Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah (January 14, 2008)
THE Senior Vice-President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Mr Kenzo Oshima, has paid a three-day working visit to Ghana.
The visit was to enable him to discuss the upcoming Tokyo International Conference for African Development (TICAD) IV with the government of Ghana and also use the opportunity to inspect some completed and ongoing JICA-assisted projects in the country.
The conference (TICAD IV), which is scheduled for May 2008, is on the theme, “Towards A Vibrant Africa: Continent of Hope and Opportunity”.
A statement made available to journalists from JICA office in Ghana indicated that President J.A. Kufuor, who is chairman of the African Union (AU), had been invited to attend.
As part of the three-day visit, Mr Oshima, together with some officials from the Japanese Embassy in Ghana, paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, at the ministry. The group later had bilateral talks behind closed doors.
During the courtesy call, Mr Oshima said one other reason why he visited Ghana was to get the opportunity to meet the former United Nations (UN) Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, and discuss with him issues concerning activities of the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) which Mr Annan is the chairman.
The Alliance for the Green Revolution in Africa, which was established in 2007 with an initial US$150 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, seeks to help millions of small-scale farmers and their families across Africa to lift themselves and their families out of poverty and hunger through sustainable increases in farm productivity and incomes.
Mr Oshima stressed that JICA would continue to support Ghana’s economic growth and its quest towards attainment of self-reliance and sustainable economic development.
He pointed out that the agency had the desire to also assist Ghana to achieve its development agenda of poverty reduction, attaining a middle-income status and meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
For his part, Mr Baah-Wiredu said Japan remained one of the most important bilateral development partners of Ghana even after its suspension of Yen loans to Ghana and pointed out that most of Japan’s technical assistance programmes and projects to Ghana was routed through JICA.
Giving a historical background to Ghana’s relationship with Japan, the Finance Minister said it was that mutual understanding and friendship that led to the establishment by Japan of the first medical research institute for Ghana — the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) — in 1979.
He stressed that “ever since, the amount of Japanese assistance to Ghana in the form of grant aid and technical assistance has tremendously increased both in value and scope”.
He said that Japanese grant aid to Ghana for the construction of roads and bridges, rural electrification and other economic and social infrastructure also topped US$14 million in March, 2006.
Mr Baah-Wiredu touched on Japan’s immense contribution to Ghana’s development through Japanese Overseas Co-operation Volunteers (JOCV) dispatched to Ghana as teachers and also Japan’s assistance through Ghana’s human resource development, poverty reduction, accelerated rural development, promotion of industrial development, debt cancellation and new grant aid facility, among others.
He took the opportunity to appeal to the Japanese government to critically consider lifting the ban of Yen loans to Ghana as soon as possible and also expedite action in giving approval for the utilisation of the aggregated balance of around US$12.4 million in the Counter Value Fund for qualified development projects in Ghana.
At the meeting was the Chief Director of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Nana Juaben-Serebour Boateng; the Japanese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Masamichi Ishikawa; the Resident Representative of JICA in Ghana, Mr Hiroshi Murakami; and other officials from both JICA and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
New Pay For Teachers-GH¢66m Arrears to be Settled (Front Page)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah (January 12, 2008)
THE Ministry of Finance has approved a new salary structure for teachers, with retrospective effect from January 1, 2007.
Following the approval, a total of GH¢66 million will be paid in arrears to about 322,000 teachers nation-wide.
The decision follows the agreement reached between the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the government during the 2007 salary negotiations which touched on distortions and wrong job placement and the need to design a new salary structure for teachers of the Ghana Education Service (GES).
A letter on the issue, dated January 4, 2008 and signed by the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Professor George Gyan-Baffour, to the Controller and Accountant General directed that the arrears from January to December 2007, should be paid at the end of this month.
The arrears are the remaining 10 per cent out of a 100 per cent arrears which resulted from some corrections made on teachers’ pay structure, payment of which was started by the government in 2007.
Information gathered at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning indicated that the decision for the new salary structure for teachers was the outcome of a final cleaning-up exercise embarked on to correct distortions and wrong job placements found on the salary structure of the Ghana Universal Salary Structure (GUSS) which negatively affected teachers.
The Ministry’s letter, headed, “Implementation of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the Government”, stated that staff of the GES who left the service from January 1 to December 31, 2007, should also benefit from the new directive.
“Please note that the computation of gratuity, pension and social security of all teachers who left the GES during the period January 1 to December 31, 2007 should be based on the attached salary structure referred to in Paragraph 1 above,” it stated.
The said new salary structure, headed, “Appendix A — Salary Structure for Teachers of the Ghana Education Service, Effective: January 1, 2007”, indicated salaries per annum due each category of teachers from Level One to 22 and also from Step One to 15.
The letter was copied to a number of stakeholders, including the Minister of Education, Science and Sports, the Director-General of the GES and the General Secretary of GNAT.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra on Tuesday, the Director of Policy Analysis of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwabena Oku-Afari, said the decision to implement the new salary structure came out of an MoU signed between the government and the GES, on one hand, and GNAT, on the other, in 2007.
He said that was after a series of negotiations between the two groups to find solutions to the distortions in the salaries of teachers and also their job placement, as compared to other government employees with similar qualifications.
He stated that attempts to correct those anomalies resulted in further problems because of the lack of adequate data and correct information on salaries, adding that salary admininstration in the country had always remained a big problem because of the lack of the correct database.
Mr Oku-Afari, however, stated that some achievements had been made in that area and expressed the hope that things would get better.
He expressed the hope that the newly-established Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FW&SC) would come up with lasting solutions to the issue of salary distortions in the public sector.
THE Ministry of Finance has approved a new salary structure for teachers, with retrospective effect from January 1, 2007.
Following the approval, a total of GH¢66 million will be paid in arrears to about 322,000 teachers nation-wide.
The decision follows the agreement reached between the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the government during the 2007 salary negotiations which touched on distortions and wrong job placement and the need to design a new salary structure for teachers of the Ghana Education Service (GES).
A letter on the issue, dated January 4, 2008 and signed by the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Professor George Gyan-Baffour, to the Controller and Accountant General directed that the arrears from January to December 2007, should be paid at the end of this month.
The arrears are the remaining 10 per cent out of a 100 per cent arrears which resulted from some corrections made on teachers’ pay structure, payment of which was started by the government in 2007.
Information gathered at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning indicated that the decision for the new salary structure for teachers was the outcome of a final cleaning-up exercise embarked on to correct distortions and wrong job placements found on the salary structure of the Ghana Universal Salary Structure (GUSS) which negatively affected teachers.
The Ministry’s letter, headed, “Implementation of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the Government”, stated that staff of the GES who left the service from January 1 to December 31, 2007, should also benefit from the new directive.
“Please note that the computation of gratuity, pension and social security of all teachers who left the GES during the period January 1 to December 31, 2007 should be based on the attached salary structure referred to in Paragraph 1 above,” it stated.
The said new salary structure, headed, “Appendix A — Salary Structure for Teachers of the Ghana Education Service, Effective: January 1, 2007”, indicated salaries per annum due each category of teachers from Level One to 22 and also from Step One to 15.
The letter was copied to a number of stakeholders, including the Minister of Education, Science and Sports, the Director-General of the GES and the General Secretary of GNAT.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra on Tuesday, the Director of Policy Analysis of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwabena Oku-Afari, said the decision to implement the new salary structure came out of an MoU signed between the government and the GES, on one hand, and GNAT, on the other, in 2007.
He said that was after a series of negotiations between the two groups to find solutions to the distortions in the salaries of teachers and also their job placement, as compared to other government employees with similar qualifications.
He stated that attempts to correct those anomalies resulted in further problems because of the lack of adequate data and correct information on salaries, adding that salary admininstration in the country had always remained a big problem because of the lack of the correct database.
Mr Oku-Afari, however, stated that some achievements had been made in that area and expressed the hope that things would get better.
He expressed the hope that the newly-established Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FW&SC) would come up with lasting solutions to the issue of salary distortions in the public sector.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
'Ghana will gain a lot as host' (centre page)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah (January 10, 2008)
THE Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mrs Oboshie Sai-Cofie, has said that Ghana will gain a lot from the opportunity to host the 26th Africa Cup of Nations (Ghana 2008) and that this already makes the country “the winner of the tournament”.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra, Mrs Sai-Cofie stressed that “Ghanaians should recognise the fact that we have already won in prestige, revenue generation, in showcasing our beautiful country and its people; we have won because of the fact that our children will grow to acknowledge that their country is considered important in the global environment”.
She said there was, therefore, no need for any Ghanaian to feel down-hearted because of one reason or another but rather go all out and feel good because the tournament was taking place in Ghana and nowhere else.
The minister said she was aware that the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of Ghana 2008 was preparing to launch some activities before the start of the tournament but said there was no need for anybody to wait to be organised because there already existed reasons for merrymaking.
The Information Minister advised people to stop complaining that there was no excitement in the air, adding that it was left to individuals and groups to come together to create the needed excitement.
Mrs Sai-Cofie said the government had played its part by providing all the necessary infrastructure for a successful tournament, adding, “It is left to us, as a people, to make the best out of the event.”
The Daily Graphic reported on Saturday, January 5, 2008 that $157.2 million had so far been spent on the rehabilitation and construction of four stadia to host the Ghana 2008 tournament in the country. The amount was said to have exceeded the $152.1 million initially projected by $5.1 million.
The rehabilitated stadia are the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra and the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, while the newly- constructed ones are in Tamale and Sekondi.
Mrs Sai-Cofie stated that it was important for each Ghanaian to feel good, for the reason that for the first in our history the whole football world was going to focus on us, and for a good reason too. She, therefore, urged the people to simply allow the excitement to flow from the innermost parts of their hearts.
She suggested that if for nothing at all, individuals and groups should hang national flags on their property and make the right noises in readiness for the tournament.
On the chances of the national team winning the cup, the Information Minister expressed optimism, but added that the issue was not about winning but the need to look at other opportunities that would come along with the tournament. She urged the private sector to take advantage of the event and generate some revenue through the sale of made-in- Ghana goods and traditional food and provide services to earn some income for the period that the tournament would last.
Mrs Sai-Cofie called for maximum support from the media in the area of continuous programmes on the event to create awareness.
THE Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mrs Oboshie Sai-Cofie, has said that Ghana will gain a lot from the opportunity to host the 26th Africa Cup of Nations (Ghana 2008) and that this already makes the country “the winner of the tournament”.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra, Mrs Sai-Cofie stressed that “Ghanaians should recognise the fact that we have already won in prestige, revenue generation, in showcasing our beautiful country and its people; we have won because of the fact that our children will grow to acknowledge that their country is considered important in the global environment”.
She said there was, therefore, no need for any Ghanaian to feel down-hearted because of one reason or another but rather go all out and feel good because the tournament was taking place in Ghana and nowhere else.
The minister said she was aware that the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of Ghana 2008 was preparing to launch some activities before the start of the tournament but said there was no need for anybody to wait to be organised because there already existed reasons for merrymaking.
The Information Minister advised people to stop complaining that there was no excitement in the air, adding that it was left to individuals and groups to come together to create the needed excitement.
Mrs Sai-Cofie said the government had played its part by providing all the necessary infrastructure for a successful tournament, adding, “It is left to us, as a people, to make the best out of the event.”
The Daily Graphic reported on Saturday, January 5, 2008 that $157.2 million had so far been spent on the rehabilitation and construction of four stadia to host the Ghana 2008 tournament in the country. The amount was said to have exceeded the $152.1 million initially projected by $5.1 million.
The rehabilitated stadia are the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra and the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, while the newly- constructed ones are in Tamale and Sekondi.
Mrs Sai-Cofie stated that it was important for each Ghanaian to feel good, for the reason that for the first in our history the whole football world was going to focus on us, and for a good reason too. She, therefore, urged the people to simply allow the excitement to flow from the innermost parts of their hearts.
She suggested that if for nothing at all, individuals and groups should hang national flags on their property and make the right noises in readiness for the tournament.
On the chances of the national team winning the cup, the Information Minister expressed optimism, but added that the issue was not about winning but the need to look at other opportunities that would come along with the tournament. She urged the private sector to take advantage of the event and generate some revenue through the sale of made-in- Ghana goods and traditional food and provide services to earn some income for the period that the tournament would last.
Mrs Sai-Cofie called for maximum support from the media in the area of continuous programmes on the event to create awareness.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Gas Pipeline Ready For Business (Back Page)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah, Takoradi (January 9, 2008)
THE Ghana portion of the West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project is now ready to receive supplies from the project source in Nigeria.
During a visit by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, to some of the project sites in the Western Region, it became evident that the delay in the flow of gas through the lines could be traced to the source of the project in Nigeria.
The WAGP is expected to transport natural gas from Nigeria, through Togo and Benin to Ghana, and is expected to provide a more affordable source of energy to the country than crude oil.
Workers on all the three operational sites, namely the WAGP, the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Takoradi Thermal Plant, which are close to each other at Aboadze near Takoradi, are said to be in readiness to receive the gas from Nigeria.
A tour of the sites showed installation of new equipment with both local and expatriate workers busily moving around with one item or another in readiness for signal from the suppliers in Nigeria.
The West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project involves the construction of a 680-kilometre transport system designed to carry natural gas from Nigeria to markets in Benin, Togo and Ghana.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Graphic at the project site, the WAGP Company Site Representative in Ghana, Mr Michael Streeting, said the work was 99.9-per cent complete”, adding that the system was ready to receive the gas for transmission to the VRA plant nearby.
He pointed out that technicians at the station were presently running final tests on the system.
Briefing Mr Baah-Wiredu at the Regulatory and Metering Station at Aboadze, Mr Streeting said what was left currently was for Ghana to get in touch with the Nigerian suppliers to expedite action for the right amount of the product to start flowing.
He explained that the pipelines which passed through the ocean travelled over 470??????? kilometres to reach the shores of Ghana.
Visitors to the site, which is secured, go through induction on health and safety measures and are also provided protective gear, which includes boots, goggles and helmet, for safety purposes.
At the VRA plant site, new yellow-looking turbines, which were said to have been laid purposely for the gas supply, were visible.
The plant managers of the VRA and the Takoradi International Company (TICO), operators of the Thermal Plant, said their outfits were also ready to receive the gas for onward transmission to add up to the supply of energy in the country.
The Plant Manager for TICO, Mr George Niako, said the two institutions would need less than one week to make use of the gas when it arrived.
The Plant Manager of the VRA, Mr Richard Badger, reiterated the preparedness of the two institutions, adding that they were ready to open the project but that it would be done after the gas had begun to flow in the right quantity.
The gas project is jointly owned by the Chevron oil company, which has 36.7 per cent equity; Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), 25 per cent; Shell, 18 per cent; the Volta River Authority, 16.3 per cent; Societe Togolaise de Gaz (SoToGaz), two per cent and Societe BenGaz S.A. (SoBeGaz), two per cent.
THE Ghana portion of the West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project is now ready to receive supplies from the project source in Nigeria.
During a visit by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, to some of the project sites in the Western Region, it became evident that the delay in the flow of gas through the lines could be traced to the source of the project in Nigeria.
The WAGP is expected to transport natural gas from Nigeria, through Togo and Benin to Ghana, and is expected to provide a more affordable source of energy to the country than crude oil.
Workers on all the three operational sites, namely the WAGP, the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Takoradi Thermal Plant, which are close to each other at Aboadze near Takoradi, are said to be in readiness to receive the gas from Nigeria.
A tour of the sites showed installation of new equipment with both local and expatriate workers busily moving around with one item or another in readiness for signal from the suppliers in Nigeria.
The West Africa Gas Pipeline (WAGP) project involves the construction of a 680-kilometre transport system designed to carry natural gas from Nigeria to markets in Benin, Togo and Ghana.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Graphic at the project site, the WAGP Company Site Representative in Ghana, Mr Michael Streeting, said the work was 99.9-per cent complete”, adding that the system was ready to receive the gas for transmission to the VRA plant nearby.
He pointed out that technicians at the station were presently running final tests on the system.
Briefing Mr Baah-Wiredu at the Regulatory and Metering Station at Aboadze, Mr Streeting said what was left currently was for Ghana to get in touch with the Nigerian suppliers to expedite action for the right amount of the product to start flowing.
He explained that the pipelines which passed through the ocean travelled over 470??????? kilometres to reach the shores of Ghana.
Visitors to the site, which is secured, go through induction on health and safety measures and are also provided protective gear, which includes boots, goggles and helmet, for safety purposes.
At the VRA plant site, new yellow-looking turbines, which were said to have been laid purposely for the gas supply, were visible.
The plant managers of the VRA and the Takoradi International Company (TICO), operators of the Thermal Plant, said their outfits were also ready to receive the gas for onward transmission to add up to the supply of energy in the country.
The Plant Manager for TICO, Mr George Niako, said the two institutions would need less than one week to make use of the gas when it arrived.
The Plant Manager of the VRA, Mr Richard Badger, reiterated the preparedness of the two institutions, adding that they were ready to open the project but that it would be done after the gas had begun to flow in the right quantity.
The gas project is jointly owned by the Chevron oil company, which has 36.7 per cent equity; Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), 25 per cent; Shell, 18 per cent; the Volta River Authority, 16.3 per cent; Societe Togolaise de Gaz (SoToGaz), two per cent and Societe BenGaz S.A. (SoBeGaz), two per cent.
French Team To Start Feasibility Study On Mini Dams (Centre Page)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah, Ajomoro Ashiem. (January 9, 2008)
A team of consultants from a French consulting engineering firm, Coyner et Bellier, is expected in the country this week to begin feasibility studies for the construction of mini hydro dams on the Pra, Ankobra and Tano rivers in the Central and Western regions.
Coyner et Bellier specialises in the designing, construction and supervision of large infrastructural projects such as hydraulic and hydropower dams.
The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, at the weekend inspected the potential project sites together with Mr William Oppong Bio, the Executive Chairman of Super Care Group, the local representatives of Sinohydro Company of China, and Mr Liu Aisheng, an engineer with the company, who is currently working on the Bui Dam project in the Brong Ahafo Region.
The team visited the site along the River Pra at Assin Awisa in the Twifu Hemang-Lower Denkyira District in the Central Region and Sekyere Heman in the Mpohor Wassa East District in the Western Region.
The team was later joined by the district chief executives (DCEs) for Agona West and Nzema East, Mr Kwesi Biney and Mr Joshua Ellemah, respectively, as well as Ms Katherine Afeko, the Government Spokesperson on Infrastructure, and inspected a site along the River Ankobra at Ajomoro Ashiem in the Nzema East District and the Tano River at Tanoso, near Elubo in the Jomoro District, both in the Western Region.
Mr Aisheng told the Daily Graphic at Agona Nkwanta, the capital of the Agona West District, that a study conducted more than a decade ago indicated that the three proposed mini dams had the potential of supplying about 250 megawatts of electric power.
Mr Baah-Wiredu said the government had begun negotiations with the Chinese government to help in the construction of the dams to supplement the energy needs of the country.
He said it was important for the country to explore all avenues in the area of energy generation to prevent a recurrence of the energy crisis which the country went through last year.
Mr Baah-Wiredu pointed out that the country had not taken the issue of energy generation seriously for some time now, adding that out of the three areas of power generation, transmission and distribution, the country’s interest had for about 20 years only been on transmission and distribution, leaving out power generation.
He pointed out that the construction of the mini dams was mentioned in the 2008 budget statement, as well as the President’s New Year Message, and said the government was serious about the three projects.
The Finance Minister said a team which accompanied him to China to negotiate the Bui Dam Project in 2007 touched on the mini dams, adding that there were indications that the Chinese government would again support the government of Ghana in that direction.
In all the areas that the team visited, the people showed a keen interest in the projects and expressed the hope that the government would expedite action on them to provide employment for the youth.
When the team got to Sekyere Heman around 7.30 p.m., a group of more than 20 people quickly organised themselves with lanterns and torch lights to lead the team to the river bank for the inspection.
At Ajomoro Ashiem, a mini durbar was organised and Mr Baah-Wiredu asked the people not to be discouraged because the future held better prospects for all Ghanaians.
He touched on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the School Feeding Programme, the Capitation Grant and the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) as some of the initiatives by the government to help reduce the cost of living, especially for rural dwellers.
The Chief of Ajomoro Ashiem, Nana Akwenzra Acka, assured the government of his preparedness and that of his people to support the construction of the dam on their land.
A team of consultants from a French consulting engineering firm, Coyner et Bellier, is expected in the country this week to begin feasibility studies for the construction of mini hydro dams on the Pra, Ankobra and Tano rivers in the Central and Western regions.
Coyner et Bellier specialises in the designing, construction and supervision of large infrastructural projects such as hydraulic and hydropower dams.
The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, at the weekend inspected the potential project sites together with Mr William Oppong Bio, the Executive Chairman of Super Care Group, the local representatives of Sinohydro Company of China, and Mr Liu Aisheng, an engineer with the company, who is currently working on the Bui Dam project in the Brong Ahafo Region.
The team visited the site along the River Pra at Assin Awisa in the Twifu Hemang-Lower Denkyira District in the Central Region and Sekyere Heman in the Mpohor Wassa East District in the Western Region.
The team was later joined by the district chief executives (DCEs) for Agona West and Nzema East, Mr Kwesi Biney and Mr Joshua Ellemah, respectively, as well as Ms Katherine Afeko, the Government Spokesperson on Infrastructure, and inspected a site along the River Ankobra at Ajomoro Ashiem in the Nzema East District and the Tano River at Tanoso, near Elubo in the Jomoro District, both in the Western Region.
Mr Aisheng told the Daily Graphic at Agona Nkwanta, the capital of the Agona West District, that a study conducted more than a decade ago indicated that the three proposed mini dams had the potential of supplying about 250 megawatts of electric power.
Mr Baah-Wiredu said the government had begun negotiations with the Chinese government to help in the construction of the dams to supplement the energy needs of the country.
He said it was important for the country to explore all avenues in the area of energy generation to prevent a recurrence of the energy crisis which the country went through last year.
Mr Baah-Wiredu pointed out that the country had not taken the issue of energy generation seriously for some time now, adding that out of the three areas of power generation, transmission and distribution, the country’s interest had for about 20 years only been on transmission and distribution, leaving out power generation.
He pointed out that the construction of the mini dams was mentioned in the 2008 budget statement, as well as the President’s New Year Message, and said the government was serious about the three projects.
The Finance Minister said a team which accompanied him to China to negotiate the Bui Dam Project in 2007 touched on the mini dams, adding that there were indications that the Chinese government would again support the government of Ghana in that direction.
In all the areas that the team visited, the people showed a keen interest in the projects and expressed the hope that the government would expedite action on them to provide employment for the youth.
When the team got to Sekyere Heman around 7.30 p.m., a group of more than 20 people quickly organised themselves with lanterns and torch lights to lead the team to the river bank for the inspection.
At Ajomoro Ashiem, a mini durbar was organised and Mr Baah-Wiredu asked the people not to be discouraged because the future held better prospects for all Ghanaians.
He touched on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), the School Feeding Programme, the Capitation Grant and the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) as some of the initiatives by the government to help reduce the cost of living, especially for rural dwellers.
The Chief of Ajomoro Ashiem, Nana Akwenzra Acka, assured the government of his preparedness and that of his people to support the construction of the dam on their land.
Finance Minister, Revenue Officials Discuss Auction (page13)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah (January 5, 2008)
TOP officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the Revenue Agencies Governing Board (RAGB) and the Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), held a meeting on Thursday to discuss means to auction hundreds of containers of imported goods left to go bad at the Tema Harbour.
The meeting became necessary after the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, had visited the harbour to inspect at first-hand, an unspecified number of containers, marked for auctioning by CEPS but which had been left to go bad because of legalities.
At the meeting with the Finance Minister were the Executive Secretary of the RAGB, Mr Harry Owusu; the Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Emmanuel Doku; his deputy in charge of Operations, Mr Robert Kwami; the officer in charge of Tema, Assistant Commissioner of CEPS Alhaji Mohammed Malifuz Nasirudeen; the Chairman of the Auction Task Force, Mr Martin Oteng Ababio, and other officials from CEPS and the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA).
An inspection after the meeting of the TOA Yard, where about 201 containers had been kept, showed that some of the containers together with their contents which comprised clothing, electrical appliances and mineral water among other general goods, were going bad due to their exposure to the harsh weather conditions over a long period.
Addressing the officials, Mr Baah-Wiredu said it was unfortunate that so many items which could have fetched the country huge sums of money had been left unsold because officials had to follow bureaucratic procedures.
“There are some items which were here when I visited Tema about four years ago,” he lamented.
He explained that an item marked for auctioning must be sold within what was termed a reserve price and when it failed to attract such a price for a second time, a review of the old price for a new one had to go through a cumbersome procedure, which usually took about a year to complete.
He said in as much as the procedure was good to check fraud, a way should be found to shorten the process for early auctioning of uncleared goods at a time when they were still in good condition.
Mr Baah-Wiredu said if all those items were auctioned as and when they came in, much higher revenue could have been raised and the ports cleared of so many containers.
The Deputy Commissioner in charge of Operations, Mr Robert Kwami, said there had been an earlier discussion on the issue to shorten the procedure of reviewing the reserve prices for early auctioning of items which did not attract buyers at an earlier auction.
He pointed out that there was going to be a computerised system at the port to keep records of prices and all items sold at auctions to prevent fraud.
The Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Doku, said the service would begin a workshop to educate personnel on the computerised system to enable them to keep proper records on auctioned goods.
Mr Harry Owusu of the RAGB said so many items had been left unsold for many years because of the fact that CEPS officials were being cautious, and suggested that a transparent method should be adopted to enable the state to derive the necessary benefits from the auction.
He reiterated that the main objective of the revenue agencies was to maximise profit and called on the staff of CEPS to play their role effectively.
The Chairman of the Auction Task Force, Mr Oteng Ababio, said since the committee started its work on October 23, 2007, it had auctioned 120 containers.
TOP officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the Revenue Agencies Governing Board (RAGB) and the Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), held a meeting on Thursday to discuss means to auction hundreds of containers of imported goods left to go bad at the Tema Harbour.
The meeting became necessary after the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, had visited the harbour to inspect at first-hand, an unspecified number of containers, marked for auctioning by CEPS but which had been left to go bad because of legalities.
At the meeting with the Finance Minister were the Executive Secretary of the RAGB, Mr Harry Owusu; the Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Emmanuel Doku; his deputy in charge of Operations, Mr Robert Kwami; the officer in charge of Tema, Assistant Commissioner of CEPS Alhaji Mohammed Malifuz Nasirudeen; the Chairman of the Auction Task Force, Mr Martin Oteng Ababio, and other officials from CEPS and the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA).
An inspection after the meeting of the TOA Yard, where about 201 containers had been kept, showed that some of the containers together with their contents which comprised clothing, electrical appliances and mineral water among other general goods, were going bad due to their exposure to the harsh weather conditions over a long period.
Addressing the officials, Mr Baah-Wiredu said it was unfortunate that so many items which could have fetched the country huge sums of money had been left unsold because officials had to follow bureaucratic procedures.
“There are some items which were here when I visited Tema about four years ago,” he lamented.
He explained that an item marked for auctioning must be sold within what was termed a reserve price and when it failed to attract such a price for a second time, a review of the old price for a new one had to go through a cumbersome procedure, which usually took about a year to complete.
He said in as much as the procedure was good to check fraud, a way should be found to shorten the process for early auctioning of uncleared goods at a time when they were still in good condition.
Mr Baah-Wiredu said if all those items were auctioned as and when they came in, much higher revenue could have been raised and the ports cleared of so many containers.
The Deputy Commissioner in charge of Operations, Mr Robert Kwami, said there had been an earlier discussion on the issue to shorten the procedure of reviewing the reserve prices for early auctioning of items which did not attract buyers at an earlier auction.
He pointed out that there was going to be a computerised system at the port to keep records of prices and all items sold at auctions to prevent fraud.
The Commissioner of CEPS, Mr Doku, said the service would begin a workshop to educate personnel on the computerised system to enable them to keep proper records on auctioned goods.
Mr Harry Owusu of the RAGB said so many items had been left unsold for many years because of the fact that CEPS officials were being cautious, and suggested that a transparent method should be adopted to enable the state to derive the necessary benefits from the auction.
He reiterated that the main objective of the revenue agencies was to maximise profit and called on the staff of CEPS to play their role effectively.
The Chairman of the Auction Task Force, Mr Oteng Ababio, said since the committee started its work on October 23, 2007, it had auctioned 120 containers.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Health Sector Set to Achieve MDGs (page 44)
Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah
THE health sector will this year move ahead with its objective of achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with the implementation of health intervention programmes throughout the country.
To achieve its objectives, the agenda for the sector for the year will include expansion of the policy of High Impact Rapid Delivery (HIRD) and the Regenerative Health and Nutrition Programme (RHNP) to cover the rest of the country.
This was contained in the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2008 financial year presented to Parliament on November 15, 2007 by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu.
The HIRD programme has been introduced by the Ministry of Health (MoH) to scale up interventions to help achieve the MDGs. These interventions include sustaining Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), improving malarial case management, extension of health care and support services for People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and strengthening programme management for guinea worm in the affected areas.
The Northern, Upper East, Upper West and Central regions were introduced to the HIRD programme on pilot basis last year.
The RHNP is to address problems of health risks arising from the changing lifestyles of Ghanaians, which include unhealthy eating habits, lack of physical activity and neglect of basic environmental practices. Presently, 32 districts in all the 10 regions have been introduced to the programme.
To achieve its objectives for the year, an amount of GH¢752,233,368 has been allocated to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in the 2008 budget.
Out of that amount, the government is providing GH¢268,517,036, with the various health facilities contributing GH¢115,070,600 from internally generated fund.
An amount of GH¢126,731,219 would come from donor support, GH¢6,485,000 from the HIPC fund and GH¢235,429,513 from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
In addition to scaling up programmes of both HIRD and RHNP, the budget statement pointed out that the health sector would also initiate policies that would promote and augment workforce productivity and expand the coverage of the NHIS while taking cognisance of issues of equity, efficiency and financial sustainability of the scheme.
It stated that these priorities would be complemented by additional initiatives that would be launched and vigorously pursued through the promotion of healthy eating and the use of safe water with the objective of reducing food-related and water-borne diseases.
Other programmes for 2008, as contained in the budget, are the enhancement of quality and broader coverage of clinical care which would include referrals, revamping of hospitals and mortuaries, development of clinical protocols, provision of infrastructure and equipping laboratories, pharmacies and theatres.
Other areas to be looked at, according to the budget statement, would include expansion of middle level training programmes targeted at the training of medical assistants, midwives and health assistants for the sub-districts, while enhancing workforce productivity with improved health management information system and also the strengthening of inter-sectoral collaboration for effective health promotion.
THE health sector will this year move ahead with its objective of achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with the implementation of health intervention programmes throughout the country.
To achieve its objectives, the agenda for the sector for the year will include expansion of the policy of High Impact Rapid Delivery (HIRD) and the Regenerative Health and Nutrition Programme (RHNP) to cover the rest of the country.
This was contained in the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2008 financial year presented to Parliament on November 15, 2007 by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu.
The HIRD programme has been introduced by the Ministry of Health (MoH) to scale up interventions to help achieve the MDGs. These interventions include sustaining Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), improving malarial case management, extension of health care and support services for People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and strengthening programme management for guinea worm in the affected areas.
The Northern, Upper East, Upper West and Central regions were introduced to the HIRD programme on pilot basis last year.
The RHNP is to address problems of health risks arising from the changing lifestyles of Ghanaians, which include unhealthy eating habits, lack of physical activity and neglect of basic environmental practices. Presently, 32 districts in all the 10 regions have been introduced to the programme.
To achieve its objectives for the year, an amount of GH¢752,233,368 has been allocated to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in the 2008 budget.
Out of that amount, the government is providing GH¢268,517,036, with the various health facilities contributing GH¢115,070,600 from internally generated fund.
An amount of GH¢126,731,219 would come from donor support, GH¢6,485,000 from the HIPC fund and GH¢235,429,513 from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
In addition to scaling up programmes of both HIRD and RHNP, the budget statement pointed out that the health sector would also initiate policies that would promote and augment workforce productivity and expand the coverage of the NHIS while taking cognisance of issues of equity, efficiency and financial sustainability of the scheme.
It stated that these priorities would be complemented by additional initiatives that would be launched and vigorously pursued through the promotion of healthy eating and the use of safe water with the objective of reducing food-related and water-borne diseases.
Other programmes for 2008, as contained in the budget, are the enhancement of quality and broader coverage of clinical care which would include referrals, revamping of hospitals and mortuaries, development of clinical protocols, provision of infrastructure and equipping laboratories, pharmacies and theatres.
Other areas to be looked at, according to the budget statement, would include expansion of middle level training programmes targeted at the training of medical assistants, midwives and health assistants for the sub-districts, while enhancing workforce productivity with improved health management information system and also the strengthening of inter-sectoral collaboration for effective health promotion.
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