APA – Accra (Ghana)
The report that President Akufo-Addo has described the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from their membership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) as unfortunate is one of the trending stories in the Ghanaian press on Friday.
The Graphic reports that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has described as unfortunate the decision by Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to withdraw their membership from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The three countries, currently under military rule, have announced their decision to withdraw from ECOWAS.
Their argument is that ECOWAS has outlived its usefulness and does not support their cause.
President Akufo-Addo, a former ECOWAS Chair said the decision would affect the people in those countries.
He also indicated that they were yet to meet to ascertain the impacts of their withdrawal and the way forward.
“This unfortunate decision by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger to withdraw from the ECOWAS community is going to be very negative for the populations there. But ECOWAS is yet to meet. It happened on Sunday, and we are waiting for a signal from the head, Nigerian President Tinubu, to indicate the time when we will have a summit to examine the implications of what has happened and the way forward for the community,” he stated.
The newspaper says that the UK Minister of State for Development and Africa, Andrew Mitchell, has affirmed the support of his country for Ghana to stick to the conditions of the IMF programme this year.
“We know it has not been easy, that is why we are backing you to stick to the conditions of the IMF programme this year, so you can continue to alleviate the economic pressures Ghanaians face,” he said.
Mr Mitchell also expressed delight that the IMF Board had approved the first review and second disbursement for Ghana.
“When I came here just over a year ago in December, it was the first meeting that I had with the IMF team and the progress since then has been absolutely undoubted,” he said.
Mr Mitchell was speaking at the opening of the ninth edition of the UK-Ghana Business Council meeting at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday.
The Ghana team at the council meeting which was led by the Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, comprised Ghana’s High Commissioner to the UK, Papa Owusu Ankomah; the Secretary to the Economic Management Team, Prof. Joe Amoako-Tuffuor; the Deputy Minister of Transport, Hassan Tampuli, and the Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr Henry Kwabena Kokofu.
The UK delegation included the British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson; the Head of Climate and Investment, Nana Frimponmaa; Head of Trade and Economics, Suman Mounsey, and the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Ghana, Baroness Kate Honey.
The Ghanaian Times reports that the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) has signed a partnership agreement with the Danish Meteorologi¬cal Institute, to enhance GMet’s capacity and expertise to deliver authoritative and pertinent climate information services.
Launched yesterday in Accra, the agreement, dubbed ‘Strategic Sector Cooperation on Meteorology and Climate,’ would augment GMet’s capabilities to furnish timely and relevant meteorological forecasting services, including contributions to Ghana’s Early Warning Systems.
The partnership would further assist the GMet in bolstering its digital proficiencies to effectively manage and leverage historical weather and climate observation data.
Director General of GMet, Eric Asuman, said the partnership was necessary to reinforce the agency’s capacity for strategic and political analysis.
He explained that due to the threats of climate change and its challenges, ranging from scorching droughts that threaten agricultural heartland to unpredictable rainfall
patterns that disrupt food security and extreme weather, it was critical that Ghana build collaborations to be able to access the necessary tools to understand, anticipate, and adapt to the changes.
Mr Asuman said “in accordance with our respective mandates, the GMet and the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) are eager to collaborate on endeavors that advance the strategic objectives of GMet and the Government of Ghana within the realm of Meteorology and Climate Science.”
He explained that the overall thematic focus was to strengthen the use of climate and meteorological information in climate adaptation planning and in Ghana’s early warning systems.
The project will support capacity strengthening of Ghana Meteorological Agency within technical areas and within strategic management and promotion of GMET climate and meteorological services, Mr Asuman said.
He said under the cooperation, Ghana Climate Atlas was being developed through a collaborative effort between the GMet and the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI), to help build resilience, inform decisions, and safeguard Ghana’s future.
The newspaper says that the Parliamentary Select Committee on Environment, Science and Technology has said it will push for the eviction of residents who have built close to the E-waste collection centre around the Atomic Energy Commission.
Expressing worry about the springing up of residential facilities around the E-waste dumpsite, the committee said it would impress upon the local assembly to evict the encroachers to in order avert any future disaster.
Interacting with the media after leading members of the committee on a working visit to E-waste site and other dump sites on Wednesday, Dr Emmanuel Marfo, Chairman of the committee, said the areas around E-waste dump site must not be allowed to be inhabited.
The purpose of the visit was to ascertain how E-waste is being handled from the collection point to the facility and how same is managed.
When the team visited the e-waste site, the Ghanaian Times observed that dozens of the residential facilities were in close proximity to the site, some as close as 100 meters.
Per a publication by the Central Pollution Control Board of India in 2017, the recommended buffer from an E-waste site should be at least 200 meters.
Dr Marfo could not fathom why authorities could allow residential facilities to be erected so close to the site considering the health implications of residing so close to the site.
In his view, the land tenure system in the country should be addressed to tackle the phenomenon of residential facilities around E-waste sites which are toxic and human unfriendly environments.
According to Dr Marfo, E-waste is one of the fastest growing solid wastes concerns globally and how to effectively manage it has come to the fore considering the health hazards associated to it.
Given the country’s rapid population growth, the Oforikrom MP said the manufacturing and importation of electronic products would increase as its waste and that the country must adequately be prepared for same.
“Looking at this development, how are we going to handle the waste going forward? That is why the committee has decided to take a step to ascertain how waste is being managed here and other parts of the country,” he pointed out.
GIK/APA
Ghana: Press zooms in on President’s reaction to withdrawal of 3 ECOWAS members, others
