MTN COMMITTED TO SUPPORTING GHANA’S DIGITAL AGENDA– RALPH MUPITA,MTN GROUP CEO
MTN GROUP CEO PAYS THREE DAY WORKING VISIT TO GHANA, AS MTN GHANA GETS READY TO LAUNCH ITS 25TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS MTN Group CEO and President Ralph Mupita has reiterated MTN’s commitment to support Ghana’s digital agenda as well as government’s initiatives to drive rural financial inclusion and support for businesses under the ‘Ghana Cares’ initiative. Mr. Mupita commended government on its efforts to digitalize various sectors of the economy when he paid a courtesy on the Vice President of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia at the Jubilee House as part of his three-day working visit to Ghana. During his interaction with the Vice President, Mr. Mupita shared updates on steps MTN has taken to align its strategy with the national agenda to create a shared value. He said, “We are committed to supporting Ghana’s QR code project and other digital initiatives such as the fight against cyber-attacks and the development of Women in ICT”. Mr. Mupita gave a hint about MTN’s intention to construct an ICT Hub to commemorate its 25th anniversary celebrations. He also shared updates on MTN Ghana’s commitment to complete its localization drive of 12.5% for Scancom Plc by end of 2021 and the sale of 30% shares in MobileMoney Limited by January 2022. He shared highlights on discussions with competition and technology partners aimed at improving and expanding network infrastructure in readiness for ACFTA opportunities. In his remarks, H.E Dr. Bawumia commended MTN for its belief in the Ghana market and for expanding its investments over the past 25years. He reiterated his commitment to protect and support MTN’s operations in Ghana especially its request for spectrum to enhance its operations. The Group CEO and his team of executives paid similar courtesy calls on other stakeholders to interact and discuss issues of mutual interest. He called on the South African High Commissioner to Ghana, H.E. Grace Jeanet Mason, Member of MTN Group’s International Advisory Committee and the former President of Ghana, Ex-President John Agyekum Kufuor. Ralph Mupita also had meetings with the Minister of Communication and Digitalization, Ursula Owusu Ekuful and the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori Atta. The Group CEO and his team also met the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, the Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah and the Managing Director of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), Mr. Ekow Afedzi Mr. Mupita was accompanied by the Vice President for West and Central Africa Region(WECA), Mr. Ebenezer Twum Asante, Samuel Addo, Chief Enterprise Business Officer representing Selorm Adadevoh, Chief Executive Officer and Samuel Koranteng, Chief Corporate Services Officer. Ralph Mupita’s visit to Ghana is the third since he assumed office as Group CEO in September 2020. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
TRENDING: Serious fight between 2 TV pundits over Twene Jonas’ attack on Otumfuo (WATCH VIDEO)
A figgt broke out between two pundits in a television studio during a discussion about Twene Jonas. The fight happened between Kofi Boakye, the Asante guy who poured libation to the gods whiles using eggs to curse Twene Jonas for insulting Otumfuo and Junior Obofour. Junior Obofour, though not a fan of Twene Jonas, he sees Kofi Boakye and others cursing the USA Ghanaian vlogger as hypocrites because these same people were hailing him when he was insulting political leaders. According to Junior Obofour, Twene Jonas have been insulting from day one and people supported his insulting style so why are these same people angry just because he’s extended the insults to their favorite leaders. He then accused those invoking curses on Twene Jonas of not respecting Otumfuo because the king has banned curses on his land. The banter between the two got heated to the extent that Kofi Boakye removed him shirt to fight Junior Obofour in the studios of Adepa Tv. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
Bremang galamsey pit consumed 3; about 15 others still trapped
According to information, three people are feared dead after they were trapped in an illegal mining pit in Bremang in the Upper Denkyira West District of the Central region. Fifteen more suspected galamseyers are still trapped in the pit, as rescuers race against time to save them. Two others were pulled out of the pit but are in critical condition and have been rushed to the hospital for treatment. A team of police and officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) is currently at the mining site helping to rescue the trapped miners. The government recently intensified its fight against illegal mining in the country. A task force called Operation Halt has been sent to mining areas to arrest all culprits and destroy their mining equipment with which they prospect for gold in the country’s water bodies and forest reserves. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
Must you remove us from EU-funded farm access road projects? Sissala chiefs petition Roads Minister
The Chiefs and people of four districts in the Upper West Region have petitioned the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, over their exclusion from a €35 million European Union (EU) farm access roads project. The districts affected are Wa East, Sissala East, Sissala West and Lambussie. Community members in the districts on Monday held a demonstration to protest what they say was their neglect despite being major sources of agriculture production in the region. According to them, the bad state of the road infrastructure in the communities and their subsequent sidelining from the projects will deprive them of economic development particularly when they are high agricultural production areas in the region. “It is our firm belief that the programme is aimed at improving inter-connectivity between areas of production of Agricultural crops and market centres in the Upper West Region. That being the case, our respective communities should have been given priority too. The reasons are not difficult to appreciate”, portions of the petition read. The government of Ghana, the World Bank, and the European Union broke grounds for the project which was aimed at granting support for “improving inter-connectivity between areas of production and market centres”. But the disturbed residents simply put it that, their exclusion from the programme is unfair and inequitable “We therefore hereby petition your high office for urgent response to our grievances regarding the total exclusion of the above-aforementioned farming districts from the benefits of the EU funded Farm Access Roads that was launched on Tuesday 18th of May 2021, at Kpongu in the Wa Municipality”, the petition added. The Chiefs and farmers in the districts have for far too long complained to successive governments and development partners about the total neglect of the deplorable and almost non-existent farm access road network in the farming districts. This they say has denied the poor farmers access to market centres which have the potential of worsening household incomes from farm produce and contribute to the widening the poverty gap. Subsequently, they are making the following five urgent demands: We hereby demand on the principle of transparency and accountability, that the Ministry of Roads and Highways should publish the selection criteria that formed the basis for the inclusion or exclusion of beneficiary districts under the EU funded 670 km farm access roads project. We further demand that in the spirit of fairness, social justice and non-discrimination which are cardinal principles in the Ghanaian Constitution and values shared by the EU, a re-prioritization and selection of the farm access roads be done based on production levels and severity of need. Alternatively, we further demand that the Ministry of Roads and Highways should immediately find additional resources to create, rehabilitate and maintain the abandoned farm access roads in the four aforementioned excluded farming districts under the EU funded project. We wish to state emphatically that this petition is not against any district benefiting from the EU Funded Farm Access Roads Project. We are demanding fairness, equity, social justice and non-discrimination in the selection, allocation and distribution of development projects (roads). We wish to mention herein that a framework to resolve the issues mentioned herein has been attached for stakeholders study. It is our hope that in the shortest possible time, our grievances would be attended to for an amicable solution to be reached to further calm aggrieved youth and focused groups likely to advise themselves otherwise should they not behold remedies forthcoming. The EU-funded feeder roads project The government of Ghana received a grant of €35 million from the European Union for the rehabilitation and maintenance of 670 km of feeder and farm access roads in the Upper West Region. The financial support is aimed at improving inter-connectivity between areas of production and marketplaces. In a joint statement released by the Ministry of Roads and Highways and the European Union, the sector minister, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, noted that the support falls in line with the government’s vision to provide a better transportation system for farming communities. The grant comes under the larger EUR €160 million European Union-Ghana Agricultural Programme (EU-GAP) to develop sustainable agriculture in the Upper West Region. The roads are organized in three packages, as follows: 1. Wa Municipal, Wa West, Nadowli-Kaleo (235 km) 2. Jirapa, Lawra, Daffiama-Bussie (210 km) 3. Nandom and Lambussie-Karni (225 km) This intervention aims at improving inter-connectivity between areas of production and marketplaces in the Upper West Region. The objective is to reduce the travel time on these sections of roads, promote road safety, and strengthen at the same time the institutional management of the transport sector. The feeder roads are commissioned under Output and Performance-Based Road Contracts (OPBRC) managed by the Department of Feeder Roads under the Ministry of Roads and Highways. To maximise the support intervention, the EU funding is administered under a Trust Fund administered by the World Bank as part of the Transport Sector Improvement Project’ (TSIP), which finances a larger national transport programme. Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
George Floyd murder: Teen who recorded still traumatized one year later
The teenager who recorded George Floyd’s murder under Derek Chauvin’s knee is reflecting on her year since witnessing the murder … and says she still bears the weight of that traumatic moment. 18-year-old Darnella Frazier just shared a ton of insight on what her life’s been like since seeing Floyd’s life taken from him, and she says witnessing his murder changed her forever. Darnella, who was 17 when she whipped out her phone to record the fatal arrest, says the incident changed how she viewed life … explaining “it made me realize how dangerous it is to be Black in America.” Darnella says a part of her childhood was taken from her while watching Floyd’s death, just like it was for her 9-year old cousin, who was with her during what they thought would be a normal walk to the corner store. After her video went viral, Darnella says she had to move away from her home because it was no longer safe, and she couldn’t sleep for weeks … often waking up shaking until her mom rocked her to sleep. She also says she still suffers panic and anxiety attacks when she sees police cars. While some people hail Darnella as a hero for capturing the video which played a huge role in convicting Chauvin … she doesn’t think she’s a hero, and says she was just in the right place at the right time. She says she’s still trying to heal, but she’s proud of her resilience in the face of such a traumatic, life-changing experience. Darnella ended her thoughts with a message to George … “I can’t express enough how I wish things could have went different, but I want you to know you will always be in my heart. I’ll always remember this day because of you. May your soul rest in peace.” TMZ Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
MMDCE,s must be innovative–Dr Eric Oduro Osae
Dr Eric Oduro Osae a Local Governance Analyst, has advised Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) to be creative in order to bring development in their local areas. For some period, over 1,000 people have put themselves forward to be vetted for MMDCE positions for the less than 300 local government authorities across the country. However, according to Dr. Oduro Osae, MMDCE, s lack of innovation is part of the reason development isn’t found in most areas. Stressing that MMDCE, s needs to be more innovative when given the opportunity “The problem, from where I sit, is the inability of the Chief Executives to manage the assemblies. When you look into the local governance laws of the country, the sources of revenue to finance the activities of the district assemblies are internal and external. The Chief Executives are expected to mobilize up to about 60% of their budget. That way, in instances where the 40% from the government does not come in, the Chief Executives will be able to think outside the box and mobilize the appropriate revenue.” “Mobilizing the revenue is different from using the revenue for the benefit of the people in the assembly’s area of jurisdiction. One other challenge I have also come to realize is that, even when they are not able to mobilize as much as they are expected to, the little they get does not go into the development projects that the citizens will benefit from. They mobilize little, and yet spend it on recurrent expenditure, which does not directly benefit the people,” he added. “It is better to be given a smaller jurisdiction to manage, that way, you can better manage it with the given resources. Besides, the common fund has not reduced. The Metropolitan areas get more common Fund than even the municipalities. I think that it all comes down to leadership.” Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093
European Commission sues AstraZeneca for Covid-19 vaccine delays
Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca was in court Wednesday, facing the European Commission, which says the company did not honour its contracts to deliver Covid-19 vaccination doses, and slowed European inoculation campaigns The Commission, which is responsible for procuring vaccinations for the entire EU, is suing AstraZeneca to force it to deliver 90 million more doses of its Covid-19 vaccine before July, and face financial penalties for not delivering on a mid-June deadline. In the first quarter of 2021, AstraZeneca delivered only 30 million doses, out of the 120 million it agreed to supply to the EU. For the current quarter, which runs until June 30, the company plans to deliver only 70 million of the 180 million in the contract. EU lawyer Rafael Jafferali told the court Wednesday that the company expects to deliver the full 300 million doses by the end of December – a delay which is “obviously a failure.” The Commission argues the company should have used all of its production sites to supply the EU, but instead it favoured the United Kingdom, by not exporting doses produced at its two UK-based plants. AstraZeneca says it has fully complied with its contract with the EU, and has argued it made its best effort to deliver vaccines on time, despite difficulties in manufacturing. It said it had warned the EU had about delays as early as February. Lawyers for the company will address the court later Wednesday. Shifting away from AstraZeneca The Commission had intended to use the AstraZeneca vaccine as a pillar of its vaccination campaign. Now it has shifted its focus to the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine. Now that there are more than 2.5 billion vaccine doses from various manufacturers in Europe, the Commission might find it difficult to prove the urgency of its case against AstraZeneca. Lawyers for both sides will argue their cases Wednesday in a court in Brussels, as the contract was signed in Belgium. Another hearing is scheduled for Friday, with a judgment to be delivered at a future date that has not been announced. In addition to the emergency action, the Commission has started the process to claim for damages, though a hearing has not yet been set by the court. RFI Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 05555568093