(APA 06/13/17)
The Appointment Committee of the Ghanaian Parliament has announced that it would vet the Chief Justice (CJ) nominee, Justice Sohpia Akuffo on Monday. The vetting is in accordance with Article 144 of the 1992 Constitution, which makes provision for the vetting and approval process. Her nomination was made by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo last month, following the retirement of Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, the immediate past CJ. Justice Akuffo is currently the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court and was part of the panel that sat on the 2012 Election Petition filed by then opposition leader, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Mrs. Justice Wood retired last week after 40 years of service to the Ghanaian Judiciary. She was the...
(APA 06/13/17)
The government of Ghana is to receive 100 million euros from the German government to improve conditions in the country for sustainable development. The Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, who disclosed this at a meeting with Ghanaians resident in Germany, said the money would be used for infrastructural development, economic participation and employment creation. The Finder newspaper reports on Tuesday that the funds was secured under the Germany Compact With Africa Programme, which is being enjoyed by some three African countries. He noted that Ghana was chosen to benefit owing to the initiative President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has put in place to improve the...
(AFP (eng) 06/13/17)
Uche's real journey had yet to begin but he had already spent four days in the northern Nigerian city of Kano after travelling on public buses and potholed roads from Imo state in the southeast. He planned to go to Agadez, a transit town on the southern edge of the Sahara desert in central Niger, take a truck to Sebha, in southwestern Libya, and from there to the capital Tripoli, and then to Italy or Spain. But his contact, who was supposed to drive him and three women across Nigeria's northern border, was arrested on suspicion of people smuggling. "His house had been under surveillance," explains the 38-year-old electrician in Kano's bustling Sabon Gari district. "The movement of the three...
(AFP (eng) 06/12/17)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will on Monday meet African leaders in Berlin on initiatives aiming to reduce the poverty and conflict driving a mass migrant influx to Europe. The idea is to team up African nations willing to reform with private investors who would bring business and jobs to a continent where instability or graft often scare off foreign companies. Merkel is hosting the initiative as part of Germany's presidency of the Group of 20 powerful economies, whose leaders meet in the northern port of Hamburg a month later. Invited to Berlin are Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and the leaders of Ghana, Ivory Coast...
(Apa 06/12/17)
Ghanaian soccer fans on Monday heaped praises on returnee Black Stars coach, James Kwesi Appiah, for returning the team to winning ways, after the team thumped Ethiopia 5-0 at the Kumasi Sports Stadium. The fans, are of the view that Appiah has brought in some sort of competition in camp, thereby pushing the players to give of their best. Their assertion was based on the fact that some regular players, such as Jordan Ayew and Majid Waris, were put on the bench, giving way for new entrants, Ebenezer Ofori and Rafael Dwamena to score on their debuts for the national side. Mr. Kwame Bentil, a sports analyst, who watched the match at the Kumasi Sports Stadium, said, "My brother, I...
(AFP (eng) 06/12/17)
Knowledge Musona celebrated his first match as Zimbabwe captain with a sensational hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Liberia in Harare on Sunday. And it was all smiles for Ghana who crushed Ethiopia 5-0 as qualifying for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon got underway this weekend. Musona's heroics sent Zimbabwe to the top of Group G on goal difference from the Democratic Republic of Congo, who overcame neighbours Congo Brazzaville 3-1 in Kinshasa a day earlier. Belgium-based Musona became the first Zimbabwean since Peter Ndlovu in 2004 to score a hat-trick for the national team as limited and understrength Liberia were brushed aside. A perfectly timed run to spring an offside trap put Musona one-on-one with goalkeeper...
(Apa 06/12/17)
The West Africa Football Academy (WAFA) was on Saturday held to a 0-0 drawn game at the Dansoman Carl Reindorf Park by Liberty Professionals in the 18 week premier league game. The draw ensured that WAFA still lead the pack with 36 points followed by Aduana Stars on 33 points, who have a game in hand against Kumasi Asante Kotoko on Monday (today). Hearts of Oak, who have maintained the 3rd position for some time now, beat Bolga All Stars 4-0 to retain their position on 30 points. Ebusua Dwarfs beat Bechem United 1-0 at Cape Coast to occupy the 4th position on 26 points. Other results are at Tarkwa, Medeama 0-1 AshGold; at Wa, All Stars 3-0 Chelsea; at...
(APA 06/12/17)
The Ethiopian national football team was beaten 5-0 by its Ghanaian counterpart in Kumasi on Sunday, in the first game of the group stages of the AfCON 2019 in Cameroon. Sierra Leone beat Kenya 2-1 in the same group. The Black Stars dominated the match and missed countless goal-scoring chances. It was a perfect homecoming for coach Kwesi Appiah as he successfully guided Ghana to a profoundly deserved victory over Ethiopia. Ethiopian coach Ashenafi Bekele’s first competitive game ended in an embarrassing loss to Ghana, which now sits at the summit of Group F, with Sierra Leone in second place with the same points tally but inferior goal difference. East African neighbours Kenya and Ethiopia are bottom of the group.
(APA 06/12/17)
The Black Stars of Ghana on Sunday walloped their Ethiopian counterpart Wailias 5-0 in the 2019 African Cup of Nations qualifier played at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi. Skipper Asamoah Gyan scored the first goal in the 10th minute of the game while John Boye added another in 14th minute. Emmanuel Ofori a new entrant fetched the third goal in the 41st minute. Striker Raphael Dwamena, who earned a call from the Stars Coach James Kwesi Appiah scored a brace in the 48th minute and the 60th minute. On the other hand, Asamoah Gyan became the first player to score 50 goals for Ghana on Sunday. Kwesi Appiah was hailed by the supporters of the national team and many...
(AFP (eng) 06/09/17)
An off-duty soldier in Ghana who was lynched while out running was laid to rest with full state honours on Friday, in a case that has sparked fears about the "growing menace" of mob justice. Maxwell Mahama was beaten and burnt to death near the central city of Kumasi on May 29, after locals mistook him for a robber because he was wearing sports clothing and carrying a pistol. The brutal attack on the 31-year-old -- described as a "heinous crime" by President Nana Akufo-Addo -- was captured on film and the horrific images and video shared on social media. The tragedy has shaken Ghana, which prides itself on respecting democratic values and prioritising peace in a wider West African...
(AfricaNews 06/08/17)
Ghanaians on social media are expressing surprise at a donation by the Chinese Embassy to the Attorney General’s office. Their skepticism is hinged on the fact that the government is engaged in a war against illegal mining – with the predominant number of foreigners involved being Chinese. Some are accusing the Chinese of attempting to induce the government to soften their stance on illegal mining which continues to ravage farm and water bodies in parts of the countries. Others also cautioned the government against accepting such paltry overtures by the Chinese. We support the new government of Ghana to carry out anti-corruption campaigns, and expect to strengthen our cooperation and exchanges on both domestic and international combat against corruption. The...
(Reuters (Eng) 06/08/17)
More girls are completing secondary school across sub-Saharan Africa as attitudes change and state spending rises, but some of the most marginalized girls — like those married young or forced to work — are still missing out, education experts say. The percentage of girls completing secondary school has risen in all regions of Africa since 2005, said a recent report by the African Development Bank, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the U.N. Development Program. Almost twice as many girls in East Africa and three times as many in Central Africa completed secondary education in 2014 as in 2005, according to the annual African Economic Outlook report, which was published at the end of last month. Yet more...
(Ghana Web 06/07/17)
Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta will later today [Wednesday], appear before Parliament to disclose the full details of the controversial $2.25 billion bond issued by the government in April 2017. This follows the passage of a half-hour motion last week by the House, to summon the minister to provide the full complement of documentation related to the issuance, the participants, the utilization of proceeds and the currency in which the bond was settled. The motion was filed by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu. Mr. Iddrisu argued that, because the House approved the Appropriation Bill, any government expenditure in relation to it must come to Parliament. Concerns have been raised about the transparency of the $2.25 billion domestic bond government issued, with...
(Ghana Web 06/07/17)
President of the Ghana Chamber of Mines (GCM), Mr. Kwame Addo-Kufuor, has indicated that the total direct employment created by the producing companies stood at 11,628, representing about 16 per cent increase over the 2015 recorded figure of 9,939. Out of the present figure, he said, over 98 per cent were Ghanaian nationals, which further buttressed the commitment of member companies to make mining more relevant. Mr. Addo-Kufuor revealed this during the chamber’s 89th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Accra recently. He made reference to data from Thomson Reuter’s Guaranty Fund Management Services (GFMS) survey, which indicated that Ghana’s gold output was largely unchanged at 95.0 tonnes in 2016 relative to 95.1 tonnes in 2015. “Further statistics from the country’s...
(Ghana Web 06/07/17)
Ghana and India are collaborating under a Pilot Research Project on Tomato Production, which would ensure that there is an abundance production and supply of the crop in the country all year through. The project which seeks to pilot tomato production technologies in three ecological zones Ada, Kumasi and Navrongo is also aimed at producing more pest resistant, high yielding tomato that would last for many days on the shelf. Implementation of the Tomato Partnership agreement was signed between the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Ghana and the National Research Development Co-operation (NRDC) of India. The three-year piloting of the project had ended and so the two institutions held an end of project ceremony in Accra, marking the...
(Ghana Web 06/07/17)
The Ghana House of Port Agents (GHOPA), a group of importers, has asked shipping companies at the Tema port to bring an end to excessive charges on imported goods. According to the group, since the announcement of the abolition of the 1% Special Import Levy by the Akufo-Addo-led government, owners of shipping lines have introduced new charges at the port. A statement issued by the group said: “On 2nd March, 2017, during the maiden budget statement of President Akufo Addo's government presented by Hon Ken Ofori-Atta, we [GHOPA] developed a very strong confidence in the government, having the belief that some of the abolished taxes were going to help us unleash our fabulous policies to help redeem the image of...
(Myjoyonline 06/07/17)
The absence of transparency in fertilizer distribution and low farm gate prices hampered the effort of cocoa farmers in Ghana to plant more, a World Bank report has revealed. According to the report which is yet-to-be made public, the prices paid farmers for their produce rob them of a good return on their land, labour and capital. It also revealed COCOBOD – the body in charge of the sale of cocoa - has been unable to guarantee farmers stable prices because it is more interested in getting a better export revenue margin for government. The World Bank report sighted by Joy News was emphatic the country’s cocoa production is not witnessing the needed boost because of issues of corruption and...
(Myjoyonline 06/07/17)
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has stated that education and skills training are the most important source of empowering and providing opportunities to the youth to help drive Ghana’s development, and in the process create jobs. According to him, the countries that have done well, even without natural resources, are the countries that have invested in education and skills training, and it is for this reason that his government has found and committed resources to begin the Free Senior High School policy in September, 2017. “So as from September this year, anybody entering the public Senior High School system is going to get their education free. The burden is being taken on by the State. We are doing so because...
(Reuters (Eng) 06/07/17)
Building a network of African women leaders in fields ranging from business to politics could galvanize female leadership across the continent and boost peacebuilding efforts and good governance, the head of U.N. Women said on Tuesday. The African Women Leaders Network, which was launched last week in New York by the United Nations and the African Union Commission, hopes to drive more women into leadership roles, through mentoring, peer learning and harnessing contacts. By supporting women's leadership in Africa, the platform aims to galvanize their contributions to building and sustaining peace, improving political processes and driving social change, and realizing the U.N. global goals, according to U.N. Women. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), adopted in 2015, include targets on...
(Graphic Online 06/06/17)
The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) is to collaborate with its counterpart in Cote d’Ivoire, the Café-Cacao Conseil, to manage the trading of cocoa on the international market. The collaboration is to help regulate the quantity of cocoa beans that is sent to the market by both countries, in a bid to cushion farmers against falling global prices. The Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD, Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, explained that although local farmers would be supported to increase their production, the two countries would manage the stock to be able to influence prices on the world market.