Ghana Broadcasting Corporation

  The Minister of Finance Ken Ofori Atta Wednesday 28th October,2020 presented the transitional Budget to Parliament for the first quarter of 2021. During the presentation more than 27 billion Cedis was projected to be spent on key expenditure items such as compensation of public sector employees, ex-gratia awards, interest and amortization payments, transfers to statutory funds, critical programmes, goods and services and capital expenditure allocations to Ministries, Departments and Agencies prior to a drawing up of full budget for March next year. The Minister requested Parliament to approve the issuance of Sovereign Bonds of three Billion Dollars with the option to increase it to 5 billion dollars should market conditions prove favorable. Out of the amount one point five billion Dollars will be used to support the 2021 budget and three point five billion for liability management. The issuance of the 5 billion dollars Euro-bond will be the highest amount requested by Government sinc

  Pedestrian crossings have been with us since the development of well demarcated roads and streets. It is to ensure the safety of pedestrians and other road users who must move from place to place. The zebra crossings are usually found at junctions of roads and streets and at places where human and vehicular traffic are high. In developed nations, a vehicle must stop for the pedestrian who then steps on the markings as this indicates a person’s intention to cross. The markings are generally believed to be the safest place for pedestrians to cross, even though some vehicles refuse to stop for pedestrians to cross. Some countries have instituted strict laws including fines and penalties imposed on drivers who violate such laws. Even under such conditions some drivers find it intrusive when they must stop for pedestrians to cross. In developing countries, some of these laws work and some do not. Most accidents occur at such crossings either through the fault of the pedestrian or the vehi

  Over the weekend the media fraternity in Ghana witnessed two very important events that have the tendency to shape the political discourse and mirrors the psyche and dynamics of the consciousness of society. These events were the 25th Ghana Journalists Awards Night and the Climax of the 70th Anniversary of Ghana’s premier newspaper, the Daily Graphic. Coincidentally, both organizations have clocked the 70-year milestone. Also, the GJA and Graphic celebrated excellence in Journalism by recognizing persons who have contributed to achieving this enviable feat. The dominant message of the day was a re-echo to journalists to uphold higher standards that underpin the profession. Yes, bad news sell but we are being told to let go bad news, especially as the political temperature builds up to the December 7 General Election. It is clear that as a medium, journalists have the fundamental responsibility of informing the public, but in so doing we are reminded to be guarded and guided by the pr

  With the world experiencing rapid transformation driven by Information Communication Technology (ICT), the reality of accepting that ICT tools or technological devices are part of our daily lives cannot be glossed over. The COVID-19 pandemic has further heightened the increased relevance of ICT for socio-economic development of nations and communities. As government scales up connectivity as part of its digitization agenda, our exposure to cybercrime and cyber-attacks have increased making everyone susceptible. What is even more worrying is Children’s vulnerability to e-crimes. Who is watching the children while they are on line. Especially in this era where children are having classes and other engagements on line due to global restrictions in the wake of COVID-19. It is in this light that the National Cyber Security Centre, through the Ministry of Communications is intensifying capacity building and creating awareness in a programme dubbed “Cyber-security in the Era of Covid-19”. 

  In Ghana, Special voting takes place days to the general election. This is to allow electoral officers, political parties, polling agents, security personnel, media and other core election and special duties staff the opportunity to cast their ballots ahead of Election Day, given their call to duty on the actual voting day. In essence, providing special voting facilities for electoral officers  who, on voting day, are unable to get access to a normal voting station in the electoral district in which they registered to vote makes an important contribution to increasing accessibility and equity of voting processes in Ghana. With an increasing demand for work, given the socio-economic dynamics of most families in Ghana, today, it is obvious a reasonable proportion of the electorate may not likely be present at their designated constituencies and polling stations on voting day. Hence the early voting, or call it special voting can do the trick here. For voters in remote locations, as wel

There has been a blatant disregard to COVID-19 protocols, which includes the wearing of nose masks, observing social distancing, and regular hand washing. Many Ghanaians are ignoring the protocols because they think the virus is no more, others say the number of confirmed cases are not high compared to other countries, so there is no cause for alarm. A survey conducted on the use of infrared thermometers, wearing of nose masks, washing of hands and social distancing by the Health Promotion Division of the Ghana Health Service showed that adherence to safety and preventive protocols only existed at formal workplaces, but not within the communities, funerals grounds, weddings ceremonies, transport terminals and marketplaces where people are mostly crowded. Suffice it to say that Ghana has seen an increase in COVID-19 deaths, and the number of active cases has also increased recently to more than 300. We must be reminded that COVID-19 has not left us entirely as it has caused countries li

  The threat by Air traffic Controllers to go on strike over encroachment on Civil Aviation reserved signal lands at La and Madina provides a piercing notice to the Authorities to immediately stop all such development activities. In fact, it is not only worrying but, disturbing to hear the concerns of the Controllers, this time not about their working conditions but the risk that the developers and encroachers pose to the nation’s Air traffic regime. In life, nobody can rule out risk in the transport sector, but it is more pronounced in Air transport than all others although accident or disasters are the same. There is nowhere in the world where state security would ever compromise the protection of its land, sea let alone Air transport or space. That is the more reason why Government needs to heed the concerns of the Controllers about the encroachment of our air-space, especially when they are sounding the alarm for government and national security to do the needful. Such early warnin

All over the world, nations apply standards in their production to ensure that items produced for sale are fit for purpose. Standards are developed to protect public health and safety as well as help in the protection of the environment. This shows that without applicable standards there could be disorder and chaos and goods produced for consumption would not be able to satisfy human needs satisfactorily. Products that are tailored in line with applicable standards ensure quality, safety, good health and protection of the environment. The world has to come to where it is today because of applicable standards developed and utilitized by countries in the world. Countries and business organizations that apply standards to their activities are able to increase productivity and guarantee safety for their customers and public as a whole. It is because of the importance of standards that the world has found it necessary to celebrate World Standards Day on October 14 every year. The celebratio

  The gruesome murder of MP for Mfantseman, Ekow Quansah Hayford has once again opened discussions on providing armed police guards to Members of Parliament to ensure their safety. Although it may guarantee some safety for the MPs, the proposal can be described as unscientific and not sustainable. Besides, it does not in any way solve the wider issue of insecurity in the country. In fact, criminals are able to successfully target bullion vans carrying cash with armed police escorts and also stage broad daylight attacks against police personnel. This clearly means that the issue of protecting MPs and for that matter citizens of Ghana, requires a broader contextual approach and an analytical insight into why criminals are becoming more vicious and brazen by the day. Statistics from the Ghana Police Service has it that, crime is on the increase in Ghana. Also, in a recent US Department of State travel advisory report on Ghana, it is stated that crime is on the upsurge in the country. In f

  The 1992 Constitution of Ghana clearly places a ban on chiefs from engaging in active partisan politics. Whereas some chiefs have heeded the ban, others see it as discriminatory and against their human rights. Some chiefs see the injunction not to actively participate in partisan politics as devastating, and for the sake of protecting their interests and political self-preservation, they seem to have thrown caution to the wind. Today, some traditional leaders remain divided over the constitutional provision that prohibits them from participating in active partisan politics. Some of them flout the ban either with impunity or inadvertently. It is now common to see chiefs at rallies adorned in party paraphernalia and sometimes declaring support for politicians and aspirants of various positions. Some chiefs influence their sub-chiefs and people in a subtle way to cast their ballot for particular candidates and political parties. It is unfortunate that such events are happening under thi

  Last week the Ghana Police Service embarked on an endurance march through some principal streets of Accra to show its readiness to provide adequate security before, during and after the general election. The Police Service is one of the security agencies mandated to maintain law and order and protect people in the country, therefore its readiness is important, particularly for a national assignment such as elections. It is without doubt that the Police renders invaluable service to the state on daily basis, through the performance of its functions such as providing security and ensuring the maintenance of law and order for the citizenry to go about their normal duties. What is ahead of the Service now is the 2020 general election. Director of Operations of the Ghana Police Service, DCOP Kwaku Boadu Peprah at the end of the security endurance march, advised all police officers to desist from engaging in partisan politics in preparation for the task ahead as their rules frown on that.

The political crisis in Mali following the seizure of power by the military is quite worrying. It creates a condition of insecurity and uncertainty in the life of that country. During the consultative meeting in Accra, all sides to the conflict together with stakeholders in the sub-region came up with frank discussions from various viewpoints as a way of ensuring a peaceful return to constitutional rule. The military junta wants to rule the country for three years before handing over power to civilian rule. Other stakeholders to the meeting are of the view that as much as possible the country needs to return to civilian rule without any further delay. It is therefore expected that the ECOWAS chair with the support of other sub-regional leaders will be able to strike a deal with the military leaders so as to ensure peace in Mali. Like many countries in Africa, Mali has its own socio-economic problems that need to be addressed to raise the standard of living of all Malians. Mali’s heavy