APA – Accra (Ghana)
The assurance by President Akufo-Addo that the government will continue to prioritise Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, as an essential tool towards equipping the future workforce of the country is one of the trending stories in the Ghanaian press on Monday.
The Graphic reports that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has re-echoed the government’s determination to continue prioritizing Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, as an essential tool towards equipping the future workforce of the country, with 21st-century skills necessary for the emerging fourth industrial wave.
To President Akufo-Addo, it is for this reason that his government is putting science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in its central, relevant place in the nation’s educational curriculum.
Speaking at the 85th anniversary of the Presbyterian Boys’ Senior High School on Saturday, September 30, 2023, the President stated that, pursuant to this, the percentage of General Science students in Senior High Schools, which has been some 12 per cent over the years, has risen to 15 per cent this year.
He added that, in 2024, “it is expected to increase even further to some 24%.
Explaining in detail some of the STEM policies introduced by his government, President Akufo-Addo noted that a STEM pipeline has been created to increase STEM enrolment at tertiary education level, through pre-engineering programmes.
“The pre-engineering programme has been introduced to target Senior High School Graduates in General Arts, Visual Arts and Business. The George Grant University of Mines and Technology, the Pentecost University, and the Kumasi Technical University have admitted students into this flagship programme, that allows students to study subjects such as Physics, Elective Mathematics, Engineering Practice, Chemistry, Technical Drawing, Applied Electricity and ICT,” he noted.
The newspaper says that Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has called on business leaders in Ghana to collaborate with the government in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
To the Vice President, business leaders must play a pivotal role because of the private sector’s role in fostering innovation, job creation and driving economic growth in Ghana.
“According to the United Nations Global Compact, the private sector accounts for 60 per cent of the world’s GDP, 90 per cent of employment and 80 per cent of capital flows globally, thus the private sector’s role in the promotion of sustainable development and achieving the SDGs cannot be underestimated,” Dr Bwaumia said.
The Vice President made this known last Saturday in Accra when he delivered the keynote address at the second edition of the Ghana CEO Awards.
The awards organised by Globe Productions were themed: “The Role of Business Leadership Towards Achieving the SDGs in Ghana”.
Dr. Bawumia highlighted the progress made in reducing poverty rates in the country, from 52% in 1991 to 23% in 2017.
However, he pointed out that Ghana’s ranking of 107 out of 193 in the 2021 SDG index underscores the need for the private sector’s active involvement, given its substantial contribution to the nation’s GDP.
The Ghanaian Times reports that the Chief of Staff of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, Mr Silver Ojakol, says political will, collaboration and embracing of AfCFTA tenets were crucial to overcoming trade barriers on the continent.
According to him, the political commitment and collaboration would enable Africans achieve the just one per cent increase in trade on the continent, which would generate 70 billion dollars revenue, way higher than the 58 billion dollars given by donors as development assistance.
Mr Ojakol disclosed this at the opening of a two-day Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) conference, organised by Centre for Regional Integration in Africa (CRIA) and the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), in Accra yesterday.
The SME conference which was in collaboration with the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), with support from Afreximbank and endorsement from the AfCFTA was under the theme ‘Breaking business barriers for AfCFTA acceleration.’
It aimed at increasing awareness of the AfCFTA and its benefits for SMEs as well as to strengthen SMEs’ capacity to engage in intra-African trade.
Mr Ojakol said the journey to the implementation of the agreement was marked by a strong political will by African heads of state and government, and the enthusiasm of the private sector to change the destiny of the African people by making the continent an “economic powerhouse.”
“The AfCFTA is the first agreement in the world to demonstrate the political commitment and to have entered into force within a year of the signature of the agreement,” he added.
He said the AfCFTA provides opportunity for SMEs to build their capacity and to engage in intra-African trade while contributing to the success of the AfCFTA.
He urged the SMEs to take advantage of the AfCFTA to grow their businesses saying “there’s no AfCFTA without SMEs, therefore AfCFTA needs SMEs to make meaningful contribution to the economic development of the continent.”
The newspaper says that Kasapreko Company Limited, leading manufacturer of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages in Ghana, has expanded its presence to Kenya.
The expansion of the company, which currently generates annual revenue exceeding $35 million, was facilitated by Canary International Trading Company Limited, a subsidiary of the Canary Group of Companies specialising in food and beverage distribution.
Speaking during the launch at the Ghana High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya, Mr Patrick Masope-Crabbe, Founder of Canary Group of Companies, said that the firm would focus on a business-to-business model in order to ensure that the Kasapreko’s products spread rapidly into the market to reach consumers.
The goal, he said, was to collaborate with a wide range of alcohol distributors and establishments.
Canary International currently operates in West Africa, East Africa, and the United Arab Emirates.
Mr Francis Holly Adzah, International Business Development Director, Kasapreko Company Limited, encouraged Kenyans and the East African community to embrace Ghanaian heritage by experiencing the diverse array of beverages offered by the company.
He said Kasapreko had leveraged research and development, incorporating cutting-edge technology with local and traditional recipes in the production process.
“Kasapreko stands as a beacon of quality, innovation, and heritage, boasting of a state-of-the-art production facility, global export reach, and an iconic flagship product, Alomo Bitters,” he added.
Moved by the increasing demand for quality alcoholic products, Ghanaian businessman Kwabena Adjei, founded Kasapreko Company Ltd in 1989, with the niche of producing herbal-based alcoholic products sourced locally.
The company that started in a small garage of Dr Kwabena Adjei has developed into a state-of-the-art production facility with over 100 sku’s and exporting to 16 countries globally under vari¬ous brands in the bitters, whisky, gin, liqueur, brandy, carbonated soft drinks and wine categories.
The launch was witnessed by Mr Damptey Bediako Asare – Ghana’s High Commissioner to Kenya, Association of Ghana Industries, Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Revenue Authority and The AfCFTA secretariat.
GIK/APA
Ghanaian press spotlights 25% rise in population of SHS science students, others
