Month: November 2023

The Breman Traditional Council has condemned a video footage circulating on some media platforms in which some people were seen hooting at Dr Bryan Akyeampong, the Minister for Food and Agriculture, during the just-ended durbar to climax the Odwira Festival at Breman Asikuma.

The Council described the footage as ‘unfortunate’ and called for an unqualified apology from the leaders of the group to the minister.

A press release issued by Nana Okofo Afful Nyankoe II, the Krontihene of Breman Traditional Area in the Central Region and Chairman of the 2023 Festival Planning Committee, copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said Dr Acheampong was booed while addressing the gathering as the Special Guest of Honour.

It said although the Council had received an apology from the leaders of the group, the act was unacceptable and called for a direct apology to the Minister.

Speakers at the grand durbar included representatives of both the ruling and the opposition political parties and were equally given the due res
pect, the release said.

Dr Acheampong spoke on behalf of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and was duly honoured by the chiefs and people of the Traditional Area.

The release said the staged booing was unrepresentative of the general receptive atmosphere given by the well-meaning people of Bremanman.

The Traditional Council, on behalf of the people, expressed gratitude to Dr Acheampong and said its doors remained open to him to freely make the area his second ancestral home due to his contribution to development there.

Meanwhile, the weeklong festival, on the theme: ‘Bremanman, yenbomu, na yenye’ to wit (Breman citizens, let’s work in unity), showcased the rich tradition, culture and values of the area, making the 2023 edition unique.

The festival was to renew the people’s commitment to communal cohesion and work with development partners to fast-track the growth of the area.

The people of Breman Asikuma in the Central Region are said to have originated from Asante Breman in the Ashanti Region in th
e 1600s but were led by Nana Amoakwa Buadu I to search for a more suitable place to settle.

As they sojourned, they reached Tarkwa, where they were met with strong resistance but overpowered the people, winning them the appellation’ Tarkwa-Breman Akonfona’.

They moved further in search of a better abode and were joined by the Asona Clan and settled at Asona Amanfoso, currently called Asuokoo near Jamra, but were involved in intermit wars and finally settled at Breman Asikuma, their present abode.

Source: Ghana News Agency

An estimated 24,046 people are living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), including 1,240 new infections recorded in the Central Region in 2022, the Ghana AIDS Commission has reported.

The Commission’s 2022 report indicates that 16,021 of the affected population, representing 71.63 per cent are women, while adults, 15 years and above had a whooping cases of 22,364 representing 93 per cent.

The Gomoa East District recorded the highest incidence with 2,590 cases while Ekumfi recorded the lowest with 285, the report further shows.

The figures position the Central Region as the fourth region with the highest population of persons living with HIV, following the Greater Accra, Ashanti, and Eastern Regions.

The region, however, is the second with the least Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) coverage of 53.9 per cent, only second to the Savannah Region which has 53.1 per cent.

This means that more than 46 per cent of the persons living with the virus in the Central Region are not undergoing ART treatment, posing
significant risks to themselves and the larger population.

Mr William Kwaku Yeboah, the Central Regional Technical Coordinator of the Ghana AIDS Commission, attributed the unwillingness of people to seek treatment to continuous stigma and discrimination even though the medication was free.

‘They are tagged as immoral people. In fact, the moment you get HIV, your own children can run away from you and so, people are not willing to test in the first place to know their status.

‘Which means, they will keep on infecting more people,’ he said.

He stated that it was possible to end AIDS if HIV-positive persons took their medications religiously to make the virus ‘undetectable’ and ‘untransmittable’.

Mr Yeboah debunked the notion that all contraceptives could protect against HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

‘Any contraceptive you take, besides, condom cannot protect you against HIV. Condom is the only contraceptive that can protect you from HIV and other STIs. The rest will only prevent pregnancy
.

He said the fact that the region kept recording new cases meant people were not using condoms because the sexual transmission formed about 80 per cent of the infections, he said.

While advising against having multiple sexual partners, he said it was important to ‘protect yourselves at all times and never lose your guard because you do not know the status of the other party.’

Mr Yeboah appealed to the public to make conscious efforts at all levels towards eliminating the virus, citing the burden on individuals, families, communities, and the State.

‘If HIV were not there the monies, we have spent on it for the past 37 years could have been channelled into other areas of development,’ he added.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Israeli Embassy in Accra has advised Ghanaian business people to restrict direct travel into the country and utilise digital and port systems to continue with commercial transactions.

The Embassy explained that although current situation in Israel was unfavourable for in-person business transactions, it was confident that the country’s high-tech and port systems would facilitate the continuation of trade between Ghana and Israel.

Mr Yaniz Tessel, Head of Israel’s Trade and Economic Mission to Ghana gave the advise at a press briefing in Accra on Wednesday.

According to him, ‘Israel is not a warzone. Since November 1, Israeli companies have resumed business in Ghana, but we don’t recommend direct business in Israel at the moment, connections are advisable.’

Mr Tessel stated that key business districts continued to do ‘normal business’ because of Israel’s Iron Dome defence system, with all major commercial seaports operating at full capacity.

He said this would support trade between Ghana and Israel,
though the country anticipates a decline in the volumes of trade by end of 2023.

‘Import and export activities of goods and services in October and November continue despite the war; quarter four might be slightly affected.

‘The war will influence on Israel’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2023 and the deficit will grow, but there are no signs of a major impact on Israel-Ghana trade and business ties in 2023,’ he noted.

According to Mr. Tessel, military operations in Israel typically cause the growth rate to decline in the quarter in which they take place but rebound in the following quarters.

He said that since the Israel-Hamas war on October 7, the over 70 airlines that were previously operating in that country were now reduced to 10, with the Ashdod port – one of Israel’s three main cargo ports – working in ’emergency mode.’

Some 62 per cent of the factories in Israel reported that they experience a shortage of skilled labour.

There has been a 20,000 labour deficit in the agriculture sector due to t
he repatriation of immigrants and a scarcity of Palestinian workers, primarily from Gaza.

Shlomit Sufa, the Israeli Ambassador to Ghana, expressed worry over the war, indicating that around 250,000 people had been internally displaced, 1,314 had been killed, 6,730 were wounded, and 177 remained abducted.

She pushed the United Nations to demand the release of hostages without ‘excessive’ restrictions imposed by Hamas.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Parliamentary Select Committee on Youth and Sports has formally pledged its support for the Youth Empowerment for Life’s (YEFL-Ghana) Youth Financing Agenda to advocate adequate funding for the National Youth Policy.

This was during a closed-door meeting held at the Parliament House, where a delegation from YEFL-Ghana and a representative from the Youth Policy Champions, engaged Members of the Committee to discuss the outcome of YEFL-Ghana’s research on youth financing.

This was in a statement issued by YEFL-Ghana signed by Mr Alhassan Abdul Ganiyu, Technical Advisor for Youth, Advocacy, and Gender at YEFL-Ghana, and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Tamale on Thursday.

The statement said, ‘Funded by The Empowerment for Life Programme, YEFL-Ghana conducted extensive research on youth financing as part of its broader ‘Fund the Youth Policy’ advocacy campaign.’

It said the research, which analysed funding trends to the National Youth Authority (NYA) spanning 2017 through 2022, was presented by Mr Alha
ssan Abdul Ganiyu, Technical Advisor for Youth, Advocacy, and Gender at YEFL-Ghana.

It said the focus of the presentation was on identifying gaps in the utilisation and disbursement of funds from the District Assemblies Common Fund to the NYA.

The statement said, ‘During the meeting, Mr Kwaku Agyenim-Boateng, Chairman of the Committee, and Mr Kwabena Mensah Woyome, Ranking Member on the Committee, expressed their sincere appreciation for the initiative and applauded YEFL-Ghana’s dedicated efforts in championing youth development.’

It said the Committee pledged to closely examine the youth financing strategy, cross-verify figures from the District Assemblies Common Fund, and scrutinise projects undertaken by the NYA in collaboration with YEFL-Ghana.

It added that the Committee recommended that YEFL-Ghana and the youth community should follow up on the NYA’s construction initiatives for validation purposes and engaging an expert to analyse the youth resource centers.

The statement said, ‘This collaborative
effort signifies a pivotal step towards advancing youth empowerment and ensuring effective allocation of resources for the betterment of Ghana’s youth.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Coalition for an Effective African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Court Coalition) has called for support for the implementation of the Maputo Protocol on the rights of women in Africa 20 years after its adoption.

The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, also known as the Maputo Protocol on Women’s Rights, provides comprehensive rights for women and girls in Africa.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Algiers, Algeria, on the sidelines of the just-ended Sixth African Union Judicial Dialogue, Ms. Sophia Ebby, African Court Coalition Coordinator, explained that the Protocol guaranteed extensive rights to women.

She said civil society organization, governmental and non-governmental entities must support the protocol by adopting and putting in place pragmatic measures towards its implementation, which included the right of women to take part in political processes.

Ms. Ebby said women’s social and political equality with men, imp
roved autonomy in their reproductive health decisions, and an end to harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation, among others, must be eliminated where they still exist.

The African Court Coalition Coordinator noted that the Maputo Protocol also provided a wide spectrum of civil, political, economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights and is considered one of the most progressive human rights instruments globally.

She said, despite positive achievements registered recently in decision-making, women make up the largest proportion of our population.

‘Women still remain vulnerable, at-risk, and impoverished due to the challenges caused by social, economic, cultural, and political marginalization, gender-based violence and discrimination against women, terrorism, conflict, and fundamentalism,’ Ms. Ebby noted.

Explaining the role of the African Court Coalition, Ms. Ebby said it is a membership-based organisation made up of Civil Society Organisations, independent human rights insti
tutions, and individual members advocating an effective and independent African Court.

She said the Coalition was formed in May 2003 in Niamey, Niger during the first conference to promote the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Establishment of an African Court.

Ms. Ebby said the coalition had an interest in and commitment to a strong human rights protection mechanism in Africa.

‘Our main objectives are to secure full ratification of the Protocol establishing the African Court and ensure that judges are nominated and elected in a transparent manner.

‘We also provide a forum for civil society to actively participate in the establishment of the African Court and provide technical support to the African Union (AU) and the African Court,’ she noted.

Ms. Ebby said since 2003, the coalition had undertaken a number of strategic activities geared towards the effective functioning of the continent’s first human rights court.

It had also undertaken a number of awareness-raising pr
ogrammes with governments and conducted research on the need to nominate competent judges to the Court in line with the AU’s guidelines on nominations.

Source: Ghana News Agency

EcoBank Ghana, has donated some relief items to support flood victims in the South and Central Tongu districts.

The items, which included bags of sachet water, rice and new clothing were given out to support the flood victims in Sokpoe, Bakpa and Adidome.

The bank also donated medications to the Sogakope and Adidome government hospitals worth GHC 70,000 to be used to foster the health of the victims in the two districts.

Dr. Daniel Kasser Tee, the Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager for ECOBANK Ghana, who led the delegation, stated that the donation was to aid the displaced persons in their challenging time and was part of their corporate social responsibilities.

He said they were poised to ensure that the flood victims got support, to be in good health as they faced the unfortunate repercussion of the Akosombo Dam spillage.

Mr. Tee assured that his company would continue to offer the necessary support to the victims until the situations were resolved and called on other organizations and ind
ividuals to emulate the gesture.

Mr. Gabriel Adzrago, the Central Tongu District Coordinating Director, received the items and expressed gratitude to ECOBANK Ghana for their support.

He pledged commitment to ensure that the items were fairly distributed among the displaced persons and appealed to the Government and other organisations to support in resettling the flood victims from the low-lying areas to avert any other future occurrences.

Source: Ghana News Agency