Load Shedding to be relaxed

There are indications that the on-going load shedding exercise will be relaxed, over the next few days.

Currently, the pattern is that areas go off, once in 72 hours (three days). The new pattern is likely to be areas having power off once in five days, only in the evenings. There will not be any load shedding in the mornings.

Energy analysts believe that the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) are trying to avoid a situation in March 2007, at the peak of Ghana’s 50th anniversary celebrations, in which there will have to be load shedding. February is regarded as a drought month and there is the need to be wary.

There is likely to be a freeze on the load from December 23rd 2006 to January 3, 2007.

Cameroon Airlines Migrates To Sita Ip-Based Network Solution

8 November 2006 – As part of preparation for privatisation, and to increase operational efficiencies, Cameroon Airlines today announced it is the first airline in Central and West Africa to migrate their legacy communications system to SITA’s Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IP VPN) service. The five-year contract with SITA, worth $4.3 million, will link the airline’s headquarters and regional offices over a secure network, enabling staff in all locations to run applications in a protected environment and enable secure IP access to Internet services.

Cameroon Airlines is currently reorganizing its operations with the aim of improving overall performance in advance of privatization which is planned by the government in 2007. The airline relies heavily on Information Technology (IT) to help reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies. As part of the deal, SITA’s professional services consultants will be migrating Cameroon Airlines’ current legacy network infrastructure to Internet Protocol (IP); a move that opens the door to new technologies that leverage the Internet – such as Voice over IP (VoIP) – while driving down costs.

Commenting on the deal M. Mohamadou Hamassali, Head of Strategy and IT department at Cameroon Airlines remarked "We at Cameroon Airlines consider SITA as our partner for telecommunications and information services. SITA has always been there for Cameroon Airlines even during times of difficulties. We are happy to sign this long term deal for telecommunications and professional services and count on SITA's continued support to ensure that Cameroon Airlines maintains competitive advantage through the use of modern technology."

“Our focus with Cameroon airlines is to reduce their communication-related costs and effectively make them more competitive in the marketplace,” said Khodr Akil, SITA Regional Vice President, Sales and Relationship Management, Africa. “Cameroon Airlines is aware of the huge benefits of migrating to IP. It will enable the airline to deliver a faster, more personal and seamless service to passengers as it prepares for privatization. We are delighted to play an instrumental role in the airline’s move to this more advanced technology platform in a cost-effective manner.”

SITA has worked with Cameroon Airlines for 30 years providing data and ground to air communication services. In addition, the airline uses SITA’s passenger services portfolio Horizon, including, SITA Reservations, Ticketing, Airfare, Frequent Flyer and Credit Card Authorization. Cameroon Airlines’ implementation of electronic ticketing is in progress with SITA and the first e-ticket is scheduled to be issued by the end of December 2006, well ahead of the IATA deadline of December 2007.

-ENDS-

For further information (not for publication) contact:

Joanna Masson / Lorna Thompson
SITA Press Office
Octopus Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 1753 672 755
Email: sita@octopuscomms.net

Notes to Editors:

About SITA

SITA is the world's leading service provider of integrated IT business solutions and communication services for the air transport industry. SITA manages complex communication solutions for its air transport, government and GDS customers over the world's most extensive communication network, complemented by consultancy in the design, deployment and integration of communication services. Its broad range of airline and airport IT applications and services includes airport operations and integrated baggage services, common use and desktop services, flight operations and air-to-ground communications and end-to-end airline distribution and fares services.

SITA has two main subsidiaries: OnAir, which is leading the race to bring in-flight mobile telephony to the market, and CHAMP Cargosystems, the world's only IT company solely dedicated to air cargo. SITA also operates two joint ventures providing services to the air transport community: Aviareto for aircraft asset management and CertiPath for secure electronic identity management. In addition, SITA sponsors .aero, the Internet top level domain reserved exclusively for aviation.

SITA covers 220 countries and territories and the head office is in Geneva, Switzerland. SITA had aggregated revenues of US$ 1.554 billion in 2005 (€ 1.295 billion).

Further information can be found at www.sita.aero

Rejoinder: Ghana Embassy - The Most Inefficient Institution In The UK

The attention of the Ghana High Commission in London has been drawn to an article posted on this website on the afore-mentioned subject. Despite the negative impression that the author sought to create about the High Commission, we wish to emphasise that the Mission places very high premium on its duties and on the welfare of Ghanaians in the UK and many Ghanaians can attest to the vast improvement in the quality of its services over the past few years. We wish for now, to provide the following reaction to the matters raised in the article.
Firstly, calls made to the Mission are answered promptly and appropriately. Secondly, passport applicants living outside London can purchase their forms from any location in the UK by post via postal order/banker’s drafts and do not need to travel all the way to London. Indeed, Visa, Criminal Record Check and Dual Citizenship application forms can also be purchased through the post.

Processing of passports has now been fully mechanised and processing time for passports has been reduced to two weeks for direct applications and three weeks for postal applications. Barring any postage problems, the stipulated three week processing time would normally be met if the application form is correctly completed and supported with all the requisite documents and a stamped self-addressed envelope. We would however like to state that for now passport application forms cannot be made available on the internet because of security considerations.

The Mission has noted that the author of the article is Mr. Adumoa Sam. Records at the Mission have failed to locate any application from the author. Besides a letter which the High Commissioner has written to him inviting him to make contact with the Mission with a view to resolving the matters he complained of, have, up to date, elicited no response.

Sweeping statements and generalisations about the conduct of officers at the Mission are not helpful. Members of the public who have specific complaints about the Mission’s services or the conduct of specific officers are kindly encouraged to channel their complaints to the High Commissioner on telephone no. 02072015900 or Fax no. 02072450970.

The Mission is constantly reviewing its operations and procedures and has stepped-up interaction with the Ghanaian community to elicit the necessary feedback to enable it provide the best quality of service for Ghanaians

ISSUED BY THE
GHANA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON
8 NOVEMBER 2006

Source:
GHANA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON

Kufuor Expected In Tokyo On Thursday

President John Agyekum Kufuor leaves Seoul on Thursday for Tokyo, Japan to begin a two-day official state visit
Kufuor was in Seoul to participate in the first Korea-Africa Forum


The president left Accra on Monday, October 31. He attended the China Africa Heads of State Summit, which took place from November 3 - 6 in Beijing.

He is accompanied by Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo, Foreign Minister, Mr Joseph Kofi Adda, Minister of Energy and some senior Government officials.

Courts to try sanitation-related offences to be established soon – Minister

Mr. Stephen Asamoah Boateng, Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment on Wednesday said plans were far advanced to establish special courts that would prosecute sanitation-related offences.
He said the level of indiscipline in sanitation-related matters had reached such heights that if the culprits were not brought to book, the beauty of the cities would disappear and investments wasted.
"Road medians with vegetative cover have become the walk-way for some people, while others use them for the disposal of the rubbish,” he said.
“We all have to work to bring such attitudes to an end," he told participants at the opening of the second ArcGIS West Africa User Conference, which opened in Accra.
The ArcGIS conference is aimed at bringing participants to deliberate on the uses of geographic information systems in development agenda.
About 100 participants from Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa and Sierra Leone are attending the two-day conference, which is under the theme, "Unlocking the Power of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for Attaining Development Goals in West Africa".
Mr Boateng said the ability to view data in a spatial dimension was what had always made GIS a valuable tool in decision-making.
Praising the timeliness of the conference, he said Ghana and the entire sub-region were taking up diverse development projects that required the use of geographic information or geo-information and technology.
We need to encourage GIS professionals to explore how they could increase the application of GIS in all industries in our respective countries, Mr Boateng said.
"Despite the far reaching benefits of Geographic Information Systems, this technology, like many others, is not being full utilized in our West Africa sub-region.
"This has been caused by technological constraints, high resistance to operational changes and, of course, budget limitations."
Mr Boateng urged the participants to embrace better tools for planning, allocation and delivery of services.
"The fullest use of geographical or spatial information technology must be developed and deployed within our private and public agencies."
Mr Samuel Aboah, Chief Executive Officer of Sambus Company Limited, organizers of the workshop said the GIS industry in West Africa had all along been funded to the tune of 90 per cent by foreign grants and loans.
He therefore called on end users to support the industry since donor aid figures were falling substantially as most of the projects were coming to an end.
GNA

First Lady attends HIV/AIDS Sensitization Forum in Bolgatanga

Mrs. Theresa Kufuor, First Lady on Wednesday said an effective way to check the spread of HIV/AIDS would be to equip women with employable skills to make them economically independent.

"Part of the reason for the rapid spread of the disease has to do with the men-dominated nature of our economy," she said.
Mrs Kufuor made the observation when addressing the opening session of an HIV/AIDS Sensitization Forum for Women in Bolgatanga.


The forum was organized as part of her two-day working visit with Hajia Ramatu Mahama, wife of Vice President Aliu Mahama, to the Upper East Region.
Mrs Kufuor noted that since the AIDS pandemic was affecting the society “We should deal with it. Stigmatisation and discrimination would not help anyone. It would only drive those infected underground and make it difficult for them to come out openly to seek help."

Hajia Mahama urged women in the region to cultivate the virtue of sharing and being supportive of persons living with AIDS.
She appealed to families of AIDS victims not to shun them but show them love and kindness.


"No one deliberately becomes sick. Let us treat persons living with AIDS with dignity, because they are human beings like us," she added.
Mr Boniface Gambila, Upper East Regional Minister, said in spite of efforts to suppress it, the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the region continued to increase from 47 in 1989 to 4,929 by the end of June 2006.


He announced that an ante-retroviral treatment centre has been established at Bolgatanga Government Hospital and another to be established at Bawku Hospital as part of measures to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS in the region.


Mr Gambila observed that major issues to be addressed nationwide on the crusade against AIDS were the questions of stigmatization and behavioural change.
To this end, he said the Upper East Regional AIDS Commission had planned some activities on behavioural change communication towards this year's World AIDS Day celebration.


Ms Victoria Aziriba, staff of Bolgatanga Hospital, making a presentation on HIV/AIDS, urged residents to take advantage of the voluntary testing and counselling services at the hospital to enable them know their HIV status to live careful and disciplined lives.


"When you test positive it should not be a problem. Hypertension and diabetes like AIDS have no cure," She added. Ms Lamisi Amoh, a young woman living with HIV/AIDS stunned the forum with her experiences as an HIV victim.
"When the man with AIDS dies, it is the widow and orphans who suffer the burden of HIV/AIDS," she said.


She expressed appreciation to Government for assisting AIDS patients in the region with ante-retroviral treatment and appealed to Government to provide free meals daily for patients who visited the centre due to their poor financial status.


Mrs Kufuor and Hajia Mahama later inspected an exhibition of straw baskets and smocks produced by a group of widows living with HIV/AIDS and donated quantities of straw and dye materials estimated at about four million cedis to the group.
They also paid courtesy call on the Bolga Naba, Martin Abilba III at his palace.


Naba Abilba commended them for their immense contribution to national development and promoting the health of women and children in the country.
GNA

NDC leadership to hold NPP responsible for any mishap

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Wednesday called on Ghanaians to hold the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government responsible should anything untoward happen to any of the leading figures of the party.

Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketia, General Secretary of the Party stated that, "there are threats on the lives of the leadership of the NDC Party and other critical voices in the media and so if any of us die a mysterious death the NPP government would be held responsible."

He was speaking at a press conference to respond to alleged threats by the Military to clamp down on a group of subversionists that were planning to overthrow the NPP government.

Mr. Asiedu Nketia said the admission of the Military hierarchy that the document was authentic but was only meant for training purposes was a surprise to the party.

He said if the document was for training purposes, why the Military would choose Radio Gold, a private establishment located in a densely populated area like Laterbiokoshie for the operation. Mr. Asiedu Nketia asked whether the owners and workers of Radio Gold were alerted about the impending exercise and whether the President, who is the Commander of the Ghana Armed Forces was privy to the exercise.

He said a few months ago, an intelligence report indicated that there were plans to eliminate the former President, and that same week some armed men trailed the convoy of former President Rawlings from Accra to Tefle, but were confronted by security agencies at Sogakope. He said these, among other developments should not be viewed as mere unrelated coincidences and that a cursory analysis of those events gave the credence that the NPP government was up to some mischief.

Mr. Asiedu Nketia said the NDC had reason to be concerned about the developments on the national scene which, not only threatened the stability of democracy in the country but raised serious concerns about the commitment of the NPP government to the principle of rule of law and constitutional governance.

Mr. Asiedu Nketia said the NDC considered the 4th Republican Constitution and the peaceful transition of power as the greatest political legacy to the nation and would do everything in its power to protect it.

He assured the party, its supporters and the public that the leadership remained undeterred in the face of the threats as they prepared for congress in December to elect a flag bearer.Source:
GNA