An amount of GH465 million has been released by government for the commencement of the one-district-one-factory project.

The Director of Policy Planning, Monitoring and Budget at the Ministry of Trade​ and Industry, Mr Padi Adjirakor, who made the announcement in Accra on Monday also revealed that an amount of GH256 million has also been released for the revamping of 100 private commercially viable companies throughout the country.

Delivering a speech on behalf of the Trade and Industry Minister Mr. Alan kyerematen, at the ​opening of the Ghana International Trade and Finance Conference, Mr Adjirakor said all businesses that qualified for the two programmes must present their proposals to the ministry for the necessary action to be taken.

Mr Adjirakor added that the project, which is expected to kick-start any moment from now, would boost the nation's economy, create more jobs, as well as make most districts economic giants.​

The commencement of the one-district-one-factory project is in fulfilment of the NPP's campaign promise.​

The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo promised to transform Ghana's economy by establishing a factory in each of the 216 districts.​

 The initiative, otherwise known as district enterprises, is to establish medium-to-large factories or industrial enterprises that have the potential to fundamentally affect the economy of the districts.

Source:Starrfmonline​

President Akufo-Addo places ban on the purchase of state cars by government officials.

Government officials will no longer be able to purchase their state vehicles during the period of transition to a new government, according to President Nana Akufo-Addo.​

Speaking during a rather short press conference at the end of a 4-day retreat for members of his cabinet on Monday, the President was hopeful this development will put an end to the back and forth over state vehicles during future transitions.​

"A policy that has worked so far which has run into a lot of problems because of the way it has been abused which is that officials can buy official cars. That policy will no longer work. No official is going to have the opportunity to buy an official car. Nobody is going to have that capacity anymore," President Akufo-Addo stated.​

He also reiterated government's temporary ban on purchasing new state vehicles, stressing that, "no matter how dilapidated the vehicle in our fleet are", we are going to have to make do with them.​

"These are difficult times for the Ghanaian people and we should be seen to be acting and respecting that," President Akufo-Addo added.​

The early days of the  Nana Addo administration were noted for a back and forth over the number of vehicles in the Presidential car pool.​

271 state cars bought in final days of Mahama administration​

The row was sparked with the Presidency revealing that about 208 of the vehicles bequeathed to the new government​ by the Mahama government could not traced.

In the heat of the allegation, the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Samuel George, suggested that about 271 of the vehicles allegedly missing from the Presidency were purchased by some officials of the former government after a valuation from the State Transport Company.​

Mr George noted that, the auction​ing of the state cars was in conformity with standard practice to enable officials of the former administration to purchase the vehicle if they were two years or  older.

According ​to him, a number of his colleagues chose to buy their cars, though he decline the same privilege, and this accounted for the disparity.

Source: citifmonline.com​

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Dome-Kwabenya, Sarah Adwoa Safo has stepped down from serving as a Member of the South Africa based Pan African Parliament.

Parliament on Friday [April 7, 2017] announced the replacement of two members of the House on the Pan African Parliament and the ECOWAS Parliament.

The two are Sarah Adwoa Safo, Deputy Majority Leader and Member of Parliament (MP) for Dome Kwabenya, now Minister of State in Charge of the Public Procurement  and O.B Amoah, MP for Akwapim​ South, now Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development.

This follows the appointment of the two as Ministers of State.​

Ms Safo was on the south Africa based Pan Africa Parliament, and Mr Amoah on the Abuja based ECOWAS Parliament.​

The replacement of Ms Safo comes under Rule 8 (4) of the ​Rules of Procedure of the Pan-Africa Parliament, where a member loses his or her seat when he or he is appointed to executive or judicial position.

The House therefore resolved that in accordance with the rules nominated Mrs Cynthia Maamle Morrison, Mp for Agona West to replace Ms Safo, whilst Mr Alexander Kwamena​ Afenyo-Markin, MP for Efutu, replaced Mr Amoah.

Source: GNA​

Some galamsey operators in four districts of the Western Region have pledged to suspend their activities in support of government's fight to end the menace.

They contend that the devastating impact of their activities is affecting themselves and other innocent lives.​

The spokeperson for the galamsey operators, Nana Ntori Bonkyi Akomea made their intent known when they met with the Environment, Science and Technology Minister, Prof. Frimpong Boateng in Accra on Thursday.​

"Another appeal that we have put before the government is that we require time to suspend our operations and engage in negotiations to see how best we could mine the mineral.​ We are of the conviction that government is not against gold mining but the means by which the activity is carried out is of concern," he said.

The group comprises representatives from Amenfi West, East, Central and Prestea Huni Valley districts.​

Among the reason they cited for their activities​ included the challenges with the centralised licensing regime plus the granting of concessions to large mines who eventually take up their farmlands.

Nana Bonkyi Akomea was also hopeful that the decentralization of the granting of mining permits will largely reduce the numbers of illegal mining activities.​

"We are of the conviction that government ​is not against gold mining but the means by which the activity is carried out is of concern, What we are therefore seeking from the government is that the processes of issuance be decentralised  to give the local authorities the power to monitor the activities of persons who would be granted permit."

Nana Ntori Bonkyi Akomea further appealed to other communities affected by the menace.​

"We are appealing to our sister communities across the country affected by the galamsey activities to support us."​

Meanwhile the Environment Minister, Prof. Frimpong Boateng has pledged of the government's commitment to heed the concern expressed by the illegal miners by factoring them into the plan outlined for the ending the illicit act.​

The discussions also come on the back of Citi FM's campaign #StopGalamseyNow.​

As part of the campaign, the station is seeking​ five demands from government in ending the menace.

A petition is expected to be presented to Parliament to seek its support in getting the act curtailed.

By: Plus Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana​

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has defended his decision to create two portfolios of ministerial rank in addition to the ministers of agriculture and education.

He said the ministers of state responsible for agriculture and education were appointed because the two sectors were critical areas which needed additional talents to enable his government succeed.​

After announcing ​final  batch  of ministers  of  central government on February 10, President Akufo-Addo came out  with  the  two  new  ministerial portfolios  to  operate under the office  of  the  President .

Critics  have  questioned the  creation  of the  two  ministerial positions in  addition  to  the  ministers of  education and  agriculture, with their  deputies, describing  them as superfluous.

At the  swearing-in of the ministers  on Tuesday night at  the  Flagstaff House, President Akufo-Addo used the  occasion   to  explain  the rational  for  the  creation  of  the  two  ministers.

"The ministry of education is one​ of the largest in our state machinery , dealing  with all aspects in our education structure, from  kindergarten to the  tertiary level. Each  level has its  own pre-occupation, none more so, than the tertiary stage."

"The  resolution of the issues and  challenges of that  part of educational establishment (Tertiary) is absolutely essential to the health of our educational system, and thereby​ the  health of our nation ," he said.

The World Bank's Chief Economist for the Africa Region, Dr Albert Zeufack says Africa must focus on a new growth strategy focused on value-addition to her natural resources.

Dr Zeufack, who disclosed this in an interaction with a section of the media in Accra on Friday​, blamed Africa's underdevelopment on the export of its raw materials.

Dr Zuefack was on a three-day working visit to Ghana to, among other things, access the World Bank numerous initiatives and support to Ghana.​

He said Africa and for that matter​, Ghana had lagged behind its counterparts in East Asia because of the regions focus on the export of raw materials.

"Commodity prices are ​going to be low on the world market this year. Africa cannot continue to rely on the export of raw materials as its growth engine," he said.

He said Africa's growth in the past several decades had been largely commodity and mineral driven and had not been able to create the needed jobs to absorb the teeming unemployed.​

Dr Zuefack said the mining sector was capital intensive and does not engender job creation.​

 The Chief Economist entreated Africa in general and Ghana in particular not rely on the traditional​ markets such as US and UK for her exports, but diversify her export market, saying the Asian market offered a good alternative market for Africa.

For instance, the value of export of chocolate to Asia for 2018 was projected at $16 billion, and said Ghana could position itself to take advantage​ of this opportunity by creating a congenial environment to attract chocolate manufacturing companies in Ghana to produce more of the chocolate to export to East Asia.

Dr Zuefack said, Cote d' Ivoire had already started to produce for the Asia Market​ and Ghana should emulate her neighbour's example.

Touching on the 2017​ macroeconomic outlook for countries south of the Sahara, he said Africa was yet coming out of its economic doldrums, saying SSA would grow by three per ent this year and inched up to 3.6 per cent in 2018.

The Chief Economist for the Africa Region highlighting his vision for the bank said he was going to focus on data collection, capacity building for economic management members of the various Africa countries, and knowledge diffusion.​

On what he termed as the data agenda, Dr Zuefack said he would strongly support data collection to collect relevant household data to help in accurate information for policy formulation, knowledge diffusion. He said, he would ensure that the various studies and research conducted by the bank influenced the decision of policy makers on policy formation.​

Source: Ghanaian Times​

The eastern Regional Minister, Mr Eric Kwakye Darfuor has called on the management of schools to desist from prohibiting the speaking of local languages in their schools.

According to him, the prohibition made it difficult for students and pupils to learn and appreciate their own language​ adding that most times they were prevented from speaking the language which identifies them as Ghanaians.

"Much attention is focused on the speaking and learning of foreign languages especially English to the detriment of our own," he said.​

 The minister said there was the need for management of schools to come up with innovative ways of making pupils learn and speak their own languages well.​

Mr Kwakye Darfuor​ made the statements during the Nyasapo Festival organised by the Eastern regional branch of the Centre for National Culture.

The festival themed: "Ghana at 60: Exhibiting togetherness in our collective identity through local language​" sought to bring together students and pupils from different schools in the region to imbibe in them the ideals and affluent nature of Ghanaian language.

Students​ and pupils from different schools in Koforidua displayed and performed through drama and recited poems in the local languages to depict the Ghanaian culture.

Mr Darfuor noted  that "it is not to say that, it is good to speak other language, but it is more convenient to be able to write, read and express one's self fluently, as a result of which one can communicate in any other language excellently."​

He therefor stressed the need for students and pupils to learn to speak their own language to enable them to grow to understand each other and coordinate in future to ensure the development of the country.​

Advising the students and pupils, Mr Darfuor urged them to eschew bad counsel and stick to good morals and courtesy with which success and higher heights could be reached.​

The Regional Minister commended the Centre for National Culture​ for organising the festival and appealed to them to organise the festival at the region level to enable students to perform in the various local languages in the region.

For his part, the Eastern Regional Director of the Centre for National Culture, Mr Stephen Sedofu appealed to the government and other stakeholders to come to their aid and help it complete its building​ project.

From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu-Nyarko, Koforidua.

Source: Ghanaian Times.​