Day: December 7, 2023

Mr Erasmus O. Xerton, Chairperson of Social Services Sub-Committee, Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly, has urged Persons living with Disabilities (PWD’s) across the country to register with their various Assemblies to benefit from the District Assembly’s Common Fund (DACF).

This, he said, when done would serve as a source of support for the PWD’s to be able to leave meaningful lives within their communities.

He said two percent of the DACF has been set aside solely to address the concerns of PDW’s and they must take advantage of it to enhance their living conditions and earn the dignity and respect they deserve in society.

Speaking at the common fund disbursement ceremony, held by the Assembly Mr Xerton said the presentation was to ease the economic pressure on their families, community as well as the nation at large.

He said the government led initiative was aimed at minimising poverty among all PWD’s, particularly those outside the formal sector, enhancing their social image through dignified labour, su
pporting their income generating activities, providing educational support, and building their capacities.

He noted that government was not happy when PWD begs on the street, adding that ‘so these disbursements are to motivate you to identify your areas of interest and passion and set up small businesses of your own in order to become independent, and not to beg on the streets.’

He advised beneficiaries to make good use of the items, engage in economic activities to better their lives and their families.

Mr Justice Amu Kabiri, a beneficiary, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on behalf of all beneficiaries expressed appreciation to the Assembly for their kind gesture.

He said the items would go a long way to help improve their lives and put smiles on the faces of their families, saying ‘it will also reduce the Government’s burden concerning people with disabilities in the country.

‘Disability is not inability and I believe if we put our minds to it we will be able to make the best out of our live
s as disabled,’ he said.

Mr Kabiri encouraged the beneficiaries to be determined, and work hard for themselves for God to bless their work and encouraged more people to support them.

In all, 16 beneficiaries were presented with fridges, sewing machines, grinding machines, hair products, drinks, wiring cables among others.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Divine Osborn Fenu, the North Tongu District Chief Executive in the Volta Region, says the area has abundant agricultural, tourism, and mineral potential and invited investors and the business community to explore opportunities in the area.

He said when the area’s distinctive, alluring, and competitive mineral resources, tourism, and agriculture were fully harnessed, it would accelerate national development and support local economic growth.

Mr Fenu said this when the Assembly took turns at the Sixth Volta Trade and Investment Fair to draw in the business community and showcase the district’s investment potential to the global world.

He said the district had a large amount of arable land suitable for commercial agriculture, and the Assembly was ready to welcome the business community and prospective investors who wish to invest.

Mangoes, cashews, rice, sweet potatoes, yam, cassava, cowpea, groundnuts, and vegetables like watermelon, pepper, okro, and garden eggs are some of the main trees and food cro
ps that are produced.

He said although Aveyime was historically recognised for producing rice, it was also productive in many other agricultural produce, noting that the district’s potential and resource base allowed for a range of production systems and economic activities.

Due to the district’s abundance of water resources, such as the River Volta, Alabo, Korlor, Aklakpa, Gblor, Bla (Bla-Battor), Anyorgborti (Aveyime), and Nyifla streams, as well as the numerous tributaries that flow into the Volta River, he said, the district also has potential for aquaculture.

Mr Fenu said the Volta River had enormous potential for the growth of the tourism industry and the windy weather was also beneficial for the

establishment of tourist-friendly recreational facilities, along the river and for fostering an atmosphere that was ideal for river cruising.

He said that there were large granite deposits and that some of the fine, untapped aggregates could be found at Kpeyibor enclave, while the resource extraction was s
till taking place at Mafi-Luta enclave to support the Ada Songor Salt Project’s shoreline protection efforts.

The DCE added that the district had abundant clay deposits, which were located near Volo and Torgorme and the soils were ideal to produce ceramic goods, bricks, and tiles, as well as local pottery, which opened job opportunities.

Mr Fenu mentioned oyster shell as another major mineral deposit in the district and it can be found in Battor, Mepe, Volo, Dorfor-Gborkpo, Afaode, and Alabo, among other places and it is used for painting and animal feed, among other things.

Mr Fenu said that the Dorfor and Ogoli enclaves also had deposits of feldspar and nepheline that were suitable for glass, ceramic, and porcelain wares and urged the business community to come and invest in the district.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture (MoTAC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the GUMA Group on a $50 million investment package to build and redevelop selected tourism enterprises.

The MoU provides a roadmap for the partnership, which includes the designing, initiation, building, and rehabilitation of various projects under the aegis of the Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC) to ensure the tourism sector’s effective and efficient development.

The parties agreed to cooperate with each other to develop the enterprises within the next 24 and 60 months.

The investment entails the upgrade of the tented Shai Hills Resource Reserve into a luxury resort with rooms and a restaurant, as well as developing a Cultural Village like South Africa’s Lesedi concept.

It would also develop Kakum National Park into an Eco-lodge, offering tourists overnight accommodation at two designated sites (Mfuom and Antwikwao), as well as tree top houses, mobile tented camps, and picnicking areas.

GUMA w
ill also open a restaurant where tourists can eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The Mole National Park would create two new locations to provide lodging and restaurant services and explore other product opportunities. GUMA would also open and operate the second gate at Ducie Camp.

The investor is also interested in establishing an airport lounge and duty-free outlets in the city to run Diplomatic Duty-Free stores.

Other concessionaires, in collaboration with the investor and the Department of Forestry, would rehabilitate and operate the light aircraft landing fields close to National Parks/Reserves, and improve arterial roads connecting tourism products and nodes.

The investor would set up retail outlets at various tourist destinations, with most of the products sold at such outlets to be sourced from local Ghanaian suppliers, in addition to helping to train Ghana’s human capital resource.

Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Minister of Tourism, stated at the occasion that the MoU is part of the efforts targeted
at achieving 2 million arrivals in Ghana before 2026.

‘Tourism is government-led but private sector-driven. That is why we have our colleagues from the GUMA Group here investing in Ghana. The arrivals can give us a minimum of $6 billion. Our plan is to create 150 thousand jobs,’ he said.

Mr. Robert Matana Gumede, Executive Chairman of the GUMA Group of Companies, said Ghana was an attractive trade and investment destination with tremendous tourism and investment potential.

He stated that investing in Ghana would open the way for future investments in other West African countries.

The GUMA Group is a South African-led integrated tourism company that attracts visitors from all over the world.

Source: Ghana News Agency

A coalition of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) focused on women and children’s affair has called on women in the media space to join the call for the President to assent to the Anti-Witchcraft Bill.

A statement jointly signed by Madam Abundant Hayford Aggrey, National President and Madam Palmer Adjo, a Board Member of the Coalition, and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Takoradi, said women over the years had been subjected to oppression and discrimination, including witchcraft accusations.

The statement noted that: ‘Women have been tagged with witchcraft, with mothers being rejected, homes broken and children going wayward as a result of such discrimination.’

It continued: ‘This is an issue of gender and that means both men and women are all inclusive, but the sad aspect of the matter is that only women are mostly tagged.’

According to the statement, the Anti-Witchcraft Bill passed by Parliament was a step in the right direction.

‘Meanwhile, for some time now, it is still waiting for the P
resident’s signature to be enacted into law,’ it said.

The group appealed to media practitioners, especially women to add their voices to the call on the President to sign the Bill into law.

This, it said, would help curb the discrimination of women and free them from witchcraft accusations and other abuses.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Abuja Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Port State Control for West and Central African Region and the Regional Maritime University (RMU) will from June 2024 commence training for Port State Control Officers in the Abuja MoU Region.

The collaboration is aimed at providing training on the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) specialised Model course 3.09 and related IMO/International Labour Organisation conventions, guidelines, circular publications, and other related courses to Port State Control Officers in the Abuja MoU region.

The Abuja MoU is one of the Nine Regional ones established pursuant to IMO Resolution A.682 (17) of 1991.

It is an intergovernmental Organization, comprising the Maritime Administrations of 22 countries from Mauritania to the South Atlantic Ocean coast of Africa and operating under a cooperative Agreement with IMO to complement the work of flag States and coastal States in eradicating the operation of sub-standard ships and ensuring safety, security, protection of the
marine environment from pollution, and improvement of living and working conditions of the seafarers.

Captain Sunday M. Umoren, the General Secretary of Abuja MOU Region, speaking at a signing ceremony commended the leadership of the University for their proactive nature in the collaboration to develop the competencies of Officers.

He said the courses required by the Port State Control Officers in the region for capacity development were not currently offered by any Maritime Training Institutions in the Abuja MoU Region.

The General Secretary said the collaboration would promote the Maritime Institutions in the Abuja MoU Region by encouraging Port State Control Officers of Member States to access the training courses provided by the University as opposed to sourcing for such training in other Regions, which were expensive.

He said Africa would become a dumping ground for sub-standard vessels, which would have dire consequences for the continent if proper control was not taken.

Dr. Jethro W. Brooks Jnr.,
the Acting Vice Chancellor of RMU, expressed gratitude to the leadership of the Abuja MoU for their readiness to partner with the University in promoting the competence of Port State Control Officers.

He said the Leadership of the University would ensure the full implementation of the partnership and contribute to the development of the Maritime Sector.

‘We will be working closely with the Abuja MoU to identify specific training needs of Port State Control Officers in the Region and develop training programme to suit their training needs,’ he added.

Professor Nana Ofosu-Boateng, the Dean of Maritime Studies at RMU, said the University would take the opportunity to impact positively on these Officers and would be pleased to be selected for the training.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is expected to lay before Parliament the Lithium Mining Lease Agreement for consideration and ratification by the first quarter of 2024, if all things being equal.

The Ministry on 19th of October this year signed a lease agreement with Barari DV Limited, a subsidiary of Atlantic Lithium Limited for the mining of Lithium in Ewoyaa in Mfantsiman Municipality of the Central Region.

The Agreement stipulates that the State will have 19 percent Carried Interest with an option of scaling up to a minimum of 30 percent by the end of the contract.

There is a 13 per cent royalty, 35 percent corporate income tax, 1% of the company’s revenue to be lodged in a Community Development Fund for the development of host communities and a requirement to establish a refinery to process Lithium locally before export.

However, following the signing of the Agreement, some civil society organisations and high profile personalities including the Institute of Economic Affairs and former C
hief Justice,

Sophia Akuffo have criticised the terms of agreement, saying; ‘It’s not in the interest of the nation”.

Speaking at the Minister’s news briefing hosted by the Ministry of Information in Accra on Thursday, to respond to some public concerns on the Lithium Mining Lease, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor, the Sector Minister, insisted that the Lithium Agreement signed with Barari DV Limited was the best ever in the history of the country’s mineral transactions.

He, however, said his doors are always open to listen to ‘superior propositions and alternative option from the public’.

Also, the Lease Agreement must go through Parliament for consideration and ratification before the lease can be validated.

‘The Mining Lease is subject to ratification by Parliament in accordance with Article 268(1) of the Constitution and section 5(4) of Act 703. Upon execution of this Mining Lease, the Minister shall cause the mining lease to be laid before Parliament for ratification,’ Mr Jinapor stated.

Therefore, by the te
rms of the Lease, ratification by Parliament is a condition precedent, the Minister explained, noting that, an unratified mining lease confers no enforceable rights, and that government has always been mindful of its decision.

On refining the lithium ore locally, the Minister said, either Barari DV Limited could establish a refinery to proccess it or given to a third party to do so.

He said the Ministry had received multiple offer including a Korean firm expressing interest to refine lithium domestically.

That, he believed, would enable the nation to benefit fully from the entire value chain of lithium exploitation.

Mr Jinapor hinted that the Government was ready to provide more resources to the Ghana Geological Survey Authority to expand its survey and aerial mapping of the country towards finding more lithium deposit.

Mr Edward Nana Yaw Koranteng, the Chief Executive Officer, Minerals Income Investment Fund, said the nation stood the chance of raking in $2.4 billion within the lifespan of Lithium explo
itation, with an estimated amount of $360 million per year.

Accroding to the Minerals Commission, Ghana’s lithium deposit is estimated at 15 million tonnes with 27 per cent grade quality.

Mr Martin Kwaku Ayisi, the Chief Executive Officer, Minerals Commission, stated that the government thoroughly examined all the available options before entering the lease agreement.

The $250 million Lithium project covers a period of 15 years and an area of 426 kilometre square and located at the Mfantsiman Municipality of the Central Region.

The project is expected to commence commercial production in 2025.

Source: Ghana News Agency