Day: December 26, 2023

MTN Ghana on Tuesday presented packages to babies born on Christmas and Boxing Days at the Sunyani Teaching Hospital.

Each of the nine babies received a hamper containing diapers, baby powder, court sheet, cream, soap and detergent and washing powder.

According to the Hospital officials, eight of the babies born on the Christmas Day comprise three boys and five girls, while only a boy was delivered on the boxing day.

Four of them, a boy and three girls were born through Caesarean Section (CS), however they and their mothers were all in good health and condition.

The company also presented quantities of airtime to the nurses on duty at the maternity ward.

Madam Rita Serwaa, the Deputy Midwife in-charge of the Maternity Unit at the Hospital told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) two of the mothers were also in labour as at filing this report.

She thanked the MTN for the gesture, and appealed for more delivery items to support the needy mothers.

At the Spontaneous Vaginal Delivery (SVD) unit, Madam Vivian Kuma
h, in-charge said the unit required thermothers, at least two monitors, BP apparatus and ppxi-meters and appealed for public support.

Mr Obed Adu-Amankwaa, MTN Area Sales Manager, for Bono, Ahafo and Bono East Regions told the GNA the company was distributing 70 hampers at two health facilities each in the three regions.

‘In fact, this is what gives us joy and we would continue to do that to put smiles on nursing mothers and their babies’, he stated.

Mr Kwasi Kwarteng, the MTN’s Team Lead for Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Region, said similar items would be presented to nursing mothers and their babies at the Berekum Holy Family Hospital.
Source:Ghana News Agency

Kpamyo, an improved yam variety engineered by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research – Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (CSIR-SARI), has proven more yields than local varieties during demonstration trials.

Seeds of the improved variety, which weighed between 40 to 70 grams, produced tubers that weighed 3.5 kilogrammes, as against the local variety that weighed 300 to 700grams at the time of planting.

The comparison was done on harvest days in communities where the variety was planted on demonstration trials.

The demonstration trials were established by CSIR-SARI and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) under the Programme for Seed Systems Innovations for Vegetatively propagated Crops in Africa (PROSSIVA) project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

It was to showcase the benefits of planting clean seeds of improved yam varieties to farmers across 13 yam production communities in Northern and Savannah Regions.

Mr Nchisani Gade, a farmer, who testified
about the improved variety, said he was skeptical at the fact that the 40 to 70-gram seeds of the improved variety could yield 3.5 kg tubers on his farm.

He said typically, he would discard seeds of such small sizes during planting, adding that Kpamyo was different from local varieties.

Dr Kwabena Darkwa, Research Scientist at CSIR-SARI said the seed of the improved variety was produced from tissue culture plantlets that were certified as virus free and propagated using the leaf bud cuttings technique, hence the smallest seed yam was potent to produce vigorous plants with high yield.

He said the high ratio propagation technique resulted in up to 500 clean seed yams per year from a single plant, making it more efficient with the added advantage of higher germination percentage and enhanced yield.

Dr Daniel Aihebhoria, a Seed Scientist and Agronomist at IITA, said the improved yam variety yielded more due to its agronomic efficiency as compared to the local variety.

He explained that the clean seed of the
improved variety had the potency to multiply itself by up to 60 times whereas seed of the local variety could replicate itself by 6 times.
Source:Ghana News Agency

Though an endangered species, it has been a long-time tradition of the people of Oku, a village in Bui Division, North West region of Cameroon. The tradition honors those who succeed in killing such a wild animal.

Early Christmas Day, the entire population of Manchok, came out in numbers chanting heroic songs to, Bonjioh Amos Njakoi, the person who killed a Leopard. The animal was tied to a long stick before being taken to the Palace.

CNA learned that the title ‘Nforme Nkonyam’ was automatically conferred on him.

‘Yes, it is a long-aged tradition that existed before the laws we have now. So tradition had to be respected.’ The traditional ruler of Oku, His Royal Majesty, Fon Ngum IV, told CNA.

‘Though the man didn’t kill the Leopard directly, it fell into the trap that he placed and was there for days so when he saw it, he immediately went to the NFU house and they took it to the village chief of the said village before bringing it to the Palace,’ Fon Ngum IV told CNA.
Source: Cameroon News Agency

The Ministry of Energy has engaged stakeholders on the Ghana Energy Sector Transformation Initiative Project (GESTIP), which has been going on since 2019.

The meeting was to involve the citizenry in shaping and implementing the energy sector reforms, to create a sense of shared responsibility towards sustainable and equitable energy solutions, as well as ensure transparency.

It was attended by service providers under the sector including the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCO), Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company Limited (NEDCo).

Participants were given the chance to ask questions and offer recommendations after officials of the Energy sector presented diverse facets of the project’s implementation.

GESTIP began in February 2019 with funding from the World Bank, and it is expected to end in December, this year.

Mrs Brenda Laryea Adjapawn, the Director, Human Resource Management, Ministry of Energy, who spoke on behalf of Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh
, the sector minister, said engaging with stakeholders would foster a sense of shared responsibility towards sustainable and equitable energy solutions.

She said GESTIP was a technical assisted project that aimed at enhancing the capabilities of Energy Sector Agencies and institutions, to execute reforms and achieve financial stability.

She reiterated the purpose of the project as one that seeks to establish transparent investment planning and regulatory frameworks, increase access to electricity and modern biomass cooking solutions, and effectively utilise domestic gas for electric power generation as well as directly fueling industry energy.

Mr James Demitrus, the GESTIP Project Coordinator, during a presentation on the project’s achievements, said the project saw many successes and mentioned Ghana as ranking highest in access to energy in sub-Saharan Africa.

He said the sector targeted universal access to energy by 2024 despite challenges of payment to independent power producers.

Mr Demitrus said the
project, since its inception, had contributed to comprehensive energy sector recovery, periodic publications of the PURC and the NEDCo’s e-billing.

Nanton-Naa Mohammed Bawa, the Paramount Chief of Nanton, who chaired the event on behalf of Ya-Na, called for intensified community sensitisation on the operations of various entities under the energy sector for consumers to better appreciate procedures and comply.

He appealed to stakeholders in the sector to help utilise solar power in northern Ghana to enable more communities have access to power, to reduce the cost of transmission to farther areas.
Source:Ghana News Agency

The Tamale Central Hospital recorded the birth of four babies on Christmas day.

As of 1100hrs on Monday, December 25, the hospital had recorded four deliveries, which comprised two males and two females.

Madam Asia Abdul Rahaman, Staff Midwife on duty during the Ghana News Agency’s visit, said the first baby was delivered at 0350 hours and the last at 1034 hours.

She said all four deliveries were Spontaneous Vagina Delivery, which meant that the mothers did not have to undergo caesarean section.

Mariam Mallam and Abubakari Rafia, mothers of the male newborns, shared their joy in giving birth on Christmas day.
Source:Ghana News Agency

Reverend Samuel Amegboe, Awudome Tsito Area Head Pastor of Assemblies of God Church has called on Christians to use the Christmas festivities to rededicate their lives to Jesus Christ.

‘We should also use the occasion to take stock of our Christian lives and make amends,’ he said.

Rev. Amegboe made the call through the Ghana News Agency in an interview at Awudome Tsito in the Ho West district.

He appealed to individuals and families to also use the festivities to ‘build bridges, forgive and reconcile with each other and give peace a chance to rule supreme in their homes and families.’

He was quick to add that peace could only be found in Jesus Christ.

He encouraged them to keep trusting in God and never waiver in their faith even in times of trials and challenges.

Rev. Amegboe noted that, ‘whatever we are going through as individuals or as a nation, the good news is that we have a Savior in Jesus Christ.’

He entreated his fellow clergymen to desist from always preaching prosperity messages but preach
salvation messages to put Christians on the right path.

Rev. Amegboe reiterated the need to shun the get rich attitude that have permeated every fabric of the Ghanaian society adding ‘this canker has found its way to even the Church.’
Source:Ghana News Agency