Day: May 2, 2023

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Chief Justice to commission high court at Dambai on Thursday

Outgoing Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah is expected to commission an ultra-modern High Court on Thursday at Dambai in the Oti Regional capital, as part of the judicial reforms to promote effective justice delivery in the region.

The ancillary facilities are the registrar’s office, information and Communication technology (ICT) room, bailiffs and docket rooms, residential apartment for the judge and a standby generator for uninterrupted power supply.

Mr Joshua Gmayenaam Makubu, the Oti Regional Minister disclosed this during the swearing in of Mr Bernard Aboakogya Mensah, newly elected Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Krachi East Municipality.

Mr Makubu said after the commissioning of the High court in Dambai, the Chief Justice Anin-Yeboah would proceed to Biakoye constituency, where he would commission a District Court.

He commended the Chief Justice for spearheading judicial reforms to promote effective justice delivery in the Oti Region.

He praised the Chief Justice for his effort towards completing the project on schedule and urged traditional authorities, religion organizations, stakeholders and the entire region to seek redress of their cases in the court than resort to taking the law into their hands to cause mayhem.

Some residents in Dambai, expressed their gratitude to the Chief Justice for the monumental facility and bringing the courts closer to them.

Source: Ghana News Agency

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Aspiring MP assures of welfare package for aged at Biakoye

Okyeame Kofi Adu, a parliamentary aspirant of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for the Biakoye Constituency of the Oti Region, has given the assurance that the welfare of the elderly would be prioritised when he is voted as a Member of Parliament.

He said replicating the concept across Biakoye would ensure the elderly became comfortable and empowered to meet the challenges that came with old age.

Interacting with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Dambai Okyeame Adu said some social welfare interventions had been designed to enrich the lives of the aged including quality healthcare and recreational activities in a safe environment.

He said youth employment would be cardinal in his administration and urged the branch, constituency and regional executives to vote massively for him to make his vision a reality.

He said he would lobby for modern equipment for clinics and hospitals, modernise agriculture to improve exports, and connect rural communities to the national grid.

Source: Ghana News Agency

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Parliament approves seven loan agreements at emergency sitting

Parliament, at its emergency sitting on Tuesday, approved seven loan agreements for the Government, despite opposition from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Minority.

The loans include $150 million Financing Agreement between the Government and the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group to finance the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme – Phase Two.

Others are $170 million On-Lending Agreement between the Government and the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) to support the establishment of a Financially Sustainable Development Bank under the Finance Contract Agreement.

The contract agreement is between the Government and the European Investment Bank for $170 million for the establishment of the bank.

The House approved the Loan Agreement between the governments of Ghana and Republic of Korea for an amount in Korean Won not exceeding the equivalent of $30 million to finance the Medical Equipment Provision Project in response to COVID-19.

A $150-million Financing Agreement between the Government and IDA of the World Bank was also approved to finance the Primary Healthcare Investment Project and another $150 million Financing Agreement to finance the Public Financial Management for Service Delivery Programme.

A $200- million Financing Agreement between the Government and IDA of the World Bank was also approved to finance the Ghana Digital Acceleration Project.

The $60.6 million facility, which the House failed to approve as a third additional financing for the Ghana COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response Project before rising on April 1, was finally approved at the extraordinary sitting.

The facility is a financing agreement between Ghana and the IDA of the World Bank Group.

Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary Majority Leader, and Leader of Government Business, urged members of the House to approve the various loan agreements to enable the Government to prosecute its agenda for the nation’s socioeconomic development.

Touching on the $150 million Financing Agreement to finance the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme – Phase Two, the Majority Leader said the facility would go a long way to increase farmers’ access to agriculture technology.

Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the NDC Parliamentary Minority Leader, said looking at the huge debts, which had saddled the nation, that was not the time to take more loans.

Mr Haruna Iddrisu, the NDC Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale South, and former Minority Leader, said the nation should not borrow exceedingly beyond a certain threshold.

Dr John Ampontuah Kumah, a Deputy Minister of Finance, addressing the Parliamentary Press corps, said the loan agreements, which the House had approved, were not new loans.

‘These are loans that are already on our books but require parliamentary approval,’ he said.

Source: Ghana News Agency

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Startups told to seek innovation to provide goods and services to market

National director for the Economy and Business Development of the Ministry for the Economy and Planning (MEP) Nédio dos Santos Tuesday in Luanda urged startups to seek innovation and technology aimed to provide goods and services in the quantity and quality desired by the market.

Startups need to take into account that population growth will demand more goods and services that must be met, he said during the usual MEP briefing.

The recommendation was made at taking stock activity of the 2nd edition of the Angola Startup Summit 2023, held from 27 to 29 April, under the theme, “Innovation and technology as vectors for startups in Angola,”

He noted that the event brought together more than 150 exhibitors from eight provinces across the country and received around 5,000 visitors.

He added that after the Angola Startup Summit 2023, better performance of startups was expected, particularly those that won prizes and that were expected to benefit 10 million kwanzas each.

They will also benefit from a business plan and internationalisation of the startup.

According to the source, FACRA will work with the two winners, with the possibility of investing, depending on a set of indicators to be identified.

The head of Stratup “Bayka Pay”, Lino Muengue, explained that his technological solution makes it possible to organise and identify the parks, so that the driver can freely choose the area where he wants to park.

“The project has legs to move. We are waiting for the day to present the project to the Luanda Provincial Government and we can see its implementation in the city,” he said.

In the 2nd edition of Angola Startup Summit 2023 awards went to the categories “BCI Challenge” – focused on the solution for agribusiness and monitoring the startup until maturity, “MEP Challenge”, consisting of a solution for restaurants that allows access to the bar code, and the category “GPL Challenge”, fell to Stratup “Bayka Pay” – a solution for parking in the country’s capital.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

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Oil production grows to 278,052 barrels in March

Angola’s crude oil production reached 30.059 million barrels in March this year, an increase of 278.52 thousand barrels compared to February.

Despite the rise, the country did not achieved the rate of the production expected of 1.067 thousand barrels of oil per day (BOPD).

It obtained a daily average of 969.64 thousand (BOPD), below the February results.

Data released by the National Concessionaire, the National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANPG), put at 29.78 million the oil production in February, a daily average of 1.063 million barrels of oil (BOPD) against 1.142 million expected.

In the first three months of 2023, Angola exported 86.92 million barrels of crude oil at an average price of USD 78, 711 for a total value of USD 6.92 billion.

OPEC basket price

The basket price of thirteen crude oil of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), was at USD 78,40 per barrel last Thursday compared to USD 81,12 of Wednesday.

According to the calculations of the OPEC Secretariat published Friday that ANGOP had access to, the price dropped to 2.72 USD.

The OPEC Reference Crude Basket (ORB) is made up of Saharan Blend (Algeria), Sunflower (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), as well as, Ax Basrah Medium (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE), and Merey (Venezuela).

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

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Ministry of Education draws attention to teachers

Angolan minister of Education Luísa Grilo Tuesday said that valuing of human capital, with stress to the teachers, represents the Executive’s main challenge.

Luísa Grilo acknowledged this while speaking at the opening ceremony of the sector’s First Consultative Council held in municipality of Luau, eastern Moxico province.

The minister pledged the Executive commitment to continue working toward achieving and overcoming “the great challenges of the sector”, including that of appreciation of human capital, mainly the teachers.

In addition to this challenge, Luísa Grilo also spoke of tackling the problem of educational infrastructures to cater for the children outside the education system.

In her speech, she also spoke of the need to reduce the teacher-student ratio, “urgently” eliminate precarious classrooms and overcome the quality of learning.

She also said that the quality of teaching will be implemented in the review of the curriculum policy and other components, as well as due attention to the management model of the national assessment system and other domains.

As for the meeting, the minister said that she will analyse, among others, the causes and consequences of violence in public and private schools in the country, prevention and mitigation strategies, so that students find a peaceful, familiar and supportive environment at school, where the values of good and healthy coexistence are promoted.

Luísa Grilo said the event serves to promote a reflection on the paths of human resource management, in addition to reinforcing the Executive’s idea of continuing to train staff, so that the duties of primary education teaching staff are guaranteed by qualified teachers.

In turn, the governor of Moxico, Ernesto Muangala, asked the MED for more investment in the region, especially in the construction of technical schools in the interior unicipalities.

The two-day meeting will enable the more than 200 participants to address various issues, such as the national school calendar, expansion of the programme for pre-school and early childhood education, among other matters.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)