Veep opens website to promote transparency in mining industry

Vice President Alhaji Mahama on Monday launched a website to promote efforts to ensure that transparency and accountability become the hallmark of the mining industry in Ghana. The website: http://www.gheiti.gov.gh/, which was the brainchild of the Executive, with support from Germany would showcase information on fiscal inputs and outputs of the industry.

Vice President Mahama launched the Information, Communication and Technology facility in Accra at day's international workshop on Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), launched by the British Prime Minister in South Africa in 2002 to among other things ensure greater transparency and accountability in the exploitation of natural resources. "We all know that this website will be inaccessible to the average Ghanaian.

However, they listen to radio and read local newspapers," he said. Vice President Mahama, therefore, challenged the Independent Aggregator to publish its reports in the mass media or bulletins and newsletters of the district assemblies to "constitute a veritable part of the transparency and accountability process in governance". He said the setting up of a National Steering Committee and the establishment of a Secretariat on EITI called for accountability and transparency in the management of forest resources.

Vice President Mahama said: "Ghana as a signatory to the EITI concept has to ensure that things are done right on the part of the investor, operator and government in a collaborative manner. "To this end, a legislative framework will soon be put in place to give legal backing to the concept, which will then enable Government to give regular budgetary support to the initiative." Referring to the publish-what- you- pay media concept adopted by the Ghana Chamber of Mines for mining companies, Vice President Mahama asked the Chamber to improve on the notion by adding: "Restore -what-you damage" in order to reduce tensions associated with mining activities in some local communities.

This attracted cheers. He said Ghana had introduced generous incentive packages and a fiscal regime to boost the mining industry. Some of these incentives include royalty payments of three per cent on production; loss carry forward for five years and capital allowance of 80 per cent in the first year of operation while the rest is spread over the lifetime of the mine.

"Its is common knowledge that the price of gold has increased steadily in recent times, yet mining companies continue to pay three per cent royalty to Government. One would have expected an increase in royalty payments based on the sliding scale of three and six per cent. "This is not being done and it is of concern to Government," he said.GNA

African Heads of State arrive for forum

A number of African Heads of State have started arriving in Accra to attend the second conference of the "Partnership with Africa" from the January 12 to January 14 at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Teshie, Accra, on the theme: "Two Generations-One Future."Organised under the auspices of German President Horst Kohler, the conference is a sequel to the first Africa Conference he convened in Bonn in November 2005, where he launched the Africa Partnership Initiative.President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria was the first to arrive. He was followed by President Festus Mogae of Bostwana and President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia.

Mr Alpha Oumar Konare, President of the African Union Commission has also arrived.They were all met by President John Agyekum Kufuor of the Republic of Ghana, Ministers of States, members of the Diplomatic Corps and Senior Service Personnel at the Kotoka International Airport.
Source:GNA

Ghana is grateful for Germany's development support

President John Agyekum Kufuor has expressed Ghana's appreciation to Germany for its development support to the country, which crossed the billion Euros mark last year. In addition, a 270 million Euro debt owed her by Ghana was also cancelled, something, that significantly contributed to the turn around of the country's economy. President Kufuor conveyed the country's appreciation at the opening of bilateral talks with the visiting German President Horst Kohler at the Castle, Osu, on Thursday.

Accompanied by the wife Eva and a 170-member delegation, made up of Government Officials and businessmen, he is in the country for a four-day visit during which, he would participate in the Partnership with Africa Forum. The last time Mr Kohler came to Ghana was about four years ago when he was then the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

President Kufuor noted that apart from development assistance, there were technical and economic cooperation between the two countries in the areas of education, agriculture, good governance as well as the fight against the HIV-AIDS pandemic. He recalled the encouragement President Kohler as Managing Director of the IMF gave to the country, when it opted for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. "It is a credit to you. The encouragement you gave to us to go through the HIPC has helped to turn the economy around. It is now strong, stable and showing a lot of hope."

President Kufuor also referred to the "Initiative on Partnership with Africa", a baby of President Kohler, and his decision that Ghana should co-chair the Forum, which seeks to promote understanding among peoples of the world, in Accra from the January 12 to January 14 and said: "This reflects the confidence you and your Government have in Ghana." He said it was significant the Forum was being held at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPC), which the Germans helped to established to assist to restore peace and security to the West African Sub-Region.

President Kohler said his country was impressed with President Kufuor's leadership which, has led to high economic performance and stability of Ghana's economy. He also lauded President Kufuor for his role in the African Union and said he saw it as a privilege to be one of the first leaders to visit Ghana as it celebrated its 50 years of nationhood.

President Kohler said his Partnership with Africa Initiative was meant to find ways and means of promoting dialogue based on equal footing. He noted that through joint effort and activity by the rich nations and Africa, the Continent would be put on a path of prosperity.

Bailiff breaks into Eva Lokko’s office to take inventory

After over a year of being under lock and key, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) Former Director-General, Eva Lokko's office was on Thursday broken into to allow an inventory to be taken. The entry into the office was necessitated by the refusal of Ms Lokko and her Legal Team, Bentsi Enchill and Letsa to open the door to enable Mr Franklin Duncan-Williams, the Bailiff to carry out a high court order given on January 8, 2007, consequent to a judgement by Mr Justice E. L. Dzakpasu on November 6, 2006.



The Court ordered Ms Lokko and her Legal Team to open the doors to her office for the Bailiff to take inventory of items in the office on Thursday, January 11, 2007 at exactly 11:00 hours. Contrary to the Court’s order, neither Ms Lokko nor her Legal Team showed up at the premises of GBC with the keys to the door.




When GBC Lawyers, Matthews Consult represented by Mr Michael Anokye managed to get Mr Ace Ankomah on phone at about 11:30 hours, he (Mr. Ankomah) claimed he had gotten the High Court Registrar, Mr S. B. Issaka to postpone the implementation of the order to January 12, 2007 at 15:00 hours. The GBC Lawyers contacted the High Court Registrar on phone and he vehemently denied ever postponing the effective date for the office to be opened.




After waiting for about one-and-a-half hours, Mr Anthony Matthews, Chief Executive Officer of Matthews Consult, showed up with a faxed letter from Ms Lokko's legal representatives stating their request for the postponement, but Mr Matthews insisted that the letter arrived at 10:50 hours, 10 minutes before the effective time and moreover it was not legally binding on them.
GNA

Many Ghanaian Women risk death through unsafe abortion

In Ghana abortion is widespread and, because it is technically illegal, mainly unregulated.
It is estimated that as many as two-thirds of all terminations are unsafe and large numbers of women are dying.

Gloria is 22 and lives in a village in eastern Ghana.
She has had two abortions in two years and has not told her family as she is afraid she will be thrown out.

Her village is governed by traditional tribal customs.
Both abortion and contraception are frowned upon and children are seen as precious.
But Gloria does not want children yet - she wants to continue her schooling.
So, with the help of a friend she resorted to self-abortion. But it all went badly wrong.
"The first method I used were the leaves of the bush plant mixed with kawa, a local stone," she told BBC Radio 4's Crossing Continents.

"We ground them together and inserted it into the uterus."
But that method did not work and in a small, quavering voice, Gloria said: "Then we inserted the branch of the bush plant and the blood started coming in 15 minutes."
Broken bottle

Gloria's second abortion was only four months ago.
First her friend gave her melted sugar with Guinness. No effect.
I bled and bled and bled for more than five days
GloriaThen 10 paracetemol tablets ground up with local gin. Still nothing.

"Finally, we tried a broken bottle ground up with seawater and "Blue", a washing detergent, which we soaked in a cotton cloth and inserted into my womanhood," she confessed.
"By doing that the foetus came. I bled and bled and bled for more than five days."
Gloria is today in constant pain and too afraid to see a doctor.

She has refused to tell even her mother, who is a midwife.
"If I informed my mother, she would tell my father and that would be the end of me," she explained.

Infertility fear
Other women in both rural Ghana and the cities echo these fears.
In the capital Accra, Gracie, Betty and Debbie spoke about their abortions.
They are all young, single mothers, abandoned by their men and struggling as low-paid market traders.

Betty is just 26.
"Nobody knows, not even my friends. I thought I'd get in big trouble," she said.
Since my abortion I've not been able to get pregnant again
Betty
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The abortion cost 300,000 cedis (about £16), which she said was a lot of money for someone like her.

She continued: "Since my abortion I've not been able to get pregnant again. That was five years ago.
"But I am fortunate because a friend of mine died after hers."
Money was also a big issue for Debbie.
Her boyfriend got her pregnant and then left her.

But her brother gave her money after she lied, saying she needed it because she had malaria.
At the hospital the doctor told her an abortion would cost 500,000 cedis (about £28) but she had only 400,000.

However she pleaded with him and the operation went ahead.
"But that night," Debbie related, "I had terrible pains. I went back to the hospital. The doctor had left part of the foetus in my womb."
Serious infection
And finally, Gracie's story.

When I sit down my leg shakes. I can't sleep
GracieHer abortion also took place in a hospital and was also botched.
The doctor who operated on her was not a gynaecologist.
He used dirty instruments and she got a serious infection.
She nearly lost her right leg.

"When I sit down my leg shakes. I can't sleep," she said.
In Africa, Ghana's abortion law is considered relatively liberal.
Technically it is illegal but there are three broad and flexible exceptions which mean women can demand legal terminations.
They are: if she gets pregnant as a result of rape, incest or reduced mental ability; if the pregnancy poses a risk to her physical or mental health, and if the unborn child might suffer an abnormality or disease.
But that is if they know the law at all and that is a major problem.
Women and girls, doctors, quacks, the police, even judges, have all been shown to be ignorant of Ghana's law, or have wilfully broken it knowing they will not be caught.
Lucrative trade

I often say the female pelvis is a goldmine
Dr Joe Taylor, gynaecologistGynaecologist Dr Joe Taylor - an advisor on reproductive health to the government - often treats women after botched abortions.
"I've seen many, many, women dying and what is most tragic is that those who don't die suffer disabilities that are life-long and painful," he said.
"Abortion is carried out in this clandestine and dangerous way because most people perceive it to be criminal and illegal."

Ignorance and greed are the main reasons illegal abortion thrives, he said.
No-one knows the exact figures. Statistics are rare in Ghana.
The quacks and the charlatans can charge high fees, even from poor women.
"I often say the female pelvis is a goldmine. And if you're a miner you can make big money," Dr Taylor concluded.

The criminalisation of abortion along with traditional values, social perceptions and religious teachings have created a crisis in Ghana.
And across most of Africa, where it has been estimated that four million females a year undergo unsafe abortions, 30,000 of them die as a result.
One expert has called abortion "a killing field".
And there is little evidence to suggest that the situation will change soon.

Source: BBC

The Ministry of Health on Wednesday sent a message of congratulation to Dr Anarfi Asamoa-Baah, the newly appointed Ghanaian Deputy Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

A statement signed by Mr Dan Osman, Public Relations Officer of the Ministry said, "Dr Asamoa-Baah has indeed made both the Ministry and the country very proud by his appointment as the number two man of the World Health Organisation.

" It said the Ministry was not surprised at Dr Asamoa-Baah's appointment since records showed that he qualified as a Medical Doctor from the Ghana Medical School in 1984 and worked at the Offinso Government Hospital in the Ashanti Region and later acted briefly as the Senior Medical Officer of the same hospital.

Dr Asamoa-Baah pursued further studies in the UK where he obtained postgraduate qualifications in community health, health planning, health economics and health policy analysis. He returned home and continued to work with the Ministry of Health until he was appointed Acting Director of the newly created Policy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (PPME) Division of the Ministry.

The statement said Dr Asamoa-Baah has been instrumental in reforms in the health sector, in the civil service and in budget and financial systems in the wider public service. He has also served on a number of inter-sectoral committees and taught part time at the Ghana Medical School and the School of Public Health.

The Ministry thus urged all health professionals to see the appointment of Dr Asamoa-Baah as the WHO Deputy Director General as a motivation as well as a challenge to work harder than before.GNA

Night cleaning of Accra begins

The Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, in collaboration with the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) on Monday began an exercise for daily night cleaning of the Central Business District of Accra.A workforce of 1,000 people, drawn from the NYEP, are to undertake the cleaning, ensure that drains in the District become litter-free, and arrest people who throw refuse into the drains.

The clean-up exercise, which started Monday evening at the Accra Rawlings Park, formed part of an exercise to rid the city of litter. The exercise, meant to enhance the sanitation situation in the city, is part of making the city spick and span for Ghana's Golden Jubilee Celebrations.

Mr Stephen Asamoah Boateng, Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, who was present at the beginning of the exercise, said the exercise would not be a nine-day wonder as in previous exercises.It would be sustained after the celebration, and there would be constant supervision to ensure that refuse did not go back into the drains.

The exercise went into gear under lights provided by big trucks of Zoomlion, a private waste collection company in Accra. Young men and women, holding brooms and other shovels went into action. They swept the streets, opened slabs and de-silted gutters and emptied filled mini litterbins into large trucks.Mr Asamoah Boateng told journalists that the exercise was being done in the night so that it would not interfere with free flow of traffic and commercial activities during the day.

He said the Ministry was organizing an extensive public education along the clean-up exercise, adding that a change in legislation was being pursued to update penalty for sanitation offences.Mr Asamoah Boateng said 40 people had been trained in legal procedures for sanitation offences since the re-introduction of the arrest and punishment to household sanitary offences, popularly christened "Asaman sama" which took off in Techiman last December.

The Minister said recruitment of sanitary officers was underway in all the 10 regions, and was expected to be completed by February. He said waste segregation and recycling programmes would be pursued.
Source:GNA