Day: June 15, 2024

Some stakeholders have called for improvement in the nation’s electioneering processes to ensure credible, free and fair elections in 2027.

They stated this on Thursday at a town hall meeting m in Ibadan to review the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that SOS Children’s Village Nigeria organised the meeting with community stakeholders in Akiny?le and Ibadan North Local Government Areas.

The Assistant Secretary, Joint Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD), Musa Akinsawe, emphasised the need to increase access for persons with disabilities and involve them in planning during electioneering processes.

He also stressed constant reorientation for electoral officers and continuous voter education.

‘Part of what we are clamouring for is accessibility to electoral venues and convenience in voting.

‘Elections for people living with disabilities must be easily accessible; the ballot box must be where PWDs can vote without being assisted by anyone,” Akinsawe
said.

Also, the Assistant Secretary, National Council for Women Societies, Chief Isimiola Olowoyo, identified the need for increased community engagement to restore eroded cultural values.

Olowoyo said such engagements came up toward the 2023 general elections and that her association would sustain them.

She said this would ensure that the right values were imbibed to translate later to good governance in Nigeria.

According to her, lapses recorded in the last elections, such as inadequate security personnel, should be worked on.

‘They should empower more security officers so that there will be no violence and there were places where electoral materials were not available on time; this should be worked on,’ Olowoyo said.

Representatives of religious bodies and traditional rulers from the two local government areas called for continuous voter registration and increased awareness from the basic education level.

The Programme Officer, SOS Children’s Village Nigeria, Grace Sambo, said communities should lea
rn from past elections and choose their representatives based on competency.

Sambo said ethnicity, tribalism and religion should not be the criteria to elect leaders, adding that sentiments must be thrown away.

Calling for social reengineering, Sambo identified the benefits of peaceful elections and existence to include family stability which would impact children positively.

Also, the state Coordinator, SOS Children’s Village Nigeria, Mr Gabriel Adajie, urged participants to rejuvenate cultural norms that promote value systems in communities.

According to him, poverty and other factors have been weaponised to divide Nigerians, hence the need to change the narrative come 2027.

He noted that the electorates were, in a way, encouraging the political class to continue with the norm in the country.

‘For us to change what is on the ground, we have to make sacrifices. We need to endure hunger so as not to continue to make the same mistakes,’ Adajie said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Mr Kwadwo Obeng, the Deputy Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) says the company cannot provide a planned load shedding schedule to customers because of uncertainties in power supply.

He said it would be difficult to adhere strictly to the timetable especially when not all outages were a result of fuel supply challenges.

Mr Obeng explained that outages could be a result of planned maintenance, network fault, as well as theft and vandalism.

‘We said that because information of about how much to be shared was erratic, we couldn’t really provide a timetable, because in the morning we could say that we need to shed just 40 (megawatts) at 8 o’ clock. And imagine we prepared a table to shed 40 and by 12 pm that situation changes.

‘We realise that even if we prepare a timetable, there would be lot of inconsistencies. And the worst we want to have as a nation would be for the utility provider to say you would go off and then you don’t go off, or your outage exceeds the stipulated period,’
he said.

He was speaking at a public forum organised by Civil Society Organisations (CSO’S) on how to address the current power challenges facing the country.

Mr Albert Ayirebi-Acquah, a representative of the Independent Power Producers (IPP) who generate about 2339 megawatts said the IPPs have in the past three years generated about 40 per cent of the country’s power needs.

‘Although we don’t have the 2024 power plan, we expect to contribute over 50 per cent of power generated in the country,’ he said

He cited the unavailability of fuel, and failure of government to meet its financial obligations to the IPPs as factors to the ongoing power crisis.

Mr Ayirebi-Acquah said the Cash Waterfall Mechanism (CWM), a system established to collect and pay revenue to power generators, was not a panacea to the constraints in the power sector.

He noted that the IPPs accept that the CWM in its current form as an interim measure that provides some level of certainty and predictability of payment from ECG.

Mr Ayirebi-
Acquah said that it was important for current commitment under CWM be honoured in a timely manner to enable IPPs meet financial obligations.

He also called for a representation of IPPs on the CWM implementation committee to improve transparency, efficiency and ensure due consideration are given to their concerns.

Other stakeholders present at the forum were the Public Utility Regulatory Commission, Volta River Authority and the Ghana Grid Company Limited.

Source: Ghana News Agency

More than ten people narrowly escaped death when a gas filling station at Asufufu, near Sunyani, exploded, burning their story building and properties in the area.

The incident occurred when a truck was offloading gas into the underground tank on Wednesday night at about 1930 hours at Asufufu in the Sunyani East Municipality.

An eyewitness account revealed to the Ghana News Agency in Sunyani in an interview that a private vehicle, with a family on board, was parked at the station to fill a kitchen cylinder when the explosion happened.

The family had to flee for their lives, abandoned the car to be consumed by the flames, witness added.

Most people at the scene, including the victims who lived in the story building adjacent to the gas station expressed disappointment and criticized the delayed response of the fire service, which allowed the fire to spread and cause more destruction.

They stated that the Fire Service was called, but they arrived nearly an hour later when it was too late after damage was al
ready done and that raised concerns about the behaviors of the service which need to be investigated adding that the region’s fire tender was alleged not functioning, and assistance was sought from nearby fire stations at Nsoatre.

The people therefore raised concerns about the safety of gas filling stations in the area and the need for improved emergency response systems.

Assistant Division Officer (ADOI) Kwame Adomako, Deputy Bono Regional Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Fire Service, confirmed the incident to the Ghana News Agency in Sunyani.

He said he received a call from someone at the scene when the explosion started at AGL Gas Filling Station at Asufufu .

According to him, the fire started when the truck was offloading gas into the underground tank destroying a storey building, a salon car, and a tanker discharging liquefied petroleum gas

He said the occupants including children and about 70-year-old man and wife of the storey building adjacent to the filling station, escaped unhurt but lost
all their personal belongings except for a fridge and two vehicles.

The cause of the fire, he said, was still unknown, and investigations were ongoing, saying fortunately, there were no casualties, but some of the occupants and bystanders sustained minor injuries while trying to escape.

ADO1 Adomako declined to comment on the incident, but appealed to the government, benevolent societies, and individuals to help secure fire tenders and other equipment for the Fire Command to prevent such incidents in the future as the concerns about the response time of the fire service call for the need for better equipment.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Dr. Bernard Okoe-Boye, the Minister of Health, has commended the Ghana Health Service (GHS) for setting up an investigative committee to look into the case of a patient allegedly abandoned in a bush at Gomoa Ojobi by the Trauma and Specialist Hospital, Winneba.

‘I appreciate the prompt action taken by the Ghana Health Service to constitute a committee to conduct an independent inquiry into the matter, the Minister said in a response letter to the Ghana Health Service.

An earlier letter from the Service addressed to the Health Minister said it had constituted a five-member committee to investigate the incident.

The Medical Director of the Trauma and Specialist Hospital at Winneba in the Central Region has also been temporarily relieved of his post pending outcome of investigations.

An accident victim who died on Monday, was allegedly dumped in the bush by an ambulance from the trauma hospital because her relatives never showed up at hospital.

Dr Okoe-Boye said he was confident that the committee would unc
over the facts surrounding the unfortunate incident and make recommendations to prevent such occurrences in the future.

‘I have taken notice of the decision to direct the Medical Director of the hospital to step aside from his post pending the outcome of the investigation,’ he added.

He directed that the committee should conclude its work and submit a report to the Ministry within 30 days from the date the committee was constituted.

‘Thank you for your efforts to ensure the integrity of the health care system in Ghana,’ he said.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Medical Director of the Trauma and Specialist Hospital at Winneba in the Central Region, has been temporarily relieved of his post pending outcome of investigations into alleged abandonment of a patient in a bush at Gomoa Ojobi.

A five-member committee set up by the Ghana Health Service will conduct independent enquiry into the matter for the Service to take appropriate action.

The Committee is made up of the Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Health Service; Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon from the Ridge Hospital; Representative from the Ministry of Health; Representative from the Social Welfare Department, and a senior Nurse Manager.

A letter signed by Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, Director-General, Ghana Health Service and addressed to Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, the Minister of Health, said the Committee was set up to ensure credibility and unfettered access to all relevant information.

It said an emergency meeting was held on Friday, June 14, 2024, at the Ghana Health Service Headquarters with the Medical
Director of the Hospital who confirmed the occurrence of the event reported in the media except the surrounding facts which appeared different from what was reported.

The letter assured the Minister that appropriate action would be taken at the end of the enquiry to ensure that any persons connected with the unfortunate incident were brought to book.

Terms of reference of the Committee are to establish the identity and background of the patient at the centre of the matter; to look into and report on all relevant events leading to the admission of the patient at the Trauma and Specialist Hospital.

It is also to enquire into the diagnosis and management of the patient at the Hospital; outline and report on all processes leading to the discharge and conveyance of the patient from the Trauma Hospital to Ojobi township.

The Committee would also identify all persons involved in the discharge process and transportation of the patient from the Hospital to Ojobi and their respective roles; outline gaps identified
in the admission, management and discharge of the patient and make appropriate recommendations for their rectification and report on any other issue relevant to the subject matter.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mrs Kathleen Quartey Ayensu, council member, National African Peer Review Mechanism- Governing Council (NAPRM-GC), said the Council will collaborate with the AfCFTA National Coordinating Office in empowering Ghana businesses to leverage the enormous prospects offered by the continental market.

She said though the National Coordinating Office of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was located in Accra, the country had to nurture it domestically so that people would be aware of it and take advantage of it to grow their businesses.

Mrs Ayensu was speaking at a knowledge empowerment workshop for District Oversight Committees (DOCs) of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) in Ho, in the Volta Region on the Targeted Review of Ghana and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

In 2023, NAPRM- GC in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration together with the continental APRM secretariat facilitated the Country Review Mission for the conduct of the Targeted R
eview of Ghana on the theme, ‘Corporate Governance as a Catalyst for the Implementation of AfCFTA in Ghana.’

This targeted review was a focused governance assessment which examined key corporate governance and intra-African trade challenges that must be addressed to facilitate the implementation of the AfCFTA in the country.

The review offers the opportunity to strengthen good governance practices for Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the most dominant private sector in Ghana to also access the enormous AfCFTA markets.

This is important because, the Ghana Enterprise Agency (GEA) indicates that the MSMEs sector which is the backbone of the Ghanaian economy is made up of 1.7 million of the estimated 2.1 million businesses in Ghana and employs 2.5 million people with a cumulative contribution of 75 per cent of national GDP.

Therefore, their ability to harness the AfCFTA opportunities will result in increased foreign exchange earnings and national income as well as the creation of vast employmen
t opportunities in Ghana.

Mrs Ayensu said the workshop formed part of NAPRM-GC’s agenda to empower the DOCs with knowledge on the Targeted Review of Ghana on the AfCFTA and corporate governance and their role in facilitating intra-African trade under the AfCFTA initiative.

It aimed to revitalise the DOCs at the districts to enable them to play their role in the dissemination of the targeted review outcomes and in the promotion of citizens ownership and participation in the monitoring and evaluation of the programme of action of the Targeted Review of Ghana report.

Mrs Ayensu, said at the heart of APRM’s success lay the principle of local ownership and participation and the DOCs exemplified this ethos, serving as grassroots advocates for good governance and community development.

The Chairman emphasised the importance of the workshop in enhancing the awareness of the DOCs on the significant role of the APRM in facilitating the implementation of the AfCFTA through the recent targeted review of Ghana.

Sour
ce: Ghana News Agency

The Crops Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has highlighted the importance of common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) as a food, secured with high nutrition and has potential for higher incomes for producers.

These beans are key sources of protein, calories, vitamins, and minerals, mainly iron and zinc.

The nutritional advantages of common beans have been further enhanced through biofortification.

At a workshop involving the major stakeholders on the common beans value chain at Fumesua, near Ejisu in the Ashanti Region, Dr Emmanuel Asamoah Adjei, a Seed Scientist, at the CSIR-CRI, said it was critical to engage the stakeholders on the importance of the various varieties of the beans which had already been released by the Institute.

He said the varieties, which included ‘Ennepa,’ ‘Semanhyia,’ ‘Nsroma’ and ‘Adoye’ were not common on the markets and there was the need to engage stakeholders further to expose the product and its benefits in contributing to the nutrition
, health, and socio-economic well-being of the people.

Dr Adjei explained that after the workshop, the stakeholders, made up of seed producers, seed processors, seed growers/farmers, food processors, would be in a better position to disseminate the technology (new bean varieties) for farmers to be aware and maximize the production of the crop.

The Seed Scientist was confident that if Ghanaian farmers adopted these early maturing and high yielding varieties, the cost of the importation of baked beans would reduce drastically.

He pointed out that, common beans were one of the cash crops for Eastern and Southern African countries, adding that, if Ghana could produce in huge quantities to feed its people, it could also consider exporting for foreign exchange.

Common beans, according to Dr Adjei, thrived in most parts of Ghana and it was important the private sector invested in its production and technology to help create jobs.

Dr Stephen Yeboah, Senior Research Scientist at CSIR-CRI, hinted that the Institut
ed had initiated a two-year project to promote sustainable farming through development and dissemination of rice-bean cropping systems.

The Project titled: ‘Developing and Deploying Drought Tolerant High Iron Bean Varieties that fit the Legume-Rice Crop Rotation in Ghana, is being funded by the Alliance for Green Revolution of Africa.

It will be implemented by the CSIR-CRI in collaboration with the Alliance for Biodiversity International and CIAT through the Pan-African Bean Research Alliance.

Dr Yeboah said the Project would release two drought-tolerant bean varieties to smallholder farmers to address climate change associated problems as well as evaluate and release two high iron and zinc bean varieties to reduce malnutrition.

Professor James Yaw Asibuo, a Principal Research Scientist, CSIR-CRI, said Ghana was going to benefit from maximizing bean production.

‘We are not only looking at exports, we also want to see the value chain where a lot of people including processors, seed growers, processors int
o animal feed, consumers and others in the production cycle will benefit.’

The stakeholders after the meeting inspected the common bean seed production fields at CRI.

The Institute used the meeting to sign a memorandum of understanding with the seed companies to project the production of quality and viable seeds for farmers.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Francis Asenso-Boakye, Minister for Roads and Highways has inspected some ongoing road projects in the Northern Region to assess progress of work on them.

They included the 168-kilometre Tamale to Tatali Road, 140-km stretch of roads in the Gushegu Municipality, the 5km Pong Tamale to Kpalung to Larigu Road, and the 13km Savelugu by-pass, which were all at various stages of completion.

Mr Asenso-Boakye, in an interaction with the press at the construction site at Yendi, said the roads, when completed, would boost socio-economic activities, ease traffic congestion and long traveling distances for motorists in the areas.

He said: ‘All these trunk roads are going to enhance agricultural activities, promote trade, tourism and generally promote economic development. These are major projects that are going to change the dynamics of Dagbon and the Northern Region.’

He added that ‘We are doing this because we believe that it is going to take us to the next level of development, and so far, throughout my inspec
tion tour, I am so impressed about the progress of work in the region.’

He was optimistic that the Yendi to Tatale Road would be completed by November, this year.

Mr Asenso-Boakye, as part of his inspection tour, also paid courtesy calls on Paramount Chiefs of Karaga, and Gushegu as well as the Overlord of Dagbon, Ya-Na Abukari (II) to brief them about his visit to the region.

Ya-Na Abukari (II) commended the government for initiating the projects in the area.

He appealed to the Minister to take keen interest in the construction of the Kumbungu to Savelugu Road, Jemli to Tidjo to Tampion Road and other strategic roads in some farming communities in the area.

He said, ‘The people of Dagbon are yearning to see these roads constructed to reduce the daily accidents on the roads and increase the socio-economic activities in those areas.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Twellium Industrial Company Limited, a Ghanaian-based manufacturing company, has attributed the expansion of its investments in Ghana to the country’s conducive business environment and loyalty of Ghanaian workers.

The Company, which has been operating in Ghana for the past 10 years, touted Ghana’s political stability and incentives for the private sector as among the conditions that made Ghana an attractive investment destination in the region.

Speaking to journalists at Adjen Kotoku, in the Greater Accra Region, Mr Ali Ajami, Chief Marketing Officer, Twellium, expressed profound gratitude to the Government of Ghana for creating enabling environment for businesses and providing incentives to support business growth.

He said the Company had since its inception expanded its production line to more than eleven and provided employment to more than 5,000 Ghanaians among other interventions.

‘The Government gives incentives and encourages investors to come here. The Government helps to export made-in-Ghana
products outside the country and this helps us.

‘There is no country peaceful than Ghana. That is why investors should come here. We have become Ghanaians because of the love and because we feel at home…Ghanaians are very educated and very interactive,’ he said.

Mr Ajami encouraged businesses to take advantage of the conducive environment in Ghana to export their products to neighbouring countries to help boost Ghana’s economy and create more employment opportunities.

As part of efforts to protect the environment against industrial waste water, Twellium, has set up a GHS3 million Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) at its factory in Adjen Kotoku to treat waste water from the factory.

The plant processes organic and inorganic pollutants, as well as all other impurities generated from the factory before it is safely discharged.

Mr Ajami said treated water from the plant could be used by neighbouring farmers to water their crops and for other domestic uses.

He said the Company was committed to environmental sus
tainability and would continuously explore innovations that would ensure that its operations did not harm the environment.

Ghanaian Afro-dancehall sensation Stonebwoy on Friday toured the factory site of Twellium prior to the announcement of his wife, Dr Louisa Ansong-Satekla as Brand Ambassador for Verna Mineral Water.

Stonebwoy, who was crowned Artist of the Year at the just-ended Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMA), said industrialisation was the surest way to create employment opportunities and commended Twellium for investing in Ghana.

‘Employment is going on here and the number of staff is increasing. I am happy to find some of the people that I lived in the same community with secure employment here,’ he said.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Dr Anthony Yaw Baah, Secretary General, Trade Unions Congress (TUC) has commended Mr Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director-General, for bringing back Social Justice and Decent Work into limelight through the creation of the Global Coalition for Social Justice.

The overarching aim of the Global Coalition for Social Justice is to unite diverse partners in addressing areas of critical importance to achieve social justice, at the intersection of their respective mandates.

‘Ghana Trades Union Congress is a proud member of the Coalition. We urge all unions that have not yet joined the coalition to join without further delay,’ Dr Baah stated in his address during the 112th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland.

‘This noble vision of the Director-General does not only enhance ILO’s image in the multilateral system, but it is also a clarion call on all of us (that is governments, unions, employers, civil society organizations, NGOs, multilateral institutions, especially the internationa
l financial institutions) to review and re-examine our goals, policies, laws, practices, activities, traditions, cultures and norms within the framework of social justice.’

The Ministry of Employment, labour Relations and Pensions, made a copy of the TUC Secretary-General’s speech available to the Ghana News Agency.

The Conference, which officially commenced from Monday, 3rd June, to Friday, 14th June, was held on two premises: the Palais de Nation and the ILO Headquarters.

The ILC is the highest decision-making body of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and is held annually in June to advance the core mandate of the ILO.

The Conference brought together all tripartite delegations from the ILO’s 187 Member States and observers from other international actors to discuss topics related to the world of work.

Dr Baah said the creation of the Global Coalition for Social Justice was very timely, given the fast-changing world of work and the acrimonious geopolitics the world was witnessing today. 

Dr B
aah reiterated that Social Justice was a universal principle that must be embraced by all, regardless of their nationality, race, sex, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and location. 

‘If we, the social partners in the ILO, are promoting social justice then we should demonstrate that we are ahead of those we are inviting to join the Global Coalition for Social Justice.’

The Secretary-General urged Governments to be fair to their people, especially the most vulnerable citizens; adding that ’employers must be fair to their employees and their unions’.

He urged labour unions to be fair in their dealings with employers and governments.

He noted that together, as social partners operating in the labour market, they must be fair to women, young people, informal economy workers, migrant workers, workers from minority groups, and that they must also be fair to people with disabilities. 

One of the things we can do together, as social partners, is to continue to adopt appropriate recommendations and conventions h
ere at the International Labour Conference to protect the most vulnerable in the world of work.

Dr Baah said governments, businesses, policy makers and international institutions should not focus exclusively on economic growth, power, and money.

‘We should pay attention to social justice in all what we do. Because that is the foundation for universal peace and harmony,’ Dr Baah stated.

Source: Ghana News Agency