Let us remove negative factors to reforms - Rawlings
Christian Youth to hold conference in December
Refugees commission donate to flood victims
Conference on road sector opens
Mills commissions brewing plant
Minister calls for concerted efforts in eliminating gender imbalances
Let us remove negative factors to reforms - Rawlings
Accra (Greater Accra), 18th November 99
President Jerry John Rawlings on Tuesday urged stakeholders in education to do away with negative factors that hinder the progress in the educational reform programme.
He said the reform programme has produced some undeniable achievements despite difficulties involved in the process of change in the education sector.
President Rawlings, who was speaking at the opening of a three-day national forum on education in Accra, said that the time has come for stakeholders to find innovative ways to support the education system in addition to the efforts of the government.
The Forum, under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, aims at examining the performance, achievements, and failures of the educational reforms.
It would also consider issues that would promote quality education and focus attention on the need for adequate funding for education.
Scholars, parents, opinion leaders, traditional leaders, students and donor representatives attended.
President Rawlings recounted the many committee findings on the need to reform the educational system inherited from the colonial era and said the idea for the reforms came up as far back as 1963.
"These and other initiatives gave rise to several limited experimental programmes, but were never made an integral part of the mainstream, whether through lack of funds, political instability, lack of continuity at policy level or because of lack of commitment by policy makers and implementers."
Added to this, the President said, the acutely depressed economic conditions through the mid-70s to the early 80s led to a mass exodus of teachers, rapid disintegration of school infrastructure and "an almost total lack of teaching materials."
The President said by 1987, it was clear that an important part of the economic recovery programme would have to focus on education.
However, this was not without misconception from critics of the reform, who thought the exercise was rushed and without sufficient consultation.
"It is important that we recall the amount of research and consultation, which went into the initial phase of the reforms.
"It is the task of this gathering to build stakeholder awareness, participation and ownership of critical decisions affecting education as part of the review process..."
He said the key issues of equitable access to education, the quality of education, and sustainable financing of education at all levels should be the central pivot of the forum.
"We must endeavour to look beyond our individual or sectional concerns to find balanced solutions to the key issues, which would lead to a healthy and fruitful debate that would assist in formulating realistic and sustainable strategies to make significant improvements in the country's educational system."
President Rawlings said the next millennium would put a high premium on education and skills as the foremost determinant of economic growth.
He, therefore, urged the forum to be decisive in selecting the most viable options that would ensure the strongest educational system for the country in the next century as well as strengthening the competitive edge in a globalising world.
The President said he was proud that with all the difficulties in the reforms, 3,000 new basic schools and more than 200 senior secondary schools had been established between 1987 and 1997.
Similarly, about 72,000 students enter senior secondary schools (SSS) each year, compared with 30,000 in 1986 while female enrolment has risen by 20.1 per cent of the population of the SSS students.
"...And we still have more work to do in providing adequate teaching and learning materials from the primary to the tertiary level."
Ghana's educational sector in the last decade has seen tremendous investment in expanding and improving infrastructure, taking as much as 35 per cent of the recurrent budget.
However, 80 per cent of that budget is consumed by the emoluments of employees leaving only a small proportion for the provision of equipment and materials.
"All these elements call for attention... Difficult and sober choices are, therefore, necessary to maintain a delicate balance between all the elements whilst steadily moving towards our goals," President Rawlings said.
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Christian Youth to hold conference in December
Accra (Greater Accra), 18th November 99
A two-day National Christian Youth Conference that would focus on measures aimed at eliminating vices within the society will be held from December 15 to 17 at the Accra International Conference Centre.
The conference, under the theme "broadening the scope of the Christian youth in the 21st century,'' is being organised by the National Foundation for Youth Initiative, a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
Mr. Roger Crawford, Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation told the press on Wednesday in Accra that the conference would serve as a tool of correction to Christendom.
He said it would, among other things, seek to correct ignorance among the youth, drug abuse, adolescent motherhood, undisciplined behaviour towards the elderly among the youth, as well as the lack of environmental care and concern.
Mr. Crawford said delegates would issue a communiqué at the end of the conference to be circulated to the Christian Council, the Pentecostal Council, Ministry of Youth and Sports (MOYS) and the National Youth Council.
He said participants are from Christian and youth groups in the country, as well as observers from the sub-region.
Professor Patrick Addy, Deputy Minister of MOYS said Christians must always strive to obtain a clear vision so that they may know "where to stand and what to stand for.
"This must by all means be so, because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything."
Prof. Addy noted that Christianity produces a character that can meet difficulties where and when they come, adding, "it does not make life easy, but rather lightens our burdens and gives us extra strength to carry them when they come."
He said the nation's fate lies in the strengths and aspirations of its youth and to realise this, the children need to be educated.
"We are confronted with a flurry of cases of juvenile delinquency, which to me are nothing more than the fruits from the seeds of parental delinquency, religion and educational delinquency, judicial delinquency and municipal delinquency."
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Refugees commission donate to flood victims
Accra (Greater Accra), 18th November 99
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) on Wednesday donated relief items worth 25 million cedis to the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO). The items are to be distributed to victims of the recent floods that hit the three northern regions, the Volta and Brong Ahafo regions.
The items were made up of 500 each of mattresses, plastic sheets and blankets.
Madam Adama B. Wurie, Head of Liaison Office of UNHCR, said the donation was in response to an appeal launched a few months ago by the government to the international community for assistance.
Group Captain Symon Akondoh (rtd), Director, Man-Made Disasters of NADMO, thanked the donors and appealed for more assistance.
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Conference on road sector opens
Akuse (Eastern Region), 18th November 99
Mr. Peter Harrold, Country Director of the World Bank, on Wednesday commended the Ministry of Roads and Transport for improving its road maintenance strategy.
Speaking at a two-day annual donor's conference on Ghana's road sub-sector strategy and investment programme at Akuse, he said maintenance expenditure was reflecting in the condition of roads.
The conference is under the theme "Laying foundation for efficient transport in the next millennium."
The government of Ghana and road sub-sector partners jointly organised the conference, aimed at reviewing the implementation of its expenditure programme.
It is also aimed at examining road network condition in 1999, reviewing the road sub-sector Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), 2000 budget and secure financial and other support for the successful implementation of the programme.
Senior officials of the Ministry, Road Agencies and Donor Representatives are attending the conference.
Mr. Harrold said there is the need to consolidate gains on road maintenance and to complete the payment of arrears and urged the Ministry to improve the road contracting system by adopting competitive rather than selective bidding.
Mr. Edward Salia, Minister of Roads and Transport, said the high premium placed on the development of infrastructure has yielded high dividends, improved the general road network and laid a strong foundation for the economic development of Ghana.
He said at the moment, most of the technical issues relating to the payment of the arrears demanded by the World Bank have been accomplished.
Mr. Salia said certain institutional structures such as donor co-ordination, strategic planning, cost recovery and programming and budgeting have to be consolidated with the implementation of the Highway Sector Investment Project.
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Mills commissions brewing plant
Accra (Greater Accra), 18th November 99
Vice-President John Evans Atta Mills on Wednesday commissioned a 23 billion-cedi brewing plant at Achimota for the Ghana Breweries Limited with a call on industries to turn attention to improving their human resource capacities.
Prof. Mills said human resource development is of great concern to the government because without a well-trained work force, the objectives of Vision 2020 will forever remain a mirage.
He, therefore, suggested that industrial attachment should be encouraged for products of tertiary institutions to enable them to have the necessary exposure prior to their employment.
The commissioning followed the expansion, refurbishing and modernisation of the old equipment at the brewery, formally Achimota Brewery Company.
It was taken over two years ago by GBL, with Heineken of the Netherlands, as the majority shareholders.
Heineken provided 17 billion cedis of the funds for the refurbishment programme on a subsidised interest rate.
Vice-President Mills expressed appreciation for Heineken's continued confidence in the Ghanaian economy and urged them to encourage other multi-national businesses to come to Ghana.
The government, he said, acknowledges Heineken's long-term commitment and expressed the hope that the peaceful climate that has characterised their operation would continue to encourage them to invest in innovations and upgrade the skills of workers and motivate them to enhance productivity.
Prof. Mills said for an enterprise that had been running at a loss for seven years to be directed within one year to make profit speaks volumes of the ability of the new management.
Vice-President Mills said efforts at attracting Foreign Direct Investments have achieved results, and cited the Africa Competitive Report published by the Harvard Institute of International Development as rating Ghana among the top 10 in Africa in terms of business development.
He conceded, however, that there is need to do a lot more work in order to attain the set goals for the private sector.
Mr. Jenne Home, Director, Heineken Africa and the Middle East, said the refurbishment and replacement of obsolete equipment including the laboratory, cooling plant, a tank room and cellars were necessary to meet Heineken's standards worldwide.
He said the brew-process equipment installed in Ghana is the latest technology available to Heineken and "is the most modern high-tech system at present in use."
He said Heineken's decision to invest in the project was dictated by the confidence it has in the Ghanaian economy.
However, the government should take a critical look at the high tariffs being levied on beer as they render the industry uncompetitive within the West-Africa sub-region.
"We are of the view that lower tariffs will make our products affordable and our business competitive within ECOWAS, induce significant volume growth, create avenues for employment and, indeed, generate higher revenue for the nation."
He spoke of plans to construct a wastewater treatment plant in Kumasi and Achimota as part of the next phase of development activities planned for the year 2000-2002.
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Minister calls for concerted efforts in eliminating gender imbalances
Elmina (Central Region), 18th November 99
A Deputy Minister of Communications, Mrs Rebecca Adotey, has observed that Ghanaian women will be capable of contributing more to nation building if concerted efforts are made to correct gender inequity in the society.
She said the task of addressing the situation is so formidable that men must begin to understand and give the necessary support to women to attain the highest levels in their careers.
This would enable the nation to have a fine crop of women capable of handling any challenging situation.
Mrs Adotey was speaking at the opening of a four-day seminar on the "challenges of gender equity in the Ghanaian media", at Elmina on Wednesday.
About 60 senior media practitioners are attending the seminar meant to sensitise policy makers, particularly those in media management, to consider the benefits to be derived by paying attention to gender equity.
It is being organised by the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and sponsorsed by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the University of Montreal, Canada.
The Deputy Minister emphasised that women have the requisite skills and talents that could be brought to bear on their activities in their various places of work, including the mass media.
There is, therefore, the need to deal effectively with negative perceptions about the capabilities of women.
The Deputy Minister commented on some publications in the privately owned newspapers and expressed concern about "sordid and obscene stories and pictures", particularly of women and urged that the public should be educated about the need to refrain from patronising such newspapers.
The President of the GJA, Mrs Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, noted that the Association is very much eager to see a greater representation of women in the media, particularly in media management in the country.
She regretted that the problem of gender imbalance in the Ghanaian media is more glaring and pronounced at the management level.
She said records indicate that throughout the nearly 150 years of press history, there have been only two occasions, when women were placed in decision-making positions in the media.
Any call for gender equity in the media should not be seen as an advocacy for female domination, but simply an insistence on what is right in any successful human endeavour, and of ensuring more effective partnership among media practitioners.
She was, therefore, happy that a few media houses notably, Ghana News Agency, Graphic Corporation, New Times Corporation, as well as Ghana Broadcasting Corporations and Vibe FM, have recently appointed women to high decision-making positions.
The Archbishop of the Cape Coast Archdiocese of the Catholic Church, the Most Reverend Peter Turkson observed that gender imbalance has no place in Christianity.
Rev Turkson said that this is because God created woman out of "a man's side bone" to indicate that women are not to head over men or feel inferior to men but that both men and women are equal.
Mr. Tim Acquah-Hayford, Chairman of the National Media Commission, who presided, stressed the need for men to recognise the role played by women both in the home and in nation building and grant them the necessary concessions to enable them to give of their best.
He hoped that strategies would be evolved at the seminar to help solve the religious, cultural and social dimensions of the problem, which have resulted in gender inequity.
Participants will deliberate on "exploring barriers to women's effective participation in the Ghanaian media" and "the influence of gender and stereotypes on women's career advancement in the media-the case of Ghana."
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