Bolgatanga, Jan. 9, GNA - Sanitation at the Bolgatanga Slaughter House is poor as cleaners engaged to clean the abattoir have failed to deliver, leaving huge heaps of rubbish there.Even though animals are examined before they are slaughtered, the environment still exposes meat to infection and that makes meat from the abattoir harmful to human consumption.Madam Veronica Aganah, Environmental and Sanitation Officer at the Bolgatanga Municipal Assembly, told the Ghana News Agency that only two cleaners were assigned to the area and they could not clear the huge rubbish.Mr Tindaanzor Kodoog, Chief Butcher at the Bolgatanga Slaughter House, confirmed the situation and said the Christmas and New Year festivities compounded the problem as rubbish bins overflowed.He said even though the Assembly had emptied the only container allocated to the area, the consistent overflow of refuse from the container had created a dumpsite.Mr Kodoong said Environmental and Sanitation officers were always inspected their animals before they were slaughtered.Responding to reasons why the butchers still remained at the shop when a place had been allocated to them at the renovated Bolgatanga market, he said the place given them could not contain the over 100 registered butchers.Mr Kodoong said they made efforts to go to the renovated market but this left some butchers without shops whilst majority lost their customers and as result the butchers were allowed to operate in both new and old markets to keep them in business.Work on the renovated market was completed in 2012 and efforts by the Municipal Assembly to get traders from the new market to go there were fiercely resisted. The traders gave reasons such as poor sales, inadequate stores and the lack of parking spaces.GNA

Accra, Jan 9, GNA � Ghana and the People�s Republic of China, on Monday held bilateral talks in Accra, aimed at deepening their over 50 year relations.Ms Hannah Tetteh, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration led a high powered delegation of six Ministers from Ghana�s side, while that of China was led by the visiting Chinese Foreign Minister, Mr Wang Yi.Other members of Ghana�s delegation included Mr Mahama Ayariga, Minister of Information and Media Relations, Mr Seth Terkper, Finance Minister, Prof Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Minister of Education, Dr Joe Oteng-Adjei, Minister of the Environment, Science, Technology and Innovations and Mr Mark Owen Woyongo, Defence Minister.  Ms Tetteh said the spirit in which the nations had conducted themselves over the past fifty years would continue for their mutual benefits.She also lauded the Chinese Government for putting up the edifices of her Ministry and that of the Ministry of Defence.She said they had fruitful discussions covering multiplicities of sectors such as Education, Finance, Science and Technology, among others.She said China is one of the biggest investors in Ghana, adding that Mr Wang�s visit would undoubtedly strengthen their bilateral relations.Ms Tetteh noted that when President Kwame Nkrumah and Chairman Mao Tse-Tung of China started this relationship, it was meant for the mutual benefits of both countries.She said the discussions also covered Africa, and how the best Chinese assistance to the continent could be enhanced.Mr Wang also traced the beginning of co-operation between the two nations back to the days of President Nkrumah and Chairman Mao, declaring that Ghana�s name had become a household word in China.He observed that since the assumption of office by President John Dramani Mahama, the Ghana-China relationship had grown from strength to strength.He said the discussions were very productive, and a new dimension of practical co-operation had been introduced into the relationship of the two countries.He announced that China would be assisting Ghana to develop a solar electricity generating plant to help boost the energy sector.Mr Wang urged other sector Ministers from Ghana to strengthen co-operation with their Chinese counterparts, for the  mutual benefits of both countries.He said China would continue to assist Africa in her developmental agenda, declaring that Ghana is one of the largest recipients of Chinese assistance to Africa.On the issue of Chinese involvement in illegal mining in Ghana, Mr Wang said several delegations were sent to Ghana to help resolve the matter.He explained that to help address the issue, China had tightened the conditions for the acquisition of passports by her nationals.He said Ghana was capable of resolving the issue of illegal mining, adding that �We need to use pro-active means of addressing it�.Mr Wang was accompanied by Mr. Gong Jianzhong, Chinese Ambassador to Ghana.GNA

Yorogo (UE), Jan. 8 GNA - The Lack of Veterinary officers in the Upper East Region is seriously hampering the rearing of animals including birds in communities in the Region.Due to the erratic patterns of rain fall in the Upper East Region, most of the farmers were no longer interested in crop farming and are shifting into animal rearing including cattle, sheep, goats and poultry.The farmers raised the concerns at separate sensitization programmes on Newcastle vaccines, when Dr Joseph Awuni Adongo, National Deputy Director of Veterinary Service in charge of Laboratory demonstrating to the farmers how to apply the vaccine to their birds.Most of the farmers who are women, explained that due to unavailability of the veterinary personnel to provide services, majority of them could not raise animals and birds.Madam Ayinezeligu Awinebila, 40- year- old widow and farmer impressed upon government to work out modalities to facilitate the training of more Veterinary officers to help empower them to go into animal rearing to improve upon their livelihoods.Speaking at the meetings, Mr Eric Agongo, a Senior Technical Officer at the Regional Office of the Veterinary Service, expressed regret about the shortage of personnel and indicated that in the whole Municipality, there were only seven veterinary officers including two veterinary doctors making them nine technical officials.He noted that due to the limited number of staff, they could not cater for the numerous animal farmers in the Municipality and its surroundings, stressing "this problem is not limited to only the Municipality but the other districts in the region"Mr Agongo stated that so far the vaccination which was on its third phase had been administered to 9,000 birds in some communities including Yorogo, Nyariga, Gambibgo, Zaare, Dogbilla and Dakiuo and said more of the communities were expected to benefit from the package.He said apart from the vaccines, two persons were selected from every clan in the communities and trained to administer the vaccines on the birds, which he noted would augment the role personnel of the Veterinary services played in the communities.GNA

Accra, Jan. 8, GNA – A pensioner, John Wellis Welbeck, on Wednesday appeared before an Accra Circuit court for making conflicting grants in respect of the same piece of land to three persons.John was said to have made the conflicting grants on a parcel land he owns at Abossey Okai, near the Total Filling Station.He pleaded not guilty and has since been remanded into police custody to reappear on January 15 2014.Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Patrick Morkeh, said the complainant is the manager of Caltec Motors Limited, located at the Malam Junction, while the accused person is a pensioner and a self styled business man, residing at Adabraka, and owns a parcel of land situated at Abossey Okai.He said somewhere in September 2010, the accused approached the complainant and told him he was offering the land for sale, and the complainant expressed interest.He said the documents of the land were given to the complainant, and he made verification of it at the lands commission after which he expressed satisfaction that the ownership of the land was true.DSP Morkeh said after negotiation, the two agreed on an amount of GHc300,000.00, which the complainant paid and the accused also signed the necessary documents pertaining to the sale of the property to the complainants company.He told the court that surprisingly, whiles the land commission was in the process of granting consent to the assignment made by the accused to complainant, two more applications for consent to assign in respect of the same plot of land were received by the commission from the accused.The prosecution said due to the conflicting statement by the accused as to which of the cited assignment should be processed, the commission wrote a letter dated February 1, 2011 to the complainant and accused.He said the letter indicated that, to ensure sanity in the land market, the commission had decided to suspend the processing of any of the purported assignment by the accused.DSP Morkeh told the court that, the complainant, worried about the development made a report to the police, and during investigations the accused admitted having sold the land to three different buyers including the complainant.He said the accused has since not been able to refund the money to the complainant.GNA

Kumasi, Jan. 8, GNA – Two students, aged 16 and 18, have been arrested over alleged attempted ritual murder for money.           They were put before a Kumasi Circuit Court on Wednesday and Ebenezer Agyemang, the older of the two, was remanded into prison custody, while his colleague, Charles Frimpong, was  granted  a GH¢10,000.00 bail with a surety.          They denied the charges of conspiracy and attempted murder and would appear in court again on Tuesday, January 14.          One other person, Mohammed Salu Aminu, said to be their accomplice, is on the run.         Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Archibald Kwesi Fandoh told the court presided over by Mr Emmanuel Amo-Yartey, that Agyemang is a student of the Ghana National Academy while his-co-accused attends the Adventist Preparatory School, all in Kumasi.      He alleged that, for some time now, the two had become obsessed with thoughts of making money through ‘juju’ and contacted Aminu, who promised to help them achieve their dream.  He demanded human blood and cash of GH¢60.00 to perform the necessary rituals. They readily produced the money but had difficulty meeting the other condition.They later came up with an idea, lured one Godslove Agyei Dufie, a final year student of the Atonsu Presbyterian Junior High School to Atonsu-Kuwait, on January 1, where they attempted to draw her blood. The prosecution said the alertness of people in the neighbourhood foiled the crime - they were arrested and handed over to the police.They admitted the offence in their caution statement.GNA

Tarkwa, Jan. 8 GNA - A 25- year-old taxi driver whose vehicle caught fire in Tarkwa on Tuesday, whilst in traffic with three other passengers on board has died at the Tarkwa Government Hospital from the severe burns he sustained. Kwaku Berdu who hailed from Awudua, in the Prestea Huni/Valley District, passed away around 2030 hours on Tuesday.The body has been deposited at the Tarkwa Government Hospital awaiting autopsy.Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Augustine Anyarah, who is the District Crime officer in charge of Tarkwa Nsueam confirmed this to the Ghana News Agency.He said the other two victims involved in the tragedy; Patricia Kwao and Alex Eshun have been referred to the Burns Unit of Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for further medical attention, whilst the  fourth victim was in a stable condition. GNA

Accra, Jan.8, GNA - The Police say the 12 year old girl who was defiled by her father, Pastor Ebenezer Asare Kumi , Head Pastor of Grace Powerhouse Ministries in Accra is almost paralysed.Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Sarah Acquah told an Accra Circuit Court when the case was called today.Pastor Kumi who is on remand was however not in court.The court presided over by Ms Ellen V. Amoah has adjourned the matter to January 22.Meanwhile, when the case was called the victim’s mother kept wiping her tears.The Pastor is alleged to have defiled his daughter while his wife was on admission to deliver their last child.Charged with incest and defilement, Pastor Kumi has pleaded not guilty.ASP Acquah  had earlier told the court that the complainant was the victim’s mother, aged 35.The couple, the prosecution said, had been married for 14 years, reside at Asofan, near Ofankor in Accra and they have three children.The prosecutor said last year, the victim’s mother was admitted at the Ridge Hospital for about three weeks when she was about to deliver  her last baby.According to the prosecutor, the accused person lived with the children including the victim in the same house.However, one night, according to ASP Acquah, the accused person went into the children's room, fondled the victim and had sex with her.Prosecution said after the act, Pastor Kumi threatened his daughter not to tell anyone else she will die.The victim, for fear of her life kept the ordeal to herself although she had begun limping.In December last year, the victim's mother noticed that the victim could not walk very well and therefore took her to the Ridge Hospital for examination and treatment.After the examination, prosecution said it came out that the victim had been defiled.During interrogation, the victim disclosed that it was her father who had had sex with her.The complainant then reported the matter to the Police at Sowutuom in Accra. Later the matter was referred to the Domestic Violence and Victim’s Support Unit (DOVVSU).Prosecution said when Pastor Kumi was arrested, he denied the offence. GNA

Accra, Jan. 8, GNA -  Israeli scientists have begun searching for solutions to the new malaria parasite that outwits the immune system and is responsible for ninety per cent of more than one million deaths of malaria each year.The deadly malaria parasite causes death among pregnant women and children under age five in most vulnerable populations.

Accra, Jan. 8, GNA - The National Media Commission (NMC) has said it is ready to collaborate with all relevant stakeholders to establish and operate the Media Development Fund  (MDF) correctly in accordance with the law and proper administrative procedures.A statement signed by Ambassador Kabral Blay-Amihere, Chairman of the Commission, and copied to  the Ghana New Agency on Tuesday said although the Commission  considered the current debate on the Media Fund a very valuable contribution to the governance and growth of the media and freedom of expression in the country, such debate would become more productive "if it was carried out dispassionately and on the basis of established facts".

Accra, Jan. 8, GNA - Ms Dorothy Gordon, Director-General of Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT has urged tertiary institutions in the country to adopt the Open University system to mitigate lingering problems confronting the education sector.She said the system could reduce residential facility difficulties, acute shortage of lecture halls, as well as overcrowding; and ensure guaranteed education for the masses towards transformation of the society for better social and economic lives.Ms Gordon made the call during a presentation on the topic: “Open University; Option for Mass Education in Ghana,” in a symposium at the on-going 65th Annual New Year School on Tuesday.She called on authorities in universities and polytechnics to begin uploading lecture notes, students research works, project works and relevant academic materials online for mass access and consumption.Last academic year, University of Ghana failed to admit close to 40,000 students due to infrastructural and logistical constraints. The situation was not different in other public universities.Notwithstanding, Ms Gordon said the phenomenon could be reduced if school authorities began online courses to reach out to a chunk of students in the rural and far places.She pressed government to start rewarding universities for the number of courses they offered online and the number of students who signed onto those courses."This will help unleash the potential of the masses who could not gain admission into the brick and mortar system where students had to physically congregate for teaching and learning activities," she said.Mr Lucas Chigabatia, Chief Information Technology Officer, University of Ghana Computing System said lack of connectivity, irregular or no power supply, insufficient infrastructure and trained instructors partly accounted for schools to stick to the old ways of delivering instructions.However, he said, it was time educational institutions moved away from that system and used information and communication technology (ICT); through audio or video conferencing, to reach out to millions of students across the nation and the globe.He said the time to use ICT to transform the education sector, and to change the national economy into a knowledge-based one for enhanced prosperity and dignified lives was now. GNA

Takoradi, Jan. 8, GNA –Mr Micheal Baabu, Founder of Safe Child Ghana, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) Tuesday entreated parents to ensure maximum security of their children from being kidnapped.     He noted that kidnappers were on rampage and therefore, children must not be left alone to play, to go to school unaccompanied nor send them on errands alone.Mr Baabu told the GNA that instances where when children, particularly those under five, were allowed to go to school unaccompanied, this he said was risky and not proper.He said lack of parental, teachers and caregivers’ protection, particularly at home, school and church were steadily making children vulnerable to the ploy of unscrupulous individuals.The Founder of Safe Child Ghana, the NGO that promotes safety among children, said kidnappers were not only after ransom, adding that, "some children were used in child labour activities and rituals."Mr Baabu disclosed that some abducted children were also transported to neigbhouring countries where they were groomed and used for commercial sex business.GNA

Wa, Jan. 08, GNA – Stakeholders have commended Dr Alexis Nang-beifubah, the out-going Upper West Regional Director of Health Services for the dedicated, committed and exemplary leadership he exhibited towards quality health delivery in the region.Dr Nang-beifubah who assumed office as the Upper West Regional Director of Health Services in January, 2008, is moving to the Ashanti Region as the new Regional Director of Health Services.Dr Abdulai Adams Forgor, former Medical Superintendent of the War Memorial Hospital at Navrongo in the Upper East Region is taking over from Dr Nang-beifubah.He served in various places including the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi in 1989 as a House man before moving on to become the Medical Officer at the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital in the Upper East Region.From there, he became the District Director of Health Services for the Bawku East District and later moved on to serve as the Bolgatanga Municipal Director of Health Services from 2003 to 2008 before moving to the Upper West Region.Speaking during a send-off party for the out-going Regional Director, Dr Ephraim Avea Nsoh, Upper West Regional Minister noted that though the region was going to miss Dr Nang-beifubah for his outstanding leadership qualities, they were however happy that the qualities he possessed had earned him a much bigger challenge.He pointed out that Dr Nang-beifubah was extremely instrumental in the formulation of the Regional Development Strategy Framework with his thought-provoking and insightful contributions during meetings.The Regional Minister appealed to him to continue to be a worthy Ambassador for the Upper West Region, while he was away in Ashanti Region to attract more development to the region.Dr Edward Gyader, Immediate past Dean of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University for Development Studies (UDS) and Member of the Council of State commended Dr Nang-beifubah for working for over 23 years in the northern sector alone; a place many Doctors shy away from.Dr Gyader advised that the principles in the Upper West Region were the same in the Ashanti Region, adding that, the only difference was the working environment.According to him Dr Nang-beifubah needed more tact and diplomacy to succeed and make positive impacts in the Ashanti regional health sector.The Member of the Council of State said as an elder brother and a senior in the Medical profession, he was available and urged him to knock at his doors for advice when needed.Dr Nang-beifubah who was overwhelmed by the numerous commendations thanked his staff, stakeholders and development partners for the support given to him when he was in charge.He appealed to them to give the same support to the in-coming Director to enable him to do more than he did.GNA

Sunyani, Jan. 08, GNA - Mr Kwasi Oppong-Ababio, Sunyani Municipal Chief Executive has announced increases in rates charged by the assembly due to its huge expenditure last year.      He explained that it would spend about GH¢58,000.00 to replace bulbs and other electrical gadgets in the Municipality this year, adding, “The assembly’s expenditure has increased and has become necessary to increase rates to meet the aspirations of the people.”      Mr Oppong-Ababio announced this while addressing executives and traders from the Sunyani Market in Sunyani.      Last week some traders marched through the principal streets to the assembly to protest against increase in the daily market toll from 30Gp to 50Gp.       The 200 traders wore red bands on their necks, heads and arms beating used cans and sang dirges along.      The traders refused to pay the toll which became effective on Thursday, January 2, the first working day of the year 2014, saying they were not given prior notice.       Madam Margaret Amankwaa, Spokesperson for the traders said they refused to pay because they were not informed, adding that, the toll was increased from 20Gp to 30Gp sometime last year and questioned the further increase.               She pointed out that the assembly collected daily tolls but there had not been any improvement at the market.She said they were unable to sell their wares when it rained, and added that the situation prevented customers from patronizing their wares.     “There are no urinal and toilet facilities at the market, traders have to expose themselves or hide under tables to urinate in cans and pour them into gutters at the market, making the place to stink, therefore, there is no need for the increase in the toll,” she added.      Mr Oppong-Ababio assured traders that all their grievances would be addressed in due time.       He said the assembly’s Technical Committee would undertake feasibility studies at the market to access the situation for necessary measures to improve conditions there.      He advised the traders to pay the new tolls which he said did not only affect them but also operators of hotels, fuel stations and commercial vehicles.      Ghana News Agency visited the market and realized that the traders were paying the new tolls but others expressed disappointment about their executives who they said could not negotiate for tolls review or suspension. GNA

Sekondi, Jan. 8, GNA –The Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) has spent about GH¢10, 000.00 on grave preparation and burial of paupers within the metropolis.The identified bodies were mainly people who died on the streets including lunatics.Captain Rtd. Anthony Cudjoe, STMA Chief Executive Officer told the GNA that the assembly was committed to achieving safe environment, as part of its environmental sanitation and waste management programme.He said a chunk of the assembly’s resources were being channeled into waste management.Captain Cudjoe added that the STMA spent GH¢467, 478.00 out of a total budget of GH¢1,000,000.00 on waste management including cleaning and sanitation related projects.The Assembly, he said, had been able to settle its indebtedness of GH¢2,000,000.00 to waste management contractors through the common fund. GNA

Koforidua, Jan. 8, GNA - A former District Coordinator of National Disaster Management Organizer (NADMO) for the Fanteakwa District, Mr Kwame Appiah Kodua, has declared his intention to contest the position of Eastern Regional Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).    Mr Kodua, 42, who launched his campaign on Wednesday in Koforidua, said the interest of  NPP members in the Region had gone down and assured that when elected he would rekindle and strengthen the interest of the members in the Party to recapture power in the 2016 elections.    He said the party needed to adopt the house-to-house campaign to explain what the party could do when it wins power in 2016 in order to attract more members especially in the rural areas.     He said his campaign team was working very hard to push through his bid and gave the assurance that he would work hard to attract more people in the Region to join the party when given the nod.    Mr Kodua said his vision was to contribute his quota towards building a vibrant and winning political machine in theRegion that would help secure more than 65 per cent of the popular votes in the Region for the party.    He promise to build and strengthen party structures at all levels in the region, establish an operational fund to assist party organization and create  a database of all party activists for human resource planning and identify talents towards victory in the 2016 elections.     Mr Kodua had been a Ward Organizer at Begoro Zongo, Constituency Youth Organizer for Fanteakwa from 1995 to 2002, Constituency Organizer from 2002 to date.GNA

Koforidua, Jan. 8, GNA - A member of the Council of State and Oyokohene of New Juaben Traditional Area, Nana Kodua Kesse, has appealed to the youth of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to be guided by the humility of President John Dramani  Mahama in all their activities.       He said national elections were won to a large extent by the votes of the floating voters whose decisions were often influenced by the behaviour and utterances of members of political parties.       Nana Kodua Kesse was speaking at a rally organized by the Youth for Mahama  (YFM) , a political group affiliated to the NDC at Koforidua on Tuesday to mark the first anniversary of President John Dramani Mahama in office.     The rally was organized under the theme: “Promoting Youth Participation in Nation Building” and was attended by large numbers of supporters and sympathizers of the NDC, some members of parliament from the region and some District and Municipal Chief Executives.           He urged members of YFM to work in close collaboration with the youth wing of the NDC and continue to render services to communities for the people of Ghana to appreciate their efforts.      Dr Asonaba Kofi Addison, a Senior lecturer at the College of Education, Winneba, and a member of the NDC, advised the youth of the party to use the conflict resolution channels of the party to resolve all problems.     The Chairperson of YFM, Ms Shirley Naana Osei Ampem, said  to commemorate the anniversary her  group organised  a clean-up exercise  and a health walk in the Koforidua Municipality, organize blood donation to the Blood Bank of the Koforidua Regional Hospital and also donated pieces of cloth to women who delivered at the maternity ward of the Koforidua Regional Hospital on the January 6 and 7.     The Eastern Regional Organizer of NDC, Mr Bismark Tawiah Boateng, called on the Members of Parliament of the party from the region and the District and Municipal Chiefs Executives to put in place programmes in their constituencies and districts to interact with the electorates to explain what Parliament and government had done for them over the past year.      He said from this year to Election 2016, the government would undertake many development projects in the region and this would enable the party to increase its votes in the region from the 43 per cent at the last elections to 50 per cent.

Kumasi, Jan 8, GNA – Suspected members of a criminal gang behind a string of robbery attacks on companies dealing in mining equipment in the Bekwai Municipality had been busted.They are said to have repeatedly raided two companies, “HAS Chinese Company Limited” and “Gyanz hong Equipment Company Limited” at Anwiankwanta and made off with cash totaling about GH¢103,900.00.The gang also seized mobile phones and pump action guns.Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Augustine Gyenning, the Ashanti Regional Commander, gave the names of those being held as Godfred Oppong, alias “Goddey”, Nicholas Gyapong, alias “Sparkles”, Rexford Opoku Adarkwah, alias “Tupac”, Fidelis Opoku Ackom, alias “Iceman”, Osei Kwame alias “Tierro” and Atiakra Avero, alias “Vandam”.Four others, Daniel Owusu, alias “Shaker”, the Senior Prefect of the Dompoase Senior High School (SHS), Nana Boakye, alias “Scorpion”, Koranteng, “alias “Pirato” and Bismark Owusu, however, managed to slip through and are on the run.DCOP Gyenning said they were also keeping in their custody another suspected group of criminals - Andrew Danso, 18, Kwame Attakora, 31, and Daniel Kwabena, 20, engaged in car-snatching.They were arrested at Kete-Krachi in the Volta Region when they attempted to run away with fuel they had bought for a “Rav 4” vehicle they had stolen from its owner at gunpoint at Atwima-Koforidua in the Atwima-Nwabiagya District.Their accomplice, Emmanuel Asiedu Bonnah, is now at large and the police have mounted a search for him.They had attacked and robbed Ms Joyce Appiadu of the car in front of her house on November 22 last year at about 2000 hours.They changed the registration number and colour and drove it to Kete-Krachi.DCOP Gyenning said the suspects ran out of luck on December 28 when they attempted to flee after fuelling the vehicle at a filling station without paying. The attendants raised the alarm and they were intercepted at a police check-point.The police retrieved an insurance certificate bearing the name of Ms Appiadu, and when she was contacted, she confirmed the vehicle was stolen.The Kete-Krachi police therefore referred the suspects together with the vehicle to the Ashanti Regional Police Command which has taken over investigations.GNA

Accra, Jan 8, GNA- President John Dramani Mahama on Wednesday said the withdrawal of the teacher trainee allowance in Colleges of Education was to offer admission to more students in the colleges.He said the perennial shortage of teachers, particularly in the rural areas, necessitated the withdrawal and their subsequent movement to the Students’ Loan Trust Fund."The withdrawal of the allowances of the teacher trainees has so far reduced the burden on government to move the admission of teacher trainees from 9,000 students last year to 15,000 students this academic year,” President Mahama said.The President said this when he addressed the fourth Quadrennial National Delegates conference of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) in Accra.The conference, which is on the theme:"Education in crisis-The development Agenda beyond 2015" was attended by GNAT delegates  from all the 10 regions, members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Education and other teacher associations in the country.President Mahama said the government would support the GNAT Welfare Fund which seeks to provide loans to members and also help them to acquire houses.He said the government would also increase the number of teacher training colleges and gave the assurance that the government would resolve all financial challenges that became outstanding as a result of the implementation of the single spine salary structure.He commended GNAT and other teacher associations for their contributions that had raised the standard of education over the years and promised to provide all the necessary support that would enhance the performance of teachers.Mr Samuel Doe Alobuia, the Acting President of the GNAT, commended the government for initiating programmes to enhance the development of teachers over the years.He appealed to the government to implement the proposed Motivation Fund for teachers in deprived communities to encourage more teachers to accept postings to such areas.Mr Alobuia said the implementation would provide the opportunity for teachers in those areas to enjoy free accommodation, scholarship for their children and other monetary gains to sustain more teachers in deprived areas.The Acting President said lack of such motivations had over the years reduced teaching to second class occupation after people had failed to gain jobs in other sectors of the economy.He said:"If these issues are not tackled, then we shall continue to train teachers every year and yet we will not have them in the classrooms throughout the country as we expect."Mr Kofi Asamoah, the Secretary General of the Trades Union Congress, appealed to the government to put in place adequate structures that would enhance the performance and livelihood of teachers.He said it was unacceptable for people to blame the falling standards of education on teachers when successive governments were not doing enough to improve on the living conditions of teachers especially in the rural areas.Mr Asamoah appealed to the government to improve the living conditions of workers considering the fact that rates of public utilities had been astronomically increased.GNA

Accra, Jan 8, GNA - Participants at the on-going 65 th Annual New Year School and Conference on Wednesday called on the government to front the move of integrating Information and Communication Technology (ICT) fully into all sectors of the country.      This was to ensure a coordinated approach to the integration of ICT usage, promote local software development, improve knowledge and education as well as publicize authentic sources of these facilities for sourcing.      They said ICT facilities such as local software, programmes, hardware and internet connectivity were largely provided by either the private sector or individual entrepreneurs, which made access very difficult.       Again, knowledge of the existence of such facilities were limited and unknown to majority of Ghanaians, mostly  those living outside the capital and cities  and this  has created a gap in the actualization the need for and potentials of ICT  in Ghana, they argued.       Their submissions were made during an open forum to discuss the topic: " ICT, Entrepreneurship and Business and the Youth", as a sub of the broader topic on "Information  and Communication Technology-Driven Education for Sustainable Human Development:Challenges and Prospects" for the School and Conference.         The participants noted that when an open education on where, what and how to secure information on available ICT resources, training and services were well structure, people would be encouraged to source for them without difficulty as it was presently.          They urged the government to institute stringent measures and policies aimed at speeding up the digitalization processes of its Ministries, Departments and Agencies and also at the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assembly levels.          This, they said, would decentralise their systems to also hasten their services and support to particularly educational institutions and entrepreneurship training in their catchment areas.        Mr Kofi Bentil, Vice President of IMANI Ghana, who was the resource person for the discussions, however advocated for positive attitudes of Ghanaians towards the use of ICT.        He said although the digital age presented huge challenges to the country's education and businesses, the ability to succumb to them would depend largely on the ability to capitalise effectively on the obstacles to bring about change.        "We can only achieve this through the use of ICT", he said.       He said the use of technology had become a must in the present age assessing it in terms of time, quality, cost effectiveness, efficiency and value.       Mr Bentil said the youth had inherent ICT potentials which could enable them to become movers of Ghana's vision to attain a middle-income status if they were helped to fully develop entrepreneural and skills development to unleash these potentials for such businesses.       He said Ghana was far behind in terms of ICT usage and needed to catch up quickly with the rest of the world by "leap frogging"  and using the youth as its major tool to achieve the development required.                The 65th Annual New Year School  and Conference which was organised by the Institute of Continuing and Distance Education of the University of Ghana aims at creating the platform for a dispassionate discussion of how the objectives of the ICT in Education Policy could be achieved.        It seeks to look for pragmatic solutions to the challenges inherent in the education sector and how best to integrate ICT into teaching, learning, and outreach at all levels of the educational system.        The occasion therefore provided a common platform for stakeholder from divers backgrounds including parliamentarians, District Assembly Members and Civil Society organisations to discuss the how to create strong institutional collaborations to meet these objectives. GNA

Accra, Jan 8, GNA - Health educators at the Herzog Hospital in Jerusalem, Israel, have trained about 25 doctors, nurses and midwives at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Jirapa in the Upper West Region on treatment of diabetes.      The training is part of the Ghana ‘Tele-health Project’, a 10-week lecture series which centres on exchange of expertise and transfer of technical knowledge through videoconferencing.      A statement signed by the Ms Mina Okuru, Public Diplomacy Coordinator of Embassy of Israel and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said on Tuesday.      The common practice has been for Israeli doctors and nurses to lend their expertise to African counterparts through trainings usually done in person but the first health training through video conference allowed the exchange of information to take place face to face without the nurses having to leave Ghana or take time off from work and incur travel costs for a cross-continental visit, the statement said.      The statement quoted Dr Godfrey Bacheyie, a Ghana-born Canadian Rotary leader and physician, as saying the project is aimed at broadening the knowledge base of medical practitioners and allied health professionals.      It is also to create platform for interaction between healthcare providers in advanced and developed countries and their counterparts in a rural, resource-poor areas where one doctor serves a population of 80,000.      The project is a partnership among Herzog Hospital and the Rotary Club of Jerusalem, the Jirapa Health Alliance and Rotary Club of Accra Ring Road Central in Ghana, and the Rotary Club of Windsor.      Herzog’s Director of International Resource Development, Steve Schwartz said in the statement that the beauty of the videoconference was the opportunity for the exchange of questions and answers.      He expressed optimism that the Ghana Tele-Health Project pilot might be extended to cover additional topics at the hospital and introduced to other African countries in need. GNA