Category: General

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says it is imperative that the newly-established Loss and Damage Fund is made free from the bureaucratic hurdles that have hindered speedy resource allocation of other climate funds. The Fund, which was a crucial element to the collective response of countries to climate change must also be agile and responsive to the needs of those affected, he said. 'Our goal is to ensure that the Fund is a dynamic and effective tool in addressing the immediate impact of climate change on vulnerable nations,' he emphasised. President Nana Akufo-Addo made the remarks at a COP28 finance summit, at the UAE, when the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) and Vulnerable (V) 20 Finance Ministers held a stocktake of reforms in the international financial architecture to spur development-positive climate action. This comes a day after the current and incoming chairs of the CVF endorsed and launched the COP28 finance declaration. The finance declaration, endorsed by CVF members Ghana, Barbados, K enya, Colombia, and Senegal, is to build on the V20 Accra-Marrakech Agenda, Bridgetown Initiative 2.0, and Nairobi Declaration, among other initiatives. It highlights the need for a more equitable and effective global financial system in the context of climate change. The leadership of the CVF and V20, in their submissions, said the move was crucial to climate justice, which required having a fit for purpose international financial architecture and international financing model that ensured that climate financing reached the most vulnerable. V20 economies have suffered immense losses amounting to 20 per cent of wealth, amounting to US$535 billion over the last two decades due to climate impact. The event also covered the operational progress of the CVF-V20 and the pivotal role of V20 Climate Prosperity Plans (CPPs), national investment-powered strategies that seek to maximise socio-economic outcomes for vulnerable countries and resilient development. Barbados will be the next CVF chair by mid-2024. Form er Maldives President and Founder of the Forum, Mohamed Nasheed, has been appointed as the CVF's first Secretary-General. Source: Ghana News Agency

Elambo, Oshikoto Region - Councillor Protasiu Neshuku of the Eengodi constituency in Oshikoto has issued a call for investors and business people to bring their services and investments to the area, citing a significant need for development. This appeal was made during the official opening of the Metsave shopping complex at Elambo village on Friday.

According to Namibian Press Agency (NAMPA), the lack of local development forces residents to travel as far as 80 kilometers to Omuthiya and Ondangwa for essential services. He expressed the community's need for various facilities, including building materials, filling stations, printing shops, and an internet cafe. Neshuku emphasized the absence of any settlements, village councils, or towns in the constituency, highlighting Elambo village as a potential business hub due to its ample space. The Eengodi constituency, consisting of over 80 villages, along with the Okankolo and Nehale Lyampingana constituencies, is expected to benefit from the newly constructed Metsave complex. The village headman of Elambo, Samson Nghiteeka, lauded Metsave for the complex, noting its contribution to local employment. The complex has created jobs for 30 individuals, ranging from cashiers and guarding officers to handymen, store managers, and general laborers. Currently, the complex, which can house five shops, includes a grocer y store.

No campaign activities were announced on Sunday for the local elections in the 112 constituencies of the Sousse governorate, said the coordinator of the local electoral authority (IRIE) in Sousse, Myriam Ben Njima. Only one activity was carried out on Saturday by a candidate in the Salloum constituency in the Bouficha delegation, she added. 329 candidates, including 61 with disabilities, are standing in these elections, she told TAP on Sunday. These candidates represent 105 delegations and are vying for a seat on the 16 local councils in the governorate of Sousse. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Dr Ernest Addison, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, says the Bank will continue to engage industry actors to develop forward-looking policy frameworks in the areas of Digital Banking and Open Banking. He said financial technologies could alter the financial sector landscape for the better and the Bank remained committed to promoting innovation in the delivery of financial services. Dr Addison was speaking at the Governor's Day Annual Bankers Dinner organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Accra. He said, in this regard, the Bank would continue to monitor risks and opportunities for banks, payment service providers, and consumers to thrive in the digital financial ecosystem. The Governor assured stakeholders of the gradual rebound of the economy, adding that Growth was improving steadily, inflation was declining, the fiscal and external positions were improving, alongside relative stability in the exchange rate. Dr Addison said the absent unanticipated shocks in the outlook, the continued imp lementation of prudent policies would further strengthen the recovery process and reinforce the disinflationary process. These conditions will improve the operating environment for the banking sector to remain stable and strong to support the economy. 'This notwithstanding, let me assure the public that, on the back of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme and other risks that may emerge in the banking sector, the Bank will continue to closely monitor developments and, where need be, take appropriate and decisive actions to address same,' he said. The Governor said the Bank would ensure that depositors' funds remained safe, and that the financial system remained stable and resilient. He said the banking sector had progressed steadily amidst series of storms in the past six years. 'We witnessed the banking clean-up exercise between 2017 and 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, spillovers from geopolitical tensions in Europe, and an economic crisis in 2022 that triggered a domestic debt exchange,' he said. H e said despite all these, banks had remained relatively stable and sound, partly because the Central provided leadership to the industry to navigate through these economic uncertainties and volatilities with policy clarity and focus safeguarding stability of the financial system at all cost. Source: Ghana News Agency

The campaign for the December 24 local elections kicked off on Saturday in Kebili governorate, which includes 46 constituencies in 7 delegations. Some 135 candidacies have been accepted by the Independent High Authority for the Elections (ISIE), including 114 filed by candidates who will campaign and 21 filed by people with disabilities who will partake by sortition. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse