangement to spur its finances and support the balance of payments.
Ghana reversed course to seek IMF help after homegrown policies, including cutting 2022 discretionary expenditure by up to 30%, failed to stem a selloff in its international bonds.
The premium investors demand over US Treasuries to hold Ghana debt has widened to 2,669 basis points.
Hajia Zuwera Mohammed Ibrahimah, the MP for Salaga South Constituency, has donated 1,200 pieces of mathematical sets to BECE candidates in the East Gonja municipality.
The external examination will start on Monday (17 October) across Ghana.
The donation is to help the students, especially those who are unable to afford mathematical sets to pass their exams.
Officials of the East Gonja education directorate received the items. The Municipal director in charge of finance and administration Braimah Mahama expressed gratitude to the MP for her kind gesture and gave assurance to the lawmaker that they will be distributed to the beneficiaries.
The MP, who had earlier made a cash donation of GHC 4,000 to the directorate to conduct mock examinations for the candidates, is also absorbing the transportation, accommodation and feeding for candidates from far places to the capital Salaga throughout the examination period.
Over 6000 youth passed out on Friday (14 October 2022) under the Youth Employment Agency’s (YEA) Community Health Worker (CHW) module across the 16 regions of Ghana.
For the very first time, the beneficiaries are going to receive a monthly allowance of GHC500, an improvement on the GHC250 that was received by their previous cohorts.
CHW is a module of the YEA that is focusing on the selection of young indigenes of the various communities, trained and posted to work in selected districts, sub-districts and communities across the country to assist community health officers, nurses and midwives in their health service delivery, particularly in the area of health promotion, disease surveillance and disease prevention.
The current CHW module, in partnership with the Ghana Health Service, is an improved version of previous ones with a new focus of improving the impact of beneficiaries in their communities, improve the wellbeing of citizens, and most importantly contribute immensely towards supporting the beneficiaries to identify their career paths.
Speaking at the national passing out ceremony in the Eastern Region on Friday, the CEO of YEA, Kofi Baah Agyepong, announced that for the first time, formal arrangements have been made with the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service to give a special dispensation to the beneficiaries during admissions into nursing training schools, premised on the requisite field and practical knowledge.
He eulogised President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for his commitment to youth employment and development, and further dedication to the sustainable development goals. He said even in the face of severe economic hardships, both locally and globally, funds to run the CHW and other modules have been made available by the government to ensure that the youth have jobs.
The visibly elated beneficiaries praised President Akufo-Addo for the opportunity, especially the 100% increment of their allowance.
Agyepong admonished the beneficiaries nationwide to be very hardworking and diligent in their work as the agency will not countenance truancy, laziness and misbehaviour during their engagement period.
Agyepong also hinted that over 15,000 personnel will also be recruited in the YEA’s Community Protection Assistants Module in the coming months.
The Eastern Regional Minister, Seth Kwame Acheampong, assisted by some MCEs praised the government for the numerous interventions geared towards creating more opportunities and alleviation or reducing the impact of the current global economic crises on Ghanaians, especially the youth.
The national event took place in the Eastern Region, hosted by the Eastern Regional Director of the Youth Employment Agency Jerry Osei-Poku and his team, whilst all other regions held
Ghana’s Minister of works and housing, Francis Asenso-Boakye, has given assurance to world leaders that the country is committed to upgrading existing slums, while preventing the emergence of new ones in the country.
He made this known while addressing participants at a high-level meeting to launch the “Global Action Plan Framework on Informal Settlements and Slums” being held in Pretoria, South Africa by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and the government of South Africa.
Asenso-Boakye said there is the urgent need for a coherent and integrated national urban and housing policies, which prioritises the implementation of national developmental plans, policies, and result-oriented programmes and projects for slums.
“Ghana has taken the bold step in the development of a draft slum upgrading and prevention strategy, following the country’s active participation in the implementation of Phases 1 and 2 of the “Participatory Slum Upgrading Programme (PSUP)” and the emergence of this Global Action Plan will help shape our strategy for effective implementation,” the minister added.
Asenso-Boakye said the importance of the Global Action Plan Framework on Informal Settlements and Slums, cannot be over-emphasised as it will consolidate, and amplify the world’s collective resolve to accelerate the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the New Urban Agenda (NUA).
The Executive director of the UN-Habitat, Maimunah Mohd Sharif, while speaking at the launch lauded various governments for their resolve towards upgrading of existing and prevention of slums.
The high-level meeting also brought together ministers, top government officials, as well as civil societies who continue to play active roles in upgrading and transforming informal settlements.
Global action plan framework
The international meeting will see to the launching of a Global Action Plan Framework to transform Informal Settlements and Slums in the Decade of Action, accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda. The International Meeting leverages the momentum of the Urban October and the preparation process for the UN-Habitat Assembly in June 2023.
The Global Action Plan Framework Initiative is anchored in the Slums and Informal Settlements Network (SiSnet) launched during Habitat III in Quito as part of the global Participatory Slum Upgrading Programme (PSUP), initiated by the Organization of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), financed by the European Commission and implemented by UN-Habitat.
The Global Action Plan Framework is informed by the co-creation of a global publication in search of solutions to the challenges of informal settlements and slums. The publication provides a snapshot of the current global status quo of slums and informal settlements, reflects on lessons learnt in the past 20 years and identifies sustainable and inclusive solutions for transforming informal settlements and slums. The Government of South Africa invites Member States to launch a resolution formulation process shaping commitments and endorsement in support of the Global Action Plan Framework.
The intention of the Global Action Plan Framework is to take coordination, collaboration, commitments and partnerships to the next level. It consolidates and amplifies efforts for accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda (NUA) in the Decade of Action. It provides a joint vision to inform actions framed by partnerships and is the basis for Member States to elevate commitments in form of a resolution to be pledged in the UN-Habitat Assembly process.
The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has been assured that the US$330 million Boankra Integrated Logistics Terminal project, popularly referred to as the Boankra Inland Port Project, which has been on the drawing board for some eighteen (18) years, will be completed by the first quarter of 2024.
The concessionaire, Ashanti Ports Services Limited, a joint venture of Afum Quality Limited of Ghana and DSS Associates of the Republic of Korea, made this known on Sunday, 16th October 2022, when President Akufo-Addo visited the site of the construction.
Covering a total land area of 413 acres, the President was informed by the Concessionaire that “we are working to deliver this job within the schedule date. By the end of 2023 eighty percent (80%) will be done, and, by the end of the first quarter 2024, we will finish the project.”
The Concessionaire was hopeful that the eastern and western railway lines will be completed on schedule, which will further improve the viability of the Boankra inland port.
The idea of the Boankra Integrated Logistics Terminal project has been in the pipeline since the days of the Government of the 2nd President of the 4th Republic, His Excellency John Agyekum Kufuor. In attempting to bring it into fruition, it encountered a number of challenges, a significant one being the exit of the NPP government in 2009.
2020 Sod-cutting
Cutting the sod for the construction of the Port on Thursday, 5th November 2020, the President explained that the Boankra Inland Port project has been initiated to provide service to importers and exporters in the middle and northern parts of the country, and also to act as a major conduit for the efficient transportation of transit traffic to and from our neighbouring landlocked countries of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
After completion of the Terminal, it will be fitted with an inland clearance depot, customs bonded and unbonded estates, commercial areas such as banks, offices and trading facilities, vehicle parking areas, light industrial areas, and an administration complex.
The Project will also offer significant employment opportunities for both skilled and unskilled labour during the two phases of construction and operation. Beyond the creation of jobs, there are other ancillary small and medium scale businesses that will be located within the enclave to support the operations of the Terminal.
“It is noteworthy that the transformation of the Ghanaian economy, from a raw material producing and exporting one, to an industrialised one, will be given a huge impetus with the coming on stream of this facility.
Government’s commitment to establishing firmly the economy of Ghana on a solid path of industrialisation, with the view to delivering a vision of self-reliance, development and prosperity for all, is unwavering,” he added.
The Concessionaire, Ashanti Ports Services Limited, a joint venture of Afum Quality Limited of Ghana and DSS Associates of the Republic of Korea, according to President Akufo-Addo, is committed to investing a total of $330 million for the realisation of this project.
Additionally, the Concessionaire is expected to design, engineer, finance, procure, construct, operate, and maintain the project, and transfer title to the Government after a thirty (30) year period.
“It is my hope and expectation that the Concessionaire will not renege on the confidence reposed in it, and will take all the necessary actions to deliver the project on schedule and on budget,” he added.
One of the success stories of the Africa economic integration agenda is the coming into force of the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
The objective of the AfCFTA is to promote trade among African countries, with the President stressing that “this will be buoyed by the presence of an effective and efficient transport system, especially as Ghana is playing host to the Secretariat”.
President Akufo-Addo was hopeful that “this project and other similar infrastructure projects, such as the development of the Keta Port, the Tema-Akosombo Railway Line, and the ongoing port expansion projects at Tema and Takoradi Ports, would make a positive contribution in ensuring that Ghana derives maximum benefits from the AfCFTA.”
President Akufo-Addo has stated that threats of voting against him or the New Patriotic Party(NPP) due to unfulfilled promises or lack of development under his tenure, especially, is a personal decision which he cannot be bothered about.
“People make those kinds of threats; they don’t frighten me. Somebody votes for you, and somebody supports you. It’s because they want you to do certain things for them. I understand that. But there is no need for people to say that if I am unable to do this and that… those are their own issues to deal with. Of course, I will do it (the road).
“But if it comes to the election and you choose to vote for the NDC, that is your own issue that is not my worry because nobody holds your thumb to vote; it is your own work. The important thing is that I understand my responsibility, and we will deal with it,” the president said during an interview on Kumasi-based Otec FM.
The president was reacting to a message sent into the radio programme by a listener who stated that residents of Kwabre and Manso would vote against the NPP if President Akufo-Addo’s government failed to construct their roads.
The message, as read by the host of the programme, Captain Koda, stated that the residents of the area, being a stronghold of the NPP, voted massively for President Akufo-Addo.
“Our plea through you (roads minister) to the Mr President is that when you look at the voting pattern, residents of Kwabre voted massively for Nana. They said I should tell the president that they will be pained if you don’t construct their roads for them in 2024; they will vote against the NPP,” the host, sending the message through the Minister for Roads and Transport, Kwasi Amoako Atta, who was in the studio with the president, said.
The Deputy National Youth Organiser of the National Democratic Congress, , has urged President Akufo-Addo to as a matter of urgency increase the allowance given to personnel of the National Service Scheme (NSS).
In a letter addressed to the president, which was sighted by GhanaWeb, Agbana said that the GH¢559 allowance has not been increased for the past 6 years despite the worsening economic conditions in the country.
He added that the fact that the Akufo-Addo government has not increased the allowance since 2016 is very worrying because every government since the inception of the scheme has increased it to help improve the livelihood of the personnel.
“Your excellency, there can be no doubt that the country is facing unprecedented economic challenges. This is evidenced by the rising inflationary pressures on basic food supplies, fuel and transport, the depreciation in the value of our local currency and the ripple effect these have on other vital sectors of the economy.
“For the young people of this country, national service personnel, in particular, there seems to be no end in sight as they reel under the pangs of the economic hardship. A monthly allowance of about US$43, being the equivalent of GH¢559, is simply unsustainable as the value of the cedi plummets against the rising cost of living.
“More than ever before, Mr. President, we must match the enthusiasm and hard work of our national service personnel with improved allowance packages to cushion them and enable them to navigate these hard economic times,” parts of the later read.
Meanwhile, the Management of NSS has announced the release of the 2022/2023 National Service postings.
A total of One hundred and fifteen thousand, two hundred and forty (115,240) prospective national service personnel enrolled to undertake their mandatory national service for the 2022/2023 service year.
A statement issued by the NSS said: “The prospective service personnel include the year 2022 eligible Ghanaian graduates from accredited tertiary institutions in the country, defaulters who submitted their applications for postings, and private registrants.”
The NSS urged prospective service personnel to log onto the scheme’s website, “to check their placements.”
The facility would accommodate justices who usually commute from Accra to Kumasi to sit on cases
