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[Ghanaian Chronicle]Fiapre -Professor Francis Allotey, a renowned scientist and the current President of Ghana Academy of Arts has applauded the National Accreditation Board (NAB) for its directive, calling on all academic members of staff of Universities to have the terminal degree of PhD.

[Ghanaian Chronicle]The Trial of Rita Fordjour, a 52-year- old businesswoman, who is accused of importing 481 boxes of Tres-Orix Forte drugs valued at GH¢102, 215 - believed to be fake, began at an Accra Circuit Court on Tuesday.

[Ghanaian Chronicle]The President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, officially has marked the beginning of creating thousands of jobs with the Rlg's Hope City project in at Dunkonaa, a suburb of Accra.

[Ghanaian Chronicle]Vodafone Ghana has once again given customers the chance of winning their dream home and for the first time in Ghana, serviced plots of land in their new 'cool chop' promotion. A three bedroom house from Lakeside Estates is up for grabs in the 90-day promotion as well as three fully serviced plots of land, a brand new Hyundai Santa Fe and over GHC 1 million worth of other prizes. By texting 'WIN' to 4141, over 10,000 customers will be rewarded in the 90 day promotion.

AFPNinth cop arrested in Macia's murder caseEyewitness NewsJustice Minister Jeff Radebe says the government is committed in bringing courts to the people. BBBEE debated in Parliament · There's space for new airline - expert · Ninth cop arrested in Macia's murder case · Boko Haram reject calls for amnesty · Zuma ...S.African cops back in court after man dragged, killedGlobalPostall 31 news articles »

By Konrad K. Djaisi Finance and Economic Planning Minister Mr. Seth Terkper has outlined a number of measures to be taken to ensure sustainability of the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP) and reverse ballooning of the public sector wage bill. Mr. Terkper stated in his budget that the huge wage bill occasioned by the SSPP has crowded out the fiscal space for spending on critical social intervention and other infrastructural programmes, hence as consistent with the White Paper on the SSPP, the SSPP is to be implemented within a five-year period. This, he explained, means aspects of the pay policy with huge fiscal implications will be spread over the five-year period rather than rushed into implementation. He stated that Government will ensure the SSPP applies to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies which are fully or partially on government budget -- except those exempted by the constitution or an Act of Parliament. About 60.9 percent of tax revenue is used to pay public sector workers, demonstrating how dire the situation is. The wage bill for public sector workers has surged from GH¢2billion to almost GH¢7billion after government introduced the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP). Mr. Terkper said government will speed up the migration of subvented agencies onto the mechanised payroll system as part of measures to ensure efficient control and management of the payroll. The Minister indicated that the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), his Ministry, Public Sector Reform Secretariat, the Public Services Commission, the Office of the Head of Civil Service, and other relevant agencies will carry out complementary public sector reforms to ensure that pay is linked to productivity in the public service. “Public service workers are expected to match the increased pay that has resulted from implementation of the SSSS with improved productivity to ensure sustainability of the pay policy.” He further indicated that the wage adjustments in the public service and the current exercise on the rationalisation and standardisation of category 2 and 3 allowances will be undertaken within budgetary constraints in the implementation period. “Government has decided that emphasis will be laid on determining the National Minimum Daily Wage and negotiating the public service wage before the annual budget is submitted to Parliament for approval.” A number of public sector workers, who were migrated onto the SSPP last year, resumed agitation on the basis of claiming allowances due them -- especially with regard to ‘market premium’. In the budget, Mr. Terkper said Government will urgently ensure that market premium guidelines are issued to provide clarity on the determination of market premium and prevent its abuse. The Minister concluded by saying that the payroll upgrade, auditing, and biometric registration exercises will be mainstreamed into the government payroll and human resource management system, and there will be strict enforcement of existing wage management regulations on government officials who renege on their responsibilities, thereby prompting payroll fraud.

The National Food and Agricultural Show (FAGRO) has secured a pavilion for exhibition space to promote Ghanaian industries in Barcelona, Spain. A partnership deal was struck between FAGRO, Ghana’s biggest Agricultural marketing platform, the Spanish Chamber of Commerce and FBX Europe S.L. An international exhibition promoter base in Spain allows for Ghanaian industries to participate in one of the biggest fairs in Europe -- the Bizbarcelona scheduled from June 5th to 7th 2013 -- and additionally 1 day for B2B meetings in the hotel. FAGRO is leading Ghana’s delegation of sector players such as agribusiness, technology, finance, marketing among others under the theme “Ghana: a country to do business. CEO of FBX Europe S.L., Francesc Borras, said Bizbarcelona consolidates the 3rd annual event as a unique meeting point for Ghanaian industries that wish to grow or internationalise their businesses. “It goes without saying that for the majority of Ghanaian exhibitors, participating in Bizbarcelona means an increase in public awareness of their brands on a global scale; the event will also give them a unique opportunity to come face-to-face with their target-customers and suppliers.” He added that Bizbarcelona is a space where Ghanaian companies will be able to present their projects to local and international financial entities and institutions, representatives of business enterprises, venture capitalists and major global corporations. For her part, FAGRO Exhibition Director Alberta Nana Akyaa Akosa, said networking and business-to-business dialogues represent one of the most important sessions at the Bizbarcelona. “This helps by establishing relationships between professionals, entrepreneurs and business owners that may need services from other entrepreneurs or partners to get a project off the ground or simply open up new avenues.” She stated that Bizbarcelona activities and content are structured around nine main themes: finance, innovation, internationalisation, strategy and business management, sales, resource optimisation, leadership, marketing and communication tools, and franchises. Planned activities include more than 150 conferences, workshops, personalised counselling spaces and areas to facilitate business contacts and exchange of ideas. Bizbarcelona has over the years attracted over 12,000 visitors drawn from agriculture, commerce, trade and mining among others.

Reverend Asante Marfo-Ahenkora, President of the Ghana Insurance Brokers Association (GIBA), has urged the insuring public to use the services of member-companies in their insurance transactions. He said GIBA is the umbrella body of all brokerage firms licenced by the National Insurance Commission (NIC) to operate in Ghana. Rev. Ahenkora disclosed that membership of GIBA has risen from about 16 companies in 1988 to 55 as at the close of December 2012, and contributes between 60-65 percent of premium income to the insurance companies. The President made this passionate call when he flagged-off the 25th anniversary 35-kilometre health walk through some major streets of Accra by members of GIBA last week Saturday.He explained that the broker is an insurance professional who understands the specific insurance needs of the customer. Rev. Ahenkora said: “The broker will assist you to purchase the right policy for your specific need from the right insurance company at the right premium. “We also wish to say that the advantage of passing your transaction through any of our member-companies is that we take charge of your insurance claims and ensure insurers pay genuine claims promptly.” He reminded the public that all services rendered by its member-companies are free. About 250 practitioners gathered at the premises of NIC to partake in the 25th anniversary health walk as early as about 6am. Members clad in their white lacoste shirts walked through Independence Avenue through Ridge to Circle and back to NIC premises. Companies which took part were Akoto Risk Management, Allied Insurance Brokers, Ark Insurance Brokers, Ascoma Ghana Limited, Asterix Insurance Brokers, Ceris International Limited, Claim Limited, Corporate Trust Insurance Brokers, Dynamic Insurance Brokers, Edward Mensah-Wood and Associates, and Eureka Insurance Brokers. Others included First Anchor Risk Management, First Choice Insurance Brokers, Ghana International Insurance Brokers, Global Impact Insurance Brokers, Gras Savorge Ghana Limited, Horizon Insurance Brokers, Insurance Consultancies International, Insurance Solutions Limited, Inter Africa Brokers Limited, International Consortium Brokers, KEK Insurance Brokers, KEK Reinsurance Brokers, Legacy Protect Limited, Liberty Insurance Brokers, Lordship Insurance Brokers, and Marine and General Insurance Brokers. The rest were Maxpal Intermediaries, Midas Insurance Brokers, Premier Brokers and Consultants, Progressive Insurance Brokers, Prudent Insurance Brokers, Riscovery Limited, Risk Management and Advisory Services, Risk Solutions, Safety Insurance Brokers, Saviour Insurance Brokers, Shield Insurance and Risk Management, Tristar Insurance Brokers, Ugroup Limited and Universal Insurance Consultants. Nathan Adu, Vice-President, GIBA, told B&FT that the Association has slated a public lecture for three weeks time.

By Bernard Yaw ASHIADEY Computer Warehouse Group (CWG) Ghana Limited has been accredited by the Ghana Standards Authority Management System Certification Scheme (GSA-MSCS). The achievement of this certificate demonstrates that the quality management system of CWG Ghana has been approved by Ghana Standards Authority Management System Certification Scheme to the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System Standard. According to the approval committee of GSA-MSCS, the quality management system is applicable to provision of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) products and services, including infrastructure, communication solutions, software solutions and training (NACE CODE: 72), which are required to achieve and maintain a high degree of customer satisfaction. Thus, CWG Ghana has passed through the rigorous policy and requirements of GSA-MSCS and been certified to continue doing businesses in the region. Patricia Kevwe Odubote, Head of Quality Assurance & Metrics who spearheaded the GSA-MSCS audit for CWG Ghana team, explained that the company -- with a vision to be the number-one IT utility enabler in Africa by 2015 and deploy world-class ICT solutions -- has consistently managed its Quality Management System (QMS) in compliance with the requirements of ISO 9001:2008 standard through a continual improvement process. “No doubt CWG has successfully accomplished its quality policy by incorporating measurable objectives that have helped us to achieve the quality policy. CWG shall deliver ICT solutions that will add value to our customer’s operation and exceed expectation.” According to Patricia, quality to them means “the ability to meet or exceed customer expectations while maintaining a cost-competitive market position -- therefore we at CWG have adopted the 3-D Quality System: meeting specifications, expectations and moving beyond what is specified or expected to excite and delight the customer.” The acting Country Manager, Olufemi Adeitan, on receiving the certificate expressed his gratitude and reaffirmed the company’s commitment to enabling businesses in Ghana and contributing its quota in terms of developing the local understanding and application of ICT.   Computer Warehouse Group (CWG) is comprised of three divisions, each with expertise in one of the three ICT disciplines (hardware, software and communications). and has an ICT training and certification centre. It currently has virtual operations in 17 African countries, with physical presence in Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda and Cameroon. The business model of CWG is hinged on partnering with the best-in-class global companies, offering best products and services, and delivering them to customers in the best manner, using the best people. Patricia Kevwe Odubote, Head, Quality Assurance & Metrics, Computer Warehouse Group, right, presenting the ISO Certificate to Olufemi Adeitan, acting Country Manager, CWG Ghana

Mobile HD voice offers crystal clear audio quality and will enhance user experience on Airtel mobile networksWill complement the company’s state-of-the-art high speed data networks and take user experience to the next level Bharti Airtel, a leading telecommunications services provider with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa, has announced the launch of the mobile HD voice service for its subscribers in Africa. The development comes as the first step in Airtel’s ambition to make mobile HD voice accessible in all its operations across the continent. HD voice is the most significant improvement in voice communications in the past two decades. Mobile HD voice offers crystal clear audio quality and will enhance user experience on Airtel mobile networks. “Surveys confirm that customers place a high value on HD Voice,” explains Andre Beyers, Chief Marketing Officer, Airtel Africa. “The new service will enrich end-user experience for Airtel subscribers.” Mobile HD Voice enables high-quality voice calls because it reduces the background noise often heard on a regular call. Airtel customers on 3G networks will experience a significant improvement in their voice communications as the new service will enable them to hear better in noisy environments. To enjoy the maximum benefits of this new technology, both the calling and the called party need an HD-Voice compatible mobile phone. However, improvements in call quality are also perceived when using an HD voice-enabled phone to call a non-HD Voice phone. Mobile HD Voice based on AMR (Adaptive Multi Rate) Wideband technology (W-AMR) operates with nine different bit rates, providing high-quality voice calls. Compared to the current narrowband speech codec, the W-AMR speech-compression algorithm doubles voice bandwidth and produces better results. After years of trials, HD Voice services were launched in 2009 and they are now available in 35 countries around the world. According to the results of a recent survey, 96% of customers are satisfied with HD Voice calls, hence the rapid pace of commercialisation of the services across the globe. Airtel becomes the third operator to launch a mobile HD voice service in Africa. The telecommunications company aims to make HD voice a reality on the continent. Further launches will be scheduled in 2013.

By Edward Adjei FRIMPONG, Sunyani Sources of Ghana’s animal protein are mainly fish, livestock and bush-meat. Of the estimated national meat requirement of about 200,000 metric tonnes per year, the bulk is imported. This highlights the need to develop other sources of acceptable meat to supplement traditional livestock. It is an undeniable fact that grass-cutter meat is a delicacy in Ghana, since it has high protein content and low cholesterol level as compared to beef and goat meat. Therefore, it would not be out of place if steps are taken to develop grass-cutter farming to make it another source of animal protein as well as a viable venture to help eradicate extreme poverty in the country. Notwithstanding the potentials of grass-cutter rearing, very little has been done over the years to domesticate grass-cutter as the animal face extinction in the wild, said Kwasi Afena, Chairman of the Brong Ahafo Grasscutter Farmers Association (BAGFA) – further saying lack of financial support is the major hindrance to domestication of grass-cutter in the country. “Elsewhere, in Benin -- the leading producer of grass-cutter in the world -- Government assists prospective grass-cutter farmers with a grant equivalent to GH¢50,000 (per head) with 2% interest rate. This among other things has immensely energised the sector; one farmer can house about 7,000 animals -- but here in Ghana, averagely farmers can only keep 150 grass-cutters,” he told the B&FT. Sources say commercialisation of domestic grass-cutter in Benin is an initiative of one Dr. Mensah, a Ghanaian. According to reports, he started the project here in Ghana but the needed support was not forthcoming. This compelled him to move to Benin, where his initiative was warmly received and supported; thus grass-cutter rearing is a thriving business in that country. He said the cost of housing and feeding domestic grass-cutters is above the reach of an average farmer in Ghana. “We don’t have the financial capacity to feed our animals with pellets (approved exotic feed), so currently we mostly rely on grass from the wild -- which is apparently dying out as a result of rampant bushfires,” he lamented. The grass-cutter farmer also mentioned lack of veterinary services as another impediment for the sector. He said unlike Benin, where there is a sub-sector under the Minister of Agriculture with specialised veterinary officers in charge of grass-cutter farming, Ghanaian farmers have to contend with the general knowledge and lateral thinking of veterinary officers. These and many challenges, he said, are defeating their vision to produce grass-cutter on a large-scale for domestic use and export. Mr. Afena also revealed that the farmers also have a vision to process grass-cutter meat in tin-cans for long-span preservation, and therefore called on Government to pay attention to the sector as a vehicle that could help vitalise and diversify the country’s economy. Checks have revealed that grass-cutter farming in the Brong Ahafo Region is more or less a preserve of the aged. Due to the sector’s unattractiveness, the few youth who were engaged in it have left to join more lucrative activities. Currently, a grass-cutter sells at around GH¢80.00 in the Region.

Mereso Kilusu was married aged 13 to an abusive man in his 70s. Now she campaigns against child marriage.

By Benson AFFUL Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Seth Terkper says government remains focused on its policy interventions to introduce technology and improve agricultural production. The key interventions are the adoption of livestock production technologies, agricultural mechanisation, irrigation development, fertiliser subsidies, and implementation of modern buffer-stock management techniques. He said the expected results are increased productivity; higher output, incomes and export earnings; food security, supply of materials for value addition and rural development.Touching on the sector’s performance in 2012 during his budget speech on Tuesday, he said one livestock demonstration centre was established at Weija to enhance livestock production among 5,000 small-scale farmers. “In line with Government’s policy to reduce importation of chicken, increase incomes of farmers and to meet the country’s meat requirements, 5,687 cockerels were raised and distributed to 250 farmers at a subsidised rate in 25 districts of the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo Regions. “To improve livestock production in the country, livestock stations under the Ministry of Agriculture produced 460 improved stocks of various species and supplied 206 breeding stock to farmers to increase productivity,” he said. In addition, he said 100 grandparent-pigs were imported for multiplication and subsequent distribution to pig farmers across the nation. Commenting on the crops sub-sector, Mr. Terkper said the Ministry of Food and Agriculture is currently promoting tree and industrial crops. He said 3,000 hectares of oil palm plantations involving 960 farmers in the Central Region have been established. He said a contract to construct a 77km feeder road has been awarded in the rubber and oil palm-growing areas, adding that the Ministry has provided improved cashew planting materials for farmers to expand the area under cultivation. In all, 44,000 cashew clones were produced and improved seeds provided to farmers to cultivate 2,500 new cashew farms. “Under the West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme (WAAPP), 188 acres made up of 108 cassava and 10 acres of sweet potato were established as community demonstration sites in 64 districts in all the 10 regions. “A total of 1,394 farmers comprising 846 males and 548 females benefitted from the programme. WAAPP fully funded the construction and refurbishment of a biotechnology laboratory at the Crop Research Institute (CRI) at Fumesua in Kumasi, and provided new equipment and screen houses to CSIR-FRI, CSIR-SRI and CSIR-PGRRI,” he said. He said WAAPP also supported the development of high-quality cassava flour and several varieties of cassava, cocoyam, sweet potato and cowpea.

It was supposed to be cricket's "Rosa Parks" moment, but Basil D'Oliveira unwittingly walked into one of sport's most controversial and shameful sagas. Eventually it would end in South Africa's two-decade sporting isolation from the world.