Daily Graphic (pg11), Tues, May 11/10
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
The Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC) is taking steps to re-position itself to help accelerate Ghana’s progress made in implementing the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA).
According to the sector Minister, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Ghana organised a side event which was on the theme: “Beyond commitment to responsive institutional structures” at the just-ended meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), held in New York.
She said the participants had the opportunity to share Ghana’s perspective and experiences on the evolution of the national women’s machinery and how it had plans to promote gender equality through re-engineering the ministry and involving women at the grassroots level.
She was speaking at a forum organised in Accra by MOWAC in collaboration with the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) and supported by the United Nations Systems, during which a statistical compendium on women and men was launched.
Mrs Azumah-Mensah, who convened the meeting to brief the public on the outcome of the CSW meeting at a forum in Accra, said a lot of programmes and policies, spearheaded by MOWAC and other ministries such as the Ministry of Health (MOH), were commended as having contributed to the empowering of women socially, economically and politically.
This year’s CSW meeting also coincided with the fifteen year review of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and its contribution to the achievement of the MDGs.
Programmes such as the issuance of a policy directive to public sector agencies to roll out gender responsive budgets across ministries, departments, and agencies, as well as the ministry’s co-ordination with 16 key sectors such as the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Education were hailed as a good practice.
She also said MOWAC’s central management role and the elevation the ministry to Cabinet status was seen as an outstanding achievement and other participants expressed interest in selling the idea to their countries.
Other achievements such as the enactment of the Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking Acts, criminalisation of sexual offences and the passage of laws on women’s rights in marriage and divorce, social protection policies targeting poor women, the National Health Insurance Scheme, free school uniforms for school children and the Health Service Act, which ensured free maternal care to help in addressing the country’s high maternal mortality, and the appointment of women into key positions, were all commended.
She said the Commission wrapped up the 54th session by adopting seven resolutions which were key to women’s empowerment and they were issues on women’s economic empowerment, women and girl child and HIV and AIDS, protecting women and girls from harmful practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM), elimination of maternal mortality and a decision to consolidate four existing offices working on issues related to gender under the United Nations into a composite gender entity.
The Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Analysis (CEPA), Mr Joseph S. Abbey, a guest speaker who spoke on ‘the importance of gender statistics for development’, underscored the importance to have more women in decision-making positions so that they would speak for women.
He said the country would be wasting a lot of resources if the potentials of women, who formed the majority of the country’s population, were not tapped, saying: “Investment made in women should be utilised to ensure maximum returns.”
He said statistics over the years did not quantify the work of women, especially, in the domestic settings and pointed out that, it made it difficult to appreciate the input of women in national development.
Mr Abbey said it was essential that the country gathered separate data for men and women so that the country would know the needs of boys and girls and men and women. This according to him, would enable the Government to build appropriate infrastructure such as clinics and schools and that the gender dimensions of all these have not been sufficiently focussed on in the country.
The Chief Director of MOWAC, Ms Nancy Dzah, in a welcome address said that as institutions and organisations promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in the country, it was important that “we avail ourselves with the global, regional and national trends of achievements and challenges confronting us in our zeal to achieve the MDG3, which is: Promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment”.
An International Gender Consultant and chairperson of the programme, Mrs Jane Amavi Kwawu, said Ghana has become a flagship of achieving results in many areas and it cannot afford to fail in the empowerment of women.
Representatives from Parliament, MDAs, the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service, who were at the CSW meeting in New York, gave their impressions about the way forward for MOWAC.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Lets hail our illustrious mothers
Daily Graphic (pg 11) May 8/10
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE work of women in the home has not been quantified enough to know their contribution to national development.
It is estimated that of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty around the world, 70 per cent are women.
Most women, some years ago, were mainly housewives who stayed at home to nurture their children while their husbands worked in offices and brought money home.
Although today, according to the Women’s International Network, women perform 66 per cent of the world’s work, they earn less than five per cent of its income.
Women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours, produce half of the world’s food, earn only 10 per cent of the world’s income and own less than one per cent of the world’s property.
Also two-thirds of children denied primary education are said to be girls, and 75 per cent of the world’s 876 million illiterate adults are women.
The culture of most societies make the people appreciate the work of men better than that of women. Today, society has come to appreciate the home-based care services that women perform and celebrate motherhood on the second Sunday in May of every year.
Motherhood is an honoured and exalted state in life, and most countries all over the world have their own customs in celebrating motherhood to show appreciation to mothers as those who bring forth children and nurture them to life.
It has become a day when children, be they adults, reflect on their mothers contribution to their lives and say thank you to them in special ways and a number of people have used both the electronic and print media to express their gratitude to their mothers for their commitment, love and encouragement, for making a difference in their lives and communities and for making them realise their dreams.
However, a human resource practitioner at the Volta River Authority (VRA) in Accra, Mrs Esther Mangortey says motherhood should be celebrated everyday, adding that women contribute a lot to the development of the country and should therefore be appreciated on daily basis.
She, however, said that the celebration of Mother’s Day should not be confined to celebrating women in urban centres but that women in the rural areas should also be empowered economically to take care of their children.
According to her, women in the rural areas suffer from a lot of hardships, making it difficult for them to give their best to their wards adding that such women should be identified and supported.
She said Mother’s Day celebration would be more relevant when all women in the country were empowered socially, economically and politically, and appreciated for the work that they do.
Congratulating her fellow mothers on how far they have come, she also advised that women should always live up to their responsibilities, stressing that women should make friends with their children so that they would know whatever happens in their daily lives.
Mrs Saint Claire Adotey, a Beautician and mother of three boys, said, although it was worth celebrating, Mother’s Day should also be a time for mothers to sit down and analyse themselves to see whether they have been good mothers to their children, both those who are their biological children and those they cater for.
She said, today, most mothers are so engrossed in their work and therefore, do not spend quality time with their wards, leaving their responsibilities to househelps and making their children take so much interest in television and the use of the computer.
She said to make the celebration of Mother’s Day more relevant to mothers and their wards, there was the need for sustained education on the values of motherhood.
“Most children today have become wayward because they lack parental care and therefore seek affection or solace in drugs”, she said.
Saluting mothers on this important day, she also reiterated the importance of mothers befriending their wards, saying that due to the harsh living conditions in the urban centres, most mothers were unable to give the maximum care that their children required.
The Minister in-charge of the Atomic Hill Estate Presby Church, Reverend Dei Awuku, has also saluted mothers saying that they are giving their best in this trying circumstances.
According to him, many mothers had become breadwinners or are helping their husbands due to the harsh economic circumstances but were still making time for their children.
He said it was important to appreciate women for all that they were doing saying that “mothers are great, we are what we are because of the way our mothers trained us.”
Rev. Awuku, who is also a lecturer in Communications Studies at the Christian Service University College, Kumasi, acknowledged that today’s mothers were also going through difficult moments as some were combining school, work and child care, all in the name of making their lives and that of their families better.
He said although all this affects the survival of their children, the present state of the economy, both in the country and on the international scene, has made it imperative that mothers work to support their husbands.
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE work of women in the home has not been quantified enough to know their contribution to national development.
It is estimated that of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty around the world, 70 per cent are women.
Most women, some years ago, were mainly housewives who stayed at home to nurture their children while their husbands worked in offices and brought money home.
Although today, according to the Women’s International Network, women perform 66 per cent of the world’s work, they earn less than five per cent of its income.
Women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours, produce half of the world’s food, earn only 10 per cent of the world’s income and own less than one per cent of the world’s property.
Also two-thirds of children denied primary education are said to be girls, and 75 per cent of the world’s 876 million illiterate adults are women.
The culture of most societies make the people appreciate the work of men better than that of women. Today, society has come to appreciate the home-based care services that women perform and celebrate motherhood on the second Sunday in May of every year.
Motherhood is an honoured and exalted state in life, and most countries all over the world have their own customs in celebrating motherhood to show appreciation to mothers as those who bring forth children and nurture them to life.
It has become a day when children, be they adults, reflect on their mothers contribution to their lives and say thank you to them in special ways and a number of people have used both the electronic and print media to express their gratitude to their mothers for their commitment, love and encouragement, for making a difference in their lives and communities and for making them realise their dreams.
However, a human resource practitioner at the Volta River Authority (VRA) in Accra, Mrs Esther Mangortey says motherhood should be celebrated everyday, adding that women contribute a lot to the development of the country and should therefore be appreciated on daily basis.
She, however, said that the celebration of Mother’s Day should not be confined to celebrating women in urban centres but that women in the rural areas should also be empowered economically to take care of their children.
According to her, women in the rural areas suffer from a lot of hardships, making it difficult for them to give their best to their wards adding that such women should be identified and supported.
She said Mother’s Day celebration would be more relevant when all women in the country were empowered socially, economically and politically, and appreciated for the work that they do.
Congratulating her fellow mothers on how far they have come, she also advised that women should always live up to their responsibilities, stressing that women should make friends with their children so that they would know whatever happens in their daily lives.
Mrs Saint Claire Adotey, a Beautician and mother of three boys, said, although it was worth celebrating, Mother’s Day should also be a time for mothers to sit down and analyse themselves to see whether they have been good mothers to their children, both those who are their biological children and those they cater for.
She said, today, most mothers are so engrossed in their work and therefore, do not spend quality time with their wards, leaving their responsibilities to househelps and making their children take so much interest in television and the use of the computer.
She said to make the celebration of Mother’s Day more relevant to mothers and their wards, there was the need for sustained education on the values of motherhood.
“Most children today have become wayward because they lack parental care and therefore seek affection or solace in drugs”, she said.
Saluting mothers on this important day, she also reiterated the importance of mothers befriending their wards, saying that due to the harsh living conditions in the urban centres, most mothers were unable to give the maximum care that their children required.
The Minister in-charge of the Atomic Hill Estate Presby Church, Reverend Dei Awuku, has also saluted mothers saying that they are giving their best in this trying circumstances.
According to him, many mothers had become breadwinners or are helping their husbands due to the harsh economic circumstances but were still making time for their children.
He said it was important to appreciate women for all that they were doing saying that “mothers are great, we are what we are because of the way our mothers trained us.”
Rev. Awuku, who is also a lecturer in Communications Studies at the Christian Service University College, Kumasi, acknowledged that today’s mothers were also going through difficult moments as some were combining school, work and child care, all in the name of making their lives and that of their families better.
He said although all this affects the survival of their children, the present state of the economy, both in the country and on the international scene, has made it imperative that mothers work to support their husbands.
Gov't will shore-up local paper industry- Ayariga
Daily Graphic (Spread), Thurs, May 6/10
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry,Mr Mahama Ayariga, has said that the government will tackle policies which place the local printing industry at a disadvantage.
He said the current regime exempted tax on all imported books whereas local printers paid about 32 per cent of taxes on inputs, a situation which he said had the tendency to cripple the local industry if not checked.
Mr Ayariga said this when he paid a working visit to the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) to acquaint himself with the operations of the company.
The Deputy Minister’s visit, which took him to other printing houses in Accra, was at the instance of the Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association, and it was to give him first hand information about some of the problems that hinder the smooth operations of the local printing industry in the country.
He said the government would pursue policies that would help local industries to grow, saying that it would ensure that the country had a vibrant printing local industry.
Mr Ayariga said the government’s policy of printing at least 60 per cent of all textbooks under the Free Compulsory Basic Education (FCUBE) programme was to ensure that local printers who won the bid for such jobs them locally to benefit the country as a whole.
He, however, bemoaned the fact that although the government had good intentions for the industry, some people who won the bid to print under the FCUBE textbook programme still printed their books from outside due to the profit that they made on them.
He said his ministry would liaise with the Ministry of Education to ensure that local printers who won the bid to print such textbooks, did so locally in order to create more employment for the youth.
The Managing Director of GCGL, Mr Ibrahim Awal, said Graphic Packaging (G-Pak), a subsidiary of GCGL, had the capacity to print millions of textbooks a day, and could also create about 5,000 direct and indirect jobs.
He said the €3 million facility at the G-Pak was working below its capacity, and called on the government to channel some of its printing jobs to the company so that it could employ more people.
The President of the Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association, Mr James Appiah-Bekoe, appealed to the minister to help the local industry to flourish.
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry,Mr Mahama Ayariga, has said that the government will tackle policies which place the local printing industry at a disadvantage.
He said the current regime exempted tax on all imported books whereas local printers paid about 32 per cent of taxes on inputs, a situation which he said had the tendency to cripple the local industry if not checked.
Mr Ayariga said this when he paid a working visit to the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL) to acquaint himself with the operations of the company.
The Deputy Minister’s visit, which took him to other printing houses in Accra, was at the instance of the Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association, and it was to give him first hand information about some of the problems that hinder the smooth operations of the local printing industry in the country.
He said the government would pursue policies that would help local industries to grow, saying that it would ensure that the country had a vibrant printing local industry.
Mr Ayariga said the government’s policy of printing at least 60 per cent of all textbooks under the Free Compulsory Basic Education (FCUBE) programme was to ensure that local printers who won the bid for such jobs them locally to benefit the country as a whole.
He, however, bemoaned the fact that although the government had good intentions for the industry, some people who won the bid to print under the FCUBE textbook programme still printed their books from outside due to the profit that they made on them.
He said his ministry would liaise with the Ministry of Education to ensure that local printers who won the bid to print such textbooks, did so locally in order to create more employment for the youth.
The Managing Director of GCGL, Mr Ibrahim Awal, said Graphic Packaging (G-Pak), a subsidiary of GCGL, had the capacity to print millions of textbooks a day, and could also create about 5,000 direct and indirect jobs.
He said the €3 million facility at the G-Pak was working below its capacity, and called on the government to channel some of its printing jobs to the company so that it could employ more people.
The President of the Ghana Printers and Paper Converters Association, Mr James Appiah-Bekoe, appealed to the minister to help the local industry to flourish.
GSS developes handbook on gender statistics
Daily Graphic (pg11), Thurs. May 6/10
Story: Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has developed a handbook on gender statistics which reflects the relative levels and differentials between women and men, girls and boys in terms of education, health, politics and access to credit, among others.
The statistical compendium on women and men is a collection of concise, but detailed gender-sensitive indicators, which will help the formulation of policies in the country.
The Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, who launched the handbook at a programme in Accra, said the collection of sex desegregated data was vital to women’s development in the country.
She said such a data was essential to enable the country track the progress so far made in attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The minister said such a data was also important to ministries, departments and agencies since it will help them to implement the gender budgeting strategy, which had been introduced by the government effectively.
Giving some highlights on the book, the minister said it deals with household leadership and divorce, school enrolment for males and females at the various levels of education, illiteracy among men and women and power and influence.
She said the statistical compendium showed that 23 per cent of female-headed households were divorced women and 51 per cent of women in the country were illiterates.
On the issue of power and influence, she said the results were nothing to write home about, and that a huge gap still existed between men and women in the decision-making process, adding that there was the need to encourage more women into politics.
She, therefore, advised women who were interested in politics to participate in active politics at the various levels, to get more women involved in the country’s decision-making process.
A Chief Statistician at the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Mr Baah Wadieh, who made a presentation on ‘The status of the provision of gender statistics’, said developing gender statistics required that the statistical processes should be applied diligently when acquiring the data.
He said such gender-sensitive data should not merely to be indicators which had been compiled and presented by sex, although it is a fundamental requirement, but should also signal gender-related changes in a condition or phenomenon over time, shed light on social processes and interventions and how these affect women, men and their relationship with each other.
He said gender statistics was one of the basic requirements of the Beijing Declaration which calls on national, regional and international statistical institutions to “ensure that statistics related to individuals are collected, compiled, analysed and presented by sex, and age, and reflect problems, issues and questions related to women and men in society”.
The Government Statistician, Dr Grace Bediako, said the statistical compendium was a collection of data which were already in public domain but had been brought together to focus mainly on gender differentials.
She said the compendium would help the country to gain insight into how far it had advanced, saying that “we need to be able to assess what gains we have made”, and also identify where there were problems.
She said the handbook would help the country to learn from its successes in terms of gender equality, empowerment and equity, and also bring out the disappointing results so that they can be dealt with.
Dr Bediako said nationally and globally , it was difficult to see the achievements on the field, and that many organisations found it necessary to have ‘gender’ as a component of their programmes, instead of mainstreaming it into all facets of public and private life, decision-making and programmes.
She bemoaned the fact that two-and-a half decades after the adoption of the MDGs, with MDG 3 calling for the promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women, “we still have to remind policy makers that gender equality is a rights issue like poverty and survival”.
She said as a country, “we have an opportunity with the upcoming population and housing census to improve our database for the MDGs”, and that many of the questions for the census would provide the basis for computing the indicators required.
Dr Bediako, however, said the country still needed to explore all potential sources, censuses, sample surveys and administrative records to provide the complete picture.
Story: Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
THE Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has developed a handbook on gender statistics which reflects the relative levels and differentials between women and men, girls and boys in terms of education, health, politics and access to credit, among others.
The statistical compendium on women and men is a collection of concise, but detailed gender-sensitive indicators, which will help the formulation of policies in the country.
The Minister of Women and Children’s Affairs, Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, who launched the handbook at a programme in Accra, said the collection of sex desegregated data was vital to women’s development in the country.
She said such a data was essential to enable the country track the progress so far made in attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The minister said such a data was also important to ministries, departments and agencies since it will help them to implement the gender budgeting strategy, which had been introduced by the government effectively.
Giving some highlights on the book, the minister said it deals with household leadership and divorce, school enrolment for males and females at the various levels of education, illiteracy among men and women and power and influence.
She said the statistical compendium showed that 23 per cent of female-headed households were divorced women and 51 per cent of women in the country were illiterates.
On the issue of power and influence, she said the results were nothing to write home about, and that a huge gap still existed between men and women in the decision-making process, adding that there was the need to encourage more women into politics.
She, therefore, advised women who were interested in politics to participate in active politics at the various levels, to get more women involved in the country’s decision-making process.
A Chief Statistician at the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Mr Baah Wadieh, who made a presentation on ‘The status of the provision of gender statistics’, said developing gender statistics required that the statistical processes should be applied diligently when acquiring the data.
He said such gender-sensitive data should not merely to be indicators which had been compiled and presented by sex, although it is a fundamental requirement, but should also signal gender-related changes in a condition or phenomenon over time, shed light on social processes and interventions and how these affect women, men and their relationship with each other.
He said gender statistics was one of the basic requirements of the Beijing Declaration which calls on national, regional and international statistical institutions to “ensure that statistics related to individuals are collected, compiled, analysed and presented by sex, and age, and reflect problems, issues and questions related to women and men in society”.
The Government Statistician, Dr Grace Bediako, said the statistical compendium was a collection of data which were already in public domain but had been brought together to focus mainly on gender differentials.
She said the compendium would help the country to gain insight into how far it had advanced, saying that “we need to be able to assess what gains we have made”, and also identify where there were problems.
She said the handbook would help the country to learn from its successes in terms of gender equality, empowerment and equity, and also bring out the disappointing results so that they can be dealt with.
Dr Bediako said nationally and globally , it was difficult to see the achievements on the field, and that many organisations found it necessary to have ‘gender’ as a component of their programmes, instead of mainstreaming it into all facets of public and private life, decision-making and programmes.
She bemoaned the fact that two-and-a half decades after the adoption of the MDGs, with MDG 3 calling for the promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women, “we still have to remind policy makers that gender equality is a rights issue like poverty and survival”.
She said as a country, “we have an opportunity with the upcoming population and housing census to improve our database for the MDGs”, and that many of the questions for the census would provide the basis for computing the indicators required.
Dr Bediako, however, said the country still needed to explore all potential sources, censuses, sample surveys and administrative records to provide the complete picture.
Labour market lacks decent jobs
Daily Graphic (pg. 54), Wed, May 5/10
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
Ghana’s labour market is saddled with a huge decent job deficit, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has said.
According to the Deputy General Secretary of the TUC, Dr. Yaw Baah, over six million people working in the country did not have regular pays, benefits, contracts, rights or job security in their line of work.
Dr. Baah who made this known in an interview with the Daily Graphic said only one million working Ghanaians have decent jobs in the country out of a working population of about 11 million.
This year’s celebration is on the theme “Consolidating workers solidarity and legacy of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah”.
Dr Baah who explained that the statistics were indicative figures said the one million people in decent jobs comprised of 500,000 in the public sector with the others found in the private sector of the economy.
According to him about 70 per cent of the working population were self employed with majority of them seeking decent jobs because they earned less than the minimum wage and did not have job security.
Dr Baah therefore, said for any government to succeed, it had to make it a priority to create decent job avenues where workers would have job securities and benefits even when they retire after 60 years.
He said it was sad to note that previous governments did not make labour statistics a priority saying that people should be able to measure the performance of a government by the labour statistic figures that it was able to release monthly through authentic measures.
He said it was only when the government was able to know the number of people who were employed in decent jobs, that it could address the defecit in the job market.
Dr. Baah who wondered how people were able to assess government’s performance without data on employment said “it was easier to gather data on employment than on inflation”.
He said the last job statistics gathered in the country, the National Representative Data, 2006 which was captured in the Ghana Living Standard Survey Five (GLSS V) was yet to be reviewed.
He said for years past things had not changed much in the labour market as demand for more jobs far outweighed supply with over six million people living below the poverty line.
Dr Baah said the theme for this year’s celebration was appropriate because it gave the labour market the opportunity to celebrate Dr. Kwame Nkrumah who he said gave workers the conciousness that they mattered in the country.
He said Dr Nkrumah in an effort to secure the future of workers in the country, ratified 35 of the 47 International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention in the country and also enacted the Industrial Relations Act 1958 and 1965 for workers.
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
Ghana’s labour market is saddled with a huge decent job deficit, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has said.
According to the Deputy General Secretary of the TUC, Dr. Yaw Baah, over six million people working in the country did not have regular pays, benefits, contracts, rights or job security in their line of work.
Dr. Baah who made this known in an interview with the Daily Graphic said only one million working Ghanaians have decent jobs in the country out of a working population of about 11 million.
This year’s celebration is on the theme “Consolidating workers solidarity and legacy of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah”.
Dr Baah who explained that the statistics were indicative figures said the one million people in decent jobs comprised of 500,000 in the public sector with the others found in the private sector of the economy.
According to him about 70 per cent of the working population were self employed with majority of them seeking decent jobs because they earned less than the minimum wage and did not have job security.
Dr Baah therefore, said for any government to succeed, it had to make it a priority to create decent job avenues where workers would have job securities and benefits even when they retire after 60 years.
He said it was sad to note that previous governments did not make labour statistics a priority saying that people should be able to measure the performance of a government by the labour statistic figures that it was able to release monthly through authentic measures.
He said it was only when the government was able to know the number of people who were employed in decent jobs, that it could address the defecit in the job market.
Dr. Baah who wondered how people were able to assess government’s performance without data on employment said “it was easier to gather data on employment than on inflation”.
He said the last job statistics gathered in the country, the National Representative Data, 2006 which was captured in the Ghana Living Standard Survey Five (GLSS V) was yet to be reviewed.
He said for years past things had not changed much in the labour market as demand for more jobs far outweighed supply with over six million people living below the poverty line.
Dr Baah said the theme for this year’s celebration was appropriate because it gave the labour market the opportunity to celebrate Dr. Kwame Nkrumah who he said gave workers the conciousness that they mattered in the country.
He said Dr Nkrumah in an effort to secure the future of workers in the country, ratified 35 of the 47 International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention in the country and also enacted the Industrial Relations Act 1958 and 1965 for workers.
Malaria- Bane of the developing world
Daily Graphic (pg 19), Wed, May 5/10
By Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
MALARIA, an infectious disease caused by a parasite known as the Plasmodium Falciparum found in the female anopheles mosquito, continues to be the bane of underdevelopment in most countries especially in the developing world.
Malaria is a global problem causing more than one million deaths per year and endemic to 109 countries across the globe with 45 of them found in Africa. Ninety-five per cent of deaths occur on the continent among children under five years and it is estimated that one child in Africa dies every 30 seconds due to malaria-related illnesses.
In Africa, the estimated annual economic burden of malaria is $1.7bn and in Ghana it accounts for the loss of one per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It is also estimated that a single bout of malaria costs a sum equivalent to over 10 working days in Africa.
Ghana continues to have its fair share of the burden of malaria among its people and the disease is responsible for a ‘growth penalty’ of up to 1.3 per cent every year in the country.
Due to the dynamic nature of the disease in the country, the health sector finds it difficult to cope despite the numerous interventions it has and continue to put in place such as in the 1950s and 60s when it introduced the indoor residual and aerial spraying and the Pinotti project which was the addition of salt to chloroquine. In the 1970s and 80s the Malaria Action and Control was also introduced through case management; from 1996 to 1997 the Accelerated Malaria Control Programme was also introduced, which also dealt with case management, building capacity in prompt treatment and pilots in 30 districts across the country.
Since 1999, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has introduced the “Roll Back Malaria” initiative, which is a combination of preventive and curative methods such as the use of the Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs).
Current malaria preventive strategies include the use of ITNs for children under five years and pregnant women; giving pregnant women sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) to prevent malaria during pregnancy; indoor residual spraying in some districts; environmental management and targeted killing of the mosquito larvids.
They also include curative measures such as an anti-malaria drug policy which would ensure a quick and long-lasting resolution of the clinical conditions of patients, reduce incidence of malaria and its accompanying complications, stop the progression of simple malaria to severe and potentially fatal disease and minimise the chance and rate of development of drug resistance, among others.
Also a case management policy has also been put in place to ensure that accurate diagnosis are made and an effective, safe, affordable and quality anti-malarials are on the market.
Despite all these interventions, last year a total of 3,600,000 of outpatient malaria cases were said to have been recorded throughout public hospitals in the country and 3,900 deaths due to malaria was recorded. One thousand five hundred of the deaths were children under five years and 80 were pregnant women.
However, according to health professionals in the country, all is not lost, and as the Programme Manager of the National Malaria Control Programme, Dr Constance Bart-Plange, puts it, the situation is not as gloomy as it seems, explaining that most of the cases which are classified as being malaria are sometimes not malaria but they present with similar fevers as malaria.
At a workshop for media personnel organised by the African Media and Malaria Research Network (AMMREN) in Accra as part of activities marking this year’s World Malaria Day, Dr Bart-Plange said the GHS was on course with its aim of reducing the malaria disease burden of the country by 75 per cent by 2015 in line with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
According to her, so far, only 14 per cent of malaria cases were confirmed through microscopy and the aim of the GHS was to ensure that all fever cases were properly diagnosed, adding that only 10 per cent of presumptive treatment of malaria were true cases of malaria in urban areas.
For the laboratory confirmation of all malaria cases, the Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) kit has been introduced by the World Health organisation (WHO) and adopted by the GHS and this is aimed at, among other things, ensuring the better management of other febrile illnesses, enhancing better estimation of the real burden and impact of interventions put in place, ensuring the rational use of drugs, eliminating under exposure to drugs and also minimising pressure on malaria drugs.
According to health experts, investment in malaria control is saving lives and has far-reaching benefits, and according to Dr Bart-Plange, from 2003 to 2009, over 20,000 cases of malaria deaths were averted through the numerous interventions that had been put in place over the years.
Also, malaria control is rapidly advancing throughout Africa due to intensified efforts, and according to a Programme Officer of the NMCP (Northern Zone), Mr Sylvester Segbaya, a new initiative that would significantly reduce the cost of medicines for the effective treatment of malaria was to be piloted in seven African countries, i.e. Ghana, Cambodia, Kenya, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda.
Known as the Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria (AMF-m), it is an innovative financing mechanism to expand access to affordable Artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for the treatment of malaria, thereby saving lives and reducing the use of inappropriate treatment.
At a similar media sensitisation programme to mark WMD, organised by the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) in collaboration with the John Hopkins University Centre for Communications - Voices for a Malaria-free Future Project in Accra, Mr Segbaya said the initiative would facilitate the increased use of ACT by reducing the cost of those drugs in malaria-endemic countries and also ensuring that additional activities were carried out to assist in the safe and effective implementation of AFM-m.
It is believed that malaria control, research and elimination activities, when effectively undertaken, would significantly impact on the country’s attainment of the MDGs, since, according to health experts, achievement of many of the MDGs depends heavily on a successful anti-malaria eradication effort.
According to health experts, malaria control interventions can help lift poor people out of poverty, since the disease burden of malaria on a household helps to reinforce the poverty level of the people in that house, and this, when done, can help contribute to achieving MDG1, which is aimed at poverty reduction.
On the MDG2, which calls for universal education, malaria control interventions can help achieve this goal, since it contributes to absenteeism and poor school performance, as malaria is a leading source of illnesses and absenteeism in school-age children and teachers.
On child survival, which is captured in the MDG4, an effective malaria control intervention can help reduce significantly child mortality, since malaria is a leading cause of child mortality in endemic areas.
With regard to the attainment of the MDG5, which is on maternal health, health experts estimate that pregnant women are four times more likely to contract malaria; the disease causes anaemia in pregnant women and low birth weight in infants. Malaria infections in Africa is said to cause 400,000 cases of severe anaemia contributing to maternal mortality across the continent and therefore effectively controlling malaria in pregnant women will help reduce maternal deaths and infant mortalities.
The MDG6 calls for a combat on infectious diseases including malaria and the GHS target of zero per cent deaths through malaria is in order.
The MDG7 also calls for environmental sustainability and according to health experts, poor co-ordination in the control, elimination and eventual eradication of malaria from the country could lead to lack of widespread access to essential drugs for malaria.
The last goal calls for developing global partnership and an improved co-ordination and collaboration among different actors and private-public partnership across the country, which could lead to the proper control of malaria in the country.
As this year’s World Malaria Day is marked on the theme “Counting Malaria Out”, 2010 can be said to be a milestone year for the fight against malaria and it holds multiple opportunities for global leaders to demonstrate their commitment to combat malaria with an increased resources and action.
As noted by Mr Emmanuel Fiagbe of the Voices of Malaria puts it “Let us remember that an insufficient investment in 2010 and beyond could lead to a reversal of the progress achieved to date and the malaria treat made worse, costing more in the future”.
By Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
MALARIA, an infectious disease caused by a parasite known as the Plasmodium Falciparum found in the female anopheles mosquito, continues to be the bane of underdevelopment in most countries especially in the developing world.
Malaria is a global problem causing more than one million deaths per year and endemic to 109 countries across the globe with 45 of them found in Africa. Ninety-five per cent of deaths occur on the continent among children under five years and it is estimated that one child in Africa dies every 30 seconds due to malaria-related illnesses.
In Africa, the estimated annual economic burden of malaria is $1.7bn and in Ghana it accounts for the loss of one per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It is also estimated that a single bout of malaria costs a sum equivalent to over 10 working days in Africa.
Ghana continues to have its fair share of the burden of malaria among its people and the disease is responsible for a ‘growth penalty’ of up to 1.3 per cent every year in the country.
Due to the dynamic nature of the disease in the country, the health sector finds it difficult to cope despite the numerous interventions it has and continue to put in place such as in the 1950s and 60s when it introduced the indoor residual and aerial spraying and the Pinotti project which was the addition of salt to chloroquine. In the 1970s and 80s the Malaria Action and Control was also introduced through case management; from 1996 to 1997 the Accelerated Malaria Control Programme was also introduced, which also dealt with case management, building capacity in prompt treatment and pilots in 30 districts across the country.
Since 1999, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has introduced the “Roll Back Malaria” initiative, which is a combination of preventive and curative methods such as the use of the Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs).
Current malaria preventive strategies include the use of ITNs for children under five years and pregnant women; giving pregnant women sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) to prevent malaria during pregnancy; indoor residual spraying in some districts; environmental management and targeted killing of the mosquito larvids.
They also include curative measures such as an anti-malaria drug policy which would ensure a quick and long-lasting resolution of the clinical conditions of patients, reduce incidence of malaria and its accompanying complications, stop the progression of simple malaria to severe and potentially fatal disease and minimise the chance and rate of development of drug resistance, among others.
Also a case management policy has also been put in place to ensure that accurate diagnosis are made and an effective, safe, affordable and quality anti-malarials are on the market.
Despite all these interventions, last year a total of 3,600,000 of outpatient malaria cases were said to have been recorded throughout public hospitals in the country and 3,900 deaths due to malaria was recorded. One thousand five hundred of the deaths were children under five years and 80 were pregnant women.
However, according to health professionals in the country, all is not lost, and as the Programme Manager of the National Malaria Control Programme, Dr Constance Bart-Plange, puts it, the situation is not as gloomy as it seems, explaining that most of the cases which are classified as being malaria are sometimes not malaria but they present with similar fevers as malaria.
At a workshop for media personnel organised by the African Media and Malaria Research Network (AMMREN) in Accra as part of activities marking this year’s World Malaria Day, Dr Bart-Plange said the GHS was on course with its aim of reducing the malaria disease burden of the country by 75 per cent by 2015 in line with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
According to her, so far, only 14 per cent of malaria cases were confirmed through microscopy and the aim of the GHS was to ensure that all fever cases were properly diagnosed, adding that only 10 per cent of presumptive treatment of malaria were true cases of malaria in urban areas.
For the laboratory confirmation of all malaria cases, the Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) kit has been introduced by the World Health organisation (WHO) and adopted by the GHS and this is aimed at, among other things, ensuring the better management of other febrile illnesses, enhancing better estimation of the real burden and impact of interventions put in place, ensuring the rational use of drugs, eliminating under exposure to drugs and also minimising pressure on malaria drugs.
According to health experts, investment in malaria control is saving lives and has far-reaching benefits, and according to Dr Bart-Plange, from 2003 to 2009, over 20,000 cases of malaria deaths were averted through the numerous interventions that had been put in place over the years.
Also, malaria control is rapidly advancing throughout Africa due to intensified efforts, and according to a Programme Officer of the NMCP (Northern Zone), Mr Sylvester Segbaya, a new initiative that would significantly reduce the cost of medicines for the effective treatment of malaria was to be piloted in seven African countries, i.e. Ghana, Cambodia, Kenya, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda.
Known as the Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria (AMF-m), it is an innovative financing mechanism to expand access to affordable Artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for the treatment of malaria, thereby saving lives and reducing the use of inappropriate treatment.
At a similar media sensitisation programme to mark WMD, organised by the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) in collaboration with the John Hopkins University Centre for Communications - Voices for a Malaria-free Future Project in Accra, Mr Segbaya said the initiative would facilitate the increased use of ACT by reducing the cost of those drugs in malaria-endemic countries and also ensuring that additional activities were carried out to assist in the safe and effective implementation of AFM-m.
It is believed that malaria control, research and elimination activities, when effectively undertaken, would significantly impact on the country’s attainment of the MDGs, since, according to health experts, achievement of many of the MDGs depends heavily on a successful anti-malaria eradication effort.
According to health experts, malaria control interventions can help lift poor people out of poverty, since the disease burden of malaria on a household helps to reinforce the poverty level of the people in that house, and this, when done, can help contribute to achieving MDG1, which is aimed at poverty reduction.
On the MDG2, which calls for universal education, malaria control interventions can help achieve this goal, since it contributes to absenteeism and poor school performance, as malaria is a leading source of illnesses and absenteeism in school-age children and teachers.
On child survival, which is captured in the MDG4, an effective malaria control intervention can help reduce significantly child mortality, since malaria is a leading cause of child mortality in endemic areas.
With regard to the attainment of the MDG5, which is on maternal health, health experts estimate that pregnant women are four times more likely to contract malaria; the disease causes anaemia in pregnant women and low birth weight in infants. Malaria infections in Africa is said to cause 400,000 cases of severe anaemia contributing to maternal mortality across the continent and therefore effectively controlling malaria in pregnant women will help reduce maternal deaths and infant mortalities.
The MDG6 calls for a combat on infectious diseases including malaria and the GHS target of zero per cent deaths through malaria is in order.
The MDG7 also calls for environmental sustainability and according to health experts, poor co-ordination in the control, elimination and eventual eradication of malaria from the country could lead to lack of widespread access to essential drugs for malaria.
The last goal calls for developing global partnership and an improved co-ordination and collaboration among different actors and private-public partnership across the country, which could lead to the proper control of malaria in the country.
As this year’s World Malaria Day is marked on the theme “Counting Malaria Out”, 2010 can be said to be a milestone year for the fight against malaria and it holds multiple opportunities for global leaders to demonstrate their commitment to combat malaria with an increased resources and action.
As noted by Mr Emmanuel Fiagbe of the Voices of Malaria puts it “Let us remember that an insufficient investment in 2010 and beyond could lead to a reversal of the progress achieved to date and the malaria treat made worse, costing more in the future”.
Work begins on ICT university college
Daily Graphic (pg 11), Mon, May 03/10
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
WORK has began for the construction of a GH¢3 million Information Communication and Technology (ICT) University College at Adenta in Accra.
The Dignified Life International (DLI) University College (DUC) would focus on awarding scholarships in degree programmes in ICT to identifiable needy, brilliant children who cannot afford the cost of their university education, as well as other students who qualify for admission to the university.
The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by September this year.
The DLI University College, when completed, would be an upgrade of the Michael and Vivien Blair Information Technology Training College (MVBITC) which had been awarding scholarship to hundreds of needy Ghanaian youths each year to acquire world class ICT skills at the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS), Legon, for the past seven years.
At a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the beginning of the construction of the first phase of the project, the DUC Chairman and Co Founder, Mr Michael Blair said the establishment of the university college was in appreciation of the blessing his family got from Ghana and Africa through their company, GS Telecom’s investment in Ghana, which is now part of the Vodacom Group.
He therefore, made a lifetime financial commitment on behalf of his family to the university college in order to give scholarships to majority of its students.
At the ceremony, officials from the Gateway Communications Group (now owned by Vodacom), which is one of the major corporate sponsors of the university college, also pledged to continuously support the institution, financially and with equipment.
The ceremony was witnessed by executives of the Gateway Communications Group, Africa’s telecommunication giant and satellite carrier service provider, Mr John Wishart and Mr Holli Worsworth and DUC Founders, Mr Michael Blair and Mrs Vivien Blair, as well as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the International Certified Institute of Information Technology (ICIIT) UK, Reverend Mawuli Tasiame, and Mr Peter Larson, Vice Chair and Co-founder of the DUC.
Others were a representative from the Ga Traditional Council, some religious and opinion leaders in Adenta and the Vice President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Affail Monney.
Story Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho
WORK has began for the construction of a GH¢3 million Information Communication and Technology (ICT) University College at Adenta in Accra.
The Dignified Life International (DLI) University College (DUC) would focus on awarding scholarships in degree programmes in ICT to identifiable needy, brilliant children who cannot afford the cost of their university education, as well as other students who qualify for admission to the university.
The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by September this year.
The DLI University College, when completed, would be an upgrade of the Michael and Vivien Blair Information Technology Training College (MVBITC) which had been awarding scholarship to hundreds of needy Ghanaian youths each year to acquire world class ICT skills at the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS), Legon, for the past seven years.
At a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the beginning of the construction of the first phase of the project, the DUC Chairman and Co Founder, Mr Michael Blair said the establishment of the university college was in appreciation of the blessing his family got from Ghana and Africa through their company, GS Telecom’s investment in Ghana, which is now part of the Vodacom Group.
He therefore, made a lifetime financial commitment on behalf of his family to the university college in order to give scholarships to majority of its students.
At the ceremony, officials from the Gateway Communications Group (now owned by Vodacom), which is one of the major corporate sponsors of the university college, also pledged to continuously support the institution, financially and with equipment.
The ceremony was witnessed by executives of the Gateway Communications Group, Africa’s telecommunication giant and satellite carrier service provider, Mr John Wishart and Mr Holli Worsworth and DUC Founders, Mr Michael Blair and Mrs Vivien Blair, as well as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the International Certified Institute of Information Technology (ICIIT) UK, Reverend Mawuli Tasiame, and Mr Peter Larson, Vice Chair and Co-founder of the DUC.
Others were a representative from the Ga Traditional Council, some religious and opinion leaders in Adenta and the Vice President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Affail Monney.
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