Category: General

London: Dr Martin Luther King has been honoured by the Camden Council in London through the United Kingdom's first heritage plaque recognising the work of the legendary American civil rights leader. The blue plaque was unveiled at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, where Dr King preached a sermon for the first time in London on October 29, 1961, during a visit to the UK. It is mentioned in the church's history, and six decades later is still remembered by people who were there at the time. Dr King, born on January 15, 1929, was a Baptist minister and one of the most prominent leaders of the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. London?s blue plaques scheme, founded in 1866, and run by English Heritage, celebrates the links between notable figures of the past and the buildings, grand and humble, in which they lived and worked. There are 1,000 such plaques in London. Camden Council, alongside the Nubian Jak Community Trust (NJCT) and Bloomsbury Baptist Church, organised the unve iling of the plaque on Wednesday. They said that not only was this the first plaque honouring Dr King in the UK, but was also the first commemorative plaque to be unveiled in 2024 and the first to be installed on a place of worship. 'As a borough we want to do more to shine a light on those who have made a real, lasting difference in this world,' said Camden Councillor Sabrina Francis, Cabinet Member for Young People and Culture. 'It was an honour to unveil a plaque for Martin Luther King with local communities to celebrate his life and work, with the hope more people can learn about his crucial campaigning for equality and peace. Councillor Nadia Shah, Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion, said: 'What a fantastic day honouring Martin Luther King with a commemorative plaque at Bloomsbury Baptist Church - a place visited by Dr King over 60 years ago. 'Ensuring our public spaces celebrate and reflect the diversity of our communities is a priority for us and why we are committed to h onouring individuals from communities that have been historically underrepresented.' Dr Jak Beula, CEO of NJCT, said: 'Although Martin Luther King is a name that has transcended generations, I'm pleased that we have identified a space where he had a presence in the UK, and where future generations can go to feel connected with him. The NJCT says it is dedicated to installing blue plaques commemorating significant individuals from underrepresented communities. Since 2006, it has installed over 90 commemorative blue and black plaques around the UK. Source: Ghana News Agency

Zhongshan and Burnaby, with a sister city relationship spanning 12 years, share much in common when it comes to environmental consciousness. They both have a strong commitment to enhancing air quality and protecting the ocean. In recent years, a growing number of young individuals, including new graduates from prestigious colleges, have been drawn to Zhongshan by the city's pursuit of innovative urban eco-fashion. What measures has Zhongshan taken to create ubiquitous green areas? How are youngsters in Zhongshan making a difference? In this video, our host Deniz visits a Zhongshan downtown park that retains the industrial elements of the former shipyard while serving as a natural oxygen bar with a lush green landscape. Apart from the city center, Deniz also travels to Qixi village in southern Zhongshan to witness the innovative ecological practices that the locals have embraced. After speaking with Mr Hao, head of the Qi Xi live farm, Deniz finds that the village is actually more than just a village; rathe r, it is a brand-new, distinctive community founded by a group of nature-loving youngsters who value sustainable living. What makes Zhongshan's Qixi so enticing to young people? How does this youthful group work together to fulfill their shared ambition of revitalizing the countryside? Source: Ghana News Agency KEETMANSHOOP: ||Kharas Regional Council chairperson, Joseph Isaacks on Friday announced the suspension of three Swapo councillors with immediate effect, for allegedly having committed various offences. Addressing a press conference here, Isaacks said the trio was relieved of their duties after a resolution was taken during a special council meeting on Thursday. He said the councillors' contracts have been terminated and their benefits and remunerations were immediately suspended. They include Oranjemund Constituency councillor, Lazarus Nangolo, Karasburg West Constituency councillor Taimi Kanyemba and !Nami#Nûs Constituency councillor, Susan Ndjaleka. 'The council will communicate further to the councillors about the handing over of council property, we will also communicate with the electoral commission regarding the three vacant positions in the regional council,' Isaacks said. According to Isaacks the offences committed by councillors range from absconding from meetings with no proper and valid reason s as per section 10 of the Regional Councils Act, sabotaging the council and refusing to fill the position of the management committee. 'They have failed to uphold the Constitution and the law of the country, honestly, sincerely and to the best of their ability. Since they took the oath of office, the councillors failed in that. These three councillors have been holding us sabotage and at a point we need to say enough is enough,' he stressed. Meanwhile Swapo Party regional coordinator for ||Kharas, Matheus Mumbala on Thursday during a press conference said the three councillors were nominated by Swapo and elected by electorates adding that the chairperson has no right to terminate their employment. 'These councillors are not working for Isaacks or for the Landless People's Movement (LPM), they are working for the community that elected them and Government. We want to know where they got the power to terminate elected councillors, there is no one in this country that has the right to fire a member elected b y the community. We call on the acting chief regional officer not to implement illegal things,' stressed Mumbala. On Friday Isaacks said the Regional Councils Act no 22 of 1992, section 10 give provision on how a councillor can vacate his or her office even though they were elected. Other council members are Berseba Constituency councillor Jeremias Goeieman, Karasburg East Constituency councillor Anseline Beukes and Keetmanshoop Rural Constituency councillor Willem Labuschagne - all from the Landless People's Movement. Source: Namibia Press Agency

Cape Coast: The Central Regional Office of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has made significant subscriber enrolment registering 1,366,321 out of its target of 1,600,244 for 2023. Representing 85.4 per cent of its target, the Authority is poised to go all out to achieve further strides in the years ahead. 'For this great achievement, we are exceedingly grateful to the NHIA offices, across the Region. 'They have worked hard together with our registration outreaches, NHIS App, and stakeholders support has brought us this far,' Mr Fred Appiah, Regional Director told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Cape Coast. Recounting the districts' contributions, he said the Assin North District recorded the highest number of registrants, scoring 94 per cent target of 110,975.00 whilst Gomoa came last, registering 74 per cent of its target of 140,000. The Cape Coast Metro emerged as the Best Performing Scheme regarding the key performance indicators (KPIs). Mr Appiah identified the issue of illegal payment s by some health providers from their subscribers as a major challenge affecting their operations. However, the NHIA would soon begin what it called 'the pulpit approach' of assigning staff to some health facilities in the Region to address such concerns. It will also strictly monitor health institutions on such misdeeds and accordingly sanction where appropriate to deter others. To deal with that challenge, again, Mr Appiah disclosed that some health facilities have received sanction letters from the Authority for engaging in illegal payments with the aim of sanitizing the system. 'The Authority will intensify monitoring, clinical audit, and compliance to ensure some debts could be avoided in the years ahead. 'Some fund deductions will be affected from claims of some facilities after clinical audits are conducted in 2023,' he said. Mr Appiah pledged the Authority's commitment to work harder with all relevant stakeholders to ensure the 2024 targets were achieved. Equally, he urged all to enrol using th e *929# and MYNHIS App to help boost membership for quality healthcare services towards achieving universal health coverage. Source: Ghana News Agency

Zhongshan and Burnaby, with a sister city relationship spanning 12 years, share much in common when it comes to environmental consciousness. They both have a strong commitment to enhancing air quality and protecting the ocean. In recent years, a growing number of young individuals, including new graduates from prestigious colleges, have been drawn to Zhongshan by the city's pursuit of innovative urban eco-fashion. What measures has Zhongshan taken to create ubiquitous green areas? How are youngsters in Zhongshan making a difference? In this video, our host Deniz visits a Zhongshan downtown park that retains the industrial elements of the former shipyard while serving as a natural oxygen bar with a lush green landscape. Apart from the city center, Deniz also travels to Qixi village in southern Zhongshan to witness the innovative ecological practices that the locals have embraced. After speaking with Mr Hao, head of the Qi Xi live farm, Deniz finds that the village is actually more than just a village; rathe r, it is a brand-new, distinctive community founded by a group of nature-loving youngsters who value sustainable living. What makes Zhongshan's Qixi so enticing to young people? How does this youthful group work together to fulfill their shared ambition of revitalizing the countryside? Source: Ghana News Agency

Cape Coast: The Central Regional Office of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has made significant subscriber enrolment registering 1,366,321 out of its target of 1,600,244 for 2023. Representing 85.4 per cent of its target, the Authority is poised to go all out to achieve further strides in the years ahead. 'For this great achievement, we are exceedingly grateful to the NHIA offices, across the Region. 'They have worked hard together with our registration outreaches, NHIS App, and stakeholders support has brought us this far,' Mr Fred Appiah, Regional Director told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Cape Coast. Recounting the districts' contributions, he said the Assin North District recorded the highest number of registrants, scoring 94 per cent target of 110,975.00 whilst Gomoa came last, registering 74 per cent of its target of 140,000. The Cape Coast Metro emerged as the Best Performing Scheme regarding the key performance indicators (KPIs). Mr Appiah identified the issue of illegal payment s by some health providers from their subscribers as a major challenge affecting their operations. However, the NHIA would soon begin what it called 'the pulpit approach' of assigning staff to some health facilities in the Region to address such concerns. It will also strictly monitor health institutions on such misdeeds and accordingly sanction where appropriate to deter others. To deal with that challenge, again, Mr Appiah disclosed that some health facilities have received sanction letters from the Authority for engaging in illegal payments with the aim of sanitizing the system. 'The Authority will intensify monitoring, clinical audit, and compliance to ensure some debts could be avoided in the years ahead. 'Some fund deductions will be affected from claims of some facilities after clinical audits are conducted in 2023,' he said. Mr Appiah pledged the Authority's commitment to work harder with all relevant stakeholders to ensure the 2024 targets were achieved. Equally, he urged all to enrol using th e *929# and MYNHIS App to help boost membership for quality healthcare services towards achieving universal health coverage. Source: Ghana News Agency