Page 11
08-05-09
A DEPUTY National Coordinator of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP), Mrs Mary Ansong, says efforts are being made to eradicate the obstacles that hinder the smooth operations of the programme.
“We of the national secretariat shall continue to engage and monitor stakeholders and work to eradicate some of the obstacles that impede the smoothness of our collaboration so that we can accelerate the delivery of our responsibilities,” she said.
Mrs Asong said this in reaction to a report by SEND Ghana, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), that the school feeding programme was facing serious challenges.
The NGO, in its findings painted a gloomy picture of the programme, adding that for instance, 61 per cent of beneficiary schools did not have good kitchen structures, a situation it said, adversely affected the maintenance of hygienic environment for the preparation of food.
It also revealed that about 78 per cent of the schools did not have adequate plates and cups, resulting in eating in turns which led finally to prolonged lunch breaks.
It revealed that about 43 per cent of the schools lacked access to safe water which compelled pupils to trek for water to support the feeding programme.
Supervisory inspection in about 96 per cent of schools did not focus on any health related service or adherence to health standards in the feeding programme but mainly on getting pupils fed, the study showed.
In terms of agricultural services, 91 per cent of schools indicated during the study that foodstuffs were not obtained directly from farmers in the beneficiary districts.
Mrs Ansong said the challenges of the programme were enormous and that its achievements over the past three years could also not be shielded.
"I wish to state that the challenges of this programme as envisaged in all other interventions over a three year period of implementation cannot be substituted for complete failure, and the drumming of message of despair in a section of the report has, in my opinion, been over elaborated," she said.
Although she admitted there were problems with the report, she said, "the GSFP cannot be insulated from acute inter-sectoral challenges in terms of participation and performances.
Mrs Ansong said in a similar monitoring or inventory carried out by SNV last year, it came out that the programme had helped to reduce the trafficking of children from Tehey/Caesarkope in the Dangbe East District of the Greater Accra Region to Yeji in the Brong Ahafo for fishing.
"We must be pleased with some gains recorded in some deprived districts as confirmed in the report. We must be pleased with the situation of Daa Naa, a pupil of Pina Primary School in the Sisala District who has recovered from his protein deficiency sickness., after benefiting from the programme," she said.
She said most deprived district assemblies were able to mobilise funds as in the case of Sisala East to build well purpose kitchens for the beneficiary schools, and indicated that there was the need to be pleased with districts that had commissioned Body Mass Index (BMI) exercises and deworming of the pupils without waiting for funds from the national secretariat.
Mrs Ansong said in a particular case it was overwhelming to note that the chiefs and people of Pina carried out deworming and BMI exercises regularly, saying that the national secretariat would continue to remind collaborating ministries of their responsibilities and engage them properly so that the needed resources and attention would be found for the programme.
Friday, May 8, 2009
106 students Had No Assessment Records
Page 11
08-05-09
ALL the 106 Junior High School students of Christ the King International School in Kumasi who were not registered by their school to write this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) did not have continuous assessment records.
Continuous assessment of students is done over a period of three years, hence if the candidates had been allowed to write the examinations, they would not have met the criteria for the award of West African Examinations Council (WAEC) certificates.
In view of this, the Ghana Education Service (GES) has put in place arrangements for the candidates to re-sit the BECE, by filling the resit registration forms in their former schools where their continuous assessments could be obtained.
A report on the response of the GES, made available to the Daily Graphic on the public outcry over the inability of the affected students to write their BECE said these measures were part of efforts by the GES to make the students write their examination next year.
The report said investigations carried out by the GES revealed that “almost all the candidates were either re-sitters or form two pupils, who by the WAEC regulations did not qualify to write the examination, but wanted to write it without going through JHS Three.”
“In addition to these complications, it said, the affected candidates had not been captured in the computer software for re-selection of schools which was done a few days before the commencement of the 2008/2009 BECE, and that even if they had qualified for selection and placement, their data would not have been captured for the computerised placement into senior high schools.
The document said although the GES could not be held responsible for illegal acts committed by unscrupulous individuals who acted outside the laws and regulations of the service, it was “very much alive to its responsibilities to protect the rights of children”.
Each of the 106 pupils had been asked to look for a school of their choice and inform the Metropolitan Director of Education to assist them to gain admission to prepare them for the 2009/10 BECE examinations.
In a brief background of the school, it said, the Christ the King International School was established and given approval in 1987 with registration number AR/KM/17/PR/J007, and that the first batch of the then junior secondary school (JSS) students wrote the BECE in 1990.
During the 2007/08 BECE registration for instance, the report said the Metropolitan Directorate registered candidates of the School, but the proprietor delayed in paying registration fees for the students.
“The Metropolitan Examinations Coordinator and a team therefore visited the school to ascertain why the school could not pay the registration fees for the students. It was detected that the whole school had folded up, leaving only the JHS students as their last batch of students who had to be registered for the 2007/2008 BECE examinations,” the report said.
The document said in order not to jeopardise the future of the children by the school’s inability to pay their registration fees therefore, the Metropolitan Education Office came to the aid of the school by paying the BECE registration fees for the students which the proprietor refunded on April 18, 2008 and receipt duly issued.
It said when the Metropolitan Directorate of Education requested for the enrolment figures for all JHS Two pupils in the Kumasi metropolis in respect of the 2008/2009 BECE registration, the school did not submit any enrolment figures for registration.
This was expected because the school did not have any pupils in JHS Two because it had already registered its last batch of JHS Three students the previous year, the report explained, adding that as a result, the name of the school did not appear on the 2008/2009 list sent to the WAEC head office in Accra, resulting in the school not receiving any centre number in respect of the examination.
Upon hearing of the predicament of the 106 pupils, it said, the Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, directed the GES to do everything possible to enable the affected candidates to write the examination.
The report said it was at a meeting with the WAEC Branch Controller in Kumasi that it was detected that WAEC did not have any data on the 106 candidates, and that “it was impossible to organise the necessary logistics for a possible quarantine of the candidates because of the time frame and the number of candidates involved”.
“It was at this juncture that our enquiry revealed that the school had folded up and been de-recognised the previous year. What the proprietor sought to do was to organise registration for candidates from different remedial schools in the Kumasi Metropolis to enable them write the examination in his school when the school had no centre number for the 2008/2009 examinations” the document stated.
It said the Ministry of Education had guidelines for the setting up of private schools, and charged proprietors to satisfy the guidelines before applying for GES certificate of registration.
08-05-09
ALL the 106 Junior High School students of Christ the King International School in Kumasi who were not registered by their school to write this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) did not have continuous assessment records.
Continuous assessment of students is done over a period of three years, hence if the candidates had been allowed to write the examinations, they would not have met the criteria for the award of West African Examinations Council (WAEC) certificates.
In view of this, the Ghana Education Service (GES) has put in place arrangements for the candidates to re-sit the BECE, by filling the resit registration forms in their former schools where their continuous assessments could be obtained.
A report on the response of the GES, made available to the Daily Graphic on the public outcry over the inability of the affected students to write their BECE said these measures were part of efforts by the GES to make the students write their examination next year.
The report said investigations carried out by the GES revealed that “almost all the candidates were either re-sitters or form two pupils, who by the WAEC regulations did not qualify to write the examination, but wanted to write it without going through JHS Three.”
“In addition to these complications, it said, the affected candidates had not been captured in the computer software for re-selection of schools which was done a few days before the commencement of the 2008/2009 BECE, and that even if they had qualified for selection and placement, their data would not have been captured for the computerised placement into senior high schools.
The document said although the GES could not be held responsible for illegal acts committed by unscrupulous individuals who acted outside the laws and regulations of the service, it was “very much alive to its responsibilities to protect the rights of children”.
Each of the 106 pupils had been asked to look for a school of their choice and inform the Metropolitan Director of Education to assist them to gain admission to prepare them for the 2009/10 BECE examinations.
In a brief background of the school, it said, the Christ the King International School was established and given approval in 1987 with registration number AR/KM/17/PR/J007, and that the first batch of the then junior secondary school (JSS) students wrote the BECE in 1990.
During the 2007/08 BECE registration for instance, the report said the Metropolitan Directorate registered candidates of the School, but the proprietor delayed in paying registration fees for the students.
“The Metropolitan Examinations Coordinator and a team therefore visited the school to ascertain why the school could not pay the registration fees for the students. It was detected that the whole school had folded up, leaving only the JHS students as their last batch of students who had to be registered for the 2007/2008 BECE examinations,” the report said.
The document said in order not to jeopardise the future of the children by the school’s inability to pay their registration fees therefore, the Metropolitan Education Office came to the aid of the school by paying the BECE registration fees for the students which the proprietor refunded on April 18, 2008 and receipt duly issued.
It said when the Metropolitan Directorate of Education requested for the enrolment figures for all JHS Two pupils in the Kumasi metropolis in respect of the 2008/2009 BECE registration, the school did not submit any enrolment figures for registration.
This was expected because the school did not have any pupils in JHS Two because it had already registered its last batch of JHS Three students the previous year, the report explained, adding that as a result, the name of the school did not appear on the 2008/2009 list sent to the WAEC head office in Accra, resulting in the school not receiving any centre number in respect of the examination.
Upon hearing of the predicament of the 106 pupils, it said, the Minister of Education, Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, directed the GES to do everything possible to enable the affected candidates to write the examination.
The report said it was at a meeting with the WAEC Branch Controller in Kumasi that it was detected that WAEC did not have any data on the 106 candidates, and that “it was impossible to organise the necessary logistics for a possible quarantine of the candidates because of the time frame and the number of candidates involved”.
“It was at this juncture that our enquiry revealed that the school had folded up and been de-recognised the previous year. What the proprietor sought to do was to organise registration for candidates from different remedial schools in the Kumasi Metropolis to enable them write the examination in his school when the school had no centre number for the 2008/2009 examinations” the document stated.
It said the Ministry of Education had guidelines for the setting up of private schools, and charged proprietors to satisfy the guidelines before applying for GES certificate of registration.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
'Focus on Unity'
Spread
04-05-09
THE Central Regional Minister, Ms Ama Benyinwa-Doe, has called on the chiefs and people of the Effutu Traditional Area to make the perennial skirmishes that characterise the annual Aboakyer festival a thing of the past.
She said the people should focus more on the things that united them rather than those that divided them.
According to her, no tourist, whether foreign or local, would go to a “volatile environment where his or her personal safety can only be guaranteed by the massive presence of security personnel”.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe made the call last Saturday at a grand durbar to celebrate this year’s Aboakyer festival of the chiefs and people of Winneba in the Central Region.
The event was peaceful with adequate police presence to ensure law and order. The Tuafo Number One Asafo Company which went to hunt for deer, the traditional animal used for the festival, arrived at the durbar grounds with a live deer at about 9 a.m.
Amidst jubilation, members of the company in white attire, presented the deer which was carried shoulder high to the Effutu Oma Odefe, Neenyi Ghartey VII, who stepped on it three times to signify acceptance.
The rival Asafo company, Dentseifo Number Two, had about an hour earlier made a catch of a live deer. But members, clad in red attires and also carrying the animal shoulder high, did not send the animal to the durbar grounds for it to be stepped on by the Omanhen as tradition demanded, but went on a procession through the streets. Some of them told newsmen that they did not recognise Neenyi Ghartey as chief of the area.
Earlier on Friday, the two Asafo companies clashed resulting in some of them sustaining injuries. They were rushed to the Winneba Government Hospital where they were treated and discharged. Hospital authorities said most of the victims sustained injuries on their heads as a result of stones thrown between members of the two groups.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe said the festival was important because of its potential to serve as a watershed to place the tourism industry in its proper place as a major source of foreign exchange and employment avenue for the unemployed.
She underscored the need for parents to prepare their children well for the challenges ahead by taking advantage of the numerous educational institutions in the region. She expressed concern about the poor performance of children from the region in last year’s Basic Educational Certificate Examination (BECE), adding that the performance of the candidates “must be a source of worry” to all.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe told the people that the government would embark on a number of programmes to improve their lives.
“Let me assure you that the government is fully aware of the plight of our farmers and fishermen in this region and will spare no effort to live up to its policy of putting in place appropriate measures to bring about the needed change we all yearn for,” she said.
The Minister of Transportation and Member of Parliament for the Effutu Constituency, Mr Mike Hammah, said the government had begun an initiative through which the country would export maritime labour.
He said currently, there was a shortage of seamen round the world, especially in the developed world and that the government would take advantage of this to train people and ‘export’ them to foreign countries through bilateral arrangements.
A committee to develop the rules and relations through which such an initiative would be carried out had been set up to that effect as part of efforts to create job opportunities for the youth.
He told the people that a street lighting project was underway in the area, and advised the youth against drug abuse, teenage pregnancy and HIV/AIDS and other diseases.
Mr Hammah said the government was sourcing funds to build a harbour in the area, adding that there were plans to build another hospital to reduce the pressure on the main hospital as well as a market.
He deplored the recent spate of road accidents which he said were mainly due to human errors, and indicated that the government was putting in place the right structures to ensure sanity on the roads.
He appealed to the factions in the town to bury their differences since without that the area could not be developed.
Neenyi Ghartey, for his part, appealed for support from the government and other public-spirited organisations and individuals to complete the town’s library project.
He said the library was vital to the education of the youth and that the chiefs and people of the area would contribute their quota to ensure that the country was developed through the promotion of peace and other development activities.
04-05-09
THE Central Regional Minister, Ms Ama Benyinwa-Doe, has called on the chiefs and people of the Effutu Traditional Area to make the perennial skirmishes that characterise the annual Aboakyer festival a thing of the past.
She said the people should focus more on the things that united them rather than those that divided them.
According to her, no tourist, whether foreign or local, would go to a “volatile environment where his or her personal safety can only be guaranteed by the massive presence of security personnel”.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe made the call last Saturday at a grand durbar to celebrate this year’s Aboakyer festival of the chiefs and people of Winneba in the Central Region.
The event was peaceful with adequate police presence to ensure law and order. The Tuafo Number One Asafo Company which went to hunt for deer, the traditional animal used for the festival, arrived at the durbar grounds with a live deer at about 9 a.m.
Amidst jubilation, members of the company in white attire, presented the deer which was carried shoulder high to the Effutu Oma Odefe, Neenyi Ghartey VII, who stepped on it three times to signify acceptance.
The rival Asafo company, Dentseifo Number Two, had about an hour earlier made a catch of a live deer. But members, clad in red attires and also carrying the animal shoulder high, did not send the animal to the durbar grounds for it to be stepped on by the Omanhen as tradition demanded, but went on a procession through the streets. Some of them told newsmen that they did not recognise Neenyi Ghartey as chief of the area.
Earlier on Friday, the two Asafo companies clashed resulting in some of them sustaining injuries. They were rushed to the Winneba Government Hospital where they were treated and discharged. Hospital authorities said most of the victims sustained injuries on their heads as a result of stones thrown between members of the two groups.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe said the festival was important because of its potential to serve as a watershed to place the tourism industry in its proper place as a major source of foreign exchange and employment avenue for the unemployed.
She underscored the need for parents to prepare their children well for the challenges ahead by taking advantage of the numerous educational institutions in the region. She expressed concern about the poor performance of children from the region in last year’s Basic Educational Certificate Examination (BECE), adding that the performance of the candidates “must be a source of worry” to all.
Ms Benyinwa-Doe told the people that the government would embark on a number of programmes to improve their lives.
“Let me assure you that the government is fully aware of the plight of our farmers and fishermen in this region and will spare no effort to live up to its policy of putting in place appropriate measures to bring about the needed change we all yearn for,” she said.
The Minister of Transportation and Member of Parliament for the Effutu Constituency, Mr Mike Hammah, said the government had begun an initiative through which the country would export maritime labour.
He said currently, there was a shortage of seamen round the world, especially in the developed world and that the government would take advantage of this to train people and ‘export’ them to foreign countries through bilateral arrangements.
A committee to develop the rules and relations through which such an initiative would be carried out had been set up to that effect as part of efforts to create job opportunities for the youth.
He told the people that a street lighting project was underway in the area, and advised the youth against drug abuse, teenage pregnancy and HIV/AIDS and other diseases.
Mr Hammah said the government was sourcing funds to build a harbour in the area, adding that there were plans to build another hospital to reduce the pressure on the main hospital as well as a market.
He deplored the recent spate of road accidents which he said were mainly due to human errors, and indicated that the government was putting in place the right structures to ensure sanity on the roads.
He appealed to the factions in the town to bury their differences since without that the area could not be developed.
Neenyi Ghartey, for his part, appealed for support from the government and other public-spirited organisations and individuals to complete the town’s library project.
He said the library was vital to the education of the youth and that the chiefs and people of the area would contribute their quota to ensure that the country was developed through the promotion of peace and other development activities.
Bear With Gov't-Health Minister urges doctors
Front Page Lead
05-05-09
THE Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, has appealed to doctors and health workers to bear with the government as it takes steps to address their grievances.
He said the government had inherited a number of problems in the sector, and that it had initiated moves to address such problems.
He said they should apply the tool of negotiations in whatever problem they had with their authorities and not resort to strikes, since that would be unfair to the taxpayer who helped to train them.
Dr Yankey made the call yesterday at the opening of a three-day orientation for 76 House Officers at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra. They comprised 66 medical doctors and 10 dental surgeons.
He reminded the doctors of their Hippocratic Oath, taken by the recently qualified doctors, pledging to follow the standards set by their profession and try to preserve life by making the patient their first port of call in their line of activities, adding that they should always be a blessing to others.
He said the government would do everything possible to ensure that the right environment was created to enable doctors to carry out their duties.
Dr Yankey said, for instance, that health facilities would be upgraded, expanded and equipped as part of the process to make the work of a doctor comfortable.
“We have a vision to develop the health sector and bring it closer to what pertains in Europe and America. We have the people who can provide the same care that people get abroad,” he said, saying that what made doctors’ work difficult was a lack of facilities and tools to work with.
He said doctors should endeavour to discuss the problems they had with the appropriate authorities.
Dr Yankey indicated that the government wanted to make the country a medical tourist centre in Africa, and called for the co-operation of doctors and other health workers to ensure that that dream come true.
“Nobody can derail our efforts to improve the health sector. In the next three or four years, people would see an improved health sector,” he emphasised, and indicated that, “I would do everything possible to ensure that”.
He called on doctors who embarked on a strike in Kumasi to call off their industrial action as arrangements had been made to address their problems, including the payment of salary arrears.
Dr Yankey said the ministry would start meeting the executive of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) to continue with negotiations and discussions on issues related to delayed salaries and conditions of service, among other things.
He urged doctors to accept postings to rural areas, since the government was committed to providing every area with health facilities.
He also commended the doctors for going through their training successfully and entreated them to apply the same discipline that they adopted in school.
The acting Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr Ben Annan, said the orientation programme was being held to let the House Officers be aware of their dos and don’ts.
He said they (House Officers) were starting at the time their seniors were completing, adding that the overlap would be continued to ensure better transition and health care.
05-05-09
THE Minister of Health, Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey, has appealed to doctors and health workers to bear with the government as it takes steps to address their grievances.
He said the government had inherited a number of problems in the sector, and that it had initiated moves to address such problems.
He said they should apply the tool of negotiations in whatever problem they had with their authorities and not resort to strikes, since that would be unfair to the taxpayer who helped to train them.
Dr Yankey made the call yesterday at the opening of a three-day orientation for 76 House Officers at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra. They comprised 66 medical doctors and 10 dental surgeons.
He reminded the doctors of their Hippocratic Oath, taken by the recently qualified doctors, pledging to follow the standards set by their profession and try to preserve life by making the patient their first port of call in their line of activities, adding that they should always be a blessing to others.
He said the government would do everything possible to ensure that the right environment was created to enable doctors to carry out their duties.
Dr Yankey said, for instance, that health facilities would be upgraded, expanded and equipped as part of the process to make the work of a doctor comfortable.
“We have a vision to develop the health sector and bring it closer to what pertains in Europe and America. We have the people who can provide the same care that people get abroad,” he said, saying that what made doctors’ work difficult was a lack of facilities and tools to work with.
He said doctors should endeavour to discuss the problems they had with the appropriate authorities.
Dr Yankey indicated that the government wanted to make the country a medical tourist centre in Africa, and called for the co-operation of doctors and other health workers to ensure that that dream come true.
“Nobody can derail our efforts to improve the health sector. In the next three or four years, people would see an improved health sector,” he emphasised, and indicated that, “I would do everything possible to ensure that”.
He called on doctors who embarked on a strike in Kumasi to call off their industrial action as arrangements had been made to address their problems, including the payment of salary arrears.
Dr Yankey said the ministry would start meeting the executive of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) to continue with negotiations and discussions on issues related to delayed salaries and conditions of service, among other things.
He urged doctors to accept postings to rural areas, since the government was committed to providing every area with health facilities.
He also commended the doctors for going through their training successfully and entreated them to apply the same discipline that they adopted in school.
The acting Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr Ben Annan, said the orientation programme was being held to let the House Officers be aware of their dos and don’ts.
He said they (House Officers) were starting at the time their seniors were completing, adding that the overlap would be continued to ensure better transition and health care.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Ghana's GDP up by 7.3 per cent
Spread
March 1, 2009
GHANA’S Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 7.3 per cent last year, according to the latest figures released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
In monetary terms, this represents GH¢795.1 million from the previous year’s quantum of GH¢741.2 million.
The gross domestic product is the total value of final goods and services produced in the country during the period.
Announcing the revised GDP growth rate for 2008 at a press conference in Accra yesterday, the Head of the Economics Department at the GSS, Mr Magnus Ebo Duncan, said the services sector recorded the highest growth rate of 9.3 per cent followed by the industry sector with 8.1 per cent and the agriculture sector, 5.1 per cent.
According to him, the services sector share of total GDP was 31.81 per cent, 1.78 percentage points below that of the agriculture subsector.
“All the subsectors grew more than eight per cent, except community, social and personal service and producers of private non-profit services. Wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants subsector recorded the highest growth of 10.16 per cent followed by government services subsector (9.7 per cent),” he said, and added that all estimates for the subsectors would be reviewed.
Mr Duncan said the industry sector share of total GDP was 25.89 per cent, and that the mining and quarrying subsector grew by 2.11 per cent.
Gold, he said, recorded increase in output while all other minerals (manganese, bauxite and diamond) recorded negative growth, explaining that the electricity subsector recovered from a negative growth in 2007 to record an increase of 19.42 per cent in 2008.
He said the manufacturing subsector, which had a negative growth in 2007, grew by 4.53 per cent, and that “further estimates of this subsector will be undertaken as more information is received”. He said growth in the construction subsector was 12 per cent and that this was also subject to revision.
With regard to agriculture, Mr Duncan said the sector continued to dominate the economy with a 33.59 per cent share of total GDP, and that the growth of 5.1 per cent was driven by crops and the livestock subsector, which grew by 5.82 per cent.
Good rainfall pattern, he said, coupled with increase in area under cultivation and use of improved seeds led to increase in output of the crops subsector.
Mr Duncan said the provisional figures for the other subsectors had not been revised, and were, therefore, subject to change when the full data were available.
He said the final growth rate for the period under review would be released in April next year when all the other data that were yet to be submitted were provided, adding that the data available and used were between 60 and 70 per cent of the total needed.
He said GSS had planned to undertake a number of initiatives including releasing quarterly GDP.
The Government Statistician, Dr Grace Bediako, said in GDP compilations, the GSS depended on others — public and private financial and administrative institutions — to fulfil the requirements of the GDP estimation process.
“The major setback at every stage of the estimation is due to delays in reporting for some institutions and non-responses from others,” she said, adding, “Our ability to adequately report of these statistics and the amount of data sources covered at each successive stage is dependent on the co-operation of many of the agencies.”
She, therefore, urged institutions and organisations to supply their data on time.
She said the GSS had over the past five years embarked on a programme to revitalise the national statistical system and the production and dissemination of stastics, and that “this has entailed the introduction of a number of products and services to enhance the effectiveness of decision-making at all levels”.
Dr Bediako said the service had committed itself to promoting change that should enhance the management and performance of the system, among other things.
She said a strategic plan, the Ghana Statistics Development Plan (GSDP), was developed and launched last year to provide a framework for systematically tackling the most pressing problems confronting the national system.
“The plan recognises the actual and potential contributions of the data-producing partners of the statistical system and deals with the issues regarding collective and institutional capacities,” she said.
March 1, 2009
GHANA’S Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 7.3 per cent last year, according to the latest figures released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
In monetary terms, this represents GH¢795.1 million from the previous year’s quantum of GH¢741.2 million.
The gross domestic product is the total value of final goods and services produced in the country during the period.
Announcing the revised GDP growth rate for 2008 at a press conference in Accra yesterday, the Head of the Economics Department at the GSS, Mr Magnus Ebo Duncan, said the services sector recorded the highest growth rate of 9.3 per cent followed by the industry sector with 8.1 per cent and the agriculture sector, 5.1 per cent.
According to him, the services sector share of total GDP was 31.81 per cent, 1.78 percentage points below that of the agriculture subsector.
“All the subsectors grew more than eight per cent, except community, social and personal service and producers of private non-profit services. Wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants subsector recorded the highest growth of 10.16 per cent followed by government services subsector (9.7 per cent),” he said, and added that all estimates for the subsectors would be reviewed.
Mr Duncan said the industry sector share of total GDP was 25.89 per cent, and that the mining and quarrying subsector grew by 2.11 per cent.
Gold, he said, recorded increase in output while all other minerals (manganese, bauxite and diamond) recorded negative growth, explaining that the electricity subsector recovered from a negative growth in 2007 to record an increase of 19.42 per cent in 2008.
He said the manufacturing subsector, which had a negative growth in 2007, grew by 4.53 per cent, and that “further estimates of this subsector will be undertaken as more information is received”. He said growth in the construction subsector was 12 per cent and that this was also subject to revision.
With regard to agriculture, Mr Duncan said the sector continued to dominate the economy with a 33.59 per cent share of total GDP, and that the growth of 5.1 per cent was driven by crops and the livestock subsector, which grew by 5.82 per cent.
Good rainfall pattern, he said, coupled with increase in area under cultivation and use of improved seeds led to increase in output of the crops subsector.
Mr Duncan said the provisional figures for the other subsectors had not been revised, and were, therefore, subject to change when the full data were available.
He said the final growth rate for the period under review would be released in April next year when all the other data that were yet to be submitted were provided, adding that the data available and used were between 60 and 70 per cent of the total needed.
He said GSS had planned to undertake a number of initiatives including releasing quarterly GDP.
The Government Statistician, Dr Grace Bediako, said in GDP compilations, the GSS depended on others — public and private financial and administrative institutions — to fulfil the requirements of the GDP estimation process.
“The major setback at every stage of the estimation is due to delays in reporting for some institutions and non-responses from others,” she said, adding, “Our ability to adequately report of these statistics and the amount of data sources covered at each successive stage is dependent on the co-operation of many of the agencies.”
She, therefore, urged institutions and organisations to supply their data on time.
She said the GSS had over the past five years embarked on a programme to revitalise the national statistical system and the production and dissemination of stastics, and that “this has entailed the introduction of a number of products and services to enhance the effectiveness of decision-making at all levels”.
Dr Bediako said the service had committed itself to promoting change that should enhance the management and performance of the system, among other things.
She said a strategic plan, the Ghana Statistics Development Plan (GSDP), was developed and launched last year to provide a framework for systematically tackling the most pressing problems confronting the national system.
“The plan recognises the actual and potential contributions of the data-producing partners of the statistical system and deals with the issues regarding collective and institutional capacities,” she said.
3 former appointees respond to ultimatum
Page 3
May 1, 2009
THREE former government appointees in the Kufuor administration have responded to the government’s ultimatum to them to return state vehicles in their possession.
They are Mr Andrew Awuni, Press Secretary to former President J.A. Kufuor, Alhaji Abubakar Siddique Boniface, former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, and the former Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hikah-Benson.
Mr Awuni, whose name was not on the list of ex-appointees named at a press conference on Wednesday, returned a Toyota Avensis vehicle in his possession yesterday, while Mr Saddique returned his Peugeot 607 vehicle. Mr Hikah-Benson, for his part, had discussions with the government indicating that he would return his car at a later date.
A Deputy Minister of Information, Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, disclosed this to the Daily Graphic yesterday.
He commended Messrs Awuni and Saddique for responding to the government’s call and appealed to other former appointees who fell in the same category to endeavour to do the same.
“We encourage their other colleagues who are yet to respond to our call to emulate their example,” he said.
Mr Okudzeto-Ablakwa said if Mr Awuni, whose name was not on the list, had returned his car, then “it means that the list with ex-appointees with state vehicles might not be exhaustive”.
He said about 52 people in the former administration who applied to buy their vehicles still had them in their possession, even though they had not been given permission to do so before they left office.
He said the cars were needed, since some ministers and deputy ministers in the current administration were yet to be given official vehicles.
The government, on Wednesday, gave former government appointees who served under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration up to the end of this week to return state vehicles in their possession that were less than two years old.
It said all other appointees who paid less than the value of the vehicles were also to top up their payments before they could legally take possession of them.
Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, who gave the directives at a press conference in Accra, said more than 50 of such vehicles, including 18 which were less than two years, were still in the possession of former appointees under the Kufuor government.
He said the government had made several approaches to the affected appointees but only a few of them had responded, adding that the Presidency, as part of its cost-cutting measures, was not in the mood to buy new vehicles, making some ministers and deputy ministers to use their personal vehicles.
May 1, 2009
THREE former government appointees in the Kufuor administration have responded to the government’s ultimatum to them to return state vehicles in their possession.
They are Mr Andrew Awuni, Press Secretary to former President J.A. Kufuor, Alhaji Abubakar Siddique Boniface, former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, and the former Upper West Regional Minister, Mr George Hikah-Benson.
Mr Awuni, whose name was not on the list of ex-appointees named at a press conference on Wednesday, returned a Toyota Avensis vehicle in his possession yesterday, while Mr Saddique returned his Peugeot 607 vehicle. Mr Hikah-Benson, for his part, had discussions with the government indicating that he would return his car at a later date.
A Deputy Minister of Information, Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, disclosed this to the Daily Graphic yesterday.
He commended Messrs Awuni and Saddique for responding to the government’s call and appealed to other former appointees who fell in the same category to endeavour to do the same.
“We encourage their other colleagues who are yet to respond to our call to emulate their example,” he said.
Mr Okudzeto-Ablakwa said if Mr Awuni, whose name was not on the list, had returned his car, then “it means that the list with ex-appointees with state vehicles might not be exhaustive”.
He said about 52 people in the former administration who applied to buy their vehicles still had them in their possession, even though they had not been given permission to do so before they left office.
He said the cars were needed, since some ministers and deputy ministers in the current administration were yet to be given official vehicles.
The government, on Wednesday, gave former government appointees who served under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration up to the end of this week to return state vehicles in their possession that were less than two years old.
It said all other appointees who paid less than the value of the vehicles were also to top up their payments before they could legally take possession of them.
Mr Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, who gave the directives at a press conference in Accra, said more than 50 of such vehicles, including 18 which were less than two years, were still in the possession of former appointees under the Kufuor government.
He said the government had made several approaches to the affected appointees but only a few of them had responded, adding that the Presidency, as part of its cost-cutting measures, was not in the mood to buy new vehicles, making some ministers and deputy ministers to use their personal vehicles.
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