Ghana Broadcasting Corporation

The Queen Mathilde of Belgium paid a courtesy call on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Presidency for bilateral talks, during her visit. The President and the Queen also visited University of Ghana for a public lecture which focused on Sustainable Development Goals – A Transformative Agenda for the Future. The issue of Sustainable Development is significant and comes for special mention because two distinguished leaders, President Akufo-Addo and the Prime Minister of Sweden, co-chair a group of 16 eminent personalities tasked by the Secretary General of the United Nations to generate momentum and commitment from the global community for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals Global Agenda 2030. The Queen’s visit is similar to other official visits to the country last year by high-ranking leaders from various parts of the world which included three European leaders, namely, Prime Ministers of Estonia, France and Netherlands. Such visits help to deepen and enhan...

Before the vetting of Martin Alamisi Burnes Kaiser Amidu as the special prosecutor following his nomination by the Attorney General and subsequently approval by the President, certain members of parliament had expressed different opinions on his suitability or otherwise for the position. It became clear from the beginning of the vetting process, that Mr. Martin Amidu would be very uncompromising when dealing with issues on corruption. The vetting committee came to the realisation that the nominee was prepared to go tough on anyone who misuses money belonging to the state. Mr. Amidu pointed out that if Ghana is able to stop all the leakages money will be saved for development, thereby preventing a situation where the country will have to go round begging for assistance. He made it clear that he was prepared to go after anyone who embezzles state funds and that this would be done without political colouration. The vetting sent strong signals to everyone in the country that very soon acts...

Issues raised in the State of the Nation Address by the President concerned all Ghanaians but one that was of particular interest to educators is the announcement that curricular in schools are undergoing reforms to deal with the weakness in the education system. Over the years, the education system has experienced crisis, more children are in school, but do not achieve the minimum reading skills and most graduates from the tertiary institutions are lacking the skills needed by employers. The explosion of the 4th Industrial Revolution and the need for the country to develop people with global competence are signals that the weaknesses in the education system have widened. The current education system is rooted in models that were successful only in the past and cannot be applicable in today’s society. To quote Dr. Deirdre Butler of Dublin City University, Ireland "the society that education served years back is different from today’s society." The world is changing at a very ...

Characterised by heckling from some members of Parliament and occasional humorous interventions by the President, the State of the Nation Address touched on all sectors of the economy. Issues raised included reduction of inflation, stabilisation of the exchange rate, tax reduction and choking of the economy by huge debts. For the business sector, the reduction of inflation and taxes as well as the stabilisation of the exchange rate were most welcome because the economy needs to encourage business growth. One problem, however, was the huge debts that have to be paid to free the economy and encourage it to perform soundly. The President also referred to protection of the public purse which is necessary to ensure that monies that often leak into private pockets are gathered to promote national economic growth. The ‘Free SHS’ introduced by government and the payment of some of the outstanding debts have all been possible due to the saving of money in this manner. It is good news that last ...

Discipline is defined by the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary as, “the practice of training people to obey rules and orders and punishing them if they do not”. The 2016/2017 and this academic year 2017/2018, have seen students in Senior High Schools (SHS) in parts of the country taking the law into their hands to demonstrate and destroy school property with careless abandon at the least provocation. The latest of such incident is the closure of the Erimon Senior High and Technical School in the Lawra District of the Upper West Region. This follows what has been described as a violent life-and-property-threatening demonstration by the students who were protesting against disciplinary measures in the school. Reports have it that parts of the dormitories, administrative block and classrooms were damaged in the unrest. Nobody is against students in educational institutions making their grievances known for amicable resolution.The violent nature of such demonstrations to present their g...

Ghanaians woke up over the week-end to the rather shocking and brutal killing of a Police Officer at the Kwabenya Police Station. This ruthless and needless death brings to eight Police Officers who have met their untimely death in their line of duty this month. This dastardly act has been condemned by all sections of society including the top brass of the Ghana Police Service. This unprovoked attack on a Police Officer, who was performing his mandated responsibility of protecting lives and property has once again provoked a heated debate in the public space about the urgent need to provide the Police Service with the much needed security accoutrements, and administrative materials for the smooth performance of their duties and responsibilities. The attack and murder of the police Officer at the Kwabenya Police Station by six armed robbers has also brought into sharp focus the level of impunity and indiscipline which has reached unprecedented depth in the social fabric of this country....