Apollo Hospital Group (General News)

21/11/11

Apollo Hospital Group (GENERAL NEWS)

STORY: Zoe Darling and Kirsty Telfer

The Ministry of Health has engaged in talks with Indian organisation Apollo Hospital Group Ltd to train medical staff in tertiary education.

Representatives from the Apollo Hospital Group are in Accra this week to meet with stakeholders, government officials and medical practitioners to discuss a possible collaboration and share their learnings with the Ghanaian medical field.

They hope to finalise an agreement to complement health delivery services in the country using the expertise and success of the Apollo Hospital Group in India over the past twenty eight years.

As part of the collaboration, it is planned that a private wing will be established at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to train specialised medical staff.

Director of Medical Affairs of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Professor Afua A. J. Hesse, in the first of a series of meeting in Accra this week, said she hoped to see results from the collaboration within one year.

Prof Hesse will meet with representatives from the Apollo Hospital Group on Tuesday (22 November) when they visit the National Cardio Centre and One Centre of Excellence, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital for discussions with management.

Cheif Executive Officer (CEO) of Apollo Clinics, Mr. Sudhir Diggikar, said that discussions with the Ministry of Health should reach some conclusion by Wednesday.

Apollo Hospital Group currently ownes and manages forty six hospitals in India.

Human Rights Have No Boundaries (Features)

Published 19/11/11

Human Rights Have No Boundaries (FEATURES)

STORY: Zoe Darling

In light of the current debate surrounding homosexuality in Ghana, the issue of human rights has also been a hot topic. Since British Prime Minister David Cameron’s controversial comments linking the recognition of homosexuality to foreign aid in Ghana, Ghanaians and particularly President John Atta Mills, have made their position on gay and lesbian rights perfectly clear. They will not accept it, and they will certainly not legalise it.

Cameron, expressing views shared with many in the West, clearly recognises the fair and equal treatment of homosexuals as a human right. It seems many Ghanaians have gotten this confused with the legalisation of homosexual marriage, which is not recognized in most of the Western world.

Cameron’s comments and the idea of accepting homosexuality have infuriated many people in Ghana, where a very strong anti-gay sentiment prevails. Many people have told me that in Ghana, it is not part of the culture to accept homosexuality. As a Westerner living in Africa, among many other cultural differences, I have accepted this. I would not suggest that Ghanaians embrace homosexuality and certainly not legalize gay marriage. I would not suggest that Western values be enforced on Ghana; the unique and remarkable culture should not be changed because of unwanted foreign influences.

Let me make it clear that I am in not in any way a gay activist or anything similar. I am, however, a strong believer in the universal recognition of human rights and a supporter of all action taken to ensure they are defended.

Having said this, one thing I struggle to accept is the persecution or prosecution of homosexuals based on their sexuality as I see this as a violation of the individual’s human rights. Ghanaians have argued with me and tried to convince me that in Ghana, freedom of sexuality is not a human right as it is not part of the culture. Again, I struggle to accept this.

The very definition and idea at the core of human rights is the fact that they are rights that belong equally to every human, regardless of nationality, culture, religion, political affiliation or any other distinction. They are universal and egalitarian. The United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR) promote and fully support the idea that human rights are an inalienable and fundamental entitlement of all human beings, simply because they are human.

The UNDHR stipulates that everyone is entitled to human rights, "without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status”. This makes it very clear that human rights are universal. To remove the rights of homosexuals from this concept is to remove the principal of universality and human rights are transformed to simply reflect the values of certain groups.

But even if one accepts that human rights are universal, they may argue that homosexuality is not a human right. I must argue that fear of prosecution or persecution for a personal choice made in the privacy of one's home, is a violation of human rights. No one should have to fear for their freedom or safety based on the private choice of their sexuality. The UNDHR stipulates that "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation."

I recognise that in Ghana homosexuality is not culturally acceptable, but I also see the discrimination of gays and lesbians based on their sexuality as a violation of human rights.

David Cameron’s stipulation that the recognition of human rights be a requirement for the receipt of international aid does have merit, despite the negative implications that come with such a demand. I simply ask Ghanaians to consider the basic rights of their brothers and sisters and not be so hasty to eliminate choice of sexuality as one of these.

GNFS Ceremony (General News)

18/11/11

Published 19/11/11

GNFS Ceremony (GENERAL NEWS) - GNFS records fewer fire outbreaks this year

STORY: Alice Aryeety and Zoe Darling

THE Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has recorded a significant reduction in the number of fire outbreaks this year, compared to 2010.

One thousand, five hundred and seventy two fire outbreaks were recorded, with the damage estimated at GHC2,237,239 as of September this year, compared to 2,601 fire outbreaks, with a damage bill of GHC360,027,775.57, in 2010.

  The Chairman of the Fire Service Council and Member of Parliament  for Madina/Abokobi, Alhaji Amadu B. Sorogho, announced the figures at the passing-out ceremony of Course 42 Recruits of the GNFS at the Fire Academy and Training School (FATS) in Accra yesterday.

Special awards were presented to four recruits. While R/FM Alori Benjamin took home the overall best recruit award, R/FM Justice Dellor received the best recruit in foot drills, with R/FW Susana Kudiabor winning the Commandant’s award and R/FM Robertson S. Nkudede, the best in academics.

Despite the reduction in figures, which may be attributed to intensified public fire safety education and engagement with the public, Alhaji Sorogho said the Fire Service could do more to ensure further decline in subsequent years.

Two hundred and ninety-nine recruits, comprising 96 women and 203 men, drawn from all the 10 regions graduated  after a 16-week training course.

Another batch of 300 recruits will commence training by the end of this month as part of the GNFS recruitment exercise.

It is anticipated that 3,000 men and women are to be recruited over the three-year period from 2011 to 2013.

 “The recruitment drive is in recognition of the readiness of the government to provide a career for the youth in fire fighting and rescue and resource the service to meet the fire safety needs of the citizens,” Alhaji Sorogho said.

In addition to enhancing the human resource base of the service, 227 fire-fighting vehicles and equipment, funded by the Exim Bank of the USA and India and the Belgian Government, started arriving in the country from April this year.

A total of 57 pick-up vehicles, 10 motorbikes and two buses are also expected to arrive by the end of the year to help in service delivery.

Two hundred and sixty acres of land has also been acquired at Dodowa for the building of a modern Fire Academy and Training College capable of training about 500 people at any time.

These measures, as well as the provision of  funds as a temporary solution, are to address the challenges, including inadequate personnel accommodation and vehicles, other logistics and working service conditions of for personnels, faced by the GNFS.

Roads and Traffic Issues in Ghana (Features)

Published 8/11/11

Roads and Traffic Issues in Ghana (FEATURES)

Story: Zoe Darling

Upon arrival in Ghana, a Westerner must be prepared for differences. Differences in the culture, the climate, the landscape, the people, the food, just to name a few. These differences become apparent very quickly, but none is more obvious, even in the short drive from the airport, than the frightening phenomenon that is the traffic.

Drivers pay no heed to the lines separating lanes of traffic, with often three cars squeezing into a single lane. Cars weave erratically through the tightest of spaces and around hawkers as other slam on their breaks to avoid a collision. Sometimes cars simply drive on the wrong side of the road, directly into oncoming traffic. Speed limits are blatantly ignored, as are the majority of road rules. In the beginning, it is terrifying, and oddly captivating.

According to the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), there are over 10,000 reported road traffic crashes in Ghana annually, but in reality the number is much higher because so many go unreported. Every year more than 1,800 people are killed in crashes on Ghanaian roads, with a rate of nearly 19 fatalities per 10,000 vehicles. Compare this to my home country, Australia, which has a similar population; there is an average of just one fatality per 10,000 vehicles.

It is clear that there are serious problems with the infrastructure, particularly around Accra, which will only grow as the number of road users continues to increase. The road systems simply cannot handle the amount of traffic. But a more pressing issue is the condition of the roads and the evident lack of maintenance. The predominance of potholes, installation of haphazard mounds of dirt to act as speed humps, open drains bordering narrow streets and general debris littering the roads has resulted in the complete state of disrepair that is Ghanaian roads.

It would be a challenge for even the most skilled and experienced drivers to navigate. But it appears many drivers in Ghana do not have a license, are untrained, or are in desperate need of guidance when it comes to road rules and road safety. Some are downright reckless and dangerous.

To further enhance the impossible driving situation, many of the vehicles on the road are in appalling condition. In many other countries, they would not be considered roadworthy. These cars are not simply uncomfortable; they are unsafe and pose a risk to both the occupants and other road users. I have been in moving cars that have suddenly lost bumpers, broken down in the middle of busy intersections or even had a door fall off. For the safety of everyone, these cars should not be on the road.

But one of the most frustrating issues I have with driving in Ghana is the lack of seatbelts. I was in a taxi last night when the driver spotted a police check ahead. He promptly buckled his seatbelt, we were waved through the checkpoint by the officer, and the driver promptly unbuckled his seatbelt. This raises a number of questions. Why would the driver, with the option of seatbelt, not wear it? Is it a lack of education of the benefits? Or disregard of the benefits in favor of comfort? Surely it was not inconvenience or laziness, judging by his haste to unbuckle after the checkpoint.

Why are none of the passenger seats, in any form of publicly used transport, equipped with seatbelts? Most of the taxis I have been in seem to have the capability. And with the reckless driving and often uneven road surfaces, I would definitely welcome them in tro tros and other public buses.

Why is there not more encouragement to wear seatbelts by the authorities, either through education or penalties for those who do not abide by the rules? On that point, why are the authorities not penalizing dangerous driving and removing unsafe cars from the road?

I recognize that there are a lot of issues raised. I realize it would not be a cheap exercise to address these issues. But the benefits of improving the roads, educating drivers, and enforcing the road rules would be time and money well spent.

According to the NRSC, it is estimated that road traffic crashes cost Ghana about 1.6% of the GDP annually. If these issues were addressed, the cost to taxpayers would ease, traffic congestion would be reduced and the harm to vehicles and other property would be minimized. I shouldn’t have to mention the cost of human life that could be spared.

As a Westerner witnessing the calamity of traffic on Ghanaian roads, I realize this is just another difference that I will slowly acclimatize to. But don’t even get me started on the incessant, inescapable and completely unnecessary honking.

IHRMP Graduation Ceremony (Education)

9/11/11

Published 12/11/11

IHRMP GRADUATION CEREMONY (EDUCATION)

Story: Marian Ansah & Zoe Darling

THE CEO of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), Mr George Smith, has defended the single spine salary structure (SSSS),saying the project is a gradual process which requires critrical and strategic thinking as well as a job evaluation before it can be wholly implemented.

He noted that the country would have been in chaos if the SSSS was implemented fully at the present time and not gradually.

Speaking at a graduation ceremony for students of the Institute of Human Resource Management Practitioners (IHRMP),he noted that it was not possible for the SSSS to be implemented at a goal as some people in the nation had suggested.

The SSSS has been recently criticised by GMA over some factors used in the prior grading structure which resulted in the recent strike by medical practitioners

Mr Smith,at the ceremony held in Accra on Wednesday, stated that the government should have informed the public service before implementing the pay reform.

He noted that a job evalaution should be carried out on the SSSS to identify the challenges and disavantages that would be encountered in the execution of the project.

He stated that the evaluation program would lead to understanding and co operation among the public workers.

During the ceremony,he urged the graduating students of IHRMP to develop and uphold a level of equity and fairness in the payment of salaries as upcoming human resource managers.

Mr Smith urged the students to develop strategic means of policies that would lead to acceptability without people withdrawing from the policy.

He noted that it was imperative for Human Resource practitioners to be creative.

“Creativity and innovation will lead to recognition and appreciation of the job” he said.

The Vice President of the Institute,Mr John Wilson stated that it was important for the students to develop the right capablities and culture that would help them in their profession.

He revealed that the greatest assest in every organisation was the human resource practitioner who would determine the ultimate growth of the nation.

He urged the students to take up a new challenge and be proactive.

Mr Wilson noted that it was imperative for the students to focus on identifying the policies and goals of any organisation.

29 students graduated as Associate members of the Institute and Nana Yaa P. Twum as the first certified member at the ceremony.

Improved Cookstoves (General News)

14/11/11

IMPROVED COOKSTOVES (General News)

STORY: Zoe Darling

Envirofit, in conjunction with the Centre for Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development (CEESD) has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation and Indoor Air Pollution  through the distribution of efficient charcoal and firewood cookstoves in Ghana.

The project, which aims to distribute 12,000 charcoal cookstoves by January next year, seeks to reduce charcoal use through improvement in combustion efficiency of up to forty per cent and reduction in biomass fuel consumption by sixty per cent compared to traditional cookstoves used in Ghana.

The CEO of Envirofit Ron Bills, speaking at a stakeholders meeting in Accra on Monday, said that this would reduce the tonnage of charcoal used, reduce pressure on forest resources and reduce emissions from the use of charcoal.

He noted that poor wood combustion kills more than two million people every year, and it was a particular concern in Africa because of high population growth.

He said the use of the improved cookstoves therefore aimed to address the issue of acute respiratory infections (ARIs), especially among women and children, by reducing Indoor Air Pollution.

Mr Bills said Envirofit was pleased with the success of the recent distribution of charcoal cookstoves in Kenya and the consequent opportunities for employment in manufacturing in the country.

“We’d like to do the same thing in Ghana,” he said.

300,000 of the Envirofit cookstoves have already been sold in 40 different countries around the globe, resulting in 1.5 million people breathing healthier air and spending less time and money cooking, as well as a decreased demand on forests and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

At the meeting, stakeholders expressed concern over the plans to only distribute the cookstoves in two districts in the Ashanti Region - Ejisu-Juaben, Asanti Akim North, and Bosomtwe.

The price of the stove was also a concern, but according to Vice President of Engineering for Envirofit Nathan Lorenz, the reduced cost of expenditure on charcoal could also save beneficiary households GHC75 every year.

He said the Envirofit stoves were built to be clean, efficient, durable and affordable, as this was important for the market.

Envirofit and CEESD are taking advantage of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), an arrangement under the Kyoto Protocol that binds developed countries to promote investment in developing countries in projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Under the arrangement, carbon revenues are raised through the CDM.

The carbon revenues provides a subsidy, so Envirofit is able to sell the stoves at a reduced price to consumers.

This programme fits into the Government’s Better Ghana Agenda.

CoTA Launch (POLITICS)

15.11.11

CoTA Launch (POLITICS) - Ownership of TV, radio by politicians undermines Ghana’s democracy

Seth J. Bokpe & Zoe Darling

THE Executive Director of Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Prof Kwame Karikari, has expressed grave concern for democracy in the country due to the increasing ownership of radio and television frequencies by politicians.

 At the launch of the Coalition for Transparency of the Airwaves (CoTA) in Accra on Tuesday, Prof Karikari said that lack of free access to the airwaves, particularly radio and television, posed serious dangers to pluralism and to freedom of speech and expression.

“Besides the threat of politicians taking over the airwaves by means of a lack of transparency in the allocation of frequencies, many voices will become silenced “, he said.

“These dangers must be stopped. And it can only be stopped by public expression of opposition to acts and omissions that close the doors to the expression of different and contrary viewpoints on airwaves.”

With more than 15 civil society organisations as members, the CoTA has among its objectives the promotion of genuine pluralism of voices on the airwaves, advocating the expeditious allocation of broadcast frequencies to genuine community radio applicants and promoting equity and transparency in the allocation and management of broadcast frequencies.

Additionally, CoTA advocates the passage of and adherence to a Broadcasting Law that is in keeping with international best practice.

Prof Karikari said since 1992, all governments had failed to pass a broadcasting law that made access to the airwaves transparent and democratic.

The Chairman of the National Peace Council, Most Rev Prof Emmanuel Asante, who launched the initiative, said the influence of the electronic media could not be underestimated and it raised a whole lot of ethical issues for those who controlled them in respect of the country’s political process.

Those who control the media, he noted, could be assumed to control the state hence the need to ensure that the broadcast media met the needs of society.

The President of the Ghana Journalists Association, Mr Ransford Tetteh, stated that Ghanaians must not remain oblivious to the challenges in the broadcast media, especially the use of intemperate language by some radio stations during elections.

With another election on the horizon, he observed that it was not in the interest of peace in the country if there was no broadcasting legislation to guide it.

Mr Tetteh said it was the hope of the GJA that, “CoTA will guide and enhance the legitimate public interest in policy, law and regulation in the broadcast industry and thus help in nurturing for Ghana a more professional, vibrant, transparent and accountable broadcast industry.”

Issues concerning frequency allocation have been a subject of controversy especially between members of the Ghana Community Radio Network (GCRN) and frequency regulators of the National Communication Authority (NCA) with the GCRN accusing the NCA of using excessive bureaucratic processes to deny its members frequencies.

In that regard, Prof Audrey Gadzekpo, a senior lecturer of the School of Communication Studies of the University of Ghana, observed that transparency standards in the NCA were below international standards.

“We can also conclude from what we know that there is no equity in allocation and access. While we may think we have plurality, if we see it only in terms of numbers, plurality goes beyond numbers. We need to ask: do we have plurality in media types, cultural, geographic, gender and pluralism?” she asked.