Implementation of Emission Levy Aims to Combat Carbon Emissions and Promote Eco-Friendly Technology
Starting from February 1, 2024, all vehicle owners in Ghana will be required to pay the Emission Levy, as mandated by the Emission Levy Act, 2023 (Act 1112). The purpose of this levy is to impose charges on carbon dioxide equivalent emissions generated by internal combustion engine vehicles. To ensure fair implementation, the levy amounts have been set as follows: GHS75 per annum for motorcycles and tricycles, GHS150 per annum for motor vehicles, buses, and coaches up to 3000 cc, GHS300 per annum for motor vehicles, buses, and coaches above 3000 cc, and GHS300 per annum for cargo trucks and articulated trucks. The government’s objective behind introducing this levy is multifaceted. Firstly, it aims to address the issue of greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to global efforts to combat climate change. By imposing charges on vehicles that produce higher emissions, the government wants to promote the adoption of eco-friendly technology and encourage the use of green energy. Additionally, the implementation of the Emission Levy aligns with the government’s goals of improving environmental management and controlling air and water pollution. By creating financial incentives for personal and commercial vehicle owners to choose vehicles with lower emissions, it is anticipated that air and water quality will see noticeable improvements over time. Under section 4(4) of Act 1112, any entity responsible for issuing a road use certificate, such as the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and other testing centers, must request evidence of payment of the Emission Levy before issuing the certificate. To facilitate the payment process, all vehicle owners are advised to register and pay the levy exclusively through the Ghana.gov platform. The introduction of this levy has caused some concerns among driver unions, leading to threats of a potential increase in public transportation fares. Currently, negotiations between the driver unions and the government are underway to address their concerns and find a mutually agreeable solution. In summary, the implementation of the Emission Levy in Ghana aims to combat carbon emissions, promote the adoption of eco-friendly technology and green energy, and improve overall environmental management while controlling air and water pollution. All vehicle owners are required to register and pay the levy on the Ghana.gov platform, and discussions are ongoing with driver unions to address their concerns about potential fare increases. Source: Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062
Former Defense Minister Mark Woyongo dies @78
Former Minister of Defence and Member of Parliament for the Navrongo Central Constituency, Mr. Mark Owen Woyongo, has passed away at the age of 78, leaving Navrongo Central and the people of Upper East Region in deep shock. Family sources confirmed his death in Accra, stating that he had been unwell for some time. Mr. Woyongo, who served as MP from 2012 to 2016, lost his seat to the New Patriotic Party’s Joseph Kofi Addo. He announced his retirement from politics in 2016, declaring that he would not contest any political position again. During his time in politics, Mr. Woyongo stood for election on the National Democratic Congress ticket, narrowly losing in 2008, but later serving as the Upper East Regional Minister and Minister for Defence. After the NDC lost power to the NPP in 2016, he turned to farming. His death has left a void in the community, and his contributions to the region and the nation will be remembered. Source: Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062
Sad News: Former Upper East Minister is dead
Agnes Asangalisa Chigabatia, the former Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, has sadly passed away. The news was announced on January 10, 2024. Agnes Chigabatia was a trailblazer in her political career, becoming the first woman in the northern region to be elected as the NPP Regional Chairman in the 90s. She also served as a dedicated Member of Parliament for the Builsa North constituency, leaving behind a legacy of accomplishments that have yet to be surpassed by her successors. We extend our condolences and may her soul rest in peace. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062.
UER: MTN donates over 30 hampers to mothers of Christmas born babies
MTN Ghana, the leading telecommunications company in the country, recently brought joy to hospitals in the Upper East Region by presenting festive hampers to newborns born on Christmas Day. This initiative aligns with MTN Ghana’s dedication to community involvement and corporate social responsibility, with the goal of bringing happiness to mothers and families. Teams from MTN Ghana visited several hospitals in the Upper East Region, including the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital and the Bongo District Hospital. They distributed special hampers filled with essential baby items to the parents of the newborns. These hampers included clothes, blankets, diapers, soap, and other necessities to support the new parents. Martin Kumobah, the Upper East Regional Team Lead of MTN Ghana, expressed his delight in being able to contribute to the joy of families welcoming newborns on such a special day. He further thanked MTN customers for their loyalty and assured them that the company is continuously working to enhance its network coverage in the future. On Christmas Day, the two hospitals recorded a total of 8 deliveries each, with twin births occurring at both facilities. Anisa Abdulai, a Midwifery Officer at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital, expressed gratitude to MTN for the support given to the mothers. Meanwhile, a nursing mother named Asaah Salamatu also expressed her appreciation, noting that the unexpected gesture from MTN Ghana However, in the Upper East Region, MTN Ghana donated 30 hampers to babies born on Christmas at other health facilities in the region. Source: Apexnewsgh/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062
Two Fire officer in police custody after allegedly beating someone to death
Two members of the West Gonja Municipal Ghana National Fire Service in the Savanna Region are currently held in police custody at the Damongo Divisional Police command, facing allegations of beating a 27-year-old man to death. The victim, identified as Shirazu Nuhu, also known as Mallam, a resident of Damongo Zongo, was accused last Saturday of stealing a double-sized mattress by the fire service officers, according to an eyewitness named Tanko. Tanko recalled that the officers chained and beat Nuhu for several hours. Despite pleas from onlookers to take him to the police station, the officers claimed that the police had rejected him. They insisted that the only way to recover the mattress was through continued beatings. Zakaria Mudasiru, the younger brother of the deceased, confirmed Nuhu’s tragic passing and provided details of the extent of the brutality. Mudasiru described how the officers allegedly used a hot object, suspected to be an electric iron, to burn Nuhu’s body, including his private parts. The severe bruising inflicted during the beating ultimately led to Nuhu’s untimely death. Expressing grief, Mudasiru emphasized the family’s determination to seek justice for his brother. He appealed to politicians and traditional authorities not to interfere in the matter, urging them to let the law take its course, especially considering the prevalence of such incidents in the municipality. Nuhu has already been laid to rest, and investigations are currently underway. Some suspected officers are reportedly on the run following the arrest of the two fire service officers involved in the incident. The community awaits further developments as authorities strive to bring those responsible to justice. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
Upper East Dialysis Project: Dr. Mark Kurt Nawaane becomes the first MP to donate towards dialysis project
Dr. Mark Kurt Nawaane, the Member of Parliament for the Nabdam Constituency and Health Committee ranking member in Parliament, has generously donated Ghc 5,000.00 to support the ongoing dialysis project at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital. Apexnewsgh.com report He is the first MP from the region to respond to the call for contributions towards this crucial health development. The MPs in the region have faced criticism from their constituents for their apparent lack of interest in the dialysis project. In addition to the MPs’ lack of seriousness towards the dialysis project, the MMDCEs have also fallen short in terms of their Ghc 5,000 contributions, which were initiated by the Upper East Regional Minister. Out of the 15 MMDCEs in the region, only 4 have fulfilled their commitment to donate to the hospital management. The remaining 13 MMDCEs’ refusal to contribute suggests a disregard for the well-being of others in the region. During a meeting with the hospital management, Dr. Nawaane, the MP for Nabdam, clarified that a letter had been provided to their caucus leader, and thankfully it had been circulated among all the MPs. He emphasized that it was decided that individual districts should come forward and make their donations towards the project. “The dialysis issue is quite very important for the region. In Ghana, there are about 52, 400 patients who have got liver failure and out of the 52,400 only 1,200 were reporting to health facilities for dialysis and this is as a result of accessibility and affordability. In some areas like Upper East Region, you cannot get dialysis and I think we are trying to establish one now, but another aspect is the cost. The average cost current is about GhC 2000.00 per week if you follow the instruction and go for 4 section and is too much”. “During our budget debate, the government said that they were establishing a kidney transplant division at Korle-Bu, it is a good idea but, I think at the moment what we really need is how to make dialysis affordable to the patients so that we can have these 52,400 coming out for it. They are not coming because they know they can’t even pay”. He stressed If patient can’t afford dialysis, how can they afford kidney transplantation? Management of the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital led by Medical Director Dr. Saanwie Aiden received the Ghc 5000.00 cheque donation with excitement and thanked the Member of Parliament greatly for his contribution.  He said, Dr. Nawaane’s donation should be the beginning of the relationship between him and the hospital. He further noted that, “The cost for dialysis is huge and expensive and we need all the help we can get to be able to establish a center. Beyond establishing a center, sustainability is the next key issue we will be looking at. We are targeting that by the end of this year, we should be able to commission the center and the first patient should go through the sections of dialysis”. However, as Oliver twists the Medical Director asked for more. Meanwhile, Dr. Nawaane was taken round the dialysis facility center by the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital Administrator as he was given update on stages of work done so far. According to Dr. Nawaane, the rest of the MPs are expected to follow up with their Ghc 5000,00 donation, this he said was their conclusion as a Caucus. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062
John Dramani begs President Akufo Addo and Dr. Bawumia to pay Nursing Trainees allowance
Former President John Mahama has called on President Nana Akufo-Addo to ensure that the allowance for teacher trainees is released. While addressing students at the Krobo Nursing Training School in the Bono Region, Mahama criticized the government for halting the funds for the past two years, despite their promise to pay allowances to nurse and teacher trainees. He pleaded with President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Bawumia to fulfill their commitment and release the allowance, emphasizing the plea from the Krobo Nursing Trainees. “I beg you, Nana Addo and Bawumia, if you can hear me, we’re here at Krobo Nursing Training School, they say two years now, you haven’t paid their allowances.” “Let the allowance come,” He further said “Wherever you are, Krobo Nursing Trainees are begging you to let their allowance come.” Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0256336062
SHS Students of Ada dies in Volta River
Tidal waves have washed away the two students of the Ada Senior High School (SHS) in the Greater Accra Region. Report says, the two students went to the Volta River, to take a shower following the recent water shortage that hit the school. Efforts by witnesses to save the students went unsuccessful. Source: Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana For publication please kindly contact us on 0256336062 or Email apexnewsgh@gmail.com
Mathew Silas Amoah contributes Ghc20,000 & 3 air conditioners for the regional dialysis centre
Mathew Silas Amoah, the Parliamentary Candidate for governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Bolga-East constituency of the Upper East Region, has intervened with a GHC 20,000.00 donation towards the ongoing Dialysis Center project at the Bolgatanga East Regional Hospital. Mr. Amoah noted that there is a need for the region to have a dialysis center. Addressing the media during the donation at the regional hospital, Mr. Amoah revealed that the information about the Dialysis project got to him a couple of months ago at the just-ended Upper East branch of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) awards night, where the media solicited support for the regional hospital’s dialysis project. “I got to hear of the information a couple of months ago when they organize an award scheme like they do annually, I want to recommend them for taking it up by making people know what we are facing in the region. If not for the media, probably some of us wouldn’t have heard it because we don’t come here, we don’t know the director, we don’t know the leadership of the hospital to know the plight they are facing here. So, we have to recommend the media. It is good they have taken this region as our own”. Mr. pointed out the need for such an important initiative to be welcomed not politicized as it has always been for the regional development; “I am a Frafra from Zaurungu, I think when it comes to things like this we have to put politics aside and faced it as Frafras. I am fortunate to be part of the Bonaboto area, and the hospital happens to be on our land, if it comes to our attention like this, is not for us to do our usual NDC/NPP thing”. “We have some big men in this region of which 2,3 people can take up this project and just do it for us. We see down south, we see the Despite and Co, they build a police station, they build a hospital for their community. We needed the dialysis center, though we are not all that financially strong but whatever little we have, we will contribute. I will appeal to frafras and people of the Upper East region let’s come together, it is our own we are building for ourselves”. Meanwhile, Williams Jalulah, the Upper East GJA Chairman, who was present at the donation was so thankful to Mr. Amoah for his kind generosity and support exhibited, he describes Mathew Amaoh’s contribution as a testament to the community’s well-being. “Matthew’s contribution is a testament to his commitment to our community’s well-being, and we are sincerely grateful for his support. We hope his example inspires others, especially Members of Parliament in the region, to follow suit and help us complete this critical Dialysis Center project”. Expressing his gratitude for the kind gesture, Dr. Saawi Aiden, the Medical Director at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital, explained the difficulty patients normally go through as a result of the non-availability of dialysis machines in the region. According to Dr. Saawi, with Amoah’s support and additional air conditioning units, patients will be more comfortable when the center is opened. “The fact you have come here alone shows that you know the importance of having dialysis in the region, we are grateful you have taken such a step” He added Source: Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana For publication please kindly contact us on 0256336062 or Email apexnewsgh@gmail.com
Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources to establish SIS to help collect data on WASH activity
The Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources is working hard to establish a Sector Information System (SIS) to improve data collection across the country. The Deputy Director Policy Planning Budgeting Monitoring and Evaluation officer with the Sanitation and Water Resources Sethina Okornou made the revelation at the ongoing 2023 Mole XXXIV Conference in Jirapa of the Upper West Region on Wednesday, November 1, 2023. According to Deputy Director Okornoe, the aim of the Sector Information System (SIS) is to collect and analyze critical data related to the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) sector. “This is to help provide real-time access to accurate data concerning the WASH services to inform policy and to address all government major national and international WASH issues”. Explaining further the need for SIS, Deputy Director Okornou said, “We don’t have to wait for a census to be conducted before we know the number of people who have access to water or sanitation. As part of the processes, we have organized training for regional environmental health officers and planning health officers across all 16 regions. And that was to introduce them to the architecture of the Sector Information System (SIS). In her presentation, she stated that the plan of the Ministry is to train officers at the district level because they are the ones who will be doing the data collection. “We have developed a standard operation procedure; we have also designed a questionnaire for data collection of the SIS. So, the plan is to start the training and data collection in November this year, and by June 2024, we would have been done with the training and after each training, there will be data collection for the training”. She further revealed that in October 2024, they will have the full role out of the Sector Information System. “The server will be hosted at the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources; data collection will be at the district and to be validated at the regional level before it comes to the national server. The Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources is putting SIS in collaboration with the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and we are closely working with the Ministry of Local Government and office of the Head of Local Service. Asking whether the introduction of SIS will help promote WASH activities, she said, we are in the era of evidence-based decision-making, if you want to make a decision, you need data. The data we are quoting during a presentation is 2021. So, what happens in 2022? But the SIS is going to give us the administrative data at every point at a glance. We can know what is going on even at a specific region. However, as part of efforts to support the media in the WASH sector, World Vision Ghana and GAMA Sanitation and Water Project supported some selected journalists from the Media Coalition against Open Defecation (M-CODe) to participate in the 2023 Mole XXXIV conference in Jirapa in the Upper West region. Source: Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana For publication please kindly contact us on 0256336062 or Email apexnewsgh@gmail.com