The second season of “The Challenge,” a British Council Education initiative promoting the UK as a destination for personal development was launched in Accra today with the choice of 12 contestants who would vie for prizes in scholarship and other personal development programmes worth more than £100,000.
“The Challenge” is a reality educational television programme where contestants who are young university graduates are taken through a combination of aptitude and mental tests, demonstrations of academic excellence, leadership competencies as well as character and creativity exercises.
A selection is then made to select the best three who will win prizes that include postgraduate studies at prestigious universities in the UK, and opportunities for employment in organisations in the UK and Ghana.
For the second season of the reality show, three thousand applications were received and out of the number one thousand young university graduates underwent aptitude tests, interviews and group debates for the selection of 24 semi-finalists.
The 12 finalists selected from the 24 comprised of seven females and five males and they will be adjudged by a 3-member scholarship committee, called “The Board” made up of renowned business leaders.
The 12 finalists are Akosua Gyan, Anastacia Arko, Araba Abakah-Turkson, Sandra Barimah, Samia Dane-Selby, Maliha Abubakari, Dorinda Quarshie, Joseph Opuku, Micheal Quaye, Emmanual Sackey, Enock Quaye and William Offei.
The Board, based on set criteria will nominate three contestants to be evicted over a twelve week period and five top contestants will contest in a grand finale to determine the winner of the grand prize of a full board postgraduate scholarship from the University of Westminster with a total value of £40,000, fully paid accommodation at an international students’ hostel, a monthly allowance and a return air ticket to the UK valid for a year as well as a new laptop computer.
On completion of the post-graduate course, the ultimate winner will return to Ghana to pick up a pre-arranged lucrative job placement and a car.
The two runner ups will receive a one-year post graduate scholarships and accommodation from London Metropolitan and Thames Valley Universities while a third runner up will revive scholarships from PMC to study for post-graduate ICT related programme administered jointly by IPC and the Greenwich University.
The Challenge will begin airing on GTV from March 1, 2009 and will be a weekly reality programme where the progress of the contestants will be tracked on life TV as they contest in several tasks.
At the launch, several eminent personalities commended the British Council, its partners and sponsors of the show, including the Westminster, London Metropolitan and Thames Valley universities of London, TiGO, Stratcom Africa, United Bank of Africa Ghana Limited (UBA), IPMC and several others.
The new minister for Youth and Sports, Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, highly commended the link that The Challenge sought to make between education and employment and asked other corporate organisations to follow the example and by that help government’s efforts at youth employment, while the British High Commissioner, Mr Nicholas Wescot, encouraged the finalists to endeavour to become the best even as a team of contestants.
“The best of the best are often those who work best with others,” he told them.
The Director of British Council, Mr Moses Anibaba, said The Challenge had won the British Council’s most innovative and creative programme award, while it had been aired on DSTV.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2009, PG 24
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
GROUPS EXPRESS DISPLEASURE WITH VETTING PROCESS
Some pressure groups have expressed their displeasure over the vetting process of some ministerial nominees.
They said they were particularly displeased with the way the nominee for the Ministry of Interior, Mr Muhammed Mumuni, was vetted and, therefore, asked the Appointments Committee of Parliament to further investigate him and other nominees, before coming out with its report.
The Coalition for Democratic Forces prior to the vetting, released a press statement that raised concerns about the eligibility of Mr Mumuni for the position of Minister of Interior because of some alleged arbitrary decisions he took while temporarily in charge of the Ministry of Interior allegations. They cited the extension of the Bawku curfew for instance.
Another organisation, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) also held a press conference to raise concerns about the Mr Mumuni, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Ms Hannah Tetteh and Ms Sherri Ayitey, nominees for the Interior, Communication, Trade and Industry as well as Science and Environment ministries respectively.
Mr Kwabena Bonfe of the AFAG as well as Ms Frances Assiam and Mr Micheal Wadea of the Coalition for Democratic Forces, in separate interviews were also displeased with the arbitrary conduct of the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Doe Ajaho for disallowing the admission of an Auditor Generals report on Mr Mumuni during his tenure at the ______.
For Mr Bonfe, if the AG’s report, which was a statutory body, was inadmissible, then the same argument had to be made for all other reports submitted by groups like his to the committee.
He said the Auditor General‘s report was also a of more clout than a report emanating from any Commission of enquiry. In addition the AG was in fulfilment of its mandate always instituting enquiries into government business; its report could therefore not be disregarded by the Chairman of the Committee.
Ms Assima and Mr Wadie also expressed similar sentiments.
They however gave thumps up to nominees like Mr Mike Hammah, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Ms Sena Dansua and several others who they said had performed creditably before the Appointments committee.
Meanwhile, another pressure group, the Coalition fot he Protection of Individual Liberties and Constitutional Rights (COPCOR), is contemplating a defamation suit against the AFAG and the Coalition for what they call impugning the character of some nomines.
The Secretary, Mr Abraham Ferguson, said although they were not against any concerns of the two organisations, they had an issue with the way and manner in which the two had resorted to the media rather than raising those concerns only before the Appointments Committee.
He said COPCOR had also had some concerns about some nominees and had submitted to the Committe those concerns but had not raised them in the public through the media.
In response, however, Mr Bonfe has asked them to proceed as a legal right as AFAG was only engaged in letting the public know the real issues on the eligibility of the nominees.
He said if they would be taken to the courts then the appointments committer should also be taken to teh courts as they were holding the vetting in public and raising those allegations in public.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009, PG 17
They said they were particularly displeased with the way the nominee for the Ministry of Interior, Mr Muhammed Mumuni, was vetted and, therefore, asked the Appointments Committee of Parliament to further investigate him and other nominees, before coming out with its report.
The Coalition for Democratic Forces prior to the vetting, released a press statement that raised concerns about the eligibility of Mr Mumuni for the position of Minister of Interior because of some alleged arbitrary decisions he took while temporarily in charge of the Ministry of Interior allegations. They cited the extension of the Bawku curfew for instance.
Another organisation, the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) also held a press conference to raise concerns about the Mr Mumuni, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Ms Hannah Tetteh and Ms Sherri Ayitey, nominees for the Interior, Communication, Trade and Industry as well as Science and Environment ministries respectively.
Mr Kwabena Bonfe of the AFAG as well as Ms Frances Assiam and Mr Micheal Wadea of the Coalition for Democratic Forces, in separate interviews were also displeased with the arbitrary conduct of the Chairman of the Appointments Committee of Parliament, Mr Doe Ajaho for disallowing the admission of an Auditor Generals report on Mr Mumuni during his tenure at the ______.
For Mr Bonfe, if the AG’s report, which was a statutory body, was inadmissible, then the same argument had to be made for all other reports submitted by groups like his to the committee.
He said the Auditor General‘s report was also a of more clout than a report emanating from any Commission of enquiry. In addition the AG was in fulfilment of its mandate always instituting enquiries into government business; its report could therefore not be disregarded by the Chairman of the Committee.
Ms Assima and Mr Wadie also expressed similar sentiments.
They however gave thumps up to nominees like Mr Mike Hammah, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, Ms Sena Dansua and several others who they said had performed creditably before the Appointments committee.
Meanwhile, another pressure group, the Coalition fot he Protection of Individual Liberties and Constitutional Rights (COPCOR), is contemplating a defamation suit against the AFAG and the Coalition for what they call impugning the character of some nomines.
The Secretary, Mr Abraham Ferguson, said although they were not against any concerns of the two organisations, they had an issue with the way and manner in which the two had resorted to the media rather than raising those concerns only before the Appointments Committee.
He said COPCOR had also had some concerns about some nominees and had submitted to the Committe those concerns but had not raised them in the public through the media.
In response, however, Mr Bonfe has asked them to proceed as a legal right as AFAG was only engaged in letting the public know the real issues on the eligibility of the nominees.
He said if they would be taken to the courts then the appointments committer should also be taken to teh courts as they were holding the vetting in public and raising those allegations in public.
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009, PG 17
AQUA VITENS HAS BEEN BENEFICAIL-SAKYI-ADDO
Officials of Aqua Vitens Rand Limited say that calls for the abrogation of a management contract between itself and the government are not defensible since the company has shown success in three years of its operations in the country.
The General Manager Communications, Mr Sakyi-Addo, said such calls were sometimes due to a misconception of the management contract under which AVRL operated and a deliberate refusal by some to acknowledge the gains made by the company so far.
In an interview, Mr Sakyi-Addo, as well as the Communications Manager, Mr Stanley Martey, said AVRL, in three years of its operations in the country had posted increasing profits each year.
In 2005, when the company signed a management contract to operate water systems and ensure the efficient and effective production and distribution of water, billing and revenue collection on behalf of the state owned Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), AVRL recorded a profit of GHC1.9 million.
This increased to GHC13.4 million in 2007 and GHC20 million in 2008, making it a 121 percentage increase in operating surplus over the past two years.
“We’ve got figures that speak for themselves,” Mr Sakyi Addo stated.
The two however emphasised the fact that the profits made were given back to GWCL to invest in capital investments in the water sector, such as, the expansion of treatment plants and the laying of new pipes.
They said in three years of operations in the country, the company had successful delivered on all its key mandates.
For instance, apart from the surpluses posted, the company had been able to efficiently improve on its production and distribution of water.
Operational figures on non-revenue water, that is, water produced and distributed but not paid for had improved by about 49.6 per cent over the years.
They explained that in most instances non-revenue as not water that had gone waste but was used up by people.
However, illegal connections, the siphoning of water by some, among others, accounted for most non-revenue water, something AVRL was working at to redress.
Other successes, they mentioned, were the efficient use of power and chemicals that had ensured quality water and net operational surpluses for investment by GWCL.
On claims that the AVRL had imported used water meters from Holland, Messrs Sakyi-Addo and Martey, said the meters were free donations by subsidiaries of the company to Ghana.
They also refuted claims that calibrating the meters for Ghana’s specific needs might rather make customers pay more for water consumed.
“All new meters are calibrated to ensure that customers pay the right amount for the right volumes of water,” they said.
DAILY GRAPHIC, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009, PG 44
The General Manager Communications, Mr Sakyi-Addo, said such calls were sometimes due to a misconception of the management contract under which AVRL operated and a deliberate refusal by some to acknowledge the gains made by the company so far.
In an interview, Mr Sakyi-Addo, as well as the Communications Manager, Mr Stanley Martey, said AVRL, in three years of its operations in the country had posted increasing profits each year.
In 2005, when the company signed a management contract to operate water systems and ensure the efficient and effective production and distribution of water, billing and revenue collection on behalf of the state owned Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), AVRL recorded a profit of GHC1.9 million.
This increased to GHC13.4 million in 2007 and GHC20 million in 2008, making it a 121 percentage increase in operating surplus over the past two years.
“We’ve got figures that speak for themselves,” Mr Sakyi Addo stated.
The two however emphasised the fact that the profits made were given back to GWCL to invest in capital investments in the water sector, such as, the expansion of treatment plants and the laying of new pipes.
They said in three years of operations in the country, the company had successful delivered on all its key mandates.
For instance, apart from the surpluses posted, the company had been able to efficiently improve on its production and distribution of water.
Operational figures on non-revenue water, that is, water produced and distributed but not paid for had improved by about 49.6 per cent over the years.
They explained that in most instances non-revenue as not water that had gone waste but was used up by people.
However, illegal connections, the siphoning of water by some, among others, accounted for most non-revenue water, something AVRL was working at to redress.
Other successes, they mentioned, were the efficient use of power and chemicals that had ensured quality water and net operational surpluses for investment by GWCL.
On claims that the AVRL had imported used water meters from Holland, Messrs Sakyi-Addo and Martey, said the meters were free donations by subsidiaries of the company to Ghana.
They also refuted claims that calibrating the meters for Ghana’s specific needs might rather make customers pay more for water consumed.
“All new meters are calibrated to ensure that customers pay the right amount for the right volumes of water,” they said.
DAILY GRAPHIC, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009, PG 44
SERVICE PERSONS NOT PAID FOR JANUARY
Some National Service Personnel have appealed to the government and the National Service Secretariat to pay allowances due them for the month of January.
They said their allowances were to be paid by January 26, this year, however, they did not receive anything in their accounts and that had put them in difficult circumstances as they have no money for their food and to pay their rent at their various service posts.
They said they had also had no communication from the Secretariat as to the reasons for the delays in the payment of their allowances.
While the service personnel suggested that the directive by the President for all payments to be suspended might be due to the delays in their allowances, some also contended that payment of service allowances were statutory and was not affected by the President’s directive.
Others close to the National Service Secretariat said a legal judgement against the government to pay Rockshell International Limited an amount of more than GHC700, 000 had resulted in the use of the allowances of service personnel to offset part of the judgement debt.
However, officials of the Bank of Ghana, who did not want to be mentioned, said the suggestion was not plausible as the debt was paid out of a contingency operational account.
Officials at the National Service Secretariat, on the other had while confirming that due to some challenges allowances could not be paid at the end of last month, would not say what these challenges were.
They added however that the challenges had been overcome and cheques had been signed to be lodged at the various banks for payments.
DAILY GRAPHIC, WEDNESDAY, FEBRAURY 18, 2009, BACK PAGE
They said their allowances were to be paid by January 26, this year, however, they did not receive anything in their accounts and that had put them in difficult circumstances as they have no money for their food and to pay their rent at their various service posts.
They said they had also had no communication from the Secretariat as to the reasons for the delays in the payment of their allowances.
While the service personnel suggested that the directive by the President for all payments to be suspended might be due to the delays in their allowances, some also contended that payment of service allowances were statutory and was not affected by the President’s directive.
Others close to the National Service Secretariat said a legal judgement against the government to pay Rockshell International Limited an amount of more than GHC700, 000 had resulted in the use of the allowances of service personnel to offset part of the judgement debt.
However, officials of the Bank of Ghana, who did not want to be mentioned, said the suggestion was not plausible as the debt was paid out of a contingency operational account.
Officials at the National Service Secretariat, on the other had while confirming that due to some challenges allowances could not be paid at the end of last month, would not say what these challenges were.
They added however that the challenges had been overcome and cheques had been signed to be lodged at the various banks for payments.
DAILY GRAPHIC, WEDNESDAY, FEBRAURY 18, 2009, BACK PAGE
MPS UP IN ARMS, DECISION TO SLASH EX-GRATIA WRONG, THEY TELL PRESIDENT
Ex-Parliamentarians say they are considering all options, including legal against President J. E. A. Mills for varying their end of service benefits.
Mr Abraham Osei Aidoo, an ex-parliamentarian in an interview with the Daily Graphic said President J. E. A. Mills by revising the end of service benefits of Parliamentarians had engaged in an unconstitutional act.
He said the determination of the end of service benefits of particular parliamentarians and a particular president was constitutionally set within a period of time where the tenure of the two run together or was coterminous.
Thus, the salaries of parliamentarians who served from 2001 to 2004 and 2004 to 2008, by the constitution had to be determined by the President who served within the same period, that is, President Kufuor and the salaries of President Kufour also had to be determined by the parliamentarians of the same period.
He said constitutionally, President J.E. A. Mills had no right determining or revising any allowances or payments due ex-parliamentarians whose tenure was not coterminous with his.
MORE....
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2009, PG I
Mr Abraham Osei Aidoo, an ex-parliamentarian in an interview with the Daily Graphic said President J. E. A. Mills by revising the end of service benefits of Parliamentarians had engaged in an unconstitutional act.
He said the determination of the end of service benefits of particular parliamentarians and a particular president was constitutionally set within a period of time where the tenure of the two run together or was coterminous.
Thus, the salaries of parliamentarians who served from 2001 to 2004 and 2004 to 2008, by the constitution had to be determined by the President who served within the same period, that is, President Kufuor and the salaries of President Kufour also had to be determined by the parliamentarians of the same period.
He said constitutionally, President J.E. A. Mills had no right determining or revising any allowances or payments due ex-parliamentarians whose tenure was not coterminous with his.
MORE....
DAILY GRAPHIC, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2009, PG I
IMPLEMENT HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL'S RECOMMENDATIONS-SAYS EMILE SHORT
Mr Emile Short, the Human Rights Commissioner, has asked the government of President John Atta Mills to examine and implement recommendations of the Working Group of the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.
He has also asked the government to, as a matter of urgency, address issues relating to the rights of prisoners and corruption.
Mr Short who is the Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), said acting on the recommendations would be one of the first steps by the government to integrate human rights in all its activities during its tenure.
In an interview, Mr Short who in the country temporarily from his duty post at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda said the recommendations given by the Council’s Working Group in May 2008, after a review of Ghana’s human rights record made 30 recommendations, of which 22 were accepted by Ghana.
These included reinforcing the campaign against discriminatory practices and violence against women and children, taking measures to eliminate harmful traditional practices, such as, trokosi and female genital mutilation (FGM) and the strengthening of judicial structures.
He said other recommendations were for the adoption of measures against corruption in the judiciary, more training and education for the police, courts and social services, while increased funding and better resourcing was recommended for CHRAJ, among others.
Mr Short spoke about the deplorable conditions of the country’s police cells and prisons that CHRAJ had for some time now called attention to.
He described the overcrowding, the incarceration of minors in prisons instead of juvenile institutions, the remand of prisoners who have been in custody for very long periods such as 14 years and the lack of proper medical facilities for inmates, as “troubling.”
He said these issues that had been frequently highlighted by CHRAJ again came up for discussion recently when the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Mr Tsatsu Tsikata gave a personal account after he was pardoned and released from prison.
Although he said there had been some improvement over the years, much more needed to be done.
Mr Short reminded the government and Ghanaians that that the call for prisoners’ rights was based on the principle that while persons in detention were deprived of their personal liberty, their right to all other basic rights remained intact.
Particularly, they are entitled to basic human rights, such as, the right to human dignity, right to food, adequate shelter and access to medical facilities.
He said the view held by some segments of society that it was not worth spending scarce resources on improving the conditions of persons in detention was one that was misplaced and unacceptable in any civilized society.
Mr Short said what was required to address the problem of prisoners’ rights was a concerted strategy involving the government, the Attorney General’s Office, the Police and the Prisons service.
“Considerable improvement can be achieved in a relative short time if the will to do so exists,” he added.
On corruption, Mr Short said the government’s promise to strengthen the anti-corruption bodies was welcome.
He added, however, that the promise as important as it was only a step in the fight against the complex phenomenon of corruption.
What was needed in his view was a multi-pronged strategy involving all the stakeholders, namely the government, Parliament, the anti-corruption bodies, civil society and the business sector.
He said if the government wishes to confront the canker of corruption, it had to consider, as a first step, an examination of an Action Plan developed by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition in 2000 with a view to finalizing it into a national anti-corruption policy.
The action plan identified and prioritized six strategic objectives with immediately executory actions under some objectives.
The strategic objectives were to ensure full expression of the political will of government and stakeholders (private and civil society), to streamline key public institutions, improve public financial management systems, strengthen institutional and operational capacities of key oversight bodies, restore public confidence in institutions of law and order and involve civil society in anti-corruption strategies, institutional and economic governance.
DAILY GRAPHIC, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2009, PG 17
He has also asked the government to, as a matter of urgency, address issues relating to the rights of prisoners and corruption.
Mr Short who is the Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), said acting on the recommendations would be one of the first steps by the government to integrate human rights in all its activities during its tenure.
In an interview, Mr Short who in the country temporarily from his duty post at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda said the recommendations given by the Council’s Working Group in May 2008, after a review of Ghana’s human rights record made 30 recommendations, of which 22 were accepted by Ghana.
These included reinforcing the campaign against discriminatory practices and violence against women and children, taking measures to eliminate harmful traditional practices, such as, trokosi and female genital mutilation (FGM) and the strengthening of judicial structures.
He said other recommendations were for the adoption of measures against corruption in the judiciary, more training and education for the police, courts and social services, while increased funding and better resourcing was recommended for CHRAJ, among others.
Mr Short spoke about the deplorable conditions of the country’s police cells and prisons that CHRAJ had for some time now called attention to.
He described the overcrowding, the incarceration of minors in prisons instead of juvenile institutions, the remand of prisoners who have been in custody for very long periods such as 14 years and the lack of proper medical facilities for inmates, as “troubling.”
He said these issues that had been frequently highlighted by CHRAJ again came up for discussion recently when the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Mr Tsatsu Tsikata gave a personal account after he was pardoned and released from prison.
Although he said there had been some improvement over the years, much more needed to be done.
Mr Short reminded the government and Ghanaians that that the call for prisoners’ rights was based on the principle that while persons in detention were deprived of their personal liberty, their right to all other basic rights remained intact.
Particularly, they are entitled to basic human rights, such as, the right to human dignity, right to food, adequate shelter and access to medical facilities.
He said the view held by some segments of society that it was not worth spending scarce resources on improving the conditions of persons in detention was one that was misplaced and unacceptable in any civilized society.
Mr Short said what was required to address the problem of prisoners’ rights was a concerted strategy involving the government, the Attorney General’s Office, the Police and the Prisons service.
“Considerable improvement can be achieved in a relative short time if the will to do so exists,” he added.
On corruption, Mr Short said the government’s promise to strengthen the anti-corruption bodies was welcome.
He added, however, that the promise as important as it was only a step in the fight against the complex phenomenon of corruption.
What was needed in his view was a multi-pronged strategy involving all the stakeholders, namely the government, Parliament, the anti-corruption bodies, civil society and the business sector.
He said if the government wishes to confront the canker of corruption, it had to consider, as a first step, an examination of an Action Plan developed by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition in 2000 with a view to finalizing it into a national anti-corruption policy.
The action plan identified and prioritized six strategic objectives with immediately executory actions under some objectives.
The strategic objectives were to ensure full expression of the political will of government and stakeholders (private and civil society), to streamline key public institutions, improve public financial management systems, strengthen institutional and operational capacities of key oversight bodies, restore public confidence in institutions of law and order and involve civil society in anti-corruption strategies, institutional and economic governance.
DAILY GRAPHIC, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2009, PG 17
'ABROGATE CONTRACT WITH AQUA VITENS RAND'
05.02.09
Essential (SOCIAL)
Story: Caroline Boateng and Cara Fanning
Essential Services Platform (Platform) today reminded President John Evans Atta Mills of his promise to abrogate the contract of Aqua Vitens Rand Limited (AVRL) and asked him to fulfil that promise.
They said during one of the presidential debates prior to the December 7, 2008 election, President Mills categorically stated that he did not believe in the private sector providing water.
His sentiments, it said, was later reiterated by Ms Hannah Tetteh during an open forum held with the political parties.
Essential Services Platform brings together coalitions of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in water, sanitation, health, and education.
At a press conference key leaders of the Platform said the demand to abrogate the contract was because AVRL had not achieved targets set by the management contract under which they operated.
From a technical audit report of AVRL, an October 2008 report by AVRL and a World Bank Sixth Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC) report of May 2008, the platform listed several challenges of the water sector.
Key was the fact that AVRL lacked the capacity to test for pesticides, lead, mercury and arsenic in water supply.
The Platform said delays in replacing old pipelines were a major source of the contamination of the water supplies in La which affected mostly the poor or disconnected, who were forced to use the contaminated water, as AVRL’s own report indicated.
It also argued that what clean water was provided was not enough as “only three pumps are available” at the Kpong pumping station, and the three pumps subject to extra routine maintenance because of problems with their electric motors.
Conditions at Weija station were worse, it said quoting the AVRL report which admitted to faulty technology at both the Kpong and Weija pumping stations.
Importantly, it also highlighted the fact that AVRL was using second hand water meters from Holland, which had to be repaired and set to the Ghanaian specifications and that so far only 5,417 of the 40,000 water meters were currently being worked on.
The Platform also criticises the disbursement of only $38.22 million of the $103 million provided by the World Bank for the Urban Water Project.
It was particularly concerned as the indicators for investment in water facilities in the rural water supply have shown a decline recently, according to the World Bank, and the intention of this money was to replace old pipelines and machinery in order to improve water production.
The “rapid accumulation of solid waste” in drains, alleyways, and road sides was also labelled a “health hazard” and a possible contributor to the cholera outbreak which has infected 1,034 people between August 2008 and January 2009 and taken the lives of 8 people.
It also brought to light the severe lack of improved toilet facilities and the connecting of toilets to drains.
The platform highlighted transportation of patients during referrals from one health facility to another and said that ambulance services had to be made a key service under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
On education, it said raging debate on the number of years for senior high school students was misguided.
What was important was the provision of extra teachers and building their capacity to take care of pupils regardless of the number of years spent in schools.
That would involve motivating teachers posted to towns and villages outside major cities in the country.
Other demands made were for the government to increase its investments in the essential services, such as, education, health, water and sanitation and for the NHIS to bear the cost of anti-retroviral drugs in fulfilment of pledges in the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) manifesto.
DAILY GRAPHIC, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2009, 9G 18
Essential (SOCIAL)
Story: Caroline Boateng and Cara Fanning
Essential Services Platform (Platform) today reminded President John Evans Atta Mills of his promise to abrogate the contract of Aqua Vitens Rand Limited (AVRL) and asked him to fulfil that promise.
They said during one of the presidential debates prior to the December 7, 2008 election, President Mills categorically stated that he did not believe in the private sector providing water.
His sentiments, it said, was later reiterated by Ms Hannah Tetteh during an open forum held with the political parties.
Essential Services Platform brings together coalitions of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in water, sanitation, health, and education.
At a press conference key leaders of the Platform said the demand to abrogate the contract was because AVRL had not achieved targets set by the management contract under which they operated.
From a technical audit report of AVRL, an October 2008 report by AVRL and a World Bank Sixth Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC) report of May 2008, the platform listed several challenges of the water sector.
Key was the fact that AVRL lacked the capacity to test for pesticides, lead, mercury and arsenic in water supply.
The Platform said delays in replacing old pipelines were a major source of the contamination of the water supplies in La which affected mostly the poor or disconnected, who were forced to use the contaminated water, as AVRL’s own report indicated.
It also argued that what clean water was provided was not enough as “only three pumps are available” at the Kpong pumping station, and the three pumps subject to extra routine maintenance because of problems with their electric motors.
Conditions at Weija station were worse, it said quoting the AVRL report which admitted to faulty technology at both the Kpong and Weija pumping stations.
Importantly, it also highlighted the fact that AVRL was using second hand water meters from Holland, which had to be repaired and set to the Ghanaian specifications and that so far only 5,417 of the 40,000 water meters were currently being worked on.
The Platform also criticises the disbursement of only $38.22 million of the $103 million provided by the World Bank for the Urban Water Project.
It was particularly concerned as the indicators for investment in water facilities in the rural water supply have shown a decline recently, according to the World Bank, and the intention of this money was to replace old pipelines and machinery in order to improve water production.
The “rapid accumulation of solid waste” in drains, alleyways, and road sides was also labelled a “health hazard” and a possible contributor to the cholera outbreak which has infected 1,034 people between August 2008 and January 2009 and taken the lives of 8 people.
It also brought to light the severe lack of improved toilet facilities and the connecting of toilets to drains.
The platform highlighted transportation of patients during referrals from one health facility to another and said that ambulance services had to be made a key service under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
On education, it said raging debate on the number of years for senior high school students was misguided.
What was important was the provision of extra teachers and building their capacity to take care of pupils regardless of the number of years spent in schools.
That would involve motivating teachers posted to towns and villages outside major cities in the country.
Other demands made were for the government to increase its investments in the essential services, such as, education, health, water and sanitation and for the NHIS to bear the cost of anti-retroviral drugs in fulfilment of pledges in the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) manifesto.
DAILY GRAPHIC, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2009, 9G 18
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