Day: December 16, 2023

Devtraco Plus, a subsidiary of the Devtraco Group, has launched its latest luxury real estate development, christened ‘The Address.’

The Address is a new luxury development by Devtraco Plus located in the prestigious Roman Ridge area in Accra.

It consists of three separate towers:a 13-floor tower with studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom vacation apartments managed by an experienced real estate management company.

The other consists of a 17-floor tower with studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom apartments and penthouses for residential living.

The last includes an 18-floor tower with studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom hotel apartments managed by an international hotel company.

Mr. Kenneth Michael Ruine, Sales and Marketing Director, Devtraco Group, speaking at the launch in Accra, said the apartment was strategically located within 15 minutes of the airport, top-notch schools, healthcare facilities, restaurants, shopping malls, and police stations.

‘The Address promises to be the zenith
of premium luxury living, and every unit will receive a 5 per cent discount,’ he said.

He said the Address Project was poised to redefine modern living in Accra, offering a trio of towers that feature vacation, residential, and hotel apartments, each designed to elevate the standard of luxury living.

Mr Ruine said the new development set a new benchmark for urban living, catering to those who are accustomed to excellence, drawing from the success of iconic projects like The Edge at Labone, Henrietta’s Residences at Cantonments, The Niiyo at Dzorwulu, Nova at Roman Ridge, and The Pelican Hotel at Cantonments.

Mr John Hontook Entsuah, Chief Executive Officer, Devtraco Group, said ‘the Address’ aimed to eliminate life’s inconveniences, providing an environment that enabled residents to pursue their dreams amidst the tranquilly of one of Accra’s most cherished locations.

‘Beyond being a development, the apartment represents a lifestyle where residents wake up to breathtaking city views, enjoy rooftop fitness
centres, access world-class amenities, benefit from top-notch security services, and entertain friends by the swimming pool,’ he said.

Mr Entsuah stated that units of the vacation, residential, and hotel apartments at The Address were currently available with a $5,000.00 reservation fee and a flexible payment plan.

He said, ‘Life at The Address is a seamless blend of convenience and luxury, offering in-house retail marts, a children’s play area, a multipurpose sports complex, a private cinema, and a concierge service to handle daily errands.’

He urged the public to take advantage of the opportunity to become residents of the most anticipated luxury development in the country.

‘Secure a unit at The Address, and allow trusted property management companies to reward you with rental income,’ he said.
Source: Ghana News Agency

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration is seeking to increase Ghana’s passport acquisition fee from GHS100 to GHS644.

Madam Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, the sector Minister,explained that the deficit in the printing of passport booklets was preventing the Passport Office frommaking the necessary investments to ensure efficiency.

‘…Ghanaians pay just about GHS100 for a passport. To produce one passport booklet, it costs GHS400, which means that for every passport that an applicant acquires, the Government has to put in GHS300 and this is not sustainable,’ she said.

Speaking on the floor of Parliament before the approval of a GHS1.127 million budget estimate for the Ministry, Madam Ayorkor Botchwey said the proposal was being considered by the Committee on Subsidiary Legislation.

‘On the cost of passports, it is not sustainable, therefore, I will plead with this honourable House to look at the issue for us. It is already before the subsidiary legislation committee, and I’m hoping that Ghanai
ans will pay realistic prices for passports,’ she said.

‘At the moment, passports don’t serve as IDs, we have national ID cards. Therefore, those who need passports are those who need them to travel, and I don’t think that they would want us to continue to subsidize it.’

Per the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs on the 2024 budget estimates for the Ministry, a comparison of Ghana’s passport fees with that of other West African countries shows the rate of $7.7 is the lowest within the sub-region.

The report said Cameroon charges $180, Guinea $57, Guinea-Bissau $65, Burkina Faso $80 and Nigeria $54.29.

Touching on the backlog of passports, Madam Botchwey said the Ministry was in the process of securing a giant printer to expedite the process.

Mr Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration had earlier justified the proposed increment in prices of passports, citing production costs and the current affordability compared to other countries in the West Afri
ca sub-region.

He said there were ongoing discussions with Parliament to finalise the approved fees.

He bemoaned the low price Ghanaians paid for passport; as low as eight dollars, compared to other neighbours who paid about 40 dollars for the same service.

Mr Ampratwum-Sarpong, the Member of Parliament for Mampong, said there were plans to introduce chip-embedded passports in the second quarter of 2024 to enhance security in line with the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s standards.

‘Liberia charges $50, we charge $8, meaning we have to subsidise every passport. So the money to buy the printers is used to subsidise the passports,’ he noted.

‘Also, we are thinking of upgrading our passport from biometric to chip-embedded. So the chip-embedded version is going to cost more.’

‘If we continue charging $8, we will continue to face the problems that we are having at the passport office… So we have to raise the fees.’
Source: Ghana News Agency

Residents of Keta Central in the Keta Municipality of the Volta Region are in a state of fear after a lifeless body of an unknown person was washed ashore at the Keta emancipation beach on Friday, December 15.

Mr James Ocloo Akorli, the assembly member for the area, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, said the incident happened on Friday morning at about 1135 hours.

‘Several residents are in shock because we have never experienced such an incident here before,’ he said.

He stated that the deceased, yet to be identified, might have been moved from a different location to the area since no one was able to identify the body.

Mr Samuel Dorvlo, an eyewitness, told the GNA that a close study of the body of the deceased showed that the eyes, nose, ribs, and other parts of the body had been removed, making it difficult to identify the deceased gender.

‘We do not know for how long the deceased has been in the sea, and the missing part may be removed by wild animals in the sea.’

He said the case had sinc
e been reported to the Keta Police for further action.
Source: Ghana News Agency

The Hope for Future Generations (HFFG), in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and Ghana AIDS Commission, has intensified public education on HIV during the Sixth Volta Trade and Investment Fair.

They also tested patrons and exhibitors for HIV and AIDS, educated and distributed HIV self-test kits to enable people test themselves at the comfort of their homes.

It was also to distribute Behaviour Communication Change materials and distribute condoms to patrons.

Ms Rita Lodonu, Project Officer of HFFG, said a total of 375 kits were distributed to 174 males and 201 females.

She said about 42 people were assisted to do the test at the venue since they were not too sure they would be able to do the test alone at home and interpret the results properly.

Mrs Mary Naa Asheley Anyomi, Volta Regional Coordinator, Ghana AIDS Commission/TSU, said an estimated16,996 HIV/AIDS persons were living with the disease in the Volta region as the close of 2022.

She said majority, constituting 68 per cent of the
estimated HIV population could be found in nine districts within the region, namely, Ho, Hohoe, Ketu South, Ho West, North Tongu, Central Tongu, Keta, South Tongu and Kpando Municipality.

The region further recorded 730 new HIV infections for all ages within the period and young people between ages 15 and 24, accounting for 12.05 per cent.
Source: Ghana News Agency