Category: General

SIDI BOUZID: Eleven local councils in the governorate of Sidi Bouzid were set up on Friday. Fourteen local councils were elected in the various delegations of the region. The composition of the local councils is as follows: //West Sidi Bouzid// -Mohamed Bargougui (President) -Ten members, including a person with a disability //East Sidi Bouzid// -Abdelaziz Zaidi (President) -Ten members including a person with a disability //Souk Djedid// -Samia Souissi (President ) -Eight members including a person with disability //Cabbala Ouled Asker// -Khaled Rachi (President) -Five members including a person with a disability Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

The Evangelical Presbyterian College of Education at Amedzofe has admitted a total of 240 new students for the 2023/2024 academic year. Women constitute the majority with 52%, and the new students were selected from more than 700 that applied to the institution, which is located within Ghana's highest human settlement in the Ho West District of the Volta Region. Of the total admitted, 93 would pursue a Bachelor in Education in Junior High School Education, 34 signed up for Junior High School French Education, and 79 for Upper Primary Education. A total of 34 were admitted to pursue a Bachelor in Education in Early Grade Education. Dr Dickson Tsey, Principal of the College, said the institution continued to grant opportunities to women as part of its gender-inclusive policy, while applicants from less endowed schools, and people with sports talents were also prioritised. He said Management's decision to institute a scholarship scheme to support hard-working students, has been approved by the College Acad emic Board, and hoped it would become 'a catalyst' to excellence. The Principal used the occasion to draw stakeholder attention to numerous challenges facing the College, top of them the undeveloped road networks in and around the high-altitude campus, and also its auditorium, built decades ago to hold 250 people. Dr Tsey said the student population currently was more than 1000, and thus a befitting auditorium needed to be constructed. He added that plans and the conceptual designs for the proposed project had been produced and appealed to the GETFund and philanthropist organisations to support its realisation. The auditorium project is part of a five-year strategic plan for the College, which was launched at the matriculation. Rev. Dr. Lawson Danku, the Clerk of the General Assembly of the E. P. Church, who launched the strategic plan, said it represented 'a significant milestone in the journey to achieving excellence in education.' It would help to realise a holistic approach to teaching and learning in the 21st century. The new students were asked to consider the opportunity to enroll in 'one of the finest colleges of education in the country,' and tap into the tremendous opportunities that would enhance their college experience. A ten-seater modern toilet facility constructed for the women's hostel was commissioned after the event, and plans were announced to provide the same for the male section as well. The E.P. College of Education was established by the Bremen Mission in 1946. Source: Ghana News Agency

Benjamin Obeng Antwi, Public Relations lead for the Electricity Company of Ghana in the Volta Region, has been honoured by the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA). The honour comes as he exits the Region on transfer to the Ashanti Region, and was extolled for exceptional delivery of his role. Mr. Antwi took charge in the Region in February 2019, and worked to enhance public engagements of the Company. The citation was presented on the behalf of the Association by Mr. Lambert Atsivor the Administrator, and in the presence of Madam Christiana Jatoe-Kaleo, the General Manager of the ECG in charge of Volta and Oti Regions. 'The Volta/Oti Regional Chapter of the Ghana Journalists Association presents to you this citation in recognition of your exemplary and dedicated service as the Public Relations Officer of the ECG in the Volta Region. 'The Association and the entire media fraternity in both Volta and Oti Regions acknowledge and appreciate your professionalism and collaboration, which has significantly enha nced the relationship between the media and the ECG-Volta,' the citation, signed by Emmanuel Agbaxode, the GJA-Volta Chairman, said. Mr Antwi, receiving the honour, greatly appreciated the role of the media in Volta in shaping the growth of the Region. He thanked the journalists association for the spirited support to the Company, especially in promoting its outlook as the hub of excellence. 'When you come to the Volta Region as a PR person, before you excel, you need the media fraternity - the GJA. I've never seen media supporting the ECG like the way you do in the Volta Region, such that there are times that for some of the issues, I even stay back and they go ahead and communicate it for me because they understand the issues. 'And so if we don't face much negative press in the Region, it's because of the support they have offered to me and I am very grateful,' the PRO said. The PRO further attested to extra efforts by the media in the Region to project the company, and commended the General Manager fo r the Region for making 'a conscious effort' to improve media relations further. The General Manager, on her part, was hopeful the relationship would continue, and that the successor would build more upon the relationship and the successes. Ms. Eunice Tweneboah-Kodua takes over as the new PRO. Source: Ghana News Agency RUNDU: The suspected food poisoning incident at Rundu that claimed the lives of two children and left five hospitalised has claimed another life as a 12-year-old boy died at the Rundu State Hospital on Thursday. This was confirmed in an update by Namibian Police Force (NamPol) acting commander for the Kavango East Region, Deputy Commissioner Eino Nambahu, on Friday. 'One of the children from the suspected food poisoning passed on last night as his two siblings remain in critical condition,' stated Nambahu. It is alleged that the family prepared porridge with traditional spinach known as mutete for lunch. After lunch, one of the elder kids reportedly complained of stomach ache. Later around 19h00 that day, seven-year-old Elfriede Nangombe Shinyemba started vomiting, felt weak and died. Nambahu said police from Ndiyona Constituency, where the incident happened, together with medical personnel from the Nyangana District Hospital, departed to the scene and found Shinyemba deceased, while others were vomiting and in a weak state. 'The medical personnel started giving first aid to try and stabilise their condition,' he said. The seven kids were immediately rushed to the Nyangana District Hospital and later transferred to the Rundu State Hospital. While being transferred to the Rundu State Hospital, the youngest of the seven kids, one-year-old Melania Nahambo Likuwa died. Nambahu indicated that a team from NamPol and the Ministry of Health and Social Services in the region departed to the homestead of the eight children in Ndiyona to assess the situation. He said all the necessary samples were collected and taken for laboratory tests. Source: Namibia Press Agency

A resilient macroeconomic environment that translates into livelihood improvement and less cost of doing business is what Ghana needs to overcome periodic economic hardships. Dr Patrick Asuming and Dr Daniel Amateye Anim-Prempeh, Economists, said this on the back of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's message on the State of the Nation, delivered to Parliament on Tuesday, February 26. The President stated that the country's macroeconomic indicators were pointing in the right direction as the performance of the economy was much stronger at the end of 2023 than in 2022. Nonetheless, the Economists noted that the gains made were not reflective of the high cost of living and overall hardship in the economy, as 'deep-rooted' challenges persisted. They, therefore, encouraged the government to ensure that policies and programmes were streamlined to produce outcomes that would make Ghanaians see tangible impacts in their lives. Figures from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) indicate that the country's inf lation has dropped from 54.1 per cent in December 2022 to 23.2 per cent in 2023. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for the first three quarters of 2023 though lower than that of 2022, averaged 2.8 per cent, which was higher than the targeted growth rate of 1.5 per cent for the year. Dr Asuming, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), noted that despite those macroeconomic gains, things were still difficult for businesses and individuals in the country. He explained that high interest rates and taxes, inflationary pressures, depreciation of the Cedi against the Dollar, as well as the impact of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) were indications of those economic difficulties. Dr Asuming said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, saying, 'We've implemented many taxes, which have made the business environment extremely difficult, and the hikes in the monetary policy rate have also made interest rate high and cost of credit has come up substantially.' 'We mu st urgently invest more and wisely in the agriculture value chain; not just providing seedlings, extension support, and fertilizer to farmers, but in the road and distribution network, cold storage and warehouse,' he recommended. The Economist expressed confidence that doing so would help improve food production significantly, leading to a reduction in inflation and its attendant hardships on Ghanaians. Dr Anim-Prempeh, Chief Economist with the Policy Initiative for Economic Development (PIED), said: 'We're not completely out of the hardship yet; the cost of living is still high, and the policies are not responding sharply to it. Unemployment is also a time bomb.' 'We must implement the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme effectively and show commitment in coordinating related policies and have the right mix of investment to make these programmes bring relief to Ghanaians,' he said. 'In the months ahead, the government must occupy itself with sustaining the macroeconomic stability, ensure that reso urces are expended judiciously, and create more opportunities for the youth,' he said. Ghana is implementing a three-year US$3 billion loan-support programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, build resilience, and lay the foundation for stronger and more inclusive growth. The country has received the sum of US$1.bn in two tranches from the IMF for the implementation of the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) plan, backed by the country's Post-COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth (PC-PEG). Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Sumaila Ewuntomi Abudu, who served as the Municipal Coordinating Director for Agona East Municipal Assembly in the Central Region, has been announced as the Acting Northern Regional Coordinating Director. Alhaji Alhassan Issahaku, the outgoing Northren Regional Coordinating Director, introduced Mr Abudu to staff members of the Northern Regional Coordinating Council (NRCC) at a staff durbar at the regional office in Tamale on Thursday. Alhaji Issahaku, who is proceeding on retirement, said it was fulfilling to leave office unblemished having served in the interest of the region as the Regional Coordinating Director (RCD) for many years. He said his successor was up to the task urging staff members to give him the maximum cooperation. He noted that the announcement was the beginning of the transition process adding the new RCD was expected to take over fully by March 06, 2024. Alhaji Shani Alhassan Saibu, Northern Regional Minister, pledged his support for the Acting RCD. He said being a Regional Mini ster for three years had taught him the essence of diligence towards serving in public office. He said public offices were not a permanent place for anyone hence public servants must endeavour to give their all when given the opportunity to serve. He eulogised Alhaji Issahaku for his commitment during his tenure and urged others to emulate him saying 'Strive to leave an indelible mark when your term is over.' He acknowledged experiencing Mr Abudu's industry prowess expressing trust in his ability to deliver as expected of him. Mr Abudu said he was happy to take over the administration of the region and assured the staff members of prioritising team work towards achieving excellence. He said 'With the support of the Regional Minister, we will work to make sure that government attains its goals and objectives.' Source: Ghana News Agency