Day: January 19, 2024

Preliminary investigations conducted by the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) into the fire outbreak, which burnt two people to death at Fiapre in the Sunyani West Municipality, reveals it was apparently caused by a piece of lighted cigarette.

Alex Antwi, 35, and his 17-year-old girl, Sharifa Adiza were burnt beyond recognition when fire razed a four-bedroom house at Fiapre, near Sunyani in the early hours of Thursday January 18, 2024.

Eight of the occupants, including five children, however, managed to escape unhurt when the inferno started around 1230 hours.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), the Divisional Officer Grade III (DOIII) the Reverend Thomas Kofi Dzah, in-charge of Fire at the Bono Regional Command of the GNFS, said ‘our initial investigation showed the fire might has caused by a piece or butt of a lighted cigarette’.

The police had since retrieved and deposited the charred bodies of the deceased at the Sunyani Teaching Hospital mortuary for preservation.

Meanwhile, Madam Ju
stina Owusu-Banahene, the Bono Regional Minister and Mr Evans Kusi Buadum, the Sunyani West Municipal Chief Executive had since visited and commiserated with the bereaved families.

Describing the incident as unfortunate, the Regional Minister entreated the bereaved families to pick comfort in God, and assured her commitment to support them in the burial and funeral rites of the deceased.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Kaneshie District Court has granted a GHC50,000.00 bail with two sureties, each, to two employees of Metro Mass Transit Limited for allegedly stealing wires and parts of some buses.

Emmanuel Ageny and Augustine Adu denied conspiring to steal the automotive wires and parts of the buses valued GH250,000.00.

However, the Court presided over by Nana Abena Aso Owusu-Omenyo asked that one of Adu’s sureties be justified with a landed property.

This followed prosecution’s plea with the Court to ensure Adu returned to face justice as he went into hiding upon hearing of the arrest of Ageny and it took Police a lot of efforts to get him.

The Court again ordered him to report to the Police fortnightly on Mondays until the final determination of the case.

They will make their next appearance on March 11, 2024.

Their counsel when praying for bail said his clients had pleaded not guilty to the crimes and they had persons to stand as sureties.

He said they did not have the capacity to interfere with investigation
s and had fixed places of abode.

Police Chief Inspector Apeweh Achana told the Court that Mr Mark Ayamga the Complainant, was a security supervisor of Metro transit Head Office Kaneshie.

Ageny, he said, was a porter and resident at Ablekumah while Adu was a mechanical engineer of the institution.

Chief Inspector Achana said Ageny and Adu, the accused persons, were all employees of Metro Mass Transit Head Office, Kaneshie and that on January 05, 2024, the Metro Mass security had information that an unknown person/persons had cut some of the automotive wires fixed in the buses, kept them in two big sacks and placed them in one of the unserviceable bus in the yard.

The prosecution said upon that information the authorities tasked the security men to ensure effective monitoring to get the culprit/culprits arrested.

Three days later, at about 12:00 hours, the complainant saw Ageny carrying one of the sacks to the main entrance in the yard and he was arrested and handed over to the police together with the exh
ibit, the Court heard.

During investigations Ageny told the police that he was instructed by Adu to carry one of the sacks from the bus to the main entrance in the yard.

That led to the arrest of Adu at his hideout around Tema Community 10.

During investigation Ageny and Adu admitted the offence and after investigations they were charge with the offence and put before court.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Dr Kwaku Afriyie, Minister for Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), says Ghana’s long-term low carbon emission strategy will enhance ecosystem restoration and biodiversity conservation.

He said the strategy would also be a vital planning tool for guiding the Ghana energy system to a clean, sustainable, and increasingly renewable-based future, boost recycling of plastics and create green jobs for the youth.

The minister said this during a National Planning Workshop on the Readiness Assessment for Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategy (LT-LEDS) for Ghana in Accra.

The workshop seeks to bring together stakeholders to give much information to help assess the state of readiness for development of LT-LEDS.

Dr Afriyie said the Paris Agreement committed all parties to promote and work towards LT-LEDS, to provide quantifiable information on mitigation visions, strategies and targets for up to and beyond 2050, in the latest Nationally Determined Contributions.

He said Ghana was obliged
to develop and implement long-term mitigation actions that reflected national priorities and initiatives that could easily be supported by development partners and other implementing agencies.

‘To meet this obligation, Ghana has over the years developed a number of strategies and sectoral plans which deal with low carbon mitigation actions but did not target long-term emission aspirations of national development plans,’ the minister added.

Dr Afriyie said in line with the framework, Ghana participated in the 2050 Pathways Annual Meeting at the 58th Session of the Subsidiary Body for Science and Technology Advice, where Ghana agreed to engage in long-term low carbon development with the 2050 Pathways Platform.

‘The national strategy will therefore place a lot of emphasis on the implementation of clear development perspective and integrated climate change related aspects with development visions, priorities, principles or economic, social and environmental objectives’

‘…and to consider multiple synergies an
d trade-offs between sustainable development, emission reduction and adaptation to climate change,’ he added.

Dr Henry Kokofu, Executive Director, Environmental Protection Agency, said climate change was one of the biggest threats to the global community today, which remained an indispensable risk to all facets of economic development.

He said climate change events had become more today than ever, adding that, ‘as we have been warned by the latest reports of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, every degree matters, and surpassing 1.5°C would cause the greatest impacts, where Ghana is no exception.’

The Executive Director said the continuous rise in annual average of carbon dioxide from the advent of the industrial revolution, was believed to be the cause of climate change, hence the need for engaging in long-term low emission strategies was overemphasized.

He said COP21 adopted the Paris Agreement, which committed all parties to develop long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies t
o reduce greenhouse emission in the atmosphere and its consequences on climate change impacts.

Dr Kokofu said the long-term low emission development strategies were qualitative strategies that countries developed to transition their economies beyond achieving near-term Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) targets.

He said the strategy signified countries’ path towards the larger climate objective of cutting emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 and achieving net zero around 2050.

‘The strategy therefore explores the challenges and opportunities associated with the structural transformations needed to reach carbon neutrality and meet the targets of the Paris Agreement,’ he added.

‘It is now the time that countries explain how they will transition their economies beyond achieving near-term NDC targets, Ghana is committed to pursuing low-carbon strategies for development and is actively pursuing them, as per national circumstances, and longing for long-term targets,’ he stressed.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The introduction of the Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) in some parts of Northern Ghana is contributing significantly to empowering women and improving livelihoods in rural communities.

The community banking system, VSLA, is helping to reduce poverty, over dependence, curbing rural-urban migration and empowering many rural women and young girls to take charge of their own lives.

Through the local banking system, many women groups mostly smallholder farmers, are becoming financially independent and acquiring financial support to increase agriculture production, establish and expand their small-scale businesses.

Currently, the VSLA has offered opportunities to many vulnerable women and young girls in the East and West Mamprusi Municipalities in the North East Region, to cultivate habits of saving money in groups and lend to themselves with agreed terms of interest rate specific to each group.

The village banking scheme is also helping to mobilise women and communities to undertake communal act
ivities and increase their participation in decision making regarding the management of natural resources in their communities.

Meta Foundation, a non -governmental organisation, is one the leading NGOs which has been implementing the scheme under its ‘Action for Women Empowerment’ project in the two Municipalities as part of efforts to empower rural women and improve livelihoods of women and young girls in rural communities.

Started a year ago with funding support from the STAR Ghana Foundation under its Actions for Voice and Inclusive Development (AVID) project, about 10 communities have been empowered and the project is impacting positively on lives of the people.

The project aimed to facilitate enterprise development and self-empowerment of 600 rural women coexisting peacefully with Fulani Herdsmen through fair access to community productive natural resources such as land, water, and shea trees and at least 300 rural women have enhanced returns from shea butter and dry season vegetables production busi
nesses using the VSLA concept.

VSLA concept

The VSLA concept is a group of people who collectively support a structured process for saving money and sharing of proceeds within stipulated time agreed and lending to each other in the form of loans with an agreed interest rate.

The community-based banking system is being managed by the members based on their agreed rules and regulations that aim to provide financial independence and alleviate them from extreme poverty.

Impact

During a visit to some of the beneficiary communities, the women indicated that the introduction of the VSLA was a life changing model for them, providing financial assistance to them and empowering them economically to help take charge of their homes.

Interacting with some beneficiaries in some communities in the West Mamprusi Municipality, they explained that apart from the banking scheme that was helping them to take soft loans to start businesses, the interest accrued from the loans were usually shared which they said had helped t
hem economically.

Improving lives

Ms Gladys Nyaabila, a Treasurer of the Atelitaaba Women group in Bisigu, suburb of West Mamprusi Municipality, indicated that through the savings and loans scheme, she was able to borrow some money to cultivate groundnuts and paid back later after the harvest.

‘Apart from that, we use the interest we got from the loans to buy some food stuffs such as groundnuts, millets and maize which we plan to sell when the prices go up and share the profits among us,’ she said.

Ms Maame Tongwand, Secretary of the Arigu Kpanmenga women group, indicated that apart from the savings and loans scheme helping them to secure some loans to process and add value to the shea businesses many of them had been doing, it had empowered them economically to take care of their families especially their children school fees.

‘We have been in a group for long, but we did not know about this concept but through the approach our membership has increased from about 20 to 60 members in about a year and it
has also brought unity especially among the women.

‘It has also helped to prevent some domestic violence in our homes because we can also contribute to the upkeep of the house,’ she added.

Madam Esther Ada, a member of the Gbeo Timaltaaba women group, indicated that ‘initially I was saving GH?10.00 but now I save GH?25.00 and being able to support my husband to take care of the house and it is because of the loan I took and invested in my business which is now booming.’

META Foundation plans for women

On his part, Mr David Amozebga, Programmes Manager, Meta Foundation, said apart from instilling culture of savings and entrepreneurship in rural women, the AVID project aimed to empower women to have access to natural resources and increase women participation in decision making regarding the management of natural resources around them.

‘We are looking at women having access to land to undertake agriculture activities, access to economic trees such as shea, baobab, dawadawa among others and we are using the
VSLA as the main approach to achieving our objective,’ he said.

Mr Amozebga explained that the approach had been introduced to many communities in the two Municipalities and it was impacting lives positively and urged the women to always invest their shares in productive ventures to improve their income levels.

He explained that the project targeted communities along the White Volta who are mostly engaged in dry season farming and empowered them with knowledge and skills on how to increase production and live peacefully with settlers such as the Fulani herders while having access to natural resources such as land, water, and economic trees.

Apart from helping the communities to get fodder banks, through the project, about eight women groups out the 20 VSLAs who are into production of various products had been linked to improved markets.

Apart from having access to farmlands to increase agriculture productivity, planting economic trees, and protecting existing ones from degradation, the women are processin
g and adding value to some products of economic trees as sources of livelihoods which is helping to mitigate against climate change, he said.

‘We believe that this will not only help to empower the women but contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals,’ he added.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Kofi Ofosu Nkansah, NPP aspiring parliamentary candidate for Asante Akim Central will on Sunday January 21, 2024, launch his campaign and fundraising ceremony for his parliamentary candidacy.

Mr Nkansah, who is the CEO of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) is determined to unseat the incumbent MP for the area, Mr Kwame Anyimadu Antwi, who is the Chairman of the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of parliament.

He told journalists that his goal was to bring development to the people in the area and nothing would deter him from achieving that vision.

Mr Nkansah highlighted the abundance of human and natural resources in the area which in his view, should not be allowed to go to waste.

‘I am for the people and that is why they are calling me to come and serve them.

It is a family affair, and I am not perturbed about the past but determined and focused on victory.

I know by the grace of God and the support of the people, on January 27, after the polls, I will be declar
ed victorious, and we will all work together for the constituency, he stated.

Mr Nkansah had already outlined comprehensive plans for the constituency’s development.

They include the establishment of educational funds to support needy students and pupils, initiate credit union for local businesses, conduct regular town hall meetings, set up a call centre and implement a community mining scheme.

Additionally, he aims to drive infrastructural development through effective lobbying, facilitate vocational and skills training programmes and ensure that the constituents benefitted from the various government interventions.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Refugee Children of Burkina Faso who are living in camps in some districts of the Upper West Region face a bleak future regarding their education and health care.

At the camps, childcare and education hang in the balance and many of the unfortunate immigrant children face a bleak future; looking to a better and hope could only come about when learning materials, school buildings, French teachers and uniforms have provided them.

Currently, a total of 3,731 children living at camps in the Sissala East Municipality, Sissala West and Lambussie Districts are not attending school and the reason is that they came from a francophone country and therefore speak French Language thereby making it difficult to integrate them into the Ghanaian Educational System.

Madam Rita Kuurinaah, an Administrator at the Upper West Regional Office of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) made this known to members of the Regional Child Protection Committee at its fourth quarter meeting held in Wa.

She said there a
re 1,438 children in the Sissala East Municipality out of the 2,438 immigrants while the Sissala West and Lambussie Districts harboured 2,094 and 199 children 0ut of 3,973 and 298 refugees, respectively.

Madam Kuurinaah said the presence of the immigrants had brought about challenges of the provision of potable water, food, shelter, and clothes and appealed to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to provide essential medicines to the camps to cater for the health needs of the children while the World Food Programme (WFP) aids them with food for their upkeep.

‘The donor community, civil society organisations, nongovernmental organisations, and public-spirited Individuals are also welcome in this regard’ she said.

The NADMO Administrator commended the local authorities for providing arable lands to the refugees to undertake farming activities to produce food crops to help feed their family members in the camps.

Madam Lilian Kpelle, the Regional Director of the Department of Social Welfare, said her office ha
d counselled three children who had stolen at the Court of Juvenile Justice and was handling four maintenance cases, and assisted three other children who were first time offenders put on probation for a year.

The Department had also assisted 38 children of the Wa School for the Blind and Wa School for the Deaf and Dumb to get their share of the Disability Common Fund while it sensitised 10 communities on child protection, early marriages, and teenage pregnancies and five Junior High Schools on adolescent reproductive Health and personal hygiene.

Pognaa Rosemary Bangzie, a Public Health Nurse at the Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service, said 52 adolescents who got pregnant while in school had been assisted to deliver safely and returned to school under the Safety Network Programme.

She said the girls were poor and needy and appealed to nongovernmental organisations to support them with uniforms, books, and food to enable them to cater for the babies and to complete their education.

Source: Gh
ana News Agency