EcoCare-Ghana, a right-based not for profit orgnisation supporting people in forest fringe communities, has called for more enforcement anti-bush burning laws to protect the country's green cover. Ms Vassileva Alorvor of the EcoCare-Ghana told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at Techiman in the Bono East Region that the transition zone of Ghana was prone to rampant wildfires and deforestation, which were largely human induce. That, she said, was exacerbated with extreme temperatures resulting from the effects of climate change. The interview was granted at the end of at a two-day sensitisation programme on byelaws that protect the environment and sustainable land management, under the Landscape and Environmental Agility across the Nation (LEAN) project. Ms Alorvor said uncontrollable bush fires destroyed farmlands, killed soil microorganisms and led to soil compaction, which contributed to land degradation and declining soil fertility to raise food security concerns. To achieve sustainable la ndscape management at the local level, enacting and enforcement of environmental protection by-laws would be instrumental in addition to the sensitisation and awareness creation of the regulations. She stated that the EcoCare Ghana employs practical and achievable strategies in addressing environment related challenges through breaking of technological and knowledge barriers by adopting and advocating integrated land management, while incorporating climate vulnerability and risk mitigation into decision making. It builds the capacities of farmers in acquiring such knowledge in boundary planting to safeguard against wildfires, mulching and improved planting techniques for soil moisture conservation, she added. Seventy farmers and land management officers attended the LEAN project bushfire laws sensitisation programme. The project seeks to contribute to national efforts of conserving biodiversity, improving livelihoods of smallholder farmers, increasing climate change resilience and reducing emissions from land use changes of selected communities in Ghana. Mr Amadu Bermah Suleman, a legal practitioner, urged the participants to adhere to the bye laws as that would safeguard their interest in protecting the environment, their properties as well as others to help reduce litigations in the area. Madam Grace Yaa Anane, participant from the Nkwaeso community, called for frequent training on such issues to remind them to always help protect the environment. He urged all to abide by the bye laws enacted by the Assemblies to ensure a safe and clean environment. Source: Ghana News Agency
NCCE engages nursing mothers at Tswala on child protection, vote buying
The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) in the Central Tongu District of the Volta Region has engaged nursing mothers in the Tsawla community on the need for child protection and the detrimental effects of vote buying. The sensitisation is part of the NCCE's initiative to enlighten the public towards this year's general election, on the theme: 'Together we can build Ghana, So get involved.' Mr Frank Eli Azumah, the District Programmes Officer, NCCE, clarified the perils of vote buying and noted that the menace did not only jeopardize the sanctity of Ghana's democracy but also perpetuated the ascendancy of inept and corrupt leadership. Mr Azumah educated the participants on the potential repercussions of vote buying, which included fines, imprisonment, and the erosion of national resources and development. He also urged them to play pivotal roles in curbing the menace in the district. Madam Victoria Afi Bosson, the Principal Civic Education Officer, implored the nursing mothers to embrace thei r maternal duties outlined in the Children's Act 560 of 1998. She said children must be shielded from neglect, discrimination, and abuse, emphasizing their pivotal role as the nation's future custodians. Providing unwavering support, guidance, and care for optimal child development was a cornerstone of national progress, ensuring a collective effort towards shaping a brighter future for Ghana, he said. The nursing mothers pledged their commitment to fostering informed citizenship and fortifying democracy as the country prepares for the elections. They lauded the NCCE's initiative and also gave the assurance that the Tsawla community would stand to safeguard both democratic principles and the welfare of future generations. Source: Ghana News Agency
Tunisian, foreign academics issue call to register Al-Muqaddimah on UNESCO’s “Memory of the World”
Tunis: A collective of Tunisian and foreign academics and intellectuals have recently issued a call for the inscription of Al-Muqaddimah (The Introduction ) by Tunisian scholar Ibn Khaldun on the Memory of the World Register of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The collective "proposes the joint inscription of Al-Muqaddimah on the 'Memory of the World' register by all partners worldwide who preserve its manuscripts, have translated them, disseminated them, or simply valued them through critical or analytical work as shared heritage for all humanity." It notes a long and complex process of appropriation and patrimonialisation of the man and his work, initiated and transmitted from generation to generation, primarily in Tunis, his hometown. The collective, on Friday, organised a tour in the footsteps of Ibn Khaldun" in the Medina of Tunis. The departure was from the Tunis City Library, passing through the most emblematic places in the life of this native scholar o f Tunis, such as the Quranic School and Tourbet el Bey Street where Ibn Khaldun's house is located. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse
“Booklet withdrawn from FILT undermines values of society” (NGOs)
Tunis: Various civil society organisations on Friday decried in a joint press release, the content of the booklet that had been withdrawn from the United Nations stand at the Tunis International Book Fair (FILT) and the handling of this issue by the fair's management, pointing out that this booklet is liable to "undermine the most essential values of the society, the family structure and the laws of the Tunisian Republic." These NGOs denounced "the interference of certain United Nations representations in Tunisia in social relations, in defiance of diplomatic customs and their obligations to respect the specific characteristics of each country," claiming that the image of the family conveyed in this booklet is far from being a reproduction of reality and aims to compromise family stability and cohesion." FILT Director Mohamed Saleh El kadri told a news briefing on Thursday that the management had decided to withdraw the booklet from the United Nations stand. "The booklets are in Tunisian dialect and contai n questions put by children to their parents about sex education," he said. The organisers of the UN stand had been called upon to withdraw the booklet after checking its content, which raises questions about homosexuality and relationships between people of the same sex, the official pointed out, adding that the information do not comply with the specific characteristics of the Tunisian society, which remains attached to its authenticity and identity, while at the same time being open to universal values. The Tunisian Association for Education Quality, the Tunisian Association of Parents and Students, the Coordination of Angry Parents, the Association "Our Pupils" and the National Organisation for Education and the Family expressed astonishment at the excesses noticed in publications at the International Book Fair and the "irresponsible" statements made by its director to the media. For its part, the International Organisation for the Protection of Children in the Mediterranean (French: OIPEM) expressed r ejection of the exploitation of children and teenagers for the purposes of implementing 'dubious programmes' which might undermined the society and its heritage and religious referential, underlining the right of children to all forms of knowledge and learning. Sex education must be included in school curricula and within the family in order to protect children, the OIPEM considered. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse
Arab Board of Health Specialisations office to be set up soon in Tunis
Tunis: Health Minister Ali Mrabet on Thursday met with President of the Accreditation Committee for Tunisian Faculties of Medicine and Vice-Chairman of the Executive Board of the Arab Board of Health Specialisations (ABHS) Mohamed Hedi Souihli and ABHS member Chokri Hamouda. Several issues were discussed during this meeting, including notably the setting-up shortly of an ABHS office in Tunis, reads a Health Ministry press release. The meeting also helped review ways to step up exchanges between the Tunisian specialisation boards, notably the Family Medicine Specialty Board and the ABHS scientific councils, in terms of development of postgraduate studies and digital transition. The minister commended on the occasion, the role of the Accreditation Committee for Tunisian Faculties of Medicine in communication and rapprochement of points of view between the various players of the academic training and training centres related to the different health specialisations, pointing out the need for further coordinati on to launch the implementation of the ABHS' programmes in Tunisia. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse