Day: April 15, 2024

The Head of Finance at the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement System (GhIPSS), Mr. Bright Kyei Adomakoh, has been honoured with the prestigious ‘Outstanding Contribution to Public Finance’ award at the 2024 InstinctBusiness CFO Summit and Awards.

The award recognised Mr. Adomakoh’s exceptional leadership and significant contributions to the realm of public finance.

Serving as the Head of Finance at GhIPSS, Mr. Adomakoh has played a pivotal role in guiding the organisation towards enhanced efficiency and effectiveness in its financial management processes.

Mr. Adomakoh’s recognition adds to the numerous awards that GhIPSS and its executives have garnered over the years for their impactful contributions to advancing the payment systems industry.

Expressing his gratitude for the honour, Mr. Adomakoh reaffirmed his commitment to driving positive change in public finance. ‘I am deeply appreciative to the Organisers for bestowing upon me this esteemed title, which underscores the collective dedication and h
ard work of the entire GhIPSS team.’

Mr. Archie Hesse, Chief Executive of GhIPSS, lauded Mr. Adomakoh’s achievements and the significant influence he has had in advancing public finance.

The award ceremony, held in Lagos, Nigeria, showcased outstanding financial leaders and innovators from various sectors.

The event aimed to celebrate excellence, exchange best practices, and explore innovative trends shaping the financial sector.

Centered around the theme: ‘Innovation and Technology in Finance,’ the summit brought together top CFOs, finance heads, executives, analysts, and experts to engage in discussions that influence future policy decisions in finance within a conducive and relaxed environment.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Mahamud Forkar, the Sissala West District Chief Executive (DCE), joined by officials of the United Nations, the European Union, and the Ghana Refugee Agency, has officially opened the Zini refugee and asylum seekers centre.

The team welcomed the first batch of asylum seekers to the settlement centre and pledged its commitment to ensuring their safety and security.

Mr Forkar said the first batch of asylum seekers numbering 21 were brought in from Kandia to start the programme whilst the rest scattered in several communities were being assisted to patronise the centre.

For those reluctant to move away from the communities to the camp, he assured them of adequate security, shelter, water, health care, and education, as well as improving their livelihood.

Addressing a durbar at Zini to open the Centre, the DCE indicated that the district was prepared to support the Centre in the best way it could to achieve the intended purpose.

He mentioned that the total number of asylum seekers within the district as o
f April 2024, was 914.

‘As we are all aware, there have been some disturbances in Burkina Faso, which are affecting the people in that area. These incidents are still on and our brothers and sisters over there are at risk.

We are also aware that in some instances, these disturbances spill over into Ghana, especially our district and other districts on the borderline’, Mr Forkar explained.

The DCE noted that the preservation of human lives was essential in any human community particularly as a member state of the United Nations and that the government of Ghana was bound to offer protection to such people who were affected by the disturbances.

Mr Tetteh Padi, the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Refugee Agency, expressed gratitude to the Chief of Zini and the Paramount Chief of the Buwa traditional area for playing a lead role in identifying and assisting in getting the land for the establishment of the Centre.

Mr Padi said the Center was to cater for all persons who are seeking asylum in the Upper West Re
gion.

He said the facility could hold 3,000 persons and up to 4,000 should the situation demand since it was of international standard.

Mr Andrew Ginsberg, the Team Leader of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), appealed to all to ensure the safety of the displaced persons.

The Chief of Zini and the Paramount Chief of the Buwaa Traditional Area, Kuoro Abu Diyaka Suukabe Ninia V, pleaded with government and the leadership of international organisations to create a cordial relationship between the Centre and surrounding communities by expanding the existing infrastructure including, schools, health facilities, water systems and the Police station.

Since 2022, the Sissala West district has experienced an influx of persons who have been displaced by the internal disturbances in Burkina Faso.

The inhabitants of the districts have been playing host to these persons who have fled their homelands into the district seeking refuge.

As a member state of the United Nations Ghana is bound by the United States protocols in
handling internally displaced persons to provide safe abode and other humanitarian services to such persons.

The District Security Committee, the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), UNICEF, the World Food Programme, and Adventure Relief Assistance had to take action to provide some relief for the asylum seekers.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The government has reached an interim deal with international bondholders to restructure $13 billion of international bonds, the Ministry of Finance has said.

In a post on X, the Ministry stated that the deal must still be ‘tweaked’ to meet the International Monetary Fund debt sustainability target.

The Ministry said it would regroup to continue negotiations until a deal that is consistent with the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) debt sustainability targets is achieved.

‘This is not a failure but part of an ongoing process to arrive at an agreement consistent with the debt threshold under the Debt Sustainability Agreement. We have made significant progress on debt restructuring negotiations, and the government of Ghana thanks bondholders for their support in this process,’ the Ministry said.

At a press briefing on Saturday, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, the Minister of Finance, stated that the government’s negotiations with the creditors and commercial bondholders were ongoing.

The minister indicated that
he was optimistic that the government would reach a deal with the creditors ‘soon.’

He added, however, that the negotiations would be in line with the fiscal and debt sustainability targets set by the IMF.

The IMF, in an X post, said Ghana had shown strong progress with the programme implementation.

The Fund said the next key step for the country was to reach an agreement with its official bilateral creditors on an MoU consistent with the terms agreed in January 2024.

The Fund said it looked forward to the government’s continued efforts to reach an agreement with all creditors in line with programme parameters.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Alongside a beautiful sight of canoes lined up at sea in search of a catch were some black objects moving in and out of the waves, at the Prampram Beach.

These were not objects, but some children, having a surfing expedition in the sea on Sunday morning.

The children, numbering over 20, some of whom preferred to engage in their expedition in their nakedness, defied the waves rushing to the shore with speed and thundering sound.

Some of the young surfers carried a flat wood slab obtained from canoes on their heads and rushed towards the sea, while others climbed onto canoes and dropped into the sea.

They dropped their wooden slabs into the sea, jumped, and lay face down on them, propelling themselves through the water using their arms in a swimming gesture to battle it out with the waves.

The children, some seven years old, went as far as they could and came rushing down with the breaking waves to the shore with shouts and looks of satisfaction. 

After one of their successful surfing sessions, the childr
en told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that they all knew how to swim at sea, indicating that their fathers were the ones who taught them the act.

‘We are not afraid of the sea; we are swimmers; our fathers taught us how to go about it, so we can go far without fear,’ they revealed.

Referring to themselves as fishers, they said most of them did attend school and preferred to be at sea as that was more rewarding than academic work as they could take after their fathers’ profession.

One of them, aged 13, said that he attends school and was in class six, but often engages in the expedition after school and on weekends as he enjoys riding on the sea waves.

They said they operated in groups and sometimes engaged in competition among themselves, adding, however, that people who did not have the technique of swimming often drowned.

Meanwhile, Nii Okine, a retired fisher, said having such children work with their fathers in canoes and at sea should not be termed child labour, as they are trained in the profession f
rom childhood to take over the work.

He stated that even though the children are enrolled in school, some of them refused to go to school, and opted for fishing.

‘When it happens like that, they are put in the canoes and trained on the rudiments of fishing.,’ Nii Okine said.

Mr. Tetteh Narh, a resident of Prampram who was at the shore to watch the children surf, said the government and relevant sport bodies should consider training them to participate and to represent Ghana in surfing game competitions.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Street Academy, a non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), has feted over 400 children, in and without the Academy, to mark Eid-al-Fitr.

The children were given a pack of cooked assorted rice, drinks, candies, among others.

Mr Ataa Lartey, Chief Executive Officer of the Academy, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said, ‘It is our duty to care for the vulnerable and show them love and so even after the Ramadan, we must continue to give to mankind.’

He said every child had the right to religion and ‘as it was done for Christians during Christmas, it was time to also celebrate with the Muslims among us,’ hence the feast.

Mr Lartey said the welfare of children was the responsibility of all and called on stakeholders to commit more to the protection of street children.

He called for support for the construction of an Astro turf for the school which was a sports academy to help the children to develop their skills.

The Street Academy is a non-governmental organisation, which is a community-based
project built to take care of children who have not had the opportunity to go to school.

It offers inclusive refuge for under-resourced and under-privileged children by providing an alternative school curriculum rooted in informal academic teachings, sports, music, arts, and culture.

The Academy is a three-year bridge programme, preparing students for mainstream education, the public school system, and vocational training.

Committed to the most vulnerable children, the Street Academy is 100 per cent free, offering books, uniforms, and two meals a day.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Nana Amankwaah Kodom I, chief of Adumasa, has cut the sod to begin the construction of a modern market for the Senfi community in the Bekwai Municipality.

The project, expected to be completed in three months’ time, will comprise of 50 lockable stores, washrooms, and a car park.

It will replace the old market, which is in a very deplorable state.

Nana Kodom, speaking at the ceremony, said the new market had become necessary since the community was expanding and needed a very convenient place to carry out economic activities to improve the living conditions of the people.

He said markets help boost economic activities and stressed the need for the residents in the area to support the project to ensure its early completion.

Some of the market women expressed joy and thanked the chief for his timely intervention to put up a new market for them.

They said the new market would enhance convenience and boost economic activities of the people in the area.

Source: Ghana News Agency