The inauguration of three green projects at its North Industrial Area Plant in Accra in line with global efforts to accelerate net zero carbon emissions and the plan by the Ghana Union of Traders Association in Accra to close down their shops from Wednesday till Monday, October 24, 2022 to protest against rising inflation are some of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Wednesday.
The Graphic reports that FanMilk PLC, a Danone Company, has inaugurated three green projects at its North Industrial Area Plant in Accra in line with global efforts to accelerate net zero carbon emissions.
Built at a total cost of €7 million, the projects, a Wastewater Treatment Plant, Biomass Boiler and Solar Power Installation, are a demonstration of Danone’s ‘One Planet One Health’ vision and reinforce the company’s leadership in sustainability in Ghana and globally.
At the launch of the projects in Accra on October 7, the President of Danone in-charge of Africa, Asia and Middle East, Christian Stammkoetter, observed that the world was witnessing the unprecedented effects of climate change all over the globe.
He said it had become critical for all in the world to join hands and protect planet earth and achieve sustainability through the right policies and technological innovations, both in the private and public sector.
“At Danone, we believe that we can have a collective impact by working together to ensure that any economic rebound after the pandemic is both planet-friendly and socially inclusive; and by encouraging everyone to contribute to sustainable performance and impact.
“These green projects we unveil today are our contribution to protecting the environment and the planet,” he said.
The Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Kwaku Afriyie, said FanMilk Ghana had lived up to its promise of providing improved lives for the people.
The newspaper says that Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), has urged its members in Accra to close down their shops from Wednesday till Monday, October 24, 2022.
The move is to protest against rising inflation, depreciation of the Ghana Cedi and high lending rate due to an increase in the policy rate by the Bank of Ghana.
The President of GUTA, Joseph Obeng made the declaration today (Tuesday) at the forecourt of the Ghana International Conference Centre in Accra after a meeting with the Council of State.
The 1st Vice President of the association, Clement Boateng told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the closure of shops was necessitated by the government’s failure to address the concerns of traders after weeks of engagements.
He explained that the Council of State intervened when the association announced to embark on a strike action about two months ago and urged its leadership to engage the government before going ahead with the protest.
He said a joint committee of GUTA and the Council of state was then formed to lead the negotiations with the government and come up with recommendations, but after its initial meeting, the negotiation process was put on hold, leaving the association to its fate.
“We formed the joint committee to come up with recommendations for the government and we expected to have the Minister of Trade and Industry and the Minister of Finance present at the meetings but at the initial meeting, they only sent directors and officials from the Ghana Revenue Authority and the BoG,” he said.
The Ghanaian Times reports that the 2023 budget statement and economic policy of the government will focus on restoring and sustaining macroeconomic stability, Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr John Ampontuah-Kumah, has said.
The move, he said, was to address the economic challenges facing the country and ensure durable and inclusive growth and promote social protection.
Speaking at a two-day stakeholder engagement to seek the input of stakeholders into the 2023 budget and economic policy of the government in Accra on Thursday, Dr Ampontuah-Kumah, said the 2023 budget would focus on measures to maximise revenue mobilisation through the widening of the tax net.
The programme was organised for civil society organisations and the players in the banking and financial industry to seek their input in the 2023 budget.
He said measures would also be introduced to enforce tax compliance and vigorously pursue the digitalisation agenda to minimise revenue leakages.
“Government would introduce efficiency measures in the use of public funds by reducing duplication of functions among covered entities and reducing waste,” Dr Ampontuah-Kumah, said.
He said the government was confident that the policies and strategies being implemented and explored would help address the economic challenges the country was going through.
Dr Ampontuah-Kumah said credit ratings downgrades and the subsequent closure of the International Capital Market; tightening domestic financing conditions; high cost of borrowing following the increase in the monetary policy rate to address the high inflation; the depreciation of the cedi; and the high debt service burden, were continuously making funding of the budget very challenging.
“Given that Ghana is not expected to return to borrowing from the International Capital Market, (a major financing source in recent times to augment domestic financing), anytime soon, the financing challenges currently being faced by government is likely to persist into 2023,” he said.
Dr Ampontuah-Kumah said the government was yet to conclude negotiations with the IMF which is expected to unlock other financing sources particularly, from bilateral partners.
He said rising debt servicing and compensation for workers continue to be a burden on the state.
The newspaper says that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that he is not threatened by calls for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to be voted out of power in the 2024 elections.
“Such threats do not frighten me, no problem, I am saying that if people continue to make those kinds of threats, me they do not frighten me,” he insisted.
President Akufo-Addo pointed out that although he understood the masses may support a party with an expectation, he, however, did not see the need to threaten the government if it failed to deliver.
The president’s comment was in response to a question posed by host of a programme of a Kumasi-based radio station regarding threats by the people of Kwabre to vote against the NPP in the 2024 elections due to poor road infrastructure in the area.
Residents of Afigya Kwabre East in the Ashanti Region are angry at the government and their Member of Parliament over deplorable roads in the constituency and they claimed that poor road network within the area was affecting their daily activities including their livelihoods.
Afigya Kwabre East Constituency is one of the voting powerhouses of the NPP because it contributed more than 80,000 votes to the party in the 2020 presidential election but Mampongteng, the capital of the municipality, has no single kilometer of road tarred after detaching itself from Sekyere district, 35 years ago and some drivers and food vendors bemoaned exorbitant cost they incurred daily as a result of deplorable nature of roads.
The drivers also complained that weekly maintenance and servicing of their vehicles at the fitting shop is taking a chunk of their daily sales. Food vendors are not spared from the impact of the deplorable roads as well.
Reacting to the threats, President Akufo-Addo indicated that if the people decide to vote for the NDC in the general election, it was their choice and that was not his problem since no one would force them to vote for another party.
He, however, admitted that he had been mandated with a responsibility to construct roads and would definitely execute it.
GIK/APA