APA – Accra (Ghana)
The report that the Ghana Football Association (GFA) announced that Chris Hughton has been relieved of his duties as head coach of the senior national team, the Black Stars is one of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Wednesday.
The Graphic reports that an a major development, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) announced tonight that Chris Hughton has been relieved of his duties as head coach of the senior national team, the Black Stars. The GFA Executive Council also decided to dissolve the entire technical team.
This comes after the Black Stars’ disappointing performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), where they were eliminated in the group stage for the second consecutive edition of the tournament.
While Hughton, 65, had guided the team to qualification for the AFCON, their lacklustre showing sparked widespread criticism and calls for change.
Chris Hughton took charge of a total of 13 games as head coach after a stint as technical advisor. During his time as coach, he recorded four wins, five draws and four losses.
The GFA, in its statement, did not elaborate on the specific reasons for the decision, but promised to provide “a roadmap on the future direction of the Black Stars” in the coming days.
The Ghanaian Times says that Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, yesterday launched the Business in a Box (Biz Box) project with about 250,000 youth set to benefit from it.
An initiative of the Ghana Enter¬prises Agency (GEA), the project aims at addressing the root cause of unemployment in the country and focuses on sectors such as agricul¬ture, agribusiness, tourism, creative industry, building and construction.
It is being implemented under five pillars comprising: Youth Skills Development (YSD), Access to Markets (ATS), Access to Start-up Kits (ASK), Youth Social Networks (YSN) and Youth Social Networks and Institutional Strengthening, Pol¬icy and Regulatory Support (YSNIS¬PRS) with funding of $55million from the MasterCard Foundation.
Dr Bawumia said the Biz Box was a transformative initiative birthed as a result of the collaborative effort between the GEA and the MasterCard Foundation and built on the successful Young Africa Works – Youth Entrepreneurship and Employment program (YEEP).
He said the Young Africa Works Project, with a budget of about $13million implemented between 2020 and 2022, impacted approximately 94,000 young people in the country.
“Now, armed with a budget of US$55 million, the new Biz Box project sets an ambitious goal to empower 250,000 individuals, support 125,000 with start-up kits, provide market access support to 50,000 businesses, and regulatory support to 40,000 businesses,” he emphasised.
Dr Bawumia noted that Biz Box project, would be implemented across all the 16 regions and 261 districts of the country, adding that “also benefiting diverse groups, including youth, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), vulnerable females, majority women-owned businesses, and female youth-led businesses.”
He said that the project sym¬bolised hope and opportunity, encompassing the tools, knowledge, and support necessary to initiate, develop, own, and grow successful businesses for young people in Ghana.
The newspaper reports that the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of Old Mutual Ghana, Tavona Biza, has advised individuals in the country to turn their resolutions for 2024 into actions to achieve their dreams.
He said January often brought financial crunch, as holiday spending left pockets empty, and unpaid bills piling up.
Mr Biza said at Old Mutual Ghana, crafting a list of New Year’s resolutions had been a common approach to “making things better for the year ahead.”
However, he said resolutions could be challenging due to our tendency to set overly rigid rules for ourselves, adding that “We often adhere to these resolutions briefly before reverting to old habits.”
The GCEO said keeping your financial resolutions simple and having as few as possible makes success possible.
Mr Biza outlines five fundamental financial planning strategies and resolutions that could have a profound impact on your life, emphasising that “Incorporating these principles into your resolutions can make 2024 a significantly smoother year financially.”
The first strategy should be to reduce spending and increasing savings.
He said a budget was essential for achieving this goal, adding that adopting the 50:30:20 budgeting can be an effective approach.
Mr Biza said 50 per cent of one’s income cold be allocated needs, which covered essential and fixed expenses, another 50 per cent for wants which focused on non-essential lifestyle expense and 20 per cent on savings, which helped build a financial cushion for the future and support financial goals.
“Using this guideline as a framework and adjusting the ratios as needed can help you stay on track,” he stated.
Mr Biza said while reducing spending may seem daunting, it could be achieved by identifying and eliminating small, everyday expenses that often go unnoticed.
The Ghanaian Times also says that the government is seriously looking into the request by the Ghana Chamber of Mines (GCM) for the mineral explora¬tion companies to be exempted from the payment of Valued Added Tax (VAT) on drilling and assaying, according to the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor.
He noted that the issue of the scrapping of VAT on mineral exploration came up strongly during the meeting of the Economic Management Team last Tuesday.
Mr Jinapor gave the assurance in Accra last week during the breakfast meeting of the GCM.
The GCM has raised concerns on VAT imposed on mineral exploration, and said the practice is a threat to the country’s mining industry because it is thwarting efforts to attract mineral exploration investment into the country.
The Minister said by the end of the first quarter of this year, the issue of VAT on exploration would have been dealt with.
He said the objective of government was to position Ghana as the hub of mining in Africa and to maintain the country’s position as the leading gold producer in Africa.
Mr Jinapor said last year Ghana overtook South Africa as the leading producer of gold on the continent.
He said the country’s total gold output for 2023 was projected to exceed 4 million ounces and the production output would exceed last year’s production figure.
GIK/APA