THE Managing Director of Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited (GGBL), Mr Ekwunife Okoli, has expressed the readiness of the company to do business with the Graphic Communication Group Limited (GCGL).
He said that when he led a delegation from the company to pay a business visit to the Graphic Packaging Limited (G-Pak), a subsidiary of the GCGL.
The visit was to enable the officials of GGBL to acquaint themselves with the facilities at G-Pak.
The managing director, who was apparently impressed by the facilities at G-Pak, was accompanied by the Mr Edwin Baffour, the Corporate Relations Manager, and Joanna Kinson, the Head of Procurement.
He said it was the social responsibility of his company to do business with local quality printers who would always be ready to deliver on time.
He said it was also his company’s responsibility to work with world-class suppliers for better services, durability, quality and honesty.
Mr Okoli was of the hope that G-Pak would impress its customers.
For his part, the General Manager of G-Pak, Mr Charles Antwi, assured Mr Okoli of quality services and quick delivery of labels and posters.
He expressed his profound gratitude to the management of GGBL for the visit and added that he looked forward to doing business with GGBL.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Mining
THE Ghana Chamber of Mines has appealed to the government to increase the quantum of royalties returned to mining communities from the current nine per cent to 30 per cent.
The Chief Executive Officer of the chamber, Ms Joyce Aryee, who made the appeal, expressed the hope that the royalties when increased would be tied to providing specific infrastructural projects that would stimulate development in the communities.
At the opening of the 2009 Exhibition and Networking Forum in Accra yesterday, Ms Aryee said the Chamber would continue to push for the integration of the industry into the local economy, champion the attraction of Ghanaian investors into mining and encourage the government to mainstream mining as a catalyst for development.
The three-day forum is being organised by the Ghana Chamber of Mines on the theme, “Mining and sustainable development: Meeting inter-generational challenges".
She said the mining sector in 2008 returned $2.30 billion representing 63 per cent of mineral revenue through the Bank of Ghana and commercial banks in the country.
She added that out of that, six per cent was paid to the government both at the national and district levels in the form of royalties and tax and 10 per cent to the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for electric power purchases.
She explained further that 13 per cent was also paid to local oil marketing companies for diesel fuel purchases and another four per cent of the mineral revenue was paid as taxes, levies and duties on fuel products to the government.
Ms Aryee said the mining industry had been consciously increasing the quantum of local inputs in its operations for sometime now and added that last year mineral-producing member companies of the chamber procured 47 per cent of inputs and 71 per cent of consumables locally.
She indicated that the promotion of local content in the Chamber’s operations was not just a social responsibility activity, but rather a direct response to Section 105 of the Minerals and Mining Law 2006, Act 703.
The Act states that "The holder of a mineral right shall in the conduct of mineral operations and in the purchase, construction and installation of facilities give preference to materials and products made in Ghana."
The law further states that the holder of a mineral right shall, in phases of its operations, give preference in employment to citizens to the maximum extent possible and consistent with safety and economy.
Ms Aryee emphasised that the Chamber did not condone unregulated mining in the country and would not assist persons engaged in the act.
She stated that the Chamber actively supported regulated and formalised small-scale mining sectors in the country.
She said the Chamber was currently undertaking advocacy on small-scale mining with the view of enhancing the understanding of the needs of the sector and also to inform strategy formulation to resolve challenges of the small-scale miner.
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh, said the intergenerational challenges facing the mining sector in the country needed to be addressed to ensure sustainable development of the sector.
She said in order to address these challenges there was the need for all stakeholders to help identify and address the challenges facing all operations in the sector.
She also called for the development of a comprehensive local content framework for the mining sector in order to reduce conflicts, tension and dissatisfaction.
The minister encouraged investors to enter into the production of mining implements locally and adhere to the policy of introducing local contents into the industry.
She advised mining industries to set up oil palm and bamboo plantations to replace the lost forest.
The three-day exhibition includes a "buyers and sellers", forum, which is designed to bring together mining companies as buyers of goods and services and local companies as sellers.
The Chief Executive Officer of the chamber, Ms Joyce Aryee, who made the appeal, expressed the hope that the royalties when increased would be tied to providing specific infrastructural projects that would stimulate development in the communities.
At the opening of the 2009 Exhibition and Networking Forum in Accra yesterday, Ms Aryee said the Chamber would continue to push for the integration of the industry into the local economy, champion the attraction of Ghanaian investors into mining and encourage the government to mainstream mining as a catalyst for development.
The three-day forum is being organised by the Ghana Chamber of Mines on the theme, “Mining and sustainable development: Meeting inter-generational challenges".
She said the mining sector in 2008 returned $2.30 billion representing 63 per cent of mineral revenue through the Bank of Ghana and commercial banks in the country.
She added that out of that, six per cent was paid to the government both at the national and district levels in the form of royalties and tax and 10 per cent to the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for electric power purchases.
She explained further that 13 per cent was also paid to local oil marketing companies for diesel fuel purchases and another four per cent of the mineral revenue was paid as taxes, levies and duties on fuel products to the government.
Ms Aryee said the mining industry had been consciously increasing the quantum of local inputs in its operations for sometime now and added that last year mineral-producing member companies of the chamber procured 47 per cent of inputs and 71 per cent of consumables locally.
She indicated that the promotion of local content in the Chamber’s operations was not just a social responsibility activity, but rather a direct response to Section 105 of the Minerals and Mining Law 2006, Act 703.
The Act states that "The holder of a mineral right shall in the conduct of mineral operations and in the purchase, construction and installation of facilities give preference to materials and products made in Ghana."
The law further states that the holder of a mineral right shall, in phases of its operations, give preference in employment to citizens to the maximum extent possible and consistent with safety and economy.
Ms Aryee emphasised that the Chamber did not condone unregulated mining in the country and would not assist persons engaged in the act.
She stated that the Chamber actively supported regulated and formalised small-scale mining sectors in the country.
She said the Chamber was currently undertaking advocacy on small-scale mining with the view of enhancing the understanding of the needs of the sector and also to inform strategy formulation to resolve challenges of the small-scale miner.
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh, said the intergenerational challenges facing the mining sector in the country needed to be addressed to ensure sustainable development of the sector.
She said in order to address these challenges there was the need for all stakeholders to help identify and address the challenges facing all operations in the sector.
She also called for the development of a comprehensive local content framework for the mining sector in order to reduce conflicts, tension and dissatisfaction.
The minister encouraged investors to enter into the production of mining implements locally and adhere to the policy of introducing local contents into the industry.
She advised mining industries to set up oil palm and bamboo plantations to replace the lost forest.
The three-day exhibition includes a "buyers and sellers", forum, which is designed to bring together mining companies as buyers of goods and services and local companies as sellers.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
NYEP
THE 2008 evaluation report of the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) indicates that participants in the programme receive an average monthly wage of GH¢50, which is lower than the prevailing national minimum wage of GH¢61.
The report also showed significant wage differences by gender, location, education and employment module.
For instance, male participants on the average earned eight per cent higher wages than their female counterparts in the same module.
It also indicated that the average wage for persons working in other administrative regions was significantly lower than persons working in the nation's capital, except those in the Brong Ahafo Region.
This came to light at a policy discussion workshop on youth employment in Ghana and the launch of the evaluation report of the NYEP in Accra last Tuesday.
The report was under the auspices of the Ghana Trades Union Congress Labour Research and Policy Institute, with funding from the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.
Making the presentation, the acting Head of the Labour Research and Policy Institute of the TUC, Mr Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, said persons employed in the community protection, rural education and internship modules earned higher wages, compared with what those in the waste and sanitation management module earned.
He explained that on the average persons employed in the auxiliary nursing and agri-business modules earned lower wages than those in the waste and sanitation management module.
According to the report, participants with higher levels of education were rewarded by the programme.
For example, participants with post-secondary education on the average earned 18 per cent higher wages than participants with no formal education, even when other observable factors were taken into account.
It also stated that participants had no access to benefits such as social security, medical care, sick leave and annual leave.
It further indicated that 64 per cent of participants indicated that the NYEP offered them their first wage employment.
Organisations and institutions using the services of NYEP participants include the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the Ministry of Health (MoH).
The rest are the Ghana Police Service, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Zoomlion Company Limited and municipal councils.
Launching the report, the acting Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Rashid Abdul Pelpuo, said the NYEP was an important programme which needed to be supported by Ghanaians.
He said the report would be used by the ministry as a working tool and gave the assurance that the programme would be improved upon and sustained to enable more youth to benefit from it.
The report also showed significant wage differences by gender, location, education and employment module.
For instance, male participants on the average earned eight per cent higher wages than their female counterparts in the same module.
It also indicated that the average wage for persons working in other administrative regions was significantly lower than persons working in the nation's capital, except those in the Brong Ahafo Region.
This came to light at a policy discussion workshop on youth employment in Ghana and the launch of the evaluation report of the NYEP in Accra last Tuesday.
The report was under the auspices of the Ghana Trades Union Congress Labour Research and Policy Institute, with funding from the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.
Making the presentation, the acting Head of the Labour Research and Policy Institute of the TUC, Mr Kwabena Nyarko Otoo, said persons employed in the community protection, rural education and internship modules earned higher wages, compared with what those in the waste and sanitation management module earned.
He explained that on the average persons employed in the auxiliary nursing and agri-business modules earned lower wages than those in the waste and sanitation management module.
According to the report, participants with higher levels of education were rewarded by the programme.
For example, participants with post-secondary education on the average earned 18 per cent higher wages than participants with no formal education, even when other observable factors were taken into account.
It also stated that participants had no access to benefits such as social security, medical care, sick leave and annual leave.
It further indicated that 64 per cent of participants indicated that the NYEP offered them their first wage employment.
Organisations and institutions using the services of NYEP participants include the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the Ministry of Health (MoH).
The rest are the Ghana Police Service, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Zoomlion Company Limited and municipal councils.
Launching the report, the acting Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Rashid Abdul Pelpuo, said the NYEP was an important programme which needed to be supported by Ghanaians.
He said the report would be used by the ministry as a working tool and gave the assurance that the programme would be improved upon and sustained to enable more youth to benefit from it.
Fishermen
FISHERMEN along the coast of Accra are making big catches but lack of pre-mix fuel and inadequate canoes are hampering their efforts to achieve bumper harvest this season.
Last June, the fishermen along the coast predicted bumper harvests this season and underscored the need for the authorities to address their logistic challenges.
And the signals along some fishing communities on the coast, picked by the Daily Graphic point to the realisation of that prediction as most of the fishermen are making good harvest ahead of the peak season in August-September.
Within the fishing communities of Osu Aborm, Alata, Mensah Guinea and James Town fishermen are making catches far exceeding what the fish mongers could patronise.
Some of the fishermen however said although the sings were there for a bumper catch, they were unable to take advantage of it because of the absence of enough logistics including pre-mix fuel and canoes.
The fishermen also complained about the activities of pair trawlers, saying they posed a threat to their occupation and lives.
They also complained about the use of light by some fishermen which normally disturbed their activities.
Because of the acute nature of the pre-mix situation some of the fisherman at Osu have abandoned their canoes while their counterparts at Mensah Guinea and James Town have resorted to running shifts with the few canoes they have at hand.
“Today (Thursday) is a busy fishing day but unfortunately only four canoes from Osu have gone fishing. This is because we have no fuel in our canoes. The situation is so disturbing and we don’t know what to do”, Teeto Lee, a fisherman at Osu lamented.
The Chief fisherman at Osu, Nii Gyamlogya also said “I have searched the whole of Osu for pre-mix fuel but I did not get any to buy”.
“The situation is so alarming and if immediate steps are not taken, things will get out of hand”, he added.
“There are a lot of fishes in the sea and sometimes we even get tired of catching them but lack of fuel and its high price is really affecting us, Togbo Annan the Chief Linguist added to the general lamentation.
According to them, one canoe needed as much as 16 gallons of fuel for just one trip.
At Mensah Guinea and James Town the fishermen had resorted to the laborious use of hand paddles to power their canoes because they could not get the need fuel for the use of outboard motors.
The fishermen said apart from sapping their energy, the use of paddles endangered their lives at sea, especially when they encountered high tidal waves.
Interestingly, out of about 50 fishermen at Mensah Guinea, only five had canoes of their own.
Most of them could not afford the high prices of the canoes, which costs GH¢5,630.
Normally, the fishermen went fishing for a week or at least four days but those who could not wait for their friends to return had to either join them or wait patiently for their turn.
“We all have families to cater for so the situation becomes very difficult for us especially when you do not have a canoe to use” , Amassah Kottey a fisherman said.
“Fishing is our life and so if you do not have a canoe to work with then life becomes so unbearable”, one fisherman said almost in tears.
They called on the government to help solve the problem.
Last June, the fishermen along the coast predicted bumper harvests this season and underscored the need for the authorities to address their logistic challenges.
And the signals along some fishing communities on the coast, picked by the Daily Graphic point to the realisation of that prediction as most of the fishermen are making good harvest ahead of the peak season in August-September.
Within the fishing communities of Osu Aborm, Alata, Mensah Guinea and James Town fishermen are making catches far exceeding what the fish mongers could patronise.
Some of the fishermen however said although the sings were there for a bumper catch, they were unable to take advantage of it because of the absence of enough logistics including pre-mix fuel and canoes.
The fishermen also complained about the activities of pair trawlers, saying they posed a threat to their occupation and lives.
They also complained about the use of light by some fishermen which normally disturbed their activities.
Because of the acute nature of the pre-mix situation some of the fisherman at Osu have abandoned their canoes while their counterparts at Mensah Guinea and James Town have resorted to running shifts with the few canoes they have at hand.
“Today (Thursday) is a busy fishing day but unfortunately only four canoes from Osu have gone fishing. This is because we have no fuel in our canoes. The situation is so disturbing and we don’t know what to do”, Teeto Lee, a fisherman at Osu lamented.
The Chief fisherman at Osu, Nii Gyamlogya also said “I have searched the whole of Osu for pre-mix fuel but I did not get any to buy”.
“The situation is so alarming and if immediate steps are not taken, things will get out of hand”, he added.
“There are a lot of fishes in the sea and sometimes we even get tired of catching them but lack of fuel and its high price is really affecting us, Togbo Annan the Chief Linguist added to the general lamentation.
According to them, one canoe needed as much as 16 gallons of fuel for just one trip.
At Mensah Guinea and James Town the fishermen had resorted to the laborious use of hand paddles to power their canoes because they could not get the need fuel for the use of outboard motors.
The fishermen said apart from sapping their energy, the use of paddles endangered their lives at sea, especially when they encountered high tidal waves.
Interestingly, out of about 50 fishermen at Mensah Guinea, only five had canoes of their own.
Most of them could not afford the high prices of the canoes, which costs GH¢5,630.
Normally, the fishermen went fishing for a week or at least four days but those who could not wait for their friends to return had to either join them or wait patiently for their turn.
“We all have families to cater for so the situation becomes very difficult for us especially when you do not have a canoe to use” , Amassah Kottey a fisherman said.
“Fishing is our life and so if you do not have a canoe to work with then life becomes so unbearable”, one fisherman said almost in tears.
They called on the government to help solve the problem.
(Ga Mantse advises youth against over-indulgence in alcohol)
The Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Tawiah III, has advised the youth to drink responsibly especially during the celebration of this year’s Homowo festival.
He said the excessive intake of alcohol could be harmful to their health and the development of their future.
The Ga Mantse gave the advice when the management of Accra Brewery Limited (ABL) presented 60 cartons of assorted drinks produced by their company and an undisclosed amount of money to the Ga Traditional Council for the celebration of this year’s Homowo festival.
The items were received on behalf of the Ga Mantse by Nii Okaija III at the Mantse’s palace at North Kaneshie in Accra yesterday.
He advised the youth to drink quality beverages and commended ABL for producing quality drinks.
Presenting the items, the Managing Director of ABL, Mr Greg Metcalf, said the donation was in fulfilment of the company’s pledge to support the Ga Traditional Council to organise a successful festival this year.
He wished the Ga Traditional Council a successful celebration and expressed his hope that the items would be of great benefit to them.
The Gbese Mantse, Nii Okaija III, who received the items on behalf of the Ga Mantse expressed his appreciation to the ABL and called on other organisations to emulate the gesture.
He said the excessive intake of alcohol could be harmful to their health and the development of their future.
The Ga Mantse gave the advice when the management of Accra Brewery Limited (ABL) presented 60 cartons of assorted drinks produced by their company and an undisclosed amount of money to the Ga Traditional Council for the celebration of this year’s Homowo festival.
The items were received on behalf of the Ga Mantse by Nii Okaija III at the Mantse’s palace at North Kaneshie in Accra yesterday.
He advised the youth to drink quality beverages and commended ABL for producing quality drinks.
Presenting the items, the Managing Director of ABL, Mr Greg Metcalf, said the donation was in fulfilment of the company’s pledge to support the Ga Traditional Council to organise a successful festival this year.
He wished the Ga Traditional Council a successful celebration and expressed his hope that the items would be of great benefit to them.
The Gbese Mantse, Nii Okaija III, who received the items on behalf of the Ga Mantse expressed his appreciation to the ABL and called on other organisations to emulate the gesture.
Accra Metro Roads Begins Desilting Drains
The Accra Metro Road Department has begun desilting drainage systems on the Kaneshie Mallam Road and the Obetsebi-Lamptey roundabout as part of efforts to prevent the perennial floods in the area.
The exercise is also to allow the free flow of water through the drains that are usually choked with filth anytime it rained.
The Kaneshie First Light and the Obetsebe-Lamptey-Kaneshie Odorkor road is always rendered unmotorable anytime it rains.
This is because some unscrupulous persons have removed the iron gratings that covered the drainage system on the roads which allowed foreign materials to choke the gutters.
An official of the Accra Metro Road Department explained to the Daily Graphic last Thursday that the iron gratings served as a sieve or filter which prevented silt and garbage from entering the drains.
He cautioned the general public particularly residents of Kaneshie to be vigilant and report persons who steal the iron gratings to the appropriate authorities.
He also appealed to them to co-operate with the department during the exercise.
Picture: Some workers of the Accra Metro Department desilting the drains during the exercise.
The exercise is also to allow the free flow of water through the drains that are usually choked with filth anytime it rained.
The Kaneshie First Light and the Obetsebe-Lamptey-Kaneshie Odorkor road is always rendered unmotorable anytime it rains.
This is because some unscrupulous persons have removed the iron gratings that covered the drainage system on the roads which allowed foreign materials to choke the gutters.
An official of the Accra Metro Road Department explained to the Daily Graphic last Thursday that the iron gratings served as a sieve or filter which prevented silt and garbage from entering the drains.
He cautioned the general public particularly residents of Kaneshie to be vigilant and report persons who steal the iron gratings to the appropriate authorities.
He also appealed to them to co-operate with the department during the exercise.
Picture: Some workers of the Accra Metro Department desilting the drains during the exercise.
Legon receives Chinese language textbooks
Story: Leticia Ohene-Asiedu & Martha Asantewaa Boateng
THE Chinese Embassy has presented 2,000 Chinese textbooks and reading materials to the University of Ghana, Legon.
Making the presentation, the acting Chinese Charge d’Affairs, Mr Wang Lushan, said the books were to assist Ghanaian students studying the Chinese language at the university.
The items included reading books in English and Chinese, video tapes and DVDs.
He explained that currently 30 Ghanaian students had completed their training programme in Chinese, adding that last year four students from the University of Ghana were given scholarships by the Chinese Embassy to study in China.
He said the embassy had provided the University of Ghana with two instructors and four volunteers to help teach the language.
He said four volunteers had also been sent to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology to teach the language.
Mr Lushan said a degree course would begin in August this year for beginners.
He was of the hope that the materials would enhance their studies.
Receiving the materials, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ghana, Professor E.K. Osam, expressed the hope that the university would become a centre where students from the West African sub-region would come to learn the Chinese language.
THE Chinese Embassy has presented 2,000 Chinese textbooks and reading materials to the University of Ghana, Legon.
Making the presentation, the acting Chinese Charge d’Affairs, Mr Wang Lushan, said the books were to assist Ghanaian students studying the Chinese language at the university.
The items included reading books in English and Chinese, video tapes and DVDs.
He explained that currently 30 Ghanaian students had completed their training programme in Chinese, adding that last year four students from the University of Ghana were given scholarships by the Chinese Embassy to study in China.
He said the embassy had provided the University of Ghana with two instructors and four volunteers to help teach the language.
He said four volunteers had also been sent to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology to teach the language.
Mr Lushan said a degree course would begin in August this year for beginners.
He was of the hope that the materials would enhance their studies.
Receiving the materials, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ghana, Professor E.K. Osam, expressed the hope that the university would become a centre where students from the West African sub-region would come to learn the Chinese language.
VRA
THE Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Ms Akua Sena Dansua, has called on women to develop strategies to conserve energy and protect the environment from depletion and pollution.
She said majority of the country’s population were women who lived in the rural areas where activities such as deforestation, bush burning and farming were common.
Ms Dansua made the call in an address at the 10th anniversary of the Volta River Authority (VRA) Ladies Association in Accra yesterday.
The theme for the occasion was, “Energy conservation — the role of the woman”.
She said if women were educated on the effects of their activities on the environment then they would be ready to take remedial measures such as reforestation, reducing charcoal burning and monitoring the use of energy at home and in public.
She said it was appropriate to educate women on the productive use of electricity to assist income generation and improve energy technologies.
Ms Dansua said the association provided a platform for women to effectively discuss critical matters that related to the empowerment of women and children.
She said issues on child prostitution, girls’ reproductive health and human and child trafficking had become very topical, adding, “We need to go back to the basics of responsible parenting if we are to prevent some of these problems.”
She said advocacy on responsible parenting should be vigorously pursued, especially now that daily reports pointed to lack of parental supervision and responsibility in homes.
The Deputy Chief Executive of the VRA, Ms Alexander Totoe, said Ghanaian women were the primary consumers of domestic energy and the primary suppliers in the rural setting, often in the form of biofuels such as firewood and agricultural residue.
She indicated that surveys conducted around the world showed that women generally were concerned about the effects of air pollution on health and its impact on the health of their children.
She said women had a tremendous opportunity to help solve the defining issue and, therefore, called on them to cultivate the habit of conserving energy.
The President of the association, Mrs Tandy Chothia, also said the objective of the association was to unite all female employees of the authority and provide a free medium for communicating views on matters affecting their welfare and interests to management.
She commended the association for adopting a children’s ward at the government hospital in Akuse and also taking responsibility for the payment of the fees for some girls at the Mpakadan L/A primary School in Akosombo and other schools in the resettlement areas.
She said majority of the country’s population were women who lived in the rural areas where activities such as deforestation, bush burning and farming were common.
Ms Dansua made the call in an address at the 10th anniversary of the Volta River Authority (VRA) Ladies Association in Accra yesterday.
The theme for the occasion was, “Energy conservation — the role of the woman”.
She said if women were educated on the effects of their activities on the environment then they would be ready to take remedial measures such as reforestation, reducing charcoal burning and monitoring the use of energy at home and in public.
She said it was appropriate to educate women on the productive use of electricity to assist income generation and improve energy technologies.
Ms Dansua said the association provided a platform for women to effectively discuss critical matters that related to the empowerment of women and children.
She said issues on child prostitution, girls’ reproductive health and human and child trafficking had become very topical, adding, “We need to go back to the basics of responsible parenting if we are to prevent some of these problems.”
She said advocacy on responsible parenting should be vigorously pursued, especially now that daily reports pointed to lack of parental supervision and responsibility in homes.
The Deputy Chief Executive of the VRA, Ms Alexander Totoe, said Ghanaian women were the primary consumers of domestic energy and the primary suppliers in the rural setting, often in the form of biofuels such as firewood and agricultural residue.
She indicated that surveys conducted around the world showed that women generally were concerned about the effects of air pollution on health and its impact on the health of their children.
She said women had a tremendous opportunity to help solve the defining issue and, therefore, called on them to cultivate the habit of conserving energy.
The President of the association, Mrs Tandy Chothia, also said the objective of the association was to unite all female employees of the authority and provide a free medium for communicating views on matters affecting their welfare and interests to management.
She commended the association for adopting a children’s ward at the government hospital in Akuse and also taking responsibility for the payment of the fees for some girls at the Mpakadan L/A primary School in Akosombo and other schools in the resettlement areas.
Stratcomm ‘Read and Write’ programme ends
The Chief Executive Officer of Strategic Communications Africa Limited (Stratcomm), Ms Esther Cobbah, has urged parents and teachers to encourage pupils to cultivate the habit of reading and writing to enable them to develop strong communication skills.
She said the ability of pupils to gain mastery in reading and writing was to help them to excel in their educational endeavours.
Ms Cobbah was speaking at the closing ceremony of the read and write programme organised by Stratcomm for the Kanda Cluster of Schools.
The programme was held to contribute to the reading, writing and communication skills of Junior High School (JHS) students.
The four-week programme, dubbed “Read better, write better and communicate better”, formed part of the year’s activities to commemorate Stratcomm Africa’s 15th anniversary.
The programme, which fell under the company’s corporate social responsibility programme, was part of the organisation’s efforts to raise the bar in communications, both in Ghana and on the African continent.
She said the ability to read and write was relevant to the world of academics and the working world, which the students would enter after school.
Ms Cobbah said reading and writing were important for fostering understanding through information sharing and stressed the need for Ghanaians to possess a literate populace as this would help the country develop and ease the task of disseminating official information related to national policies.
She assured the schoolchildren and parents that the first phase of the exercise would be evaluated and the feedback would be used to design and implement a second phase.
The Circuit Supervisor, Ms Victoria Dwamena, appealed for a library and advised the students to make good use of what they had learnt.
Some of the students who participated in the reading and writing exercise shared their experiences, affirming the impact it had on them and their eagerness for another session of the programme.
Prizes and certificates were awarded to each school for participating in the programme.
She said the ability of pupils to gain mastery in reading and writing was to help them to excel in their educational endeavours.
Ms Cobbah was speaking at the closing ceremony of the read and write programme organised by Stratcomm for the Kanda Cluster of Schools.
The programme was held to contribute to the reading, writing and communication skills of Junior High School (JHS) students.
The four-week programme, dubbed “Read better, write better and communicate better”, formed part of the year’s activities to commemorate Stratcomm Africa’s 15th anniversary.
The programme, which fell under the company’s corporate social responsibility programme, was part of the organisation’s efforts to raise the bar in communications, both in Ghana and on the African continent.
She said the ability to read and write was relevant to the world of academics and the working world, which the students would enter after school.
Ms Cobbah said reading and writing were important for fostering understanding through information sharing and stressed the need for Ghanaians to possess a literate populace as this would help the country develop and ease the task of disseminating official information related to national policies.
She assured the schoolchildren and parents that the first phase of the exercise would be evaluated and the feedback would be used to design and implement a second phase.
The Circuit Supervisor, Ms Victoria Dwamena, appealed for a library and advised the students to make good use of what they had learnt.
Some of the students who participated in the reading and writing exercise shared their experiences, affirming the impact it had on them and their eagerness for another session of the programme.
Prizes and certificates were awarded to each school for participating in the programme.
HFC Bank opens Post Office Branch
Story: Jennifer Dornoo & Leticia Ohene-Asiedu
THE HFC Bank Ghana Ltd has opened its 19th branch at the Post Office Square in Accra with a promise to provide customers with the bank’s best and unique array of widely diversified universal banking services.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony at Post Office Square yesterday, the Executive Director of the bank, Mr Akwete Akita said it had always been the bank’s desire to get closer to its customers in order to increase its delivery channel and enhance the convenience of customers.
He said the banks financial services which made them distinguished in the banking industry ranged from traditional commercial banking through mortgage banking, investment banking, real estate services to microfinance banking.
He said the bank would provide a one-stop shop financial services solutions for its numerous customers around the post office square and its neighbouring communities.
A new microfinance service known as the Boafo microfinance services was also introduced to meet the needs of all clients within the community.
The Managing Director of the Boafo Microfinance Services, Dr Joseph K. Adjei said the HFC-Boafo was a subsidairy of the HFC Bank and explained that it was the microfinace arm of the bank which was established to implement and manage the bank's retail micro-finance loan portfolio.
He said the mission of the HFC-Boafo was to service the credit demands of low and moderate income Ghanaian households to maximise their options in their pursuit of shelter, business, education and other opportunities.
He enjoined all businesses and individulas in and around the Post Office Square to come and experience the banks unique services.
THE HFC Bank Ghana Ltd has opened its 19th branch at the Post Office Square in Accra with a promise to provide customers with the bank’s best and unique array of widely diversified universal banking services.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony at Post Office Square yesterday, the Executive Director of the bank, Mr Akwete Akita said it had always been the bank’s desire to get closer to its customers in order to increase its delivery channel and enhance the convenience of customers.
He said the banks financial services which made them distinguished in the banking industry ranged from traditional commercial banking through mortgage banking, investment banking, real estate services to microfinance banking.
He said the bank would provide a one-stop shop financial services solutions for its numerous customers around the post office square and its neighbouring communities.
A new microfinance service known as the Boafo microfinance services was also introduced to meet the needs of all clients within the community.
The Managing Director of the Boafo Microfinance Services, Dr Joseph K. Adjei said the HFC-Boafo was a subsidairy of the HFC Bank and explained that it was the microfinace arm of the bank which was established to implement and manage the bank's retail micro-finance loan portfolio.
He said the mission of the HFC-Boafo was to service the credit demands of low and moderate income Ghanaian households to maximise their options in their pursuit of shelter, business, education and other opportunities.
He enjoined all businesses and individulas in and around the Post Office Square to come and experience the banks unique services.
Fish
IMPORTERS of fish into the country have maintained that if local fishermen are supported and encouraged to produce adequate fish to meet local demand, there was no need for fish to be imported.
They also mentioned packaging as a key element to consider in the desire to create demand for local fish.
In separate interviews in Accra this week, the fish importers were unanimous that they had resorted to importing fish to supplement national dietary requirement because local fishermen were unable to meet their demands.
Visits to cold stores in Accra by the Daily Graphic also revealed that even the imported fish was in short supply, causing a sharp decline of many cold store businesses.
The fish importers said they had observed that consumers preferred imported fish to local fish because the former was better in terms of packaging, convenience and availability.
Unlike the local fishes which are mostly sold in pans by the roadside and at very expensive prices, the imported ones are mostly packaged in cartons and less expensive.
Whereas 20kg of imported fish (one carton) costs GH¢82, the local fishermen sell a small size of redfish for GH¢4 and one cassava fish for GH¢10.
“We are ready to buy from whoever is ready to sell to us but the problem is that our local fishermen are not ready for competition”, Mr Kennedy Owusu, Sales Manager of Francopat Coldstore, said.
He said most fish consumers preferred assorted fishes to herrings and salmon, which were mostly caught by local fishermen.
“Herrings is no business to the coldstore operator but the local trader”, he added.
He also explained that most fish consumers were mostly attracted by the packaging and handling of the fish by fish sellers.
Mr Owusu said if the local fishermen were prepared to repackage themselves to meet the demand on the market then fish importers and consumers were ready to buy from them.
“Currently we have no fish to sell but as a business man I cannot spend the whole day at the sea waiting for a fisherman to return with fish for me to buy. It is because of the convenience that is why we buy the imported ones; it is already packaged, easy to carry and comes in very large quantities”, he said.
An official at the Beyeeman Freezing Company Limited also said most fish importers preferred imported fish because it was less expensive as compared to local fish.
Some fish sellers at the Kaneshie Market expressed concern about the shortage of imported fish, explaining that the shortage had caused a decline in their daily sales.
They also mentioned packaging as a key element to consider in the desire to create demand for local fish.
In separate interviews in Accra this week, the fish importers were unanimous that they had resorted to importing fish to supplement national dietary requirement because local fishermen were unable to meet their demands.
Visits to cold stores in Accra by the Daily Graphic also revealed that even the imported fish was in short supply, causing a sharp decline of many cold store businesses.
The fish importers said they had observed that consumers preferred imported fish to local fish because the former was better in terms of packaging, convenience and availability.
Unlike the local fishes which are mostly sold in pans by the roadside and at very expensive prices, the imported ones are mostly packaged in cartons and less expensive.
Whereas 20kg of imported fish (one carton) costs GH¢82, the local fishermen sell a small size of redfish for GH¢4 and one cassava fish for GH¢10.
“We are ready to buy from whoever is ready to sell to us but the problem is that our local fishermen are not ready for competition”, Mr Kennedy Owusu, Sales Manager of Francopat Coldstore, said.
He said most fish consumers preferred assorted fishes to herrings and salmon, which were mostly caught by local fishermen.
“Herrings is no business to the coldstore operator but the local trader”, he added.
He also explained that most fish consumers were mostly attracted by the packaging and handling of the fish by fish sellers.
Mr Owusu said if the local fishermen were prepared to repackage themselves to meet the demand on the market then fish importers and consumers were ready to buy from them.
“Currently we have no fish to sell but as a business man I cannot spend the whole day at the sea waiting for a fisherman to return with fish for me to buy. It is because of the convenience that is why we buy the imported ones; it is already packaged, easy to carry and comes in very large quantities”, he said.
An official at the Beyeeman Freezing Company Limited also said most fish importers preferred imported fish because it was less expensive as compared to local fish.
Some fish sellers at the Kaneshie Market expressed concern about the shortage of imported fish, explaining that the shortage had caused a decline in their daily sales.
Rain rips off roof of Tettegu primary school.
Pupils of the Tettegu D/A 1 primary school at Ogblogo, Weija have been compelled to study in classrooms without roofs over their heads.
The reason: a heavy downpour which occurred in Accra last June ripped off the roof of the school but efforts are yet to be made to restore roofing.
In the circumstance, the school has been pushed against the wall to resume academic work to prevent loss of precious academic time.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra on Tuesday, the Headmaster, Mr S.T. Ablade, said the situation had affected academic work in the school, adding that the situation had caused a decline in the enrolment and attendance of both pupils and teachers.
He explained that pupils in the unroofed classrooms either had to relocate to other classrooms or end lessons for the day whenever it rained.
Mr Ablade also expressed his dissatisfaction at the manner in which residents had turned the classrooms into places of convenience and a refuse dump because the classrooms had no doors and windows.
He said part of the roofs were ripped off in 2004 after a heavy downpour but unfortunately the school’s PTA did not have adequate resources to renovate it.
He said as a result of the deplorable situation teachers had refused posting to the school.
He said the school had also been turned into a playground for residents because it was not fenced and added that “some boys in the neighbourhood have turned our school park into a football park and they come here to play football whenever they want”.
“Whenever they come here to play football the pupils do not pay attention in class but rather concentrate on what is being done outside.”
Mr Ablade appealed to the government and the general public to support the school with the needed facilities to enhance academic work.
*Caption: The classroom block with the roofs ripped-off.
The reason: a heavy downpour which occurred in Accra last June ripped off the roof of the school but efforts are yet to be made to restore roofing.
In the circumstance, the school has been pushed against the wall to resume academic work to prevent loss of precious academic time.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra on Tuesday, the Headmaster, Mr S.T. Ablade, said the situation had affected academic work in the school, adding that the situation had caused a decline in the enrolment and attendance of both pupils and teachers.
He explained that pupils in the unroofed classrooms either had to relocate to other classrooms or end lessons for the day whenever it rained.
Mr Ablade also expressed his dissatisfaction at the manner in which residents had turned the classrooms into places of convenience and a refuse dump because the classrooms had no doors and windows.
He said part of the roofs were ripped off in 2004 after a heavy downpour but unfortunately the school’s PTA did not have adequate resources to renovate it.
He said as a result of the deplorable situation teachers had refused posting to the school.
He said the school had also been turned into a playground for residents because it was not fenced and added that “some boys in the neighbourhood have turned our school park into a football park and they come here to play football whenever they want”.
“Whenever they come here to play football the pupils do not pay attention in class but rather concentrate on what is being done outside.”
Mr Ablade appealed to the government and the general public to support the school with the needed facilities to enhance academic work.
*Caption: The classroom block with the roofs ripped-off.
Friday, July 10, 2009
MOWAC
THE Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC) has revived the celebration of Women’s Week as part of efforts by the government to create an awareness on women’s rights and encourage women’s participation in decision-making procedures and relevant activities, crucial to women’s welfare.
Activities highlighting this year’s event, include a float through the principal streets of Accra, which was organised on April 17, a press conference, clean-up exercises in the regions and districts, the launch of the Annie Jiaggie Memorial lectures and a forum to climax the programme today (Tuesday).
In line with the requirement which emanated from the United Nations General Assembly in 1975, during which the UN designated that year as International Women's Year, and the following decade devoted to sustain National, Regional and International efforts to implement the World Plan of Action, which emanated from the UN Conference on Women in Mexico, Ghana established the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD), in 1975.
Since then, Women's Week had been marked in Ghana by week-long activities in every April to commemorate the establishment of the women's machinery, until 2001, when it was stopped.
Speaking at a press conference in Accra on Monday, the Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Ms Akua Sena Dansua, called on men to live up to their parental responsibility by supporting their spouses in the upbringing of the children.
She attributed the increasing cases of anti-social vices involving children to parental irresponsibility particularly on the part of men.
She said if men lived up to their obligations in the families, child streetism coupled with child prostitution could be abated.
Ms Dansua said this at a press conference in Accra yesterday to commemorate this year’s women’s week celebration and also used the opportunity to launch the “Annie Jiagge Memorial Lectures”.
She said most men tended to idle about when they realised that their wives were industrious and hardworking.
She therefore appealed to men to support such women in the upbringing of their children.
Explaining the “Annie Jiagge Lecture”, Ms Dansua described the late Supreme Court Judge as an instrumentalist who helped in setting up the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD) in the country.
She said the late Justice also set the stage for United Nations Treaties and Conventions which spearheaded the empowerment of women.
Ms Sena Dansua said world conferences on women had contributed to the progressive strengthening of the legal, economic , social and political spheres and roles of African women.
According to her, the African Union General Assembly, following up proposals made at an extraordinary meeting of ministers of gender and women affairs in December 2008 IN Maseru, Lesotho declared “2010-2020” as an African Women’s Decade.
She said the African Women’s Decade offered the opportunity to link up with women at the grass-roots and also focus on the implementation of all, protocols, treaties and conventions adopted by member states.
She said as part of preparations towards the African Women’s Decade, meetings would be held for ministers of gender machineries in Gambia in the first week of May and November this year, to finalise frameworks and propose strategies, including benchmarks and mechanisms to ensure the enforcement of decisions taken regarding the decade.
Ms Dansua said these developments would require the development of adequate data and indicators and the building of capacities of national and women and gender machineries.
In an open forum after the conference the minister gave the press the opportunity to ask questions concerning women and children.
Responding to questions posed by some journalists during the press conference, the minister said her ministry would work relentlessly with child-related organisations, departments and agencies to address the increasing rate of child trafficking and child prostitution in the country.
Activities highlighting this year’s event, include a float through the principal streets of Accra, which was organised on April 17, a press conference, clean-up exercises in the regions and districts, the launch of the Annie Jiaggie Memorial lectures and a forum to climax the programme today (Tuesday).
In line with the requirement which emanated from the United Nations General Assembly in 1975, during which the UN designated that year as International Women's Year, and the following decade devoted to sustain National, Regional and International efforts to implement the World Plan of Action, which emanated from the UN Conference on Women in Mexico, Ghana established the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD), in 1975.
Since then, Women's Week had been marked in Ghana by week-long activities in every April to commemorate the establishment of the women's machinery, until 2001, when it was stopped.
Speaking at a press conference in Accra on Monday, the Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Ms Akua Sena Dansua, called on men to live up to their parental responsibility by supporting their spouses in the upbringing of the children.
She attributed the increasing cases of anti-social vices involving children to parental irresponsibility particularly on the part of men.
She said if men lived up to their obligations in the families, child streetism coupled with child prostitution could be abated.
Ms Dansua said this at a press conference in Accra yesterday to commemorate this year’s women’s week celebration and also used the opportunity to launch the “Annie Jiagge Memorial Lectures”.
She said most men tended to idle about when they realised that their wives were industrious and hardworking.
She therefore appealed to men to support such women in the upbringing of their children.
Explaining the “Annie Jiagge Lecture”, Ms Dansua described the late Supreme Court Judge as an instrumentalist who helped in setting up the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD) in the country.
She said the late Justice also set the stage for United Nations Treaties and Conventions which spearheaded the empowerment of women.
Ms Sena Dansua said world conferences on women had contributed to the progressive strengthening of the legal, economic , social and political spheres and roles of African women.
According to her, the African Union General Assembly, following up proposals made at an extraordinary meeting of ministers of gender and women affairs in December 2008 IN Maseru, Lesotho declared “2010-2020” as an African Women’s Decade.
She said the African Women’s Decade offered the opportunity to link up with women at the grass-roots and also focus on the implementation of all, protocols, treaties and conventions adopted by member states.
She said as part of preparations towards the African Women’s Decade, meetings would be held for ministers of gender machineries in Gambia in the first week of May and November this year, to finalise frameworks and propose strategies, including benchmarks and mechanisms to ensure the enforcement of decisions taken regarding the decade.
Ms Dansua said these developments would require the development of adequate data and indicators and the building of capacities of national and women and gender machineries.
In an open forum after the conference the minister gave the press the opportunity to ask questions concerning women and children.
Responding to questions posed by some journalists during the press conference, the minister said her ministry would work relentlessly with child-related organisations, departments and agencies to address the increasing rate of child trafficking and child prostitution in the country.
Twins Foundation calls on Chief Imam
THE Ghana Twins Foundation has called on the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Osman Nuhu Sharubutu, to lead in the campaign against exploitation of twins as instruments for begging in the country.
A delegation from the foundation which made the appeal during a courtesy call on the Chief Imam in Accra said there was an increase in the spate of twin beggars who were mostly from the Moslem community.
The courtesy call, led by Ms Zeena Abou-Jaoude, the President of the foundation, was intended to draw the Chief Imam's attention to the phenomenon of begging by twins and elicit his support to ameliorate the canker.
Ms Abou-Jaoude said the practice by some parents using their twins to beg for alms should be perceived as a national concern, since begging exposed the children to dangers and deprived them of the appropriate shelter, health care and basic education.
She said the practice had deprived most vulnerable children the opportunity to develop their potential and contribute to national development.
"Most of these women, who migrated from northern Ghana, are Moslems who have been made by soothsayers to believe that they should use their twins to beg for alms or else their children will die. In order to save the lives of these children, these women would have to resort to begging on the streets for money,” she said.
Ms Abou-Jaoude said as a national icon and an authority in the Islam, the Chief Imam's voice would help to draw the attention of the government and other stakeholders to the plight of such deprived children.
On behalf of the Chief Imam, the Spokesperson, Mr M.G. Mohammed, said the exploitation of children, particularly twins, was a problem which needed urgent attention.
He said measures were being put in place by the Muslim Council to set up a foundation to cater for the youth who needed quality education.
He commended the foundation for the initiative and assured them of the council's commitment to support the campaign.
Picture: The Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, M.G. Mohammed (middle). On his left is the President of the Ghana Twins Foundation, Ms Zeena Abou-Jaoude, and her twin sister, Ms Maya Abou-Jaoude, in a group picture with some other members of the foundation.
Picture saved on machine 139 as Twins.
A delegation from the foundation which made the appeal during a courtesy call on the Chief Imam in Accra said there was an increase in the spate of twin beggars who were mostly from the Moslem community.
The courtesy call, led by Ms Zeena Abou-Jaoude, the President of the foundation, was intended to draw the Chief Imam's attention to the phenomenon of begging by twins and elicit his support to ameliorate the canker.
Ms Abou-Jaoude said the practice by some parents using their twins to beg for alms should be perceived as a national concern, since begging exposed the children to dangers and deprived them of the appropriate shelter, health care and basic education.
She said the practice had deprived most vulnerable children the opportunity to develop their potential and contribute to national development.
"Most of these women, who migrated from northern Ghana, are Moslems who have been made by soothsayers to believe that they should use their twins to beg for alms or else their children will die. In order to save the lives of these children, these women would have to resort to begging on the streets for money,” she said.
Ms Abou-Jaoude said as a national icon and an authority in the Islam, the Chief Imam's voice would help to draw the attention of the government and other stakeholders to the plight of such deprived children.
On behalf of the Chief Imam, the Spokesperson, Mr M.G. Mohammed, said the exploitation of children, particularly twins, was a problem which needed urgent attention.
He said measures were being put in place by the Muslim Council to set up a foundation to cater for the youth who needed quality education.
He commended the foundation for the initiative and assured them of the council's commitment to support the campaign.
Picture: The Spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, M.G. Mohammed (middle). On his left is the President of the Ghana Twins Foundation, Ms Zeena Abou-Jaoude, and her twin sister, Ms Maya Abou-Jaoude, in a group picture with some other members of the foundation.
Picture saved on machine 139 as Twins.
HIV prevalence rate drops
THE national prevalence rate of HIV has dropped from 1.9 per cent to 1.7 per cent, the sentinel survey report for 2008 has revealed.
This is the second consecutive drop in the HIV prevalence. The only time the HIV prevalence has dropped consecutively was in 2004 and 2005.
The Programme Manager of the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP), Dr Nii Akwei Addo, made this known at the dissemination of the 2008 HIV sentinel survey report in Accra last Tuesday.
The Eastern Region is still the region with the highest prevalence, with 4.2 per cent, while the Northern Region has the lowest rate of 1.1 per cent.
All the regions, with the exception of the Eastern Region, recorded a decrease in the prevalence from the 2007 rates.
The Upper West Region recorded the highest decline from 3.3 per cent in 2007 to 1.6 per cent in 2008, representing a decrease of 52 per cent.
The Volta, Western and Upper East regions witnessed consistent decline in their prevalence since 2006.
According to the report, the prevalence in 2008 ranged from 0.0 per cent in North Tongu, which is a rural site, to 8.0 per cent in Agomanya, which is an urban site.
The report stated that only Agomanya had prevalence above five per cent, the threshold at which the pandemic is considered to have gained epidemic proportion.
The report again indicated that there were no urban sites with prevalence below one per cent. On the other hand, there were three rural sites with prevalence below one per cent as observed in 2007.
It again stated that the median HIV prevalence for 2008 was 2.2 per cent
However, HIV prevalence in urban areas was higher than it was in the rural areas. The mean HIV prevalence of urban communities was 2.6 per cent compared to 2.3 per cent in rural areas.
The highest prevalence was recorded between ages 25 and 29, which represented 3.0 per cent and the least, representing 1.2 per cent, was between ages 15 and 19.
Prevalence among the youth between ages 15 and 24, which was used as a maker for new infections, was 1.9 per cent.
The national median HIV prevalence which increased in 2005 after declining for two consecutive years had declined in 2008 to 2.2 per cent, a level below what was observed in 2000 and the lowest in nine years.
Prior to 2004, there had been a steady increase from 2.3 per cent in 2000 to 3.6 per cent in 2003. The 2008 report represented a 15.4 per cent decline in prevalence from 2007.
The median syphilis prevalence for 2008 was 3.8 per cent. Syphilis stereotype had, therefore, decreased from last years 5.1 per cent.
Central Region maintained its position as the region with the highest syphilis prevalence, with an increase in rate from 18.6 per cent to 20.5 per cent.
The region with the lowest syphilis prevalence was the Northern Region, following a decline prevalence from 2.1 per cent to 1.7 per cent.
Syphilis prevalence ranged from zero per cent in North Tongu and Builsa to 30.5 per cent in Asikuma Odoben Brakwa, all rural sites.
Seventeen sites, including Asikuma Odoben Brakwa recorded an increase from 2007 prevalence; four sites, namely Mampong, Navrongo, Wenchi and North Tongu maintained the same level of prevalence and the remaining 19 recorded a decrease.
North Tongu maintained its zero prevalence for the fourth time since 2005, with Cape Coast, Assin Fosu, Sefwi Asafo and Asikuma Odoben Brakwa remaining in the top five highest prevalence since 2005.
Dr Akwei Addo said HIV prevalence among STI clients ???? almost doubled from 5.7 per cent to 10.5 per cent in 2008 due to increases in both sites.
He said the Adabraka STI site recorded a prevalence of 15 per cent, while Kumasi STI site recorded 6.5 per cent.
He said the prevalence among females was still higher compared to males who had 11.8 per cent and 7.8 per cent respectively.
He said the highest prevalence among females was between ages 35 and 39, representing 15.9 per cent.
The Minister of Health, Dr Sipa-Adjah Yankey, however, indicated that the HIV prevalence among ANC clients which increased in 2006 after declining in 2004 and 2005 had declined again in 2008, following last year’s decline to its lowest in nine years.
He believed that this year’s reduction had established Ghana’s epidemic as stable with an inclination to retract.
He said the need to sustain the prevention education targeted at the youth and other groups held good prospects for contributing to further decline in the overall prevalence.
“A single case of HIV anywhere is HIV everywhere. We must, therefore, not be complacent. Indeed, the trend curve shown reveals a similar downward trend in previous years. We as a people did not capitalise on the initial decline to strengthen efforts at further reduction, only to see an increase in the prevalence subsequently”.
“We have not won the race yet, and will only win if we, at least, keep the current tempo at responding to the epidemic or preferably, increase efforts at reducing new infections in the country. The fact that syphilis is in the country is worrying and must be of concern to all of us,” he said.
This is the second consecutive drop in the HIV prevalence. The only time the HIV prevalence has dropped consecutively was in 2004 and 2005.
The Programme Manager of the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP), Dr Nii Akwei Addo, made this known at the dissemination of the 2008 HIV sentinel survey report in Accra last Tuesday.
The Eastern Region is still the region with the highest prevalence, with 4.2 per cent, while the Northern Region has the lowest rate of 1.1 per cent.
All the regions, with the exception of the Eastern Region, recorded a decrease in the prevalence from the 2007 rates.
The Upper West Region recorded the highest decline from 3.3 per cent in 2007 to 1.6 per cent in 2008, representing a decrease of 52 per cent.
The Volta, Western and Upper East regions witnessed consistent decline in their prevalence since 2006.
According to the report, the prevalence in 2008 ranged from 0.0 per cent in North Tongu, which is a rural site, to 8.0 per cent in Agomanya, which is an urban site.
The report stated that only Agomanya had prevalence above five per cent, the threshold at which the pandemic is considered to have gained epidemic proportion.
The report again indicated that there were no urban sites with prevalence below one per cent. On the other hand, there were three rural sites with prevalence below one per cent as observed in 2007.
It again stated that the median HIV prevalence for 2008 was 2.2 per cent
However, HIV prevalence in urban areas was higher than it was in the rural areas. The mean HIV prevalence of urban communities was 2.6 per cent compared to 2.3 per cent in rural areas.
The highest prevalence was recorded between ages 25 and 29, which represented 3.0 per cent and the least, representing 1.2 per cent, was between ages 15 and 19.
Prevalence among the youth between ages 15 and 24, which was used as a maker for new infections, was 1.9 per cent.
The national median HIV prevalence which increased in 2005 after declining for two consecutive years had declined in 2008 to 2.2 per cent, a level below what was observed in 2000 and the lowest in nine years.
Prior to 2004, there had been a steady increase from 2.3 per cent in 2000 to 3.6 per cent in 2003. The 2008 report represented a 15.4 per cent decline in prevalence from 2007.
The median syphilis prevalence for 2008 was 3.8 per cent. Syphilis stereotype had, therefore, decreased from last years 5.1 per cent.
Central Region maintained its position as the region with the highest syphilis prevalence, with an increase in rate from 18.6 per cent to 20.5 per cent.
The region with the lowest syphilis prevalence was the Northern Region, following a decline prevalence from 2.1 per cent to 1.7 per cent.
Syphilis prevalence ranged from zero per cent in North Tongu and Builsa to 30.5 per cent in Asikuma Odoben Brakwa, all rural sites.
Seventeen sites, including Asikuma Odoben Brakwa recorded an increase from 2007 prevalence; four sites, namely Mampong, Navrongo, Wenchi and North Tongu maintained the same level of prevalence and the remaining 19 recorded a decrease.
North Tongu maintained its zero prevalence for the fourth time since 2005, with Cape Coast, Assin Fosu, Sefwi Asafo and Asikuma Odoben Brakwa remaining in the top five highest prevalence since 2005.
Dr Akwei Addo said HIV prevalence among STI clients ???? almost doubled from 5.7 per cent to 10.5 per cent in 2008 due to increases in both sites.
He said the Adabraka STI site recorded a prevalence of 15 per cent, while Kumasi STI site recorded 6.5 per cent.
He said the prevalence among females was still higher compared to males who had 11.8 per cent and 7.8 per cent respectively.
He said the highest prevalence among females was between ages 35 and 39, representing 15.9 per cent.
The Minister of Health, Dr Sipa-Adjah Yankey, however, indicated that the HIV prevalence among ANC clients which increased in 2006 after declining in 2004 and 2005 had declined again in 2008, following last year’s decline to its lowest in nine years.
He believed that this year’s reduction had established Ghana’s epidemic as stable with an inclination to retract.
He said the need to sustain the prevention education targeted at the youth and other groups held good prospects for contributing to further decline in the overall prevalence.
“A single case of HIV anywhere is HIV everywhere. We must, therefore, not be complacent. Indeed, the trend curve shown reveals a similar downward trend in previous years. We as a people did not capitalise on the initial decline to strengthen efforts at further reduction, only to see an increase in the prevalence subsequently”.
“We have not won the race yet, and will only win if we, at least, keep the current tempo at responding to the epidemic or preferably, increase efforts at reducing new infections in the country. The fact that syphilis is in the country is worrying and must be of concern to all of us,” he said.
Tourism ministry to develop historical sites in Ga Mashie
THE Ministry of Tourism has launched a project aimed at developing the Ussher Fort, the James Fort, the Brazil House and the Jacobus House, all historical monuments in Accra, into tourist attractions.
Under the project, the area where these historical monuments stand will also be given a facelift.
Additionally, the project will improve general sanitation and enhance economic activities in the Ga Mashie area.
It also seeks to rehabilitate the Ussher Fort as envisaged by the Ussher Fort Restoration Project proposal which was prepared in August 2007.
At a sensitisation seminar on improving tourism in Ga Mashie, the Minister of Tourism, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, said despite the availability of a lot of tourist facilities in the community, Ga Mashie did not seem to be on the tourism map of Ghana.
She said even though the first port of call in Ghana by foreign tourists was Accra, very few people visited the area.
She noted that a critical look at the community would reveal a rich cultural heritage manifested by its tangible structures consisting of forts, mansions, lodges, warehouses and former headquarters of prosperous European and African trading companies.
She added that religious ceremonies, festivals, traditional music and dance could also be utilised to benefit the community through tourism.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah commended UNESCO-Ghana and the European Commission for facilitating and financing the first phase of the Ussher Fort project.
She also commended the Brazilian Embassy in Ghana for funding the rehabilitation of the Brazil House into a spectacular edifice.
The Project Director of the Ga Mashie Development Agency, Mr Gabriel Nii Teiko Tagoe, said the transfer of the activities at the James Town Harbour to the Tema Harbour in 1967 caused the former to lose its economic base, without compensation or the possibility to expand geographically.
He said the basic social needs of the communities were far from being satisfactory, saying that the living conditions of most inhabitants were even worse than the poorest current rural standards.
“The small-scale economic activities which survived barely made it possible for the population to sustain itself. Water is still difficult to access, roads are in bad condition, the sewerage system is only scantily existing, drainage is largely inadequate, garbage litters the streets and the sanitary situation is deplorable. Thus, once a vibrant area, Old Accra is classified today in current planning documents as a slum,” he lamented.
Under the project, the area where these historical monuments stand will also be given a facelift.
Additionally, the project will improve general sanitation and enhance economic activities in the Ga Mashie area.
It also seeks to rehabilitate the Ussher Fort as envisaged by the Ussher Fort Restoration Project proposal which was prepared in August 2007.
At a sensitisation seminar on improving tourism in Ga Mashie, the Minister of Tourism, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, said despite the availability of a lot of tourist facilities in the community, Ga Mashie did not seem to be on the tourism map of Ghana.
She said even though the first port of call in Ghana by foreign tourists was Accra, very few people visited the area.
She noted that a critical look at the community would reveal a rich cultural heritage manifested by its tangible structures consisting of forts, mansions, lodges, warehouses and former headquarters of prosperous European and African trading companies.
She added that religious ceremonies, festivals, traditional music and dance could also be utilised to benefit the community through tourism.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah commended UNESCO-Ghana and the European Commission for facilitating and financing the first phase of the Ussher Fort project.
She also commended the Brazilian Embassy in Ghana for funding the rehabilitation of the Brazil House into a spectacular edifice.
The Project Director of the Ga Mashie Development Agency, Mr Gabriel Nii Teiko Tagoe, said the transfer of the activities at the James Town Harbour to the Tema Harbour in 1967 caused the former to lose its economic base, without compensation or the possibility to expand geographically.
He said the basic social needs of the communities were far from being satisfactory, saying that the living conditions of most inhabitants were even worse than the poorest current rural standards.
“The small-scale economic activities which survived barely made it possible for the population to sustain itself. Water is still difficult to access, roads are in bad condition, the sewerage system is only scantily existing, drainage is largely inadequate, garbage litters the streets and the sanitary situation is deplorable. Thus, once a vibrant area, Old Accra is classified today in current planning documents as a slum,” he lamented.
Inauguration
A SEVEN-MEMBER Professional Managerial Staff Union (PMSU) of the National Investment Bank (NIB) has been inaugurated in Accra with a call on them to help improve the image of the bank.
Mr E. V. Obeng-Adu, the immediate past chairman of the PMSU, who made the call entreated staff of the bank to be cautious of what they say and also desist from sending information to the public without seeking approval from the appropriate authorities.
He said although the bank’s recent past had been characterised by financial difficulties it was able to make modest gains during its last negotiations.
“We were able to chalk modest gains such as lobbying management for the institution of the “Chain of Command” in some of the departments and negotiating for the purchase of brand new vehicles for its interested members, a scheme which is still being pursued to benefit all who are interested”, he said.
Mr Obeng-Adu said due to the cordial relationship that existed between the former union and the management, the bank had the opportunity of enjoying industrial peace.
The new union chairman, Mr Robert Owusu, appealed to the new union executives and the staff to endeavour to work with zeal in order to increase the productivity and profitability of the bank.
He said the union was committed to maintaining the existing cordial relationship with the management and would therefore continue to offer good suggestions for the betterment of the bank.
“We shall as much as possible avoid confrontational stands with management and rather use dialogue in all our dealings with management”, he said.
He appealed to the staff to show enthusiasm in union affairs by attending all meetings and other social gatherings.
Mr Owusu commended the Industrial and Commercial Union (ICU) which is the mother union for its tremendous support to the union and the bank.
Oher members of the new executive are Mr Kwadwo Kwakye Gyan (Vice Chairman), Mr Patrick Ebo Kittoe (Secretary), Mrs Comfort Arkoh (Assistant Secretary), Mr Matthew Amporful (Financial Secretary), Mr Benson Ankomah (Assistant Financial Secretary) and Mr Peter Yeboah-Okore.
Picture: The old and new union executives in a group picture after the inauguration.
Mr E. V. Obeng-Adu, the immediate past chairman of the PMSU, who made the call entreated staff of the bank to be cautious of what they say and also desist from sending information to the public without seeking approval from the appropriate authorities.
He said although the bank’s recent past had been characterised by financial difficulties it was able to make modest gains during its last negotiations.
“We were able to chalk modest gains such as lobbying management for the institution of the “Chain of Command” in some of the departments and negotiating for the purchase of brand new vehicles for its interested members, a scheme which is still being pursued to benefit all who are interested”, he said.
Mr Obeng-Adu said due to the cordial relationship that existed between the former union and the management, the bank had the opportunity of enjoying industrial peace.
The new union chairman, Mr Robert Owusu, appealed to the new union executives and the staff to endeavour to work with zeal in order to increase the productivity and profitability of the bank.
He said the union was committed to maintaining the existing cordial relationship with the management and would therefore continue to offer good suggestions for the betterment of the bank.
“We shall as much as possible avoid confrontational stands with management and rather use dialogue in all our dealings with management”, he said.
He appealed to the staff to show enthusiasm in union affairs by attending all meetings and other social gatherings.
Mr Owusu commended the Industrial and Commercial Union (ICU) which is the mother union for its tremendous support to the union and the bank.
Oher members of the new executive are Mr Kwadwo Kwakye Gyan (Vice Chairman), Mr Patrick Ebo Kittoe (Secretary), Mrs Comfort Arkoh (Assistant Secretary), Mr Matthew Amporful (Financial Secretary), Mr Benson Ankomah (Assistant Financial Secretary) and Mr Peter Yeboah-Okore.
Picture: The old and new union executives in a group picture after the inauguration.
Tourism sector needs improvement - minister
The Minister of Tourism, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, has called on operators in the tourism industry to improve upon their service delivery to enhance the image of the industry.
The move, she said, was also to attract more tourists and create a competitive edge that would allow the country to compete effectively with other African nations.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said this at a ceremony where the Hotel Catering and Tourism Training Institute (HOTCATT) was handed over to the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in Accra on Wednesday.
She said for the industry to achieve its objectives, it was important for the operators to employ skilled human resource personnel to serve the needs of tourists.
“For the past five years Ghana has experienced consistent increase in its inbound traveller number and this has been attributed to political stability, relatively peaceful environment and the friendliness of Ghanaians. Coupled with government’s ability of creating an enabling environment for private sector investment, it is expected that investment in the tourism sector will pick up to make Ghana a business and tourist destination,” she said.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said the ministry could not get the government to increase its subvention to HOTCATT and the only alternative was for the ministry to integrate HOTCATT into GIMPA.
She said the integration into GIMPA was not a new idea because the former National Institutional Renewal Programme (NIRP) recommended it in 2002 after an evaluation of the institute but what was lacking at that time was the political will to implement it.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said the objective of the integration was to ensure that the human resource capacity required for tourism development was in line with demands of the industry to make the human resource more professional to ensure Ghana’s competitiveness in the tourism market.
She said it was unacceptable to believe that only 15 per cent of employees in the industry had received any formal professional training.
She, therefore, appealed to GIMPA to live up to expectation by turning HOTCATT round in the shortest possible time to become a centre of excellence.
The Rector of GIMPA, Professor Yaw Agyeman Badu, said the effective management of any business was measured by the productivity of its employees.
He said in the tourism industry productivity was measured in terms of guests satisfaction, employee satisfaction and investor satisfaction and in order to achieve these, there was the need to have a careful balance of employee effectiveness and efficiency, which could only be attained through a well organised training programme.
He said because the industry was a labour-intensive one there was the need to improve productivity without sacrificing the need for investing in employees.
Professor Agyeman Badu said the institute would develop programmes such as skills training, supervisory training, management training and executive training to help improve the sector.
He welcomed the government’s pledge to assist the institute in accessing the GETFund and funds from other funding agencies to help achieve the institute’s goal of establishing a National Hospitality and Tourism Training School.
He urged the ministry to expedite action on the takeover of EREDEC Hotel, especially on the issue of the severance packages for the staff.
“While the staff appear to be in limbo, the facilities are running down at a fast pace. On our part we are poised to integrate both HOTCATT and EREDEC Hotel into our current hospitality programmes and will work with all stakeholders such as the Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) to form the new National Hospitality and Tourism Training School,” Prof. Agemang Badu said.
He assured the staff of HOTCATT that they would enjoy the privileges due GIMPA staff.
The acting Director of HOTCATT, Ms Fati Dakubu, said service providers needed skills to provide quality and professional training to deliver sustainable and quality standards to strengthen the sector.
She said tourism and hospitality were very vibrant and as such service providers needed to follow the trend in order to meet customer demands.
She commended the ministry and GIMPA for their support.
The move, she said, was also to attract more tourists and create a competitive edge that would allow the country to compete effectively with other African nations.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said this at a ceremony where the Hotel Catering and Tourism Training Institute (HOTCATT) was handed over to the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in Accra on Wednesday.
She said for the industry to achieve its objectives, it was important for the operators to employ skilled human resource personnel to serve the needs of tourists.
“For the past five years Ghana has experienced consistent increase in its inbound traveller number and this has been attributed to political stability, relatively peaceful environment and the friendliness of Ghanaians. Coupled with government’s ability of creating an enabling environment for private sector investment, it is expected that investment in the tourism sector will pick up to make Ghana a business and tourist destination,” she said.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said the ministry could not get the government to increase its subvention to HOTCATT and the only alternative was for the ministry to integrate HOTCATT into GIMPA.
She said the integration into GIMPA was not a new idea because the former National Institutional Renewal Programme (NIRP) recommended it in 2002 after an evaluation of the institute but what was lacking at that time was the political will to implement it.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah said the objective of the integration was to ensure that the human resource capacity required for tourism development was in line with demands of the industry to make the human resource more professional to ensure Ghana’s competitiveness in the tourism market.
She said it was unacceptable to believe that only 15 per cent of employees in the industry had received any formal professional training.
She, therefore, appealed to GIMPA to live up to expectation by turning HOTCATT round in the shortest possible time to become a centre of excellence.
The Rector of GIMPA, Professor Yaw Agyeman Badu, said the effective management of any business was measured by the productivity of its employees.
He said in the tourism industry productivity was measured in terms of guests satisfaction, employee satisfaction and investor satisfaction and in order to achieve these, there was the need to have a careful balance of employee effectiveness and efficiency, which could only be attained through a well organised training programme.
He said because the industry was a labour-intensive one there was the need to improve productivity without sacrificing the need for investing in employees.
Professor Agyeman Badu said the institute would develop programmes such as skills training, supervisory training, management training and executive training to help improve the sector.
He welcomed the government’s pledge to assist the institute in accessing the GETFund and funds from other funding agencies to help achieve the institute’s goal of establishing a National Hospitality and Tourism Training School.
He urged the ministry to expedite action on the takeover of EREDEC Hotel, especially on the issue of the severance packages for the staff.
“While the staff appear to be in limbo, the facilities are running down at a fast pace. On our part we are poised to integrate both HOTCATT and EREDEC Hotel into our current hospitality programmes and will work with all stakeholders such as the Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) to form the new National Hospitality and Tourism Training School,” Prof. Agemang Badu said.
He assured the staff of HOTCATT that they would enjoy the privileges due GIMPA staff.
The acting Director of HOTCATT, Ms Fati Dakubu, said service providers needed skills to provide quality and professional training to deliver sustainable and quality standards to strengthen the sector.
She said tourism and hospitality were very vibrant and as such service providers needed to follow the trend in order to meet customer demands.
She commended the ministry and GIMPA for their support.
Yileh
The government has allocated $31.9 million to be disbursed to 50 metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) for the development of their respective areas.
The MMDAs were selected to benefit from the district development facility because they met the minimum conditions of a performance assessment which was conducted in 2006.
The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Joseph Yileh Chireh, announced this when he took his turn at the Meet-the-Press Series held in Accra yesterday.
Mr Chireh explained that the first tranche of the facility would be disbursed next month while the second would be in the last quarter of the year.
He said the assessment for 2007 had been compiled and distributed to MMDAs while the next assessment would be conducted in September this year and represent the assessment for 2008.
Mr Chireh hinted that the revised Environmental Health and Sanitation Policy would soon be approved by cabinet to pave the way for its implementation.
He said when approved, some of the key challenges such as capacity development, information, education and communication, legislation and regulation, sustainable financing and cost recovery would be addressed.
Mr Chireh said the government had identified deepening local-level democracy, accelerating decentralisation and local-level development and empowerment as three main areas to promote in order to achieve good governance at the local level.
He said the ministry would also introduce a concept to be known as “ Town Hall Meetings” which would aim at creating a platform for continuous interaction between the government and communities in the districts.
He explained that the concept was to enable municipal, metropolitan and district chief executives (MMDCEs) to hold periodic meetings with people in their communities to educate them on the government’s developmental programmes and policies, and also listen to their concerns.
He said it was also to enable people at the grass roots demand accountability from those at the helm of affairs in the districts.
Mr Chireh said a broad national stakeholders conference on decentralisation would soon be held to review the 20 years of decentralisation implementation and make proposals for the way forward.
The MMDAs were selected to benefit from the district development facility because they met the minimum conditions of a performance assessment which was conducted in 2006.
The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Joseph Yileh Chireh, announced this when he took his turn at the Meet-the-Press Series held in Accra yesterday.
Mr Chireh explained that the first tranche of the facility would be disbursed next month while the second would be in the last quarter of the year.
He said the assessment for 2007 had been compiled and distributed to MMDAs while the next assessment would be conducted in September this year and represent the assessment for 2008.
Mr Chireh hinted that the revised Environmental Health and Sanitation Policy would soon be approved by cabinet to pave the way for its implementation.
He said when approved, some of the key challenges such as capacity development, information, education and communication, legislation and regulation, sustainable financing and cost recovery would be addressed.
Mr Chireh said the government had identified deepening local-level democracy, accelerating decentralisation and local-level development and empowerment as three main areas to promote in order to achieve good governance at the local level.
He said the ministry would also introduce a concept to be known as “ Town Hall Meetings” which would aim at creating a platform for continuous interaction between the government and communities in the districts.
He explained that the concept was to enable municipal, metropolitan and district chief executives (MMDCEs) to hold periodic meetings with people in their communities to educate them on the government’s developmental programmes and policies, and also listen to their concerns.
He said it was also to enable people at the grass roots demand accountability from those at the helm of affairs in the districts.
Mr Chireh said a broad national stakeholders conference on decentralisation would soon be held to review the 20 years of decentralisation implementation and make proposals for the way forward.
(Cholera and other diseases re-surface in Accra)
Barely two weeks into the onset of the rains and damp weather conditions in some parts of the country, the Ridge Hospital in Accra has recorded more than 4,664 cases of cholera, malaria, sickle cell, asthma and diarrhoea.
A medical officer at the Outpatient Department (OPD) and Emergency Unit of the hospital, Dr Angela Oduro-Afriyie, who made this known to the Daily Graphic, said around this time ailments resulting from the rains and the damp weather were very common.
She said most patients with diarrhoea came from congested areas such as Tudu, Chorkor and Nima and attributed the problem to the lack of proper drainage and poor sanitation.
Dr Oduro-Afriyie said sanitation at such places was not good enough for the maintenance and promotion of health during such periods of the year.
She advised members of the public to desist from buying food from unhygienic places and also ensure that they always ate hot foods.
In respect of the sickle cell disease, Dr Oduro-Afriyie said the disease occurred when the blood in a person was not able to flow through the red blood cells.
She advised sicklers to endeavour to wear clothes which would keep their bodies warm and also take their medications strictly as advised by their doctors to prevent any "crisis".
She also advised asthmatic patients to avoid strong winds accompanied with dust because too much dust made breathing difficult for them.
She said the hospital had found it difficult to accommodate patients there as a result of their large number.
She said the facilities at the hospital were inadequate to take care of the increasing number of patients and indicated that the situation compelled it to ask some of the patients to go home and come back the next day.
However, Dr Oduro-Afriyie said the patients were so ill that they preferred to wait for their turn, no matter how long they waited.
A medical officer at the Outpatient Department (OPD) and Emergency Unit of the hospital, Dr Angela Oduro-Afriyie, who made this known to the Daily Graphic, said around this time ailments resulting from the rains and the damp weather were very common.
She said most patients with diarrhoea came from congested areas such as Tudu, Chorkor and Nima and attributed the problem to the lack of proper drainage and poor sanitation.
Dr Oduro-Afriyie said sanitation at such places was not good enough for the maintenance and promotion of health during such periods of the year.
She advised members of the public to desist from buying food from unhygienic places and also ensure that they always ate hot foods.
In respect of the sickle cell disease, Dr Oduro-Afriyie said the disease occurred when the blood in a person was not able to flow through the red blood cells.
She advised sicklers to endeavour to wear clothes which would keep their bodies warm and also take their medications strictly as advised by their doctors to prevent any "crisis".
She also advised asthmatic patients to avoid strong winds accompanied with dust because too much dust made breathing difficult for them.
She said the hospital had found it difficult to accommodate patients there as a result of their large number.
She said the facilities at the hospital were inadequate to take care of the increasing number of patients and indicated that the situation compelled it to ask some of the patients to go home and come back the next day.
However, Dr Oduro-Afriyie said the patients were so ill that they preferred to wait for their turn, no matter how long they waited.
(Ghanaians in 3 American cities donate two hospitals)
The Ghana@50 Thanksgiving Service Committee of the TRI-Residents of Virginia, Columbia and Maryland in the United States of America (USA) has donated 50 mattresses each to the Korle Bu Maternity Ward and the Accra Psychiatric Hospital.
Presenting the items to the two hospitals, the local representative of the committee, Mr de-Best Amenu, said the idea came about when some Ghanaian pastors, based in Virginia, Maryland and Columbia, decided to organise a thanksgiving service to raise funds for the needy in Ghana.
He said fortunately, the committee was able to raise $4892.45, and part of it was used in buying the mattresses for the hospitals.
Mr Amenu said it was rather disheartening to see mothers and their new-born babies sleeping on the bare floor of the maternity ward.
He said the situation was not different at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, where patients were also seen sleeping on the cold floor without any clothes.
He believed that the new mattresses would be of immense benefit to the hospitals.
Receiving the items on behalf of the Korle Bu Maternity Ward, the Deputy Director of Nursing Services, Mrs Dora Batse, expressed her profound gratitude to the donors and hoped for more of those kind gestures.
*THE local representative of the TRI-Residents of Virginia, Columbia and Maryland, Mr de-best Amenu (3rd left) handing over some mattresses to the Deputy Director of Nursing Services of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Madam Dora Batsah (4th right), for the maternity ward of the hospital and the Accra Psychiatric Hospital on behalf of the donors.
With them are the Principal Nursing Officer, Madam Margaret Adjei (2nd left), and the Senior Nursing Officer, Mrs Doris Totime Phillips (2nd right), both of the Accra Psychiatric Hospital.
Presenting the items to the two hospitals, the local representative of the committee, Mr de-Best Amenu, said the idea came about when some Ghanaian pastors, based in Virginia, Maryland and Columbia, decided to organise a thanksgiving service to raise funds for the needy in Ghana.
He said fortunately, the committee was able to raise $4892.45, and part of it was used in buying the mattresses for the hospitals.
Mr Amenu said it was rather disheartening to see mothers and their new-born babies sleeping on the bare floor of the maternity ward.
He said the situation was not different at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, where patients were also seen sleeping on the cold floor without any clothes.
He believed that the new mattresses would be of immense benefit to the hospitals.
Receiving the items on behalf of the Korle Bu Maternity Ward, the Deputy Director of Nursing Services, Mrs Dora Batse, expressed her profound gratitude to the donors and hoped for more of those kind gestures.
*THE local representative of the TRI-Residents of Virginia, Columbia and Maryland, Mr de-best Amenu (3rd left) handing over some mattresses to the Deputy Director of Nursing Services of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Madam Dora Batsah (4th right), for the maternity ward of the hospital and the Accra Psychiatric Hospital on behalf of the donors.
With them are the Principal Nursing Officer, Madam Margaret Adjei (2nd left), and the Senior Nursing Officer, Mrs Doris Totime Phillips (2nd right), both of the Accra Psychiatric Hospital.
(Domod Aluminium holds long service awards)
Domod Aluminium Limited, producers of cookware and roofing sheets, has awarded 20 of its staff for their dedication and commitment to the company.
Each of the 20 workers received a certificate and items including flat-screen television sets, deep freezers, bags of cement, roofing sheets, gas cookers and motorbikes.
Addressing the workers, the Chief Executive Director of the company, Mrs Cecilia Kwofie, said due to the global economic crunch which had led to the loss of millions of jobs world-wide, it was important for the workers to work hard to enable the company to achieve its targets.
She advised the workers to change their attitude towards work in order to improve production, adding that "we have to change the way we work and perform better by cutting cost, improving effectiveness as well as efficiency".
The Managing Director, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie, assured the workers of the management's commitment to pursue cutting-edge strategies and actions that would make the company's products competitive on the market.
He expressed the hope that the workers would improve upon their services in the years to come.
An Executive Director of the company, Mr Anthony Kwofie, commended the workers for their achievements and encouraged them to instil the can-do spirit in themselves to enhance the growth of the company.
*The Executive Director of the company, Mr Anthony Kwofie (left), presenting a certificate and a motorbike to Mr John K. Nyamavor (right), a sectional head of the company.
Each of the 20 workers received a certificate and items including flat-screen television sets, deep freezers, bags of cement, roofing sheets, gas cookers and motorbikes.
Addressing the workers, the Chief Executive Director of the company, Mrs Cecilia Kwofie, said due to the global economic crunch which had led to the loss of millions of jobs world-wide, it was important for the workers to work hard to enable the company to achieve its targets.
She advised the workers to change their attitude towards work in order to improve production, adding that "we have to change the way we work and perform better by cutting cost, improving effectiveness as well as efficiency".
The Managing Director, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie, assured the workers of the management's commitment to pursue cutting-edge strategies and actions that would make the company's products competitive on the market.
He expressed the hope that the workers would improve upon their services in the years to come.
An Executive Director of the company, Mr Anthony Kwofie, commended the workers for their achievements and encouraged them to instil the can-do spirit in themselves to enhance the growth of the company.
*The Executive Director of the company, Mr Anthony Kwofie (left), presenting a certificate and a motorbike to Mr John K. Nyamavor (right), a sectional head of the company.
Clean-up
THE Asadu Royal Seed and Waste Management Company, last Saturday organised a clean-up exercise with residents of Ablekuma North Constituency.
The Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr Edward Asadu said the exercise formed part of activities marking this year’s World Environmental Day which was observed last Friday.
He said the company would soon begin spraying all choked gutters in the constituency to control the breeding of mosquitoes and spread of other sanitation related ailments.
The Marketing Officer of the company, Mr Osmat Fiifi Oppong said the company would organise regular meetings with landlords to educate residents on the need to keep their environment clean.
*Some members of the Asadu Royal Seed and Waste Management Company busy at work during the clean-up exercise.
The Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr Edward Asadu said the exercise formed part of activities marking this year’s World Environmental Day which was observed last Friday.
He said the company would soon begin spraying all choked gutters in the constituency to control the breeding of mosquitoes and spread of other sanitation related ailments.
The Marketing Officer of the company, Mr Osmat Fiifi Oppong said the company would organise regular meetings with landlords to educate residents on the need to keep their environment clean.
*Some members of the Asadu Royal Seed and Waste Management Company busy at work during the clean-up exercise.
Tyre
A new product capable of preventing vehicles from skidding in the event of a tyre puncture has been launched in Accra.
Known as Protectall tyre bands, the aluminium bands are fitted to the two front wheels of a car’s rig to prevent deflated wheels from skidding off the road and resulting in accidents.
At the launch, Mr Mike Aggrey, the Country Director of AutoProtect Limited, producers of Protectall tyre bands, said a puncture or a sudden deflation of tyres often caused accidents on the roads.
He said irrespective of one’s driving skills, a puncture could be fatal and without effective steering control the lives of passengers or fellow road users could be at risk.
He said the bands increased steering, braking and cornering control during such incidents, which enable drivers to bring their vehicles to a halt.
With the Protectall tyre bands, he said, drivers could travel up to 25 kilometres to a safe place before stopping to change their deflated tyres.
The Deputy Minister of Road and Transport, Mrs Dzifa Attivor, also said any initiative that had the potential to contribute to the reduction and prevention of road accidents would be supported by the ministry.
She said a study commissioned by the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) in 2007 on the theme, “The Impact of Home Used Tyres on Road Traffic Accidents in Ghana” revealed that tyre blow-ups contributed three to four per cent to road accident statistics.
She said tyres were the only contact between the body of the vehicle and the ground and it was essential that vehicle stability during blow-ups became of paramount importance to motorists.
She was of the hope that the tyre bands would add another dimension to the country’s National Road Safety Strategy and would also contribute significantly to the reduction and prevention of tyre-related road accidents in the country.
Known as Protectall tyre bands, the aluminium bands are fitted to the two front wheels of a car’s rig to prevent deflated wheels from skidding off the road and resulting in accidents.
At the launch, Mr Mike Aggrey, the Country Director of AutoProtect Limited, producers of Protectall tyre bands, said a puncture or a sudden deflation of tyres often caused accidents on the roads.
He said irrespective of one’s driving skills, a puncture could be fatal and without effective steering control the lives of passengers or fellow road users could be at risk.
He said the bands increased steering, braking and cornering control during such incidents, which enable drivers to bring their vehicles to a halt.
With the Protectall tyre bands, he said, drivers could travel up to 25 kilometres to a safe place before stopping to change their deflated tyres.
The Deputy Minister of Road and Transport, Mrs Dzifa Attivor, also said any initiative that had the potential to contribute to the reduction and prevention of road accidents would be supported by the ministry.
She said a study commissioned by the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) in 2007 on the theme, “The Impact of Home Used Tyres on Road Traffic Accidents in Ghana” revealed that tyre blow-ups contributed three to four per cent to road accident statistics.
She said tyres were the only contact between the body of the vehicle and the ground and it was essential that vehicle stability during blow-ups became of paramount importance to motorists.
She was of the hope that the tyre bands would add another dimension to the country’s National Road Safety Strategy and would also contribute significantly to the reduction and prevention of tyre-related road accidents in the country.
(Uncontrolled hawking on Accra streets amazing)
HAWKING has been an age-old trading practice in the major cities of the country but the rapid manner it has grown on the streets of Accra is so amazing.
At every traffic light intersection in Accra, boys and girls as little as six years, young men and women, and even old men and women, struggle for space on the streets for the attention of motorists to patronise their wares.
They sell almost everything, from cosmetics, soft drinks, iced cream, fruits, pastries and iced water to electrical gadgets, toys, clothes and every imaginable thing. But of all the items,one that strikes the attention of many motorists is yam.
That is so because it is very strange to find foodstuffs being sold on the streets like toffees, much less yam. Normally, foodstuffs are restricted to the markets and in the case of yam, there are even designated markets for their sale. That is why there are quite a number of Yam Markets in the country.
But what is more fascinating about the sale of yam on the streets is the manner they are hawked. On the Graphic Road, for instance, it is common to find young men, on a daily basis, except Sundays, criss-crossing the vehicular traffic, to sell their yam. And they do so in a style that is most confounding.
Instead of the normal practice of putting the foodstuff in a pan or container for easy carriage, these chaps pack about five yams in their stretched arms, making it difficult to use the hand for any other thing. Only God knows how they manage to cope in times of body-itching and sweat.
But to them, scratching the body or wiping sweat is the least of their worries. They must sell the yam to make ends meet, period! Once that is achieved, they can survive for the day and get back to the streets the following day.
"The reason why we do not carry the yams in head pans is because customers complain that they cannot see what we are selling and also they claim it is more attractive when we carry them in our arms", one of the yam hawkers, Fuseini, explains.
You may call it a marketing innovation, an innovation that may never be found in any literature on marketing or may be far from the grasp of many marketing students at any level.
Of course, as the adage dictates, "Nothing comes cheap", and so hawking yams in arms has its own occupational hazards, such as the infliction of bruises on the arms of the hawkers. But Fuseini still believes it is worth having those bruises.
"Although we get bruises on our arms after the day’s work, it is easier and faster carrying the yams and running after cars than using head pans", he insists.
Many of the yam hawkers used to sell yam in the north. But they later migrated to Accra in search of greener pastures, which they seem to have found in the introduction of the new yam selling technique.
While in the north, they had learnt that there are better business prospects in Accra and so they made a journey down south in groups of friends, without having the slightest idea of what the future holds for them in Accra. No relatives, no accommodation, but they were not perturbed.
"Our relatives know we are in Accra so they are not worried. We seldom visit them. We only visit when we have made enough money from the sale of yams", Abas indicates.
For these young men, Sundays are the only resting days, which they use for other social activities like visiting friends and spending sometime alone. Some of them would have wished to sell on Sundays but business is not brisk on the day because the Graphic Road is mostly empty of workers.
One thing that works in favour of the hawkers is that unlike other businesses, yam selling does not seem to have any lean season.
"We always have yam to sell. There is no particular season for the cultivation of yam in Tamale so we are never short of yam", Abas explains.
Selling yam in Accra is not an easy job though but to those chaps, it is much better in terms of profit than doing that business in Tamale. From sunrise to sunset, and as the days roll by, they are just optimistic that life will get better so long as they continue to work hard.
Although they are sometimes disturbed by the rains they believe that man must survive as long as their yams are safe from the rains.
For Najid the cool weather that quickly surfaces after the rains makes hawking fun and exciting
"Although I get disturbed when it is about to rain, I always become excited when the rain stops because the weather becomes so cool, making hawking exciting", he beams with smiles.
Abuja, a suburb of Accra, is the home of most hawkers on the Graphic road. The name Abuja might sound funny in ones ears. But this is Abuja in Ghana, precisely Accra.
Abuja certainly does not look pleasant to most people due to the haphazard arrangement of the wooden structures the residents have put up as houses. But who cares how haphazardly these structures have been put up. The only thing that matters to them is that they have a home, a place to lay their heads after a hard day’s work.
One thing which is of great concern to most motorists plying the Graphic Road is the display of yam on and near the railway during lean traffic periods.
Are these hawkers in their right senses? One might ask with his or her mouth widely opened, I suppose.
Telling these hawkers about the risks involved in selling on the railway is nothing but a folktale until what seems to be reality and not a horror movie occurs.
My question then is what is the AMA doing about this phenomenon. What is the government doing, and what is the Ghana Police Service waiting for?
Not only are these hawkers criss-crossing motorists with their disorganised movements but also the intense vehicular traffic they cause on our small but busy roads.
Our lorry parks have turned to active sales points by aggressive traders who would insult and yell at you if you mistakenly push their wares to the ground. These traders do not care about how their hugely mounted wares have been put in the middle of the road but are ready to sharpen their lips and give you a good bath of heartbreaking insults if you cause any of their wares to fall from their tables.
Why can’t a foot bridge be built for pedestrians whose walkways have been engulfed with filth and have been paraded by traders. The foot bridge would help pedestrians cross the roads without interrupting traffic flow.
At every traffic light intersection in Accra, boys and girls as little as six years, young men and women, and even old men and women, struggle for space on the streets for the attention of motorists to patronise their wares.
They sell almost everything, from cosmetics, soft drinks, iced cream, fruits, pastries and iced water to electrical gadgets, toys, clothes and every imaginable thing. But of all the items,one that strikes the attention of many motorists is yam.
That is so because it is very strange to find foodstuffs being sold on the streets like toffees, much less yam. Normally, foodstuffs are restricted to the markets and in the case of yam, there are even designated markets for their sale. That is why there are quite a number of Yam Markets in the country.
But what is more fascinating about the sale of yam on the streets is the manner they are hawked. On the Graphic Road, for instance, it is common to find young men, on a daily basis, except Sundays, criss-crossing the vehicular traffic, to sell their yam. And they do so in a style that is most confounding.
Instead of the normal practice of putting the foodstuff in a pan or container for easy carriage, these chaps pack about five yams in their stretched arms, making it difficult to use the hand for any other thing. Only God knows how they manage to cope in times of body-itching and sweat.
But to them, scratching the body or wiping sweat is the least of their worries. They must sell the yam to make ends meet, period! Once that is achieved, they can survive for the day and get back to the streets the following day.
"The reason why we do not carry the yams in head pans is because customers complain that they cannot see what we are selling and also they claim it is more attractive when we carry them in our arms", one of the yam hawkers, Fuseini, explains.
You may call it a marketing innovation, an innovation that may never be found in any literature on marketing or may be far from the grasp of many marketing students at any level.
Of course, as the adage dictates, "Nothing comes cheap", and so hawking yams in arms has its own occupational hazards, such as the infliction of bruises on the arms of the hawkers. But Fuseini still believes it is worth having those bruises.
"Although we get bruises on our arms after the day’s work, it is easier and faster carrying the yams and running after cars than using head pans", he insists.
Many of the yam hawkers used to sell yam in the north. But they later migrated to Accra in search of greener pastures, which they seem to have found in the introduction of the new yam selling technique.
While in the north, they had learnt that there are better business prospects in Accra and so they made a journey down south in groups of friends, without having the slightest idea of what the future holds for them in Accra. No relatives, no accommodation, but they were not perturbed.
"Our relatives know we are in Accra so they are not worried. We seldom visit them. We only visit when we have made enough money from the sale of yams", Abas indicates.
For these young men, Sundays are the only resting days, which they use for other social activities like visiting friends and spending sometime alone. Some of them would have wished to sell on Sundays but business is not brisk on the day because the Graphic Road is mostly empty of workers.
One thing that works in favour of the hawkers is that unlike other businesses, yam selling does not seem to have any lean season.
"We always have yam to sell. There is no particular season for the cultivation of yam in Tamale so we are never short of yam", Abas explains.
Selling yam in Accra is not an easy job though but to those chaps, it is much better in terms of profit than doing that business in Tamale. From sunrise to sunset, and as the days roll by, they are just optimistic that life will get better so long as they continue to work hard.
Although they are sometimes disturbed by the rains they believe that man must survive as long as their yams are safe from the rains.
For Najid the cool weather that quickly surfaces after the rains makes hawking fun and exciting
"Although I get disturbed when it is about to rain, I always become excited when the rain stops because the weather becomes so cool, making hawking exciting", he beams with smiles.
Abuja, a suburb of Accra, is the home of most hawkers on the Graphic road. The name Abuja might sound funny in ones ears. But this is Abuja in Ghana, precisely Accra.
Abuja certainly does not look pleasant to most people due to the haphazard arrangement of the wooden structures the residents have put up as houses. But who cares how haphazardly these structures have been put up. The only thing that matters to them is that they have a home, a place to lay their heads after a hard day’s work.
One thing which is of great concern to most motorists plying the Graphic Road is the display of yam on and near the railway during lean traffic periods.
Are these hawkers in their right senses? One might ask with his or her mouth widely opened, I suppose.
Telling these hawkers about the risks involved in selling on the railway is nothing but a folktale until what seems to be reality and not a horror movie occurs.
My question then is what is the AMA doing about this phenomenon. What is the government doing, and what is the Ghana Police Service waiting for?
Not only are these hawkers criss-crossing motorists with their disorganised movements but also the intense vehicular traffic they cause on our small but busy roads.
Our lorry parks have turned to active sales points by aggressive traders who would insult and yell at you if you mistakenly push their wares to the ground. These traders do not care about how their hugely mounted wares have been put in the middle of the road but are ready to sharpen their lips and give you a good bath of heartbreaking insults if you cause any of their wares to fall from their tables.
Why can’t a foot bridge be built for pedestrians whose walkways have been engulfed with filth and have been paraded by traders. The foot bridge would help pedestrians cross the roads without interrupting traffic flow.
(Republic Day celebration
HUNDREDS of holiday makers stormed the Labadi Beach in Accra on July 1, 2009, to celebrate Ghana’s 49th Republic Day anniversary. Most of them were, however,ignorant of the rationale behind Republic Day celebrations.
As they enjoyed the warmth of the sand at the beach and made merry, they did not have a faint idea about the essence of the occasion whose declaration as statutory public holiday presented them the platform for their relaxation.
“I know today is a holiday but I have not taken the pain to ask anyone about what the day is about because I know that holidays are meant for us to relax at home or go to the beach’’, one gentleman, who felt so ashamed to mention his name, said.
He said he felt embarrassed that he had not been able to educate his children about the essence of the Republic Day.
Another man who was spotted with his children said, “I was told by my friends that July 1, was the day that Kwame Nkrumah was shot. I did not dispute that fact because my friends read a lot and are always abreast with information”.
Lucy Adjei, a nine-year-old schoolgirl, said her class teacher announced the holiday to them in class but did not explain why it was declared a public holiday.
With a confused look on her face, Lucy’s friend, Juliet, an 11-year-old girl, was quick to respond, “No”, when she was asked to explain what the holiday meant.
One issue which was of great concern to most parents was the need for teachers and school heads to educate pupils about the essential historical event.
“Because we did not get the opportunity to go to school, we make it a responsibility by giving our children quality education. It is therefore, pathetic when our children do not know the story behind this celebration”, Mrs Ann Arku Doku, a parent said.
Some parents were of the view that History, as a subject should be taught at the basic education level and not only at the senior high school and tertiary levels.
They, therefore, called on the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service (GES) to adopt measures to ensure that History was taught right from the primary to the tertiary level.
Three years after becoming the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence on March 6, 1957, Ghana became a republic on July 1, 1960, earning it total independence from British dominion.
Before the attainment of a republican status, although Ghana had gained political independence, the Queen of Britain was still the ceremonial head of the nation.
As they enjoyed the warmth of the sand at the beach and made merry, they did not have a faint idea about the essence of the occasion whose declaration as statutory public holiday presented them the platform for their relaxation.
“I know today is a holiday but I have not taken the pain to ask anyone about what the day is about because I know that holidays are meant for us to relax at home or go to the beach’’, one gentleman, who felt so ashamed to mention his name, said.
He said he felt embarrassed that he had not been able to educate his children about the essence of the Republic Day.
Another man who was spotted with his children said, “I was told by my friends that July 1, was the day that Kwame Nkrumah was shot. I did not dispute that fact because my friends read a lot and are always abreast with information”.
Lucy Adjei, a nine-year-old schoolgirl, said her class teacher announced the holiday to them in class but did not explain why it was declared a public holiday.
With a confused look on her face, Lucy’s friend, Juliet, an 11-year-old girl, was quick to respond, “No”, when she was asked to explain what the holiday meant.
One issue which was of great concern to most parents was the need for teachers and school heads to educate pupils about the essential historical event.
“Because we did not get the opportunity to go to school, we make it a responsibility by giving our children quality education. It is therefore, pathetic when our children do not know the story behind this celebration”, Mrs Ann Arku Doku, a parent said.
Some parents were of the view that History, as a subject should be taught at the basic education level and not only at the senior high school and tertiary levels.
They, therefore, called on the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service (GES) to adopt measures to ensure that History was taught right from the primary to the tertiary level.
Three years after becoming the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence on March 6, 1957, Ghana became a republic on July 1, 1960, earning it total independence from British dominion.
Before the attainment of a republican status, although Ghana had gained political independence, the Queen of Britain was still the ceremonial head of the nation.
Write more sign language books - Educationist
The former acting Director of the Special Education Division of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Mrs Dinah Kwadade, has urged authors to produce more sign language books for the deaf in order to raise their educational level.
She said because the deaf were unable to build enough language to function effectively in the educational set up, majority of them remained at the basic level.
Mrs Kwadade said this at the launch of four sign language books for the deaf in Accra last Tuesday. The books are My First Book of sign, Sign With Me My Book of Fruits and Vegetables, Bibo My Friend and Abu Goes to School
She said while a child without disabilities entered school at an early age with thousands of words and an understanding of his or her immediate environment, the deaf child entered school with a language deficit.
She said the only means of communication for such deprived children was by gestures which were only able to communicate the most basic information, and added that "knowledge and understanding of his environment and the wider world is very limited".
She advised parents to use sign language with their children immediately deafness was confirmed.
Mrs Kwadade who is also the author of some sign language books presented some of her books to the GES.
She observed that lack of information about persons with disabilities and their capabilities in books and other reading materials was discriminatory and as such did not promote the inclusion of such persons into mainstream society.
She said one way to dispel the myth and fear of disability was to read more about them and therefore advised the general public that disability was not contagious.
She expressed the hope that her books would improve the educational levels of the students.
The President of the Ghana Association of the Deaf, Mr Samuel Asare, said one major challenge that faced persons with disabilities was discrimination.
He said it was unfortunate that most teachers in schools for the deaf had difficulty in using sign language which was the natural language of the deaf.
He encouraged deaf children to use their sign books effectively to help improve their literacy and knowledge acquisition.
Mr Asare expressed the belief that the books would be of immense benefit to schools.
He appealed to the general public to assist deaf schools with educational materials.
She said because the deaf were unable to build enough language to function effectively in the educational set up, majority of them remained at the basic level.
Mrs Kwadade said this at the launch of four sign language books for the deaf in Accra last Tuesday. The books are My First Book of sign, Sign With Me My Book of Fruits and Vegetables, Bibo My Friend and Abu Goes to School
She said while a child without disabilities entered school at an early age with thousands of words and an understanding of his or her immediate environment, the deaf child entered school with a language deficit.
She said the only means of communication for such deprived children was by gestures which were only able to communicate the most basic information, and added that "knowledge and understanding of his environment and the wider world is very limited".
She advised parents to use sign language with their children immediately deafness was confirmed.
Mrs Kwadade who is also the author of some sign language books presented some of her books to the GES.
She observed that lack of information about persons with disabilities and their capabilities in books and other reading materials was discriminatory and as such did not promote the inclusion of such persons into mainstream society.
She said one way to dispel the myth and fear of disability was to read more about them and therefore advised the general public that disability was not contagious.
She expressed the hope that her books would improve the educational levels of the students.
The President of the Ghana Association of the Deaf, Mr Samuel Asare, said one major challenge that faced persons with disabilities was discrimination.
He said it was unfortunate that most teachers in schools for the deaf had difficulty in using sign language which was the natural language of the deaf.
He encouraged deaf children to use their sign books effectively to help improve their literacy and knowledge acquisition.
Mr Asare expressed the belief that the books would be of immense benefit to schools.
He appealed to the general public to assist deaf schools with educational materials.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
‘Extend GETFund to private schools’
The Principal of the Catholic Social Advanced Institute,Ms Rosa Mamaa Sam, has called on the government to extend support from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to private schools.
She said just like those in the public schools, students in private schools were also Ghanaians who would eventually contribute to the development of the country on completion of their studies.
Ms Sam made the call at a lecture on Value Added Tax (VAT) for students of the Catholic Social Advanced Institute in Accra on Thursday.
She said many private schools were in financial distress because they had not been benefiting from the proceeds of the GETFund.
The situation, she said, had compelled some of the private schools to charge exorbitant fees to make up for the resources required to train the students and manage the school.
An official of the VAT office, Mrs Anita Araba Wilson, said if students were educated on the importance of paying tax, problems that the service encountered with some adults who deliberately refused to pay tax could be curbed.
She said the reason for choosing students as the target group for the education was because students had a greater influence on the society.
She explained that some adults did not know the essence of paying tax and the contribution of taxes towards the development of the country.
Mrs Wilson advised the students to encourage their parents to pay tax and also insist on an invoice whenever they bought from any authorised VAT dealer.
With her was the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Adabraka Branch of the VAT, Mr Welbeck Asare Asamoah, and Mr Ekow Ampofo, a resource person with the company.
She said just like those in the public schools, students in private schools were also Ghanaians who would eventually contribute to the development of the country on completion of their studies.
Ms Sam made the call at a lecture on Value Added Tax (VAT) for students of the Catholic Social Advanced Institute in Accra on Thursday.
She said many private schools were in financial distress because they had not been benefiting from the proceeds of the GETFund.
The situation, she said, had compelled some of the private schools to charge exorbitant fees to make up for the resources required to train the students and manage the school.
An official of the VAT office, Mrs Anita Araba Wilson, said if students were educated on the importance of paying tax, problems that the service encountered with some adults who deliberately refused to pay tax could be curbed.
She said the reason for choosing students as the target group for the education was because students had a greater influence on the society.
She explained that some adults did not know the essence of paying tax and the contribution of taxes towards the development of the country.
Mrs Wilson advised the students to encourage their parents to pay tax and also insist on an invoice whenever they bought from any authorised VAT dealer.
With her was the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Adabraka Branch of the VAT, Mr Welbeck Asare Asamoah, and Mr Ekow Ampofo, a resource person with the company.
Aburi Girls launches Endowment Fund
ABURI Girls Senior High School (SHS) has launched an endowment fund to assist needy students of the school who are unable to afford their fees.
The fund is also meant to take care of infrastructural development for teachers in the school.
Speaking at the launch of the fund at a Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) meeting at the school over the weekend, the Headmistress of the school, Mrs Sylvia Asempa, said financial difficulties mostly affected students emotionally, psychologically and academically.
She said the fund was also to ensure that such unfortunate students were provided with the necessary materials for them to have undisrupted studies.
Mrs Asempa added that inadequate infrastructure and lack of teaching materials normally affected a teacher’s performance in the classroom thus, causing a decline in the academic performance of students.
She said provision of adequate teaching materials and facilities would not only motivate the teachers to offer their best, but would also create a congenial atmosphere for the teachers residing on campus.
She said if the fund was well serviced by all parents, payment of PTA dues might be reduced or cancelled completely.
The headmistress debunked the notion that the school was about to close down, due to severe water shortage as was reported by some media houses in the country, but was quick to add that the fund would alleviate the perennial water problem facing the school.
She reminded parents to pay their children’s fees on time in order to avoid the risk of being sacked to go back home for their fees.
Mrs Asempa, therefore, appealed to the government, parents, the Old Students Association, and the general public to support the initiative.
For his part, the PTA Chairman, Professor Lewis Enu-Kwesi, said in order to achieve quality SHS education in the country, there was the need to provide the requisite resources for it to be achieved.
He explained that the resources included adequate infrastructure, qualified teachers and non-teaching staff.
He said the solution to achieving quality SHS education did not lie in the number of years spent in school by students, but rather in the provision of requisite materials for effective teaching and learning.
"The expenditure to be incurred as an additional cost in the provision of classroom, dormitory space, library space, hiring of additional teachers and dining room space must be ploughed into finding permanent solutions to the actual constraints in implementing our educational reforms. Extension of the current SHS system by one more year will certainly be a disaster for Ghana," he added.
In a speech read on behalf of the Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, he said the initiative was perfectly in tune with the government's manifesto of investing in the human resource of the nation and making quality education accessible to all children.
He commended the PTA for the initiative and assured them of government support to ensure that the school achieved its aim.
The fund is also meant to take care of infrastructural development for teachers in the school.
Speaking at the launch of the fund at a Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) meeting at the school over the weekend, the Headmistress of the school, Mrs Sylvia Asempa, said financial difficulties mostly affected students emotionally, psychologically and academically.
She said the fund was also to ensure that such unfortunate students were provided with the necessary materials for them to have undisrupted studies.
Mrs Asempa added that inadequate infrastructure and lack of teaching materials normally affected a teacher’s performance in the classroom thus, causing a decline in the academic performance of students.
She said provision of adequate teaching materials and facilities would not only motivate the teachers to offer their best, but would also create a congenial atmosphere for the teachers residing on campus.
She said if the fund was well serviced by all parents, payment of PTA dues might be reduced or cancelled completely.
The headmistress debunked the notion that the school was about to close down, due to severe water shortage as was reported by some media houses in the country, but was quick to add that the fund would alleviate the perennial water problem facing the school.
She reminded parents to pay their children’s fees on time in order to avoid the risk of being sacked to go back home for their fees.
Mrs Asempa, therefore, appealed to the government, parents, the Old Students Association, and the general public to support the initiative.
For his part, the PTA Chairman, Professor Lewis Enu-Kwesi, said in order to achieve quality SHS education in the country, there was the need to provide the requisite resources for it to be achieved.
He explained that the resources included adequate infrastructure, qualified teachers and non-teaching staff.
He said the solution to achieving quality SHS education did not lie in the number of years spent in school by students, but rather in the provision of requisite materials for effective teaching and learning.
"The expenditure to be incurred as an additional cost in the provision of classroom, dormitory space, library space, hiring of additional teachers and dining room space must be ploughed into finding permanent solutions to the actual constraints in implementing our educational reforms. Extension of the current SHS system by one more year will certainly be a disaster for Ghana," he added.
In a speech read on behalf of the Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, he said the initiative was perfectly in tune with the government's manifesto of investing in the human resource of the nation and making quality education accessible to all children.
He commended the PTA for the initiative and assured them of government support to ensure that the school achieved its aim.
Ashesi University holds graduation ceremony
ASHESI University College has held a graduation ceremony for 55 of its students at the Burma Camp Hall in Accra to usher them into a new phase of life.
The graduation ceremony marked a turning point in the lives of the new graduands, and the end of classroom work and the beginning of working life.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Ms Joyce Aryee who was the guest speaker said life outside school would be difficult but the greatest failure in life was to stop trying.
She said it was pathetic to realise that most students lose confidence during difficult times particularly when they found it difficult getting money to pay their fees for the semesters and said that nothing could be achieved without courage and determination. The job market is such that a new graduate has to struggle in order to secure a job, she added.
"My dear graduands, in my line of profession as a communicator, and generally in life, it pays to be on top, to be prepared, to be impactful, to be on time and also to work with a passion for excellence. These are some of the traits I developed in my days at the university. You will soon find out that the experiences you had in school and the lessons you have learned from your seemingly hardhearted lecturers will come in handy as you enter the corporate world", she said.
The President and Founder of the university, Mr Patrick Awuah said, the greatest human achievements were made by those who endeavoured in the face of enormous risks, those who had the curiousity to explore the unknown and those who were afraid to challenge the status quo.
“The Ashesi education has provided you an experience, in an out of the classroom, that has nurtured many of these qualities. The intensity of the academic programe here has pushed you to keep striving in the face of difficulty. The selection of courses and our teaching approach have helped to sharpen your sense of curiosity, your ability to synthesise complex information and your ability to craft novel solutions to new problems”.
"By doing community service, you discovered first hand, some of the most pressing problems confronting your society, as well as your ability to make meaningful contribution in addressing those problems. You learned the privilege of service”, he said.
He said there was no doubt there was risk involved with the institutions current path and added that there were greater potentials to create an institution whose very fabric nurtured the sort of enlightened leaders that Africa needed.
Mr Awuah encouraged the graduates to rise up in order to be counted among their fellows who have been able to attain higher goals in life.
The university, which began instruction in March 2002 with a pioneer class of 30 students, has quickly gained a reputation for innovation and quality education in Ghana.
The graduation ceremony marked a turning point in the lives of the new graduands, and the end of classroom work and the beginning of working life.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Ms Joyce Aryee who was the guest speaker said life outside school would be difficult but the greatest failure in life was to stop trying.
She said it was pathetic to realise that most students lose confidence during difficult times particularly when they found it difficult getting money to pay their fees for the semesters and said that nothing could be achieved without courage and determination. The job market is such that a new graduate has to struggle in order to secure a job, she added.
"My dear graduands, in my line of profession as a communicator, and generally in life, it pays to be on top, to be prepared, to be impactful, to be on time and also to work with a passion for excellence. These are some of the traits I developed in my days at the university. You will soon find out that the experiences you had in school and the lessons you have learned from your seemingly hardhearted lecturers will come in handy as you enter the corporate world", she said.
The President and Founder of the university, Mr Patrick Awuah said, the greatest human achievements were made by those who endeavoured in the face of enormous risks, those who had the curiousity to explore the unknown and those who were afraid to challenge the status quo.
“The Ashesi education has provided you an experience, in an out of the classroom, that has nurtured many of these qualities. The intensity of the academic programe here has pushed you to keep striving in the face of difficulty. The selection of courses and our teaching approach have helped to sharpen your sense of curiosity, your ability to synthesise complex information and your ability to craft novel solutions to new problems”.
"By doing community service, you discovered first hand, some of the most pressing problems confronting your society, as well as your ability to make meaningful contribution in addressing those problems. You learned the privilege of service”, he said.
He said there was no doubt there was risk involved with the institutions current path and added that there were greater potentials to create an institution whose very fabric nurtured the sort of enlightened leaders that Africa needed.
Mr Awuah encouraged the graduates to rise up in order to be counted among their fellows who have been able to attain higher goals in life.
The university, which began instruction in March 2002 with a pioneer class of 30 students, has quickly gained a reputation for innovation and quality education in Ghana.
Malaria awareness launched at L&A School
TWENTY volunteers from the City University of New York, have launched a malaria awareness programme dubbed ‘Teachers against Malaria Epidemic’ at the Lilian and Abraham (L&A) Memorial Primary and Junior High School in Accra.
The volunteers are currently in the country to educate school children and their parents on the need to use mosquito treated nets. They would also provide the schools with some treated mosquito nets.
The group had earlier visited the University of Ghana, Legon and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and would be visiting some other schools in the country on a similar programme.
The volunteers would team up with teachers in the schools they visit to execute the programme.
At the L&A Memorial Primary School, the volunteers advised the teachers to ensure that the children were put in treated mosquito nets before they went to bed.
They advised the pupils to keep their environment clean to prevent them from falling sick due to sanitation problems.
The Headteacher of the School, Mr Stephen Donkor, said with the onset of the rains, people should keep their environments clean because mosquitoes which caused malaria bred in water which has gathered in ponds, holes, empty cans, among others.
He advised parents to let their children sleep in insecticide treated nets to prevent malaria.
Picture: The volunteers in a group picture after the programme.
The volunteers are currently in the country to educate school children and their parents on the need to use mosquito treated nets. They would also provide the schools with some treated mosquito nets.
The group had earlier visited the University of Ghana, Legon and the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and would be visiting some other schools in the country on a similar programme.
The volunteers would team up with teachers in the schools they visit to execute the programme.
At the L&A Memorial Primary School, the volunteers advised the teachers to ensure that the children were put in treated mosquito nets before they went to bed.
They advised the pupils to keep their environment clean to prevent them from falling sick due to sanitation problems.
The Headteacher of the School, Mr Stephen Donkor, said with the onset of the rains, people should keep their environments clean because mosquitoes which caused malaria bred in water which has gathered in ponds, holes, empty cans, among others.
He advised parents to let their children sleep in insecticide treated nets to prevent malaria.
Picture: The volunteers in a group picture after the programme.
Stratcomm launches reading programme for pupils
Strategic Communications Africa Limited ( Stratcomm Africa) has launched a four-week reading programme for pupils of the Junior High School of the Kanda Cluster of Schools in Accra.
The programme, which forms part of activities to mark the company’s 15th anniversary celebrations, is expected to improve and enrich the reading and writing habits of the pupils.
The theme for the programme is “Raising the Bar in the Communication Industry in Ghana and Africa”.
Addressing the pupils at the launch in Accra last Friday, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, Ms Esther Cobbah, said poor communication often created misunderstanding, which often led to conflicts.
She said some people got frustrated whenever they were unable to express themselves and explained that since an act could become a habit and later develop into a character, it was important for children to be guided to enable them to develop excellent reading habits.
“As you read more and get better at it, you will no doubt attain a greater command of the English language but will also increase your own confidence as a human being,” she said.
“Reading is one of the things in life that you simply have to do more if you want to get better at it. For us reading is not only part of a child’s welfare but also a critical element in the process of national development,” she said.
Ms Cobbah pledged her company’s support to eradicate illiteracy in the country, as well as promote child welfare, by making contributions to education in Ghana.
The programme, which forms part of activities to mark the company’s 15th anniversary celebrations, is expected to improve and enrich the reading and writing habits of the pupils.
The theme for the programme is “Raising the Bar in the Communication Industry in Ghana and Africa”.
Addressing the pupils at the launch in Accra last Friday, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, Ms Esther Cobbah, said poor communication often created misunderstanding, which often led to conflicts.
She said some people got frustrated whenever they were unable to express themselves and explained that since an act could become a habit and later develop into a character, it was important for children to be guided to enable them to develop excellent reading habits.
“As you read more and get better at it, you will no doubt attain a greater command of the English language but will also increase your own confidence as a human being,” she said.
“Reading is one of the things in life that you simply have to do more if you want to get better at it. For us reading is not only part of a child’s welfare but also a critical element in the process of national development,” she said.
Ms Cobbah pledged her company’s support to eradicate illiteracy in the country, as well as promote child welfare, by making contributions to education in Ghana.
Write more sign language books - Educationist
The former acting Director of the Special Education Division of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Mrs Dinah Kwadade, has urged authors to produce more sign language books for the deaf in order to raise their educational level.
She said because the deaf were unable to build enough language to function effectively in the educational set up, majority of them remained at the basic level.
Mrs Kwadade said this at the launch of four sign language books for the deaf in Accra last Tuesday. The books are My First Book of sign, Sign With Me My Book of Fruits and Vegetables, Bibo My Friend and Abu Goes to School
She said while a child without disabilities entered school at an early age with thousands of words and an understanding of his or her immediate environment, the deaf child entered school with a language deficit.
She said the only means of communication for such deprived children was by gestures which were only able to communicate the most basic information, and added that "knowledge and understanding of his environment and the wider world is very limited".
She advised parents to use sign language with their children immediately deafness was confirmed.
Mrs Kwadade who is also the author of some sign language books presented some of her books to the GES.
She observed that lack of information about persons with disabilities and their capabilities in books and other reading materials was discriminatory and as such did not promote the inclusion of such persons into mainstream society.
She said one way to dispel the myth and fear of disability was to read more about them and therefore advised the general public that disability was not contagious.
She expressed the hope that her books would improve the educational levels of the students.
The President of the Ghana Association of the Deaf, Mr Samuel Asare, said one major challenge that faced persons with disabilities was discrimination.
He said it was unfortunate that most teachers in schools for the deaf had difficulty in using sign language which was the natural language of the deaf.
He encouraged deaf children to use their sign books effectively to help improve their literacy and knowledge acquisition.
Mr Asare expressed the belief that the books would be of immense benefit to schools.
He appealed to the general public to assist deaf schools with educational materials.
She said because the deaf were unable to build enough language to function effectively in the educational set up, majority of them remained at the basic level.
Mrs Kwadade said this at the launch of four sign language books for the deaf in Accra last Tuesday. The books are My First Book of sign, Sign With Me My Book of Fruits and Vegetables, Bibo My Friend and Abu Goes to School
She said while a child without disabilities entered school at an early age with thousands of words and an understanding of his or her immediate environment, the deaf child entered school with a language deficit.
She said the only means of communication for such deprived children was by gestures which were only able to communicate the most basic information, and added that "knowledge and understanding of his environment and the wider world is very limited".
She advised parents to use sign language with their children immediately deafness was confirmed.
Mrs Kwadade who is also the author of some sign language books presented some of her books to the GES.
She observed that lack of information about persons with disabilities and their capabilities in books and other reading materials was discriminatory and as such did not promote the inclusion of such persons into mainstream society.
She said one way to dispel the myth and fear of disability was to read more about them and therefore advised the general public that disability was not contagious.
She expressed the hope that her books would improve the educational levels of the students.
The President of the Ghana Association of the Deaf, Mr Samuel Asare, said one major challenge that faced persons with disabilities was discrimination.
He said it was unfortunate that most teachers in schools for the deaf had difficulty in using sign language which was the natural language of the deaf.
He encouraged deaf children to use their sign books effectively to help improve their literacy and knowledge acquisition.
Mr Asare expressed the belief that the books would be of immense benefit to schools.
He appealed to the general public to assist deaf schools with educational materials.
Migration
Participants in a workshop on child and youth migration in West Africa have called on governments in the sub-region to develop policies that would ensure the safety and welfare of domestic female workers in their respective countries.
Additionally, they called for special programmes to protect the rights and interests of children who migrated from their countries of origin to work in other countries.
The workshop was organised by the Centre for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana, Legon to disseminate findings of the studies conducted by researchers from selected universities and institutions and the Anglophone and Francophone countries in West Africa.
The purpose of the workshop was to bring together Francophone and Anglophone researchers and child rights advocates from research institutes whose main concerns are to understand and support mobile young people including children.
The Head of the Centre for Migration Studies, Dr Mariama Awumbila, said the migration of young people had been a neglected area of research, although recent work by the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and UNICEF had begun to change it.
She said the study was therefore aimed at asking child migrants about their motives and experiences to frame appropriate responses that simultaneously allowed them to participate fully in society and meet their specific needs as working migrants.
In a presentation by Dorte Thorsen, a researcher from the University of Sussex, she said despite the fact that young migrants became acutely aware of their marginalised position in the urban space within a very short time of their arrival, they learnt the necessary tactics and strategies to bypass some of the obstacles.
She said such child migrants were preoccupied with the goal of earning money and living like those in the informal economy but the problems they faced with kin and non-kin employers made them wary of patron-client relationships.
She said although these types of relationships operated on a low level in all informal employment relationships, such children constantly balanced the advantage of having paid work with the risk of being cheated.
Dorte Thorsen said such children were quick to move on in a new employment or independent petty services such as shoe-shinning or porterage, popularly known as ‘kayayoo’, at the least suspicion.
Melanie Jacquemin, a researcher from the Centre d’Etudes Africaines in Paris, also said temporary migration among young women and girls to undertake domestic work in West Africa was not a consistent trend.
He said the recent introduction of wage system for young domestic workers had given a market value to the work and price value to the person undertaking it.
He, therefore, highlighted the need to undertake in-depth, qualitative and quantitative research into the issue of child and youth domestic workers in order to know what had become of ex-young migrant workers and the reasons for the varying employment paths.
Additionally, they called for special programmes to protect the rights and interests of children who migrated from their countries of origin to work in other countries.
The workshop was organised by the Centre for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana, Legon to disseminate findings of the studies conducted by researchers from selected universities and institutions and the Anglophone and Francophone countries in West Africa.
The purpose of the workshop was to bring together Francophone and Anglophone researchers and child rights advocates from research institutes whose main concerns are to understand and support mobile young people including children.
The Head of the Centre for Migration Studies, Dr Mariama Awumbila, said the migration of young people had been a neglected area of research, although recent work by the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and UNICEF had begun to change it.
She said the study was therefore aimed at asking child migrants about their motives and experiences to frame appropriate responses that simultaneously allowed them to participate fully in society and meet their specific needs as working migrants.
In a presentation by Dorte Thorsen, a researcher from the University of Sussex, she said despite the fact that young migrants became acutely aware of their marginalised position in the urban space within a very short time of their arrival, they learnt the necessary tactics and strategies to bypass some of the obstacles.
She said such child migrants were preoccupied with the goal of earning money and living like those in the informal economy but the problems they faced with kin and non-kin employers made them wary of patron-client relationships.
She said although these types of relationships operated on a low level in all informal employment relationships, such children constantly balanced the advantage of having paid work with the risk of being cheated.
Dorte Thorsen said such children were quick to move on in a new employment or independent petty services such as shoe-shinning or porterage, popularly known as ‘kayayoo’, at the least suspicion.
Melanie Jacquemin, a researcher from the Centre d’Etudes Africaines in Paris, also said temporary migration among young women and girls to undertake domestic work in West Africa was not a consistent trend.
He said the recent introduction of wage system for young domestic workers had given a market value to the work and price value to the person undertaking it.
He, therefore, highlighted the need to undertake in-depth, qualitative and quantitative research into the issue of child and youth domestic workers in order to know what had become of ex-young migrant workers and the reasons for the varying employment paths.
NYEP to mobilise youth for development
THE National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) is to be reviewed to serve as an instrument for mobilising and energising the youth for national development.
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, said such an exercise called for changes not only within the institutions spearheading the youth development agenda, but also the legal and policy framework that would ensure that the object set for the development of the youth were achieved and sustained.
Alhaji Mubarak, who made this known at a youth forum on the status of the National Youth Policy and the way forward in Accra, said there was the need to work on modern and development-oriented law on the youth to pave way for progress in the sector.
He said the present legal arrangement or instrument guiding the formation and management of various youth groups and the National Youth Council (NYC) had become dormant and could no longer sustain the present momentum to achieve much progress.
One significant item that was being considered in the new bill, he said was the setting up of a commission on youth, which he believed would give the NYC the autonomy necessary to function appropriately.
He said the NYEP was an important element that engaged the youth meaningfully in various facets of national development.
The Programmes Co-ordinator of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Mr Danaa Nantogmah, said a national youth policy to guide the development of young people in the country remained a challenge despite attempts by successive governments to formulate a national youth policy.
Mr Nantogmah was optimistic that the government would provide more opportunities to engage the youth in the decision-making process at both national and local levels.
The Executive Director of the Youth Network for Human Rights and Democracy in Ghana, Mr Prosper Hoetu, said if Ghanaians wanted a society of progress where there would be responsible citizenship, reduced unemployment rates, reduced crimes and anti-social activities, then there was the need for the government to invest in the youth through strategic and integrated interventions.
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, said such an exercise called for changes not only within the institutions spearheading the youth development agenda, but also the legal and policy framework that would ensure that the object set for the development of the youth were achieved and sustained.
Alhaji Mubarak, who made this known at a youth forum on the status of the National Youth Policy and the way forward in Accra, said there was the need to work on modern and development-oriented law on the youth to pave way for progress in the sector.
He said the present legal arrangement or instrument guiding the formation and management of various youth groups and the National Youth Council (NYC) had become dormant and could no longer sustain the present momentum to achieve much progress.
One significant item that was being considered in the new bill, he said was the setting up of a commission on youth, which he believed would give the NYC the autonomy necessary to function appropriately.
He said the NYEP was an important element that engaged the youth meaningfully in various facets of national development.
The Programmes Co-ordinator of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Mr Danaa Nantogmah, said a national youth policy to guide the development of young people in the country remained a challenge despite attempts by successive governments to formulate a national youth policy.
Mr Nantogmah was optimistic that the government would provide more opportunities to engage the youth in the decision-making process at both national and local levels.
The Executive Director of the Youth Network for Human Rights and Democracy in Ghana, Mr Prosper Hoetu, said if Ghanaians wanted a society of progress where there would be responsible citizenship, reduced unemployment rates, reduced crimes and anti-social activities, then there was the need for the government to invest in the youth through strategic and integrated interventions.
Sky Kids
PLANET Kids, a channel on Sky Digital Television, last Friday presented a decoder to the Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Ms Akua Sena Dansua, in her office in Accra.
The presentation was to enable the minister to watch the children’s channel.
The decoder was presented by five children who feature on the channel regularly.
In an interaction with the children, Ms Dansua said she was not in favour of the abolition of extra classes in schools,
arguing that extra classes gave “slow learners” the opportunity to catch up with classmates who understood faster what was taught by teachers.
She, however, added that the current Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, was a very qualified and competent minister and might have very good reasons for calling for the abolition of extra classes.
The children sought to know what plans were available to renovate the Efua Sutherland Children’s Park. They also suggested the creation of a holiday for kids.
Ms Dansua said a private investor had initiated moves to renovate and convert the park into a first-class one and said she would ensure that gate fees were moderate when the renovation was done.
Regarding the holiday for schoolchildren, the minister said it was not necessary because kids benefited from all holidays, such as Independence Day, March 6 and Republic Day, July 1. She added that there was no tangible reason why a holiday should be set aside for kids.
Picture 1: Ms Sena Dansua (left), the Minister of Women and Children's Affairs, receiving the decoder from the children from Planet Kids. Looking on is Mr George Laing, the Channel Manager of Planet Kids.
Picture 2: Ms Sena Dansua, the Minister of Women and Children's Affairs, in a group picture with the children from Planet Kids. With them is Mr George Laing, the Channel Manager of Planet Kids.
The presentation was to enable the minister to watch the children’s channel.
The decoder was presented by five children who feature on the channel regularly.
In an interaction with the children, Ms Dansua said she was not in favour of the abolition of extra classes in schools,
arguing that extra classes gave “slow learners” the opportunity to catch up with classmates who understood faster what was taught by teachers.
She, however, added that the current Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, was a very qualified and competent minister and might have very good reasons for calling for the abolition of extra classes.
The children sought to know what plans were available to renovate the Efua Sutherland Children’s Park. They also suggested the creation of a holiday for kids.
Ms Dansua said a private investor had initiated moves to renovate and convert the park into a first-class one and said she would ensure that gate fees were moderate when the renovation was done.
Regarding the holiday for schoolchildren, the minister said it was not necessary because kids benefited from all holidays, such as Independence Day, March 6 and Republic Day, July 1. She added that there was no tangible reason why a holiday should be set aside for kids.
Picture 1: Ms Sena Dansua (left), the Minister of Women and Children's Affairs, receiving the decoder from the children from Planet Kids. Looking on is Mr George Laing, the Channel Manager of Planet Kids.
Picture 2: Ms Sena Dansua, the Minister of Women and Children's Affairs, in a group picture with the children from Planet Kids. With them is Mr George Laing, the Channel Manager of Planet Kids.
Cuban Medical Brigade holds scientific workshop
THE 10th national scientific workshop of the Cuban Medical Brigade in Ghana has been held in Accra.
It afforded Cuban doctors the opportunity to take stock of their contribution to healthcare delivery in the country.
Furthermore, the scientific session was intended for the doctors to discuss their research findings and make recommendations to the Ministry of Health for consideration and action.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kumbuor, who addressed the opening session, commended Cuban medical officers for their immense contribution to healthcare delivery in the country.
Currently, there are 200 Cuban doctors working in mostly rural communities where most Ghanaian doctors are unwilling to serve.
The Minister said apart from providing clinical services at the various health facilities in the country, the Cuban medical officers also undertook outreach programmes to extend medical services to many villages, particularly in the Northern Region.
Dr Kumbuor said it was heart-warming to recognise the crucial role being played by these medical officers who accepted posting to very remote areas of the country
He said Cuban medical officers had, indeed, proved to be good ambassadors of the Republic of Cuba since Ghana signed a joint co-operation with the Cuban government in April 1982 to assist Ghana to improve its healthcare delivery when 17 health specialists were brought into the country.
He explained that the number of Cuban medical officers increased to 54 in 1994, 62 in 1999 and 138 in 2000 and indicated that the current staff strength of the Cuban medical officers was 200, adding, “It is our hope that the figure will increase in the near future.”
Dr Kumbuor said the government of Cuba had, over the years, offered scholarships for Ghanaians to study various courses in Cuba and indicated that Cuba still incurred huge expenses annually to train doctors to supplement Ghana’s efforts at providing quality healthcare services for Ghanaians.
The National Co-ordinator of the Cuban Medical Brigade, Dr Felipe Delgado Bustillo, said the workshop was an annual event for Cuban medical officers to take stock of their contribution to healthcare delivery in Ghana.
He said the medical officers had been posted to all 10 regions of the country where they undertook research in the hospitals or clinics and their findings submitted to their colleagues and the Ministry of Health for discussion and action.
He commended the government and the Ministry of Health for their immense contribution the Cuban Medical Brigade.
It afforded Cuban doctors the opportunity to take stock of their contribution to healthcare delivery in the country.
Furthermore, the scientific session was intended for the doctors to discuss their research findings and make recommendations to the Ministry of Health for consideration and action.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kumbuor, who addressed the opening session, commended Cuban medical officers for their immense contribution to healthcare delivery in the country.
Currently, there are 200 Cuban doctors working in mostly rural communities where most Ghanaian doctors are unwilling to serve.
The Minister said apart from providing clinical services at the various health facilities in the country, the Cuban medical officers also undertook outreach programmes to extend medical services to many villages, particularly in the Northern Region.
Dr Kumbuor said it was heart-warming to recognise the crucial role being played by these medical officers who accepted posting to very remote areas of the country
He said Cuban medical officers had, indeed, proved to be good ambassadors of the Republic of Cuba since Ghana signed a joint co-operation with the Cuban government in April 1982 to assist Ghana to improve its healthcare delivery when 17 health specialists were brought into the country.
He explained that the number of Cuban medical officers increased to 54 in 1994, 62 in 1999 and 138 in 2000 and indicated that the current staff strength of the Cuban medical officers was 200, adding, “It is our hope that the figure will increase in the near future.”
Dr Kumbuor said the government of Cuba had, over the years, offered scholarships for Ghanaians to study various courses in Cuba and indicated that Cuba still incurred huge expenses annually to train doctors to supplement Ghana’s efforts at providing quality healthcare services for Ghanaians.
The National Co-ordinator of the Cuban Medical Brigade, Dr Felipe Delgado Bustillo, said the workshop was an annual event for Cuban medical officers to take stock of their contribution to healthcare delivery in Ghana.
He said the medical officers had been posted to all 10 regions of the country where they undertook research in the hospitals or clinics and their findings submitted to their colleagues and the Ministry of Health for discussion and action.
He commended the government and the Ministry of Health for their immense contribution the Cuban Medical Brigade.
FLIC
THE Minister for Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, has advised parents to identify the talents in their children and help develop them.
He said the youth possessed qualities and ideas that if properly harnessed could help in the development of the country.
At the launch of the Future Leaders Investment Club (FLIC) in Accra on Wednesday, the minister said it was unfortunate that the great qualities possessed by the youth had not been effectively harnessed due to numerous constraints such as inadequate education and training and unemployment.
He said the government had put in measures to establish a firm basis for an appropriate youth development agenda to improve the living conditions of the youth.
Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak observed that in order to create the necessary environment to promote youth activities, there was the need to enact a workable and scientific National Youth Council Law.
He said the existing law governing the operation of youth activities was outmoded and out of tune with modern and scientific youth activities.
The minister said currently, the World Assembly of Youth (WAY) and the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) had come out with practical and appropriate approaches to youth work that needed to be factored into the law.
He indicated that the ministry had a draft Youth Bill that it intended circulating to youth organisations and other stakeholders to be subjected to scrutiny by stakeholders in order to fashion out a more dynamic and realistic bill to enhance the ministry’s operations.
He said it was the intention of the government to empower the youth to enable them to meet their own challenges and solve them, adding that “this we hope to do by the creation and sustenance of the enabling conditions for young people to act on their own instead of relying on others to determine their welfare”.
Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak observed that while opportunities for wage employment were not available in Ghana, the youth had tremendous potential for self-employment through entrepreneurial activities.
He explained that micro-credit schemes that provided business loans, training and advisory services and other initiatives designed to help the youth had proven to be more effective strategies for job creation and youth empowerment.
He commended the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FLIC, Mr Emmanuel Dei-Tumi, for the initiative and hoped that the club would not only provide the start-up capital for members to invest in businesses of their choice, but would provide members with the necessary skills and knowledge to enable them to succeed in their respective ventures.
The Managing Director of GLICO Life Insurance Company, Mr Kwame Achampong-Kyei, said savings and investment was very important in a nation’s development, since it was the first stage in capital formation.
He said Ghanaians were currently witnessing an unprecedented insatiable desire of the youth to get rich and financially independent through unfortunate dubious means such as internet fraud, popularly known as “sakawa”.
“It is a very good thing for the youth of this country to desire for wealth but these riches must be attained through the adoption of an obsessive savings culture, which must be inculcated in them right from school,” he said.
He explained that members of the club would be covered by insurance and would be adequately compensated in case of any misfortune.
The CEO of the club, Mr Emmanuel Dei-Tumi, said the main aim of the club was to create a platform for young people to be able to invest towards their future.
He believed that young people who were determined to have a better future would join the club and hoped that by December, this year the club would have 20,000 subscribers.
Picture: Some students registering to join the club after the programme.
Picture saved on machine 139 as FLIC
He said the youth possessed qualities and ideas that if properly harnessed could help in the development of the country.
At the launch of the Future Leaders Investment Club (FLIC) in Accra on Wednesday, the minister said it was unfortunate that the great qualities possessed by the youth had not been effectively harnessed due to numerous constraints such as inadequate education and training and unemployment.
He said the government had put in measures to establish a firm basis for an appropriate youth development agenda to improve the living conditions of the youth.
Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak observed that in order to create the necessary environment to promote youth activities, there was the need to enact a workable and scientific National Youth Council Law.
He said the existing law governing the operation of youth activities was outmoded and out of tune with modern and scientific youth activities.
The minister said currently, the World Assembly of Youth (WAY) and the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) had come out with practical and appropriate approaches to youth work that needed to be factored into the law.
He indicated that the ministry had a draft Youth Bill that it intended circulating to youth organisations and other stakeholders to be subjected to scrutiny by stakeholders in order to fashion out a more dynamic and realistic bill to enhance the ministry’s operations.
He said it was the intention of the government to empower the youth to enable them to meet their own challenges and solve them, adding that “this we hope to do by the creation and sustenance of the enabling conditions for young people to act on their own instead of relying on others to determine their welfare”.
Alhaji Mohammed Mubarak observed that while opportunities for wage employment were not available in Ghana, the youth had tremendous potential for self-employment through entrepreneurial activities.
He explained that micro-credit schemes that provided business loans, training and advisory services and other initiatives designed to help the youth had proven to be more effective strategies for job creation and youth empowerment.
He commended the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FLIC, Mr Emmanuel Dei-Tumi, for the initiative and hoped that the club would not only provide the start-up capital for members to invest in businesses of their choice, but would provide members with the necessary skills and knowledge to enable them to succeed in their respective ventures.
The Managing Director of GLICO Life Insurance Company, Mr Kwame Achampong-Kyei, said savings and investment was very important in a nation’s development, since it was the first stage in capital formation.
He said Ghanaians were currently witnessing an unprecedented insatiable desire of the youth to get rich and financially independent through unfortunate dubious means such as internet fraud, popularly known as “sakawa”.
“It is a very good thing for the youth of this country to desire for wealth but these riches must be attained through the adoption of an obsessive savings culture, which must be inculcated in them right from school,” he said.
He explained that members of the club would be covered by insurance and would be adequately compensated in case of any misfortune.
The CEO of the club, Mr Emmanuel Dei-Tumi, said the main aim of the club was to create a platform for young people to be able to invest towards their future.
He believed that young people who were determined to have a better future would join the club and hoped that by December, this year the club would have 20,000 subscribers.
Picture: Some students registering to join the club after the programme.
Picture saved on machine 139 as FLIC
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
(Artisans and estate developers upgrade skills)
DomodRoof, a subsidiary of Domod Aluminium Limited, has organised a workshop to introduce modern and professional roofing methods to artisans and estate developers in Accra.
The workshop, which brought together carpenters and draughtsmen, among others, in the building industry also provided a platform for the participants to forge closer partnership among them and the captains of the building industry.
Addressing the participants, the Managing Director (MD) of Domod Aluminium Limited, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie, underlined the company's commitment to maintain and improve its market share by producing quality products.
He explained that the workshop formed part of the company's determination to continue to give its end-users the best services and urged the participants to make good use of the knowledge acquired, and also encourage them to strive for the best.
The Sales Engineer of DomodRoof, Mr Kwasi Okorie Anim, took the participants through four roofing modules, dubbed: "learning all you need to know about modern trends in roofing".
It covered critical areas in roofing such as why screws must be used in roofing and not nails, roofing the professional way and how to partner with leaders in the roofing market in Ghana and the sub region.
He gave participants the opportunity to try their hands on the electric screw driving machines.
Participants were awarded with certificates and Domod souvenirs after the programme.
Picture: The Managing Director of Domod Aluminium Limited, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie (middle) in a group picture with the participants after the workshop.
The workshop, which brought together carpenters and draughtsmen, among others, in the building industry also provided a platform for the participants to forge closer partnership among them and the captains of the building industry.
Addressing the participants, the Managing Director (MD) of Domod Aluminium Limited, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie, underlined the company's commitment to maintain and improve its market share by producing quality products.
He explained that the workshop formed part of the company's determination to continue to give its end-users the best services and urged the participants to make good use of the knowledge acquired, and also encourage them to strive for the best.
The Sales Engineer of DomodRoof, Mr Kwasi Okorie Anim, took the participants through four roofing modules, dubbed: "learning all you need to know about modern trends in roofing".
It covered critical areas in roofing such as why screws must be used in roofing and not nails, roofing the professional way and how to partner with leaders in the roofing market in Ghana and the sub region.
He gave participants the opportunity to try their hands on the electric screw driving machines.
Participants were awarded with certificates and Domod souvenirs after the programme.
Picture: The Managing Director of Domod Aluminium Limited, Mr Fred Papa Kwofie (middle) in a group picture with the participants after the workshop.
Students urged to repay loans on time
THE Director-General of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Mr Kwasi Boateng, has urged beneficiaries of student loans to demonstrate a high level of responsibility by repaying their loans on time.
He said SSNIT would be able to intervene positively in the socio-economic development of the country through the funding projects such as hostels, if students paid their loans on time.
Accommodation problems of most tertiary institutions in the country is as a result of the massive increase in the admission of new students.
Mr Boateng said this at the launch of the Students Representative Council (SRC) Alabi Hostel Fund of the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS) at Legon.
He said SSNIT had over the past decade been part of the solution to addressing the acute residential accommodation problems of institutions so long as there was effective collaboration between the authorities of the institutions and the organisation.
So far, SSNIT has worked closely with the authorities of public institutions to provide a number of hostels. The public institutions have made available land, while SSNIT has provided the construction finance and management of the hostels.
Mr Boateng urged all students to begin to think seriously and plan for their retirement even as they prepared for their careers, adding that "it is important for you to take keen interest in your relations with SSNIT to make you better informed about the scheme and thereby make life for you comfortable at the end of your working career”.
He commended the student leadership for the initiative and hoped that the effort would come to fruition.
The Fund Manager, Mr Charles Bannor, told the students that as professionals and commissioners of the fund, it was important that they stayed true to the core principles by taking responsibility, maintaining trust and influencing positively, the reasons for the initiative.
He applauded the entire student body for taking such an initiative to complement the institute’s efforts to create and sustain a convenient environment for effective teaching and learning activities.
The SRC president, Mr Ishmael Ackah, said since students played a vital role in ensuring a calm and conducive atmosphere to enhance student-management relationship, it was important to create a platform where students would have their peace of mind to concentrate on their academic work and extra curricula activities.
He, therefore, appealed to institutions, non-governmental organisations, the general public and other philanthropists to help the project which is estimated at GH¢100,000 to become a reality.
He said SSNIT would be able to intervene positively in the socio-economic development of the country through the funding projects such as hostels, if students paid their loans on time.
Accommodation problems of most tertiary institutions in the country is as a result of the massive increase in the admission of new students.
Mr Boateng said this at the launch of the Students Representative Council (SRC) Alabi Hostel Fund of the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS) at Legon.
He said SSNIT had over the past decade been part of the solution to addressing the acute residential accommodation problems of institutions so long as there was effective collaboration between the authorities of the institutions and the organisation.
So far, SSNIT has worked closely with the authorities of public institutions to provide a number of hostels. The public institutions have made available land, while SSNIT has provided the construction finance and management of the hostels.
Mr Boateng urged all students to begin to think seriously and plan for their retirement even as they prepared for their careers, adding that "it is important for you to take keen interest in your relations with SSNIT to make you better informed about the scheme and thereby make life for you comfortable at the end of your working career”.
He commended the student leadership for the initiative and hoped that the effort would come to fruition.
The Fund Manager, Mr Charles Bannor, told the students that as professionals and commissioners of the fund, it was important that they stayed true to the core principles by taking responsibility, maintaining trust and influencing positively, the reasons for the initiative.
He applauded the entire student body for taking such an initiative to complement the institute’s efforts to create and sustain a convenient environment for effective teaching and learning activities.
The SRC president, Mr Ishmael Ackah, said since students played a vital role in ensuring a calm and conducive atmosphere to enhance student-management relationship, it was important to create a platform where students would have their peace of mind to concentrate on their academic work and extra curricula activities.
He, therefore, appealed to institutions, non-governmental organisations, the general public and other philanthropists to help the project which is estimated at GH¢100,000 to become a reality.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)