Women In Fish Processing Call For Collaboration (Page 11, July 15, 2010)

WOMEN in fish processing from various fishing communities across the country have called for effective collaboration between them and the Fisheries Commission to help find solutions to the various challenges confronting them.

The women mentioned the use of dynamites and lights for catching fishes, high interest rates on loans, and high cost of fishing equipment and inadequate storage facilities, as the major challenges facing their operations.

 At a forum organised by the  Development Action Association (DAA) a non-governmental organisation, in collaboration with Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) to educate women in fish processing on the policies governing the fisheries sector, the women called for an annual meeting with the commission for continuous deliberation on issues pertaining to  the sector.  

Speaking at the forum, the Chairman of the Fisheries Commission, Mr Mike Akyeampong said it was unfortunate that the women were not familiar with policies that governed and protected their interest as stakeholders in the sector.

He said the country had laws that governed the sector, adding that Fisheries Act (Act 625) 2002 outlined some of the “do’s and don’ts” in the sector.

He said sections of the law outlined regulations over exploitation and sustainability of the waters in the country. He added that fishermen should avoid using unlawful ways  such as the use of dynamites and lights in catching fish .

He pointed out that the use of bamboo’s and small nets in fishing was unacceptable under the Fisheries Act, and challenged the women to avoid the patronage of fingerlings and light-caught fishes.

The forum was aimed at creating a platform for discussion between the women and the Fisheries Commission.

Educating the fish processors, Mr Akyeampong said the fishery sector played a very significant role in the socio-economic development of the country, and added that the commission in that view had presented a bill on “Fisheries Regulation 2010” before parliament. 

He said the bill when passed would help in the setting up of proper regulations that would ensure the smooth running of their businesses.

The women also raised concern about the fact that there was no woman representative on the Fisheries Commission and Mr Akyeampong promised to discuss the issue, as well as other concerns raised by the women, with the sector ministry, with the promise that “ the commission will do anything possible to support you in your various communities”. 

The Executive Director of DAA, Mrs Lydia Sasu said the organisation was operating in 50 communities in the country with 98 per cent of the beneficiaries being rural women.

She said its main areas of operation included fish processing, cassava production, vegetable production, food crops production and small animals rearing, as well as the provision of micro-credit.

Mrs Sasu said the objectives of the organisation was to initiate a process of development which was based on the transfer of skills and competencies, to provide support and services for its members and to implement sustainable development programmes in the country.

She appealed to the government to provide the women with storage facilities, a ready market for their goods, and help construct good roads in the various fishing communities and the marketing centres.  

Sight And Sound Holds Graduation (Page 11,July 14, 2010)

The Deputy Director of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Dr Rose Entsua Mensah, has called on secretaries to exhibit professionalism and constantly update their skills to meet the demands of their work.

Dr Entsua-Mensah who was speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Sight and Sound Secretarial School in Accra said, the work of a secretary had developed from the traditional duty of typing letters, maintaining files and documents, into a new task of preparing meeting documents, maintaining websites, making travel arrangements, among others.

She said  the secretarial job had become more advanced, and  that it was imperative for them to demonstrate efficiency, honesty, integrity and reliability in their field of endeavour.

Sight and Sound Secretarial school was established 32 years ago with the sole aim of training professional secretaries for the job market.

Dr Entsua-Mensah advised the graduates to be productive,  urging them to work towards the smooth running of their offices.

The Principal of the school, Madam Julie Aryeetey, said the presence of more than one examining body for secretarial schools in the country continued to pose some challenges to institutions that run such courses.

She said presently, students were required to either take NVTI exams, COTVET exams or government secretarial exams.

Madam Aryeetey said the creation of one examining body for secretarial schools in the country would go a long way in addressing the problems faced by the schools.

She said Sight and Sound was established to provide training in typewriting for interested persons but current trends had compelled the school to provide a full range of professional training for potential secretaries.

She added that the school was currently running courses such as, office procedures, French, computing, economics, accounting, shorthand and typewriting.

Madam Aryeetey said the courses were designed to give students easy access to higher institutions.

In all, 53 successful graduate students were awarded with certificates of honour with Veronica Doe Nyarku emerging as the overall best student.

She advised the graduates to make a positive impact anywhere they found themselves.

Gt Accra Police Get Tough On Criminals (Page 51, July 7, 2010)

ELEVEN suspected armed robbers who are believed to have engaged in various operations at Adenta and the Teshie-Nungua area have been nabbed by the Greater Accra Regional Police.

Six of them were identified as Ablor Uman, 58; Nathaniel Addo Apan, 29; Lucas Anum, 27; Felix Sango, 25; Eric Baba, 21, and Bismark Addo, 20.

After the swoop on their Teshie-Nungua hideout by the Nungua District Police following a tip off, items including a laptop, a Dell computer, an LG DVD player, nine mobile phones, four pen drives, two ATM cards, a SSNIT ID card, one screw driver, two pairs of vehicle number plates and an instrument believed to be used for sniffing cocaine were recovered from the suspects.

According to the Accra Regional Police Commander, DCOP Rose Bio Atinga, two employees of Romantic Furniture Company on the Kanda Highway were also arrested for alleged robbery.

The suspects, Daniel Agyare and David Ohene Painstil, were arrested after a complaint made by their employers, Louise Yuon and Xu Shun Lai, for allegedly stealing the company's laptop, two personal mobile phones and an amount of GH¢3,000.

DCOP Atinga indicated that two other men who allegedly snatched a Nissan Urvan bus, with registration number GR 645S, and a Nissan Almera taxi, with registration number GS 8646-09, in two different operations had been arrested by the police.

Rashim Mohammed, 23, suspected for stealing the Nissan Urvan from a house at Fadama on December 21, 2009, was arrested on June 27, 2010 while using the vehicle for commercial purposes.

Rashim was said to have been released from prison custody in June 2009 after serving a four-year jail term for a similar offence.

The other suspect, James Donkor, 22, was said to have hired the taxi about 10:30 p.m. on February 2, 2010 from the Kwame Nkrumah Circle to Dzorwulu and later snatched it from the driver midway through the journey and made away with it, as well as the driver's sales for the day and his mobile phone.

DCOP Atinga advised the public to help the police with information that would lead to the arrest of criminals and ultimately reduce crime in the country.

She also cautioned potential car buyers to conduct due diligence on the places and the people they are buying the cars from in order not to buy stolen cars.

"If we arrest anybody with stolen items, the law will take its course, irrespective of whether he or she bought it or not," she stressed. 

Children With Learning Disabilities Need Support (page 11, July 6, 2010)

How does one know if his or her child has a learning disability or how can a teacher who teaches  about 40 pupils in a class identify those with learning difficulties in a class?

According to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Specific Learning Disabilities (SpLD) mean a severe learning problem due to a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in acquiring, organising or expressing information that manifests itself in school as an impaired ability to listen, reason, speak, read, write, spell or do mathematical calculations, despite appropriate instruction in the general education curriculum.

If children have SpLD, it does not mean that they are mentally retarded or unintelligent; it may be  that they find some aspects of studying more difficult than others.

Some common types of SpLD include Dyslexia which affects a child’s language and can, therefore, mean that the child has difficulties in spelling, writing and pronunciation, which could also mean that the child processes written or spoken information differently.

Dysgraphia is another type of SpLD that affects the physical aspects of writing and can cause an awkward pen grip, as well as handwriting that is difficult to read. This can also cause difficulties with spelling and expression of thoughts in writing.

Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome which is sometimes called Irlen Syndrome, affects the way the brain interprets printed information. Interestingly, this disability is not due to bad eyesight. It means that the child sees the printed page differently, but may not realise it. 

The most unfortunate type of SpLD that can affect a child is Autism which is a lifelong development that affects the way a person communicates and relates to people around them such as everyday social interaction, ability to develop friendships and the capacity to understand others’ emotional expressions.

Being able to identify these disabilities in children could pose great problems but identifying and addressing them properly could be of prime advantage to both children and the guardians.

As I continued my exploration into the world of SpLD on the Internet and recommended books, I came across some signs and symptoms of learning disabilities and think it could be of great help to anyone reading this article. Parents who think their children have SpLD could contact their children’s teachers to find out if they struggle with learning, get frustrated with school and show different behaviours and symptoms in class and with friends.

If you are a parent and you believe your child may be showing early signs of learning disability, learn about typical child development, developmental delays, and signs of learning disorders that could help you determine if an assessment is needed to address the SpLD.

Mr Mawuli Tetteh, a specialist in addressing Specific Learning Disabilities in Children, said many  people with learning disabilities had been successful in their careers because they learned to overcome their barriers which enabled them to accomplish their dreams and desires.

He explained that the disorders in some of the children were found to be a catalyst for success, forcing them to develop and utilise their hidden talents. He said the successes chalked up by persons with learning disabilities, despite their difficulties, showed that dreams could be fulfilled so long as they were encouraged.

Mr Tetteh, therefore, advised parents not to neglect their wards because they had  special learning disabilities, but support and encourage them, adding that teachers who teach such children should also endeavour to give special attention to them to help them develop their skills. 

I was fascinated that a number of famous people had excelled despite their SpLD. Did you know that Whoopi Goldberg, the outstanding American entertainer, got to know she suffered dyslexia  when she was old. When Whoopi was growing up, she remembers being called dumb and stupid because she had reading problems.

Steve Redgrave, Britain’s most successful athlete, fought against all odds to achieve world-wide admiration for triumphantly concluding a 24-year-long career after entering the record books as the only person to have won Olympic gold medals five consecutive times.

Another famous and successful person is Leonardo Da Vinci, one of the greatest inventor-scientists. He also suffered dyslexia, but become a genius. Surprisingly, he was not just a scientist but an engineer, painter, sculptor, musician, biologist, geologist, mathematician and philosopher.

There is no doubt that when parents and guardians help in addressing  their wards’ SpLD, their wards will excel.

It is, therefore, necessary to encourage parents, guardians and teachers not to abandon children with SpLD, but to identify, assess, and encourage them by giving them special attention to help them develop their talents. 

 

Set Up Ghana-Nigeria Trade Commission-Okosun (Page 29, July 6, 2010)

THE Chairman of Krif Ghana Limited, Mr Kennedy Okosun has recommended the establishment of a Ghana, Nigeria Trade Commission to solely work towards overcoming the challenges of trade between the two countries.

He further recommended the commission could be a non-governmental, quasi diplomatic commission to be headed by a distinguished former political  leader.  

Speaking at a Ghanaian-German Economic Association (GGEA) ECOWAS project forum in Accra,  Mr Okosun said if the resultant gains in implementing the ECOWAS protocol were to be harnessed, then appropriate laws within member countries had to be fine-tuned in favour of ECOWAS citizens.

 The aim of the forum  was to look into the concept of ECOWAS and the pertaining issues of implementing the laid down protocols.

He noted that trade between the two countries should be deepened for the mutual benefit of the two countries, stressing that relations between the two countries dates back to history and therefore there was the need to consolidate that relationship.

Ms Hannah Tetteh, the Minister of Trade and Industries, said  Ghana and Nigeria  are to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on how to facilitate business transaction between the two countries.

The MoU is expected to spell out the procedures an investor would have to follow in transacting business in both countries. 

She explained that it was the expectation of the ministry that with the signing of the MoU the procedure for doing business in Ghana would become clearer to Nigerian businesses.

She said “after this is done I will expect every foreigner who come into the country to invest to follow the laid down procedures and the laws that govern the trade sector of the country.

The Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Senator Musiliu Olatunde Obanikro said the present democratic dispensation was aware that the ideals of democracy would only flourish on the bedrock of a strong and virile economy.

He said due to this, one of the methods adopted towards attaining that objective was through the incentives that had been put in place to encourage Nigerians and foreigners to invest in Nigeria.

Mr Obanikoro said his country was endowed with natural resources, huge deposits of oil and gas, bitumen and other mineral resources which Ghanaians could invest into.

He explained that having experienced unpleasant experiences in political instability, corruption and poor macroeconomics management, the present administration was convinced of the need to come up with the business as usual syndrome.

Mr Obanikro stated that the government had also put in place an array of incentives and liberal tariff regime in order to sustain and stimulate private investment from within and outside Nigeria.

Other contributors including the Managing Director of Amalgamated Bank, Mr Menson Torkornoo, supported the idea of putting in place measures to realise the aims of ECOWAS trade protocol. 

 

Let's Preserve Historical Natural Habitat (Page 51, June 30, 2010)

GHANA needs to make conscious efforts to preserve its historical natural habitats in order to avoid the negative impact of climate change, a nature photographer, Mr Frans Lanting, has advised.

According to him, climate change and habitat fragmentation were the major challenges in conserving nature.

Mr Lanting gave the advice in Accra last Thursday when he delivered a lecture on the theme, ”Conservation through photography”, organised by the Nature Conservation Research Centre.

He said photography was a visual language that spoke for itself, adding that if used properly, it could serve as a source of information for national policies.

Mr Lanting is currently one of the greatest nature photographers in the world and has many of his magnificent works appearing in books, magazines and exhibitions around the world.

Born in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, he holds a Master’s degree in Economics and studied Environmental Planning in the US, after which he launched into photographing the natural world.

He advised Ghanaian authorities to work actively to preserve the country’s natural habitats for the future generation, pointing out that “if things are not properly executed, the next generation will have no historic natural habitat to learn from”.

He cited Madagascar, South Africa, Kenya, Namibia and Botswana as some of the African countries with splendid natural resources.

He said over-population and the pursuit of material things had contributed immensely to conflicts in Africa, thereby destroying most of the continent’s natural conservation.

He urged environmental journalists in the country to contribute immensely to the conservation of Ghana’s natural resources by taking photographs that would educate the citizenry on their historical natural reserves.

The Director of the Ecological Laboratory Centre of the University of Ghana, Prof Ofori Danso, said the livelihood of many Ghanaians depended on the country’s natural resources which served as food, shelter, among other needs.

He said it was imperative for the country to utilise those resources for its development, indicating that many visitors who came into the country did so because of its natural reserves.

He, therefore, advised all to help in the conservation, protection, management and wise use of the country’s natural resources.

RUPFA Donates To Flood Victims (Page 22, June 29,2010)

The Rural Urban Partnership for Africa (RUPFA) has donated used clothes worth GH¢1000 to the flood victims of Zabon Zongo, Otaabi Krom, Manhugwie and Kubease communities in Agona Swedru.

The donation was aimed at providing clothes for the victims who are temporary staying at the Swedru Town Hall.

Presenting the items, the Central Regional Cordinator of RUPFA, Mr Emmanuel Quarshie said the organisation was suddened by the disaster that befell the community due to last Sunday’s heavy rains.

He said it was important for leaders in the area to collaborate with authorities of Town Planning to ensure that citizens provided permits before building in the area.

“ What you have lost in this disaster cannot be compensated by any donations and you must ensure that the proper things are done to prevent future disasters” he said.

Mr Quarshie advised the members of the community to exhibit personal hygiene since there was a possibility of disease out-brake.

Receiving the items the Chief of the Zabon Zongo, Shiabu Abubakar III thanked the organisation for the gesture and appealed to other organisations to emulate the gesture.

He said they needed more support in the forms of donations and tents since the Town Hall was congested. 

Agona Swedru, one of the busiest commercial towns in the Central Region was cut off from the rest of the country following the collapse of three bridges over the Akora River in the town due to last Sunday’s heavy rains.

The situation rendered more than 4,000 people homeless in Agona West and Agona East as a result of the floods.

Many buildings, electric poles and cables, expensive property like vehicles and personal belongings estimated at several millions of cedis have been destroyed by the floods, which are unprecedented in the history of the town.