GRi Arts & Culture Ghana 15 - 08 - 2001
Help make a good copyright law - Nana Akufo-Addo
Pool tourism resources in ECOWAS - Hawa
Assin Manso plans to build monument on slavery
Gomoa Adaa marks annual Akwanbo with durbar
Accra (Greater Accra) 15 August 2001
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, on Tuesday urged members of the Copyright Society of Ghana (COSGA) to make contributions that will enrich the Copyright Bill to benefit rights holders and the society.
At a meeting with the executive members, Nana Akufo-Addo said rights holders were poor because of the lack of a good legal, social and political framework that allowed creativity, talent and enterprise to flourish.
He said the Bill would not only conform to World Trade Organisation regulations on property and intellectual rights but would also make Ghanaian civilisation impact on global civilisation.
The meeting was called following petitions to resolve legal problems bordering on the current composition of the COSGA board, which did not reflect the composition of COSGA.
The COSGA Regulations of 1992, stipulate that the board should be composed of the President of the General Assembly who shall be the chairperson and two nominees of the Musicians Union of Ghana to represent composers and performers.
On the board is one nominee of the Music Producers Association and a nominee of the Ghana Association of Writers.
Other members are a representative each of the Ghana Association of Book
Publishers, Performing Artistes, Film Producers, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation,
National Commission on Culture, Ministry of Information (Media Relations) and an
Executive Director.
However, the present board, which was elected on 14 December, 2000 at Kumasi, comprises only music rights holders, excluding literary rights holders and performing artistes.
Nana Akufo-Addo asked for co-operation from COSGA members to find solution to their problems to promote peace and progress.
"Men of goodwill can always find solution to problems...," he said. "I am trying to be a platform for finding solution to harness skills and talents for enterprise to develop and flourish."
Nana Akufo-Addo reiterated the commitment of the Kufuor Administration to "transform the fortunes of the nation to ensure a prosperous and peaceful society."
"You are the frontline soldiers for achieving this," he said. "In the developed world, your counterparts are treated as golden eggs because they keep hatching golden chicks. We should make this possible here."
Mr Joe Mensah, President of the board, welcomed the opportunity to address the problems and expressed the hope that members would not dwell on the past, but look forward to a positive change.
COSGA is mandated to represent and protect the professional, economic, moral and other interests of authors of literary, musical, artistic, dramatic and other works.
GRi../
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Accra (Greater Accra) 15 August 2001
Madam Hawa Yakubu, Minister of Tourism on Tuesday called on members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to pool resources to promote a vibrant tourism industry that would become the number one foreign exchange earner in the sub-region.
She said members should initiate discussions at the level of ECOWAS parliament, where experiences could be shared on how the vast tourism potentials and attractions of the sub-region could be packaged to compete effectively within the larger global marketplace.
Madam Yakubu was exchanging views with a three-member delegation of the Nigerian Senate Committee on culture that called on her in Accra.
The delegation comprised Senators Olatunji Ajayi, Chairman, Mohammed Ibrahim, Vice Chairman and Mrs. Rabi Audu, Secretary.
The visit was to enable the delegation to learn at first hand, Ghana's achievements in the tourism industry, her development efforts and how best she could assist Nigeria to develop her tourism.
Mad Yakubu stressed the need to harmonise visas for tourists to the ECOWAS region, saying this would market its tourism on an integrated basis.
The leader of the delegation Senator Ajayi praised Ghana for the humble strides she has made in the promotion and development of tourism through her culture and that of the rest of Africa, citing PANAFEST and Emancipation Day in honour of Africans in the Diaspora who have dedicated their lives to the achievement of freedom and dignity of the black race.
In Ghana, tourism is currently the third largest foreign exchange earner after cocoa and gold.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 15 August 2001
The Registrar General Department on Tuesday said registration of trademarks would now attract a fee of 100,000 cedis.
A statement issued in Accra said applicants would be required to pay the fee to the government printer for the advertisement of the application in the commercial bulletin.
The department would then issue a letter to the government printer to effect the advertisement upon payment of the required fees.
This, the statement said "is to speed up the registration of trademarks and promote a more expeditious delivery of service to our clients."
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Assin Manso (Central Region) 15 August 2001
A museum depicting the trauma and suffering African slaves went through in the Americas is to be built at Assin Manso in the Central Region, Barima Kwame Nkyi XII, Omanhene of Assin Apimanim, told the Ghana News Agency at Assin Manso at the weekend.
Such a museum, he said, would tell Africa the extent of cruelty meted out to victims of the chattel slave trade that has deprive Africa of her human resources.
"My recent visits to the Transatlantic Slave Museum in Merseyside, Liverpool, England, the Great Black Wax Museum in Baltimore and the Shrine of the Black Madonna in Atlanta, USA, has convinced me that a similar museum could be built here at Assin Manso for Africans to see what our revered ancestors went through as chattel slaves overseas.
"We know what happened here but not very much of what happened there," he stated.
Barima Nkyi said the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board has prepared the relevant proposal for the project and appealed for assistance from Africans in the Diaspora to help execute the project.
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Gomoa Adaa (Central Region) 15 August 2001
Nana Okutwer-Bekoe IV, Chief of Gomoa Adaa in the Central Region has called on Ghanaians to let celebration of festivals unite the people.
"There can be no development in confusion, therefore, we must use festivals to solve problems and misunderstandings among our people to enable us forge ahead in unity".
Nana Okutwer-Bekoe was addressing a durbar to mark the annual Akwanbo festival of the people of the town on Sunday.
He urged the people to rekindle their communal spirit, adding, "the development of the town depends on the efforts we the citizens will put into it".
The Chief appealed to the government to rehabilitate Kyiren-Nkwanta to Mando road, which is in a deplorable condition and also connect towns in the area to the National Electricity Grid.
Nana Paintsiwaa Panyin III, Queenmother, advised non-resident citizens to pay regular visits home to assist the residents in implementing the projects.
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