Month: September 2023

Alhaji Shani Alhassan Saibu, Northern Regional Minister has commended the United States (US) Government for supporting nutrition services in the country. He said the US government, through its United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Advancing Nutrition project had built the capacity of health professionals and other community volunteers to make them more effective and efficient at providing appropriate nutrition services to women and children. He gave the commendation when he addressed stakeholders in Tamale to close-out the USAID/Advancing Nutrition project in the northern sector of the country. Alhaji Saibu said, ‘The Ghana Health Service (GHS), through the support of the project, has implemented a National Nutrition Policy and Action Plan, which are instrumental in improving nutrition outcomes in the regions.’ The event, organised under the theme: ‘Deepening the Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Agenda: The USAID Advancing Nutrition Story’, brought together partners and stakeholders from all beneficiary Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Savannah and North East Regions. The USAID/Advancing Nutrition project collaborated with the various Regional Coordinating Councils with support from the National Development Planning Commission, GHS among other partners to complement the efforts of government to promote household resilience and early childhood growth and development. The three-year strategic project, which began with 17 districts, benefited 55 districts in the five regions. Mr Selorme Kofi Azumah, Chief of Party, USAID/Advancing Nutrition Ghana, during the event, said the project was implemented to achieve three main targets including, strengthening multi-sectoral nutrition planning, coordination, and financing, strengthen quality and reach of nutrition services, as well as strengthen community structures and behaviours. He said the project had supported the GHS to reach out to over 250,000 children under five years and over 120,000 pregnant women with nutrition services. He said the project had also strengthened the competencies of health workers in nutrition service delivery by training over 5,700 health workers in infant and young child feeding, anaemia prevention and control, community management of acute malnutrition, responsive care, and early learning. Mr Azumah added that over 60,000 community members were reached with messages on nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, and food safety. He said, ‘We have also strengthened the capacity of 340 village savings and loans associations and mother-to-mother support groups. We also supported 10,000 members of these groups to save over GHc3 million and invest in family nutrition and healthcare.’ Dr Abdulai Abukari, Northern Regional Director of Health said the project had specifically provided technical assistance and logistical support to the GHS in strengthening facility level nutrition service delivery and community level nutrition activities. He said the project had also supplied over 290,000 copies of the Maternal and Child Health Record Books and other logistics and trained health workers on their correct usage to improve quality of nutrition data. He lauded the efforts of the USAID/Advancing Nutrition Ghana and partners for implementing the project.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has demanded that government takes immediate steps to reform the admissions process of health training institutions by eliminating the arbitrary allocation of the 30 per cent of the admissions currently ceded to government. The NDC has also demanded an end to the political interference in the admissions process to ensure that they are solely based on merit, and fairness. This was contained in a statement issued by the Northern Regional Secretariat of the NDC, signed by Mr Mohammed Abdul Salam, Northern Regional Secretary of the NDC, and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Tamale. The statement raised concerns about certain ongoing developments at health training institutions, alleging that the government had written to principals of health training institutions mandating that 30% of the schools’ admissions capacity would come from government. It said, ‘Besides the reserved 30% quota for government protocol admissions, politicians-DCEs, MCEs, Ministers, party executives, party thugs, among others-besiege the offices of the principals of health training institutions to demand admission offers from the remaining 70%. Principals who refuse to comply with these party members’ requests are often labelled as anti-government and earmarked for possible victimisation. In the end, more than half of the admissions go to prospective students not strictly based on merit but rather on the power of politicians.’ It said the practice was worrying as it compromised merit-based selection, potentially lowering the quality of health care professionals, and patient care, which had broader implications for the health care system. The statement called on the government to fulfil its promise to restore nursing trainees’ allowances and clear the arrears to address the financial hardships facing nursing trainees, adding ‘These allowances should not be tied to reductions in admissions quotas.’ It called for greater transparency and accountability in the admissions process with clear guidelines and oversight mechanisms to prevent undue influence and the victimisation of principals. It said, ‘It is imperative that the government ensures equal access to education for all qualified secondary school leavers, who aspire to join health training institutions. The rejection of thousands of students due to unfair practices must cease.’ It called on the government to uphold the democratic values enshrined in the Constitution to refrain from attempts to politicise vital sectors such as health care and education, adding, ‘The government must commit to fair, merit-based admissions and cease any actions that undermine these principles.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

Nkwanta South District Court has sentenced Evans Munyi, 22, and Komba Ntoo, 30, to 30 months imprisonment for stealing two mobile phones and cash of GHC8,270. The two pleaded guilty to the crime and were sentenced according to their plea by the court presided over by Mr Joseph Evans Anang Okropa. Prosecution, Police Inspector, Bright Nkansah told the court on August 28, 2023, at about 06hours the convicts broke into one Mr Mpombe Godfred’s room at Damanko in the Nkwanta North District and made away with a Samsung tablet and a Lova mobile phone worth GHC2,500.00. He said Munyi, however, handed over the stolen mobile phones to Komba to sell and he obliged, and sold the Samsung to one Samuel Mpube for GHC400.00. Prosecution said Mr Mpombe saw the stolen mobile phone with Mpube and lodged a complaint at Nkwanta Police station, leading to their arrest. Munyi was sentenced to 18-months with hard labour while Komba to 12 months with hard labour. Meanwhile, Mpube was granted bail in the sum of GHC 10,000 with three surtitles for buying a stolen phone.

Source: Ghana News Agency