The report that Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia is in the United States of America (USA) to participate in the Open Debate of the UN Security Council in New York is one of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Monday.
The Graphic reports that Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, is in the United States of America (USA) to participate in the Open Debate of the UN Security Council in New York.
Dr Bawumia, who left Accra last Saturday, will, on behalf of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, deliver a statement during the Open Debate.
Ghana was recently elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
A statement from the Office of the Vice-President said the Vice-President would address the Open Debate prior to holding meetings with senior officials of the UN.
He is also expected to hold discussions in Washington, DC, with the US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Ms Molly Phee, on strengthening the co-operation between the two countries on issues of mutual interest.
The Vice-President returns to Accra on Friday, January 28, 2022.
On Tuesday, January 25, the UN Security Council will convene a high-level open debate on the protection of civilians on the theme: “Wars in cities: Protection of civilians in urban settings”.
The Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, will chair the debate, which will hear briefings from the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres.
On June 11, 2021, the General Assembly of the UN elected Ghana to serve a two-year term on the Security Council for the period January 2022 to December 2023.
The newspaper says that the Producer Price Inflation rate for December 2021 decreased from 13.6 per cent in November 2021 to 12.8 per cent, the Ghana Statistical Service has announced.
This represents a 0.8 percentage point decrease in producer inflation. The Producer Price Index (PPI) measures the average change over time in the prices received by domestic producers for the production of their goods and services.
The PPI in the Mining and Quarrying sub-sector decreased by 1.7 percentage points over the November 2021 rate of 1.8 per cent to record 0.1 per cent in December 2021.
That of the Manufacturing sub-sector, which constitutes more than two-thirds of the total industry, also decreased by 0.8 percentage points to record 19.2 per cent.
The utility sub-sector recorded a 0.2 per cent inflation rate for December 2021.
In December 2021, two out of the 16 major groups in the manufacturing sub-sector recorded inflation rates higher than the sector average of 19.2 per cent.
Manufacture of coke, refined petroleum products and nuclear fuel recorded the highest inflation rate of 56.4 per cent, while the manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers recorded the least inflation rate of -3.5 per cent.
The Graphic also reports that stakeholders in Ghana football are sharply divided over how to salvage the Black Stars following their abysmal performance at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroun, which saw the team crash out at the first hurdle.
While some insist on a radical approach — the outright dismissal of the Head Coach, Milovan Rajevac, and the dissolution of the national team — others are calling for cool heads, sober reflection and a measured approach to the way forward.
Last Friday, an emergency meeting was held at the Jubilee House between the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Mustapha Ussif, and the leadership of the FA and the Black Stars technical team, during which the minister expressed the nation’s disappointment at the team’s poor showing.
At the said meeting, Mr Ussif told the GFA President, Mr Kurt Simeon Okraku, and his colleagues at the FA that Ghanaians had lost confidence in the technical team’s ability to lead the team to success and, consequently, directed the FA to relieve Coach Rajevac of his post and also reconstitute the Black Stars Management Committee, headed by the GFA Executive Council (ExCo) member, Mr George Amoako.
The Daily Graphic gathered that the GFA wanted the coach maintained to correct the mistakes of the AFCON, especially as the team had little time to prepare for a crucial World Cup qualification playoff against Nigeria in March.
The meeting appeared to have ended in a deadlock
In spite of the directive from the minister, as of the time of going to press, the GFA was yet to make an official announcement that the Serbian coach had been relieved of his post.
The Ghanaian Times says that the government of Ghana secured a total of ¢1.9 billion from the sale of 6-year bond and a tap issue of 3-year bond, which was marginally undersubscribed.
This is coming a day after the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, announced a 30-per cent cut in expenditure of Ministries, Municipal Assemblies, Departments and Agencies (MMDAs), which was expected to bring investor confidence into the economy.
The target for the sale of the two medium term bonds was ¢2.0 billion.
According to the trading results by the Bank of Ghana, the new 6-year bond raised ¢1.32 billion at a coupon rate of 21.75 per cent, while the 3-year bond tap offer raised ¢606 million at a yield of 20.50 per cent.
Analysts say the pricing were in line with the second market levels.
The downgrade of the credit rating of Ghana from B to B- and the associated uncertainty regarding government finances remain an upside risk to yields.
However, the government’s smart move to reduce expenditure of all public sector institutions will help improve and address the risk to outlook. This has yielded positive results as Eurobonds yields have declined marginally by over 30 basis points (0.3 per cent).
Government secures ¢923.79m from 5-year bond at higher cost
Government in December 2021 mobilised ¢923.79 million from the issuance of a 5-year bond, but that came at a higher cost of 21 per cent.
GIK/APA