GDP Growth falls to 12 percent Year-on-Year in Third Quarter 2011

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GDP Growth falls to 12 percent Year-on-Year in Third Quarter 2011 Accra, Jan. 25, GNA – The unadjusted GDP growth has dropped to 12 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2011, compared with a revised 17.6 percent figure in the second quarter of 2011, the Ghana Statistical Service said on Wednesday.

Dr Philomena Nyarko, Acting Government Statistician, said the industry sector recorded the highest growth of 32.7 percent, followed by the services sector with 5.8 percent and agriculture 5.2 percent.

“Within the Industry sector, the influence of crude oil pushed the growth of the mining and quarrying sub-sector to 263.1 percent,” she said.

She said growth in construction was also high at 25.9 percent whiles manufacturing recorded a negative growth of 15.4 percent.

Crops sub-sector (including cocoa) increased by 10.2 per cent while negative growths were registered in Forestry (-11.0%) and Fishing (29.9%).

Dr Nyarko said the main contributors to the increased economic activity in the Services sector were Transport and Storage, Information and Communication, Business and other service activities.

She said seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter estimates of the real Gross Domestic Product showed a decline of 0.2 percent in the third quarter of 2011 over the second quarter of 2011.

She said the Industry sector grew by 10.1 percent, Services by 3.1 percent and Agriculture declined by 6.8 percent during the third quarter.

GNA

YFM inspires youthful creativity with ‘Dust Lyve’!

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Y107.9fm has introduced a new dimension to its programmes with the introduction of ‘Dust Lyve’. Based on the ‘Dust Magazine’, an urban Ghanaian youth-oriented publication, which focuses on creativity in Ghana and her diaspora, Dust Lyve presents an appealing blend of the various components of the entertainment landscape.

Airing each Sunday night from 9pm to midnight, the programme strikes a balance between cool and conscious as the magazine upon which it is based, shining a spotlight on music not heard anywhere else, on events around town, with a light dash of issues to keep listeners informed of important changes in the world around them.

Nana Kwame Sarpong, General Manager of Yfm notes that, “Yfm is ever-dynamic, and ‘Dust Lyve’ is a step in a new direction. It goes a step beyond the regular entertainment show and throws in some good education, well-researched exposition as well as nothing short of Yfm’s quality music. It is a must-listen, suited to every inquiring audience”.

The programme is hosted by Crystal Svaniker, and Kobby Graham.  Crystal is the founder and publisher of ‘DUST Magazine’. An alumnus of the Global Media Alliance, she has over five year’s experience writing for and co-editing various magazines and newspapers, including Sunday World (later known as Weekend World) where she was Assistant Editor. Currently working both at the magazine and at the Ministry of Trade, she brings to the table a combination of a love for life and knowledge of how things really work in Ghana.

Kobby is the editor of ‘Dust Magazine’. He has almost a decade of experience DJing both in the UK (Amplified: www.amplified-online.co.uk) and in Ghana (Joy FM, Vibe FM, Asabaako Music Festival, AccradotAlt Festival, Soul N Motion, etc). He is currently a lecturer at Ashesi University College, a popular blogger (www.kobigraham.wordpress.com), and is probably the only DJ in town with a law degree and an MA.

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Increase in fuel prices impacts negatively on OMCs

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Increase in fuel prices impacts negatively on OMCs Accra, Jan. 24, GNA – The Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs) on Tuesday revealed that increases in fuel prices had impacted negatively on the operation of downstream oil marketing companies.

“The reality on the marketing field is OMCs make very low return on their investment, therefore when fuel prices are increased, what it means is that the OMCs require additional capital to lift the same quantity of fuel at the new price.   

“For example, for petrol, if an OMC lifts 1,000,000 litres in a month at GH¢ 1.0886 per litre, the total amount required to lift such quantity of fuel is GH¢ 1,088,600.

“If the price is increased to GH¢ 1.3127 per litre (15 per cent increase), an OMC requires GH¢ 1,317,700 to lift the same quantity of fuel which in effect requires additional capital of GH¢ 224,100,” Mr Kwaku Agyemang Duah, AOMC Industrial Coordinator told the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Accra.

He said: “Cost of sales increases by 20.59 per cent without a corresponding increase in margin. An added upshot of fuel price increase on OMCs is that cost of capital also increases”.

Mr Agyemang Duah explained that the OMCs’ had the option to decide whether to finance with debt or equity…”Financing the GH¢ 224,100 with equity would require payment of dividend annually – either preference or ordinary shareholders to shareholders.

“Moreover, in Ghana, most of the OMCs’ are not listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) so cost of marketing the shares of unlisted companies will also be high”.

The AOMCs Industrial Coordinator said, “If the OMCs’ decide to finance the extra capital requirement with debt, it has to pay monthly interest on the loan…we should not forget the fact that some loans come with restrictive covenants.

“With reference to our example, assuming an average interest rate of 25 per cent, the OMCs’ will pay GH¢ 56,025 as interest on the loan.

“It is pertinent to note that a significant number of OMCs’ cannot raise the GH¢224,100 additional capital to finance their operations looking at their financial position so they would like to trade with the available working capital.   

“An OMC which used to lift 1,000,000 litres at GH¢1.0886 will lift 829,283 litres at GH¢ 1.3127 per month”.

Mr Agyemang Duah said since the OMC did not get an increase in margin, it was expected that it sold more products to make up for the lost margin but in such a situation, the cost of sales went up while there was financial constraints on how much litres it could lift to sell at a reduced quantity of 829,283 litres.

He explained that when fuel prices were increased, the regulatory authority expected that products would be sold at the prevailing new prices which meant that the prices quoted on the dispensers had to be changed overnight and also billboards.

“It also cost OMCs GH¢200.00 per machine to contract expert to their various stations all over the country to replace the old prices with the new prices…not forgetting the distance and the time constraints.

“Increase in fuel prices results in general price increase of goods and services which in effect increases the general cost of operation by an OMC without a corresponding increase in margin.

“Increase in operating cost which is a recurrent expenditure would have to be financed with the existing margin including the fact that employees would expect an increase in salaries and wages since increase in fuel prices affect the standard of living of the ordinary Ghanaian, especially their colleagues in the public sector are enjoying the almighty single spine,” the Industrial Coordinator stated.

Mr Agyemang Duah said the imperative factor with the issue of fuel price increase was the fact that it did not make OMCs effective distributors.

He suggested that the way forward was for OMCs to obtain an increase in margins to be able to recover their cost and operate effectively by sending products to every part of the country.

GNA

Ayawaso East MP donates motor bikes to Nima Police Command

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Ayawaso East MP donates motor bikes to Nima Police Command Accra, Jan. 25, GNA – Dr Mustapha Ahmed, Member of Parliament (MP) of Ayawaso East in the Greater Accra Region on Wednesday donated two motor bikes to the Nima Divisional Police Command to help ease their transportation difficulties.

He said the licensed bikes are meant to support the Nima and Kotobabi stations to enhance their surveillance and policing activities.

Dr Ahmed also the out-going Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing said the partnership between the Police and the Ayawaso community has not only been harmonious but also beneficial in ensuring peaceful co-existence.

He said the donation is in recognition of the untiring efforts of the Police to protect lives and property.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Timothy Yoosa Bonga, Divisional Police Commander expressed appreciation for the continued support of the MP to facilitate security service in the area.

He said the major challenge facing the Command has been mobility and the donation of the bikes would aid the Police personnel undertake surveillance and other policing activities.

ACP Bonga recalled the two computers and accessories Dr Ahmed donated to the Command last month which he said, had gone a long way in supporting his outfit in secretariat works.

GNA

Check it Out: ‘Victory’ – Terry K featuring Gee2

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Check out this new single, ‘Victory’ from Nigerian up and coming rapper/singer, Terry K featuring Gee2. The single is taken off his upcoming mixtape set to drop later this year.  

Terry K describes himself simply as a young Nigerian with a passion for music. He is currently a student who combines his music with his studies. Follow @terryk92 on Twitter.  >>>DOWNLOAD Victory

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Ghana launches Fifth Ghana Higher Education fair

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Ghana launches Fifth Ghana Higher Education fair Accra, Jan 26, GNA-The Fifth Ghana Higher Education Fair was launched in Accra on Wednesday, to provide a forum for interaction between stakeholders to seek solution to problems encountered in the acquisition of tertiary education.

The fair to be held on the theme: “Securing Our Future Tomorrow” would expose the tertiary institutions as well as the programmes and courses they offer to parents, students and other stakeholders.

The Ministry of Education in collaboration with I-Texon Ghana, a non-governmental organisation  is organising the fair slated to be hosted in Tamale in the Northern Region and Takoradi in the Western Region.

Tamale would have its turn from February 6 to February 18 February, and Takoradi March 1 to  March 3.

The fair was first held in the country in 2008 and had become an annual event which was initiated by Captain Mrs Catherine Haziel Chief Executive officer, I-Texon Ghana and other partners.

Mrs Haziel explained that the fair was initiated to respond to the challenges many students face in assessing higher education and the difficulty in choosing the right courses relevant to their chosen careers or interest.

“Obviously, it can be seen that there is a missing link of much needed information for decision making.”

She said the fair thus, would expose the various educational options available in Ghana, the requirements for admission into the accredited institutions and what expert training they have to offer in select fields of education.

Mrs Haziel noted that the fair would feature exhibitions by various tertiary institutions both private and public as well as lectures on their various courses and programmes for senior high school (SHS) leavers, first and second cycle public funded and private schools and the public.

Mr Donnan Tey, Acting Director, in charge of Tertiary Education, Ministry of Education said the Ministry embraced the fair because it presented a channel for addressing problems students face when applying to enter higher institutions.

He lauded I-Texon Ghana for identifying the gap of inadequate information about the educational institutions and helping to fine-tune the educational system.

He said every year, an estimated 150,000 qualified students from more than 577 SHS  look for opportunities to enter tertiary institutions but only 35,000 students could be absorbed in the government sponsored institutions with the rest wallowing around while most private institutions with fine courses  have vacancies  due to lack of information about their operations.

 He therefore expressed the hope that students from the more than 250 higher education institutions of various descriptions in the country would well attend the fair that would provide the right links between school leavers, their preferred courses and corresponding institutions. 

GNA

Ahoney Man releases new single ‘Nkempu’

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Singer, Ahoney Man has opened another year with yet another new single, and this time he hits hard on the ‘loose ladies’.  ‘Nkempu’ featuring rapper Atinka and Meek is an up tempo song that features the ever popular azonto dance in its music video. It talks about girls that are ‘easy to lay’ and perhaps that’s what the term ‘Nkempu’ means.

After ending 2010 with the witty single ‘Car Korkor’ which was full of metaphors describing his desire to drive a red car at night especially due to the fact that there is no road traffic around at night-time, Ahoney Man opened 2011 with ‘Chop Better’, a fast-paced dancehall-influenced song with English/pidgin and Twi lyrics.

It seems that increasingly, Ahoney Man wants to prove to the young generation of musicians that he can fit into the evolving music culture. Born Godfrey Allotey-Mensah , Ahoney Man is a restaurant supervisor in his late thirties but he is determined to make a career out of his burning passion for music. In 2006, he tried his luck with hiplife on his album ‘Otofo’ after two unsuccessful highlife album. This time he found relative success, and a style that seemed to work for him. Check out ‘Nkempu’.

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East Ayawaso gets a SHS complex

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East Ayawaso gets a SHS complex Accra, Jan. 25, GNA – Dr Mustapha Ahmed, Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, on Wednesday cut the sod for work to begin on a three-storey 12 classroom block and offices for the proposed Senior High and Technical School for East Ayawaso in the Greater Accra Region.

The first phase of the project sited on a piece of land behind Kanda Presbyterian Primary and Junior High School, is estimated at GHC230,000.

It is expected to be completed within six months for admissions by September 2012.

He commended executives of East Ayawaso Constituency of the NDC, Assembly members and other committee members for their hardwork and dedication towards the  realisation of the project. 

Dr Ahmed said the project was being executed in consultation with the chiefs, elders and other opinion leaders of the community to bring about progress in the lives of the people.

He explained that the project was being financed by the GETFund, portion of the MP’s Share of the Common Fund, but would appreciate donations from the public especially, the beneficiary community to ensure the timely completion of the project.

Dr Ahmed stated that as the Member of Parliament for East Ayawaso, he thought it best to initiate the project to help address the challenges posed by the Senior High School Placement system.

“Difficulties of the placement system often frustrate parents and their wards in attaining Senior High School education in the community,” he said.

Dr Ahmed pointed out that as a community project, it would be owned by the community and urged all the committees set up to ensure the successful completion of the project on schedule.

He expressed the hope that the project would be expanded in future to accommodate more students.

GNA

Boko Haram is a threat to ECOWAS sub-regional security – Security Expert

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Boko Haram is a threat to ECOWAS sub-regional security – Security Expert Accra, Jan 25, GNA – A security expert on Wednesday said the terror campaign of Boko Haram in Nigeria poses a major security threat to West Africa and called on ECOWAS to intervene to deal with the insurgency.

“The potential threat of Boko Haram is not only to Nigeria but to the whole of the West African sub-region,” he said.

“Sadly ECOWAS is a joke. Its response to political crisis in West Africa is awful, our sub-regional leaders are quick to sign conventions and pass resolution but inept in implementation,” Dr Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, Director of Research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), told the Ghana News Agency in an interview in Accra.  

He said the ECOWAS protocol relating to the mechanism for conflict prevention, management, resolution, peace-keeping and security’s objectives was among other things to prevent, manage and resolve internal and inter-state conflicts.

He said Article 25 clearly states that in cases of aggression or conflict in any member state or threat thereof, in case of internal conflict that threatens to trigger a humanitarian disaster or that poses a serious threat to peace and security in the sub-region the Mediation and Security Council shall intervene.

Dr Aning said in spite of these articles ECOWAS is still waiting at the fringes without any direction and mechanism to deal with the Boko Haram insurgency.

He ruled out military options to suppress the uprising and said “Boko Haram does not require military response, it should be the last recourse.  It immediately demands a swift socio-political response to deal with the growing social vices especially corruption which is deep rooted among Nigerian elite class”.

Dr Aning traced the genesis of Boko Haram to 1986 radical religious rebellion led by a fundamentalist preacher which exploited the Maitatsinb riots but was brutally surprised.

He said the group went underground growing steadily to emerge again in the last five years as a force to reckon with. It has a multifaceted approach joining forces with allied groups to peruse their objective.

Its hallmark is the ability to shift its operational movement and forming ad hock alliance to achieve its mission, he said.

He said: “Targets for bombing are carefully selected to achieve operational objective, as well as sending operational message to the rest of the world”.

Dr Aning suggested that the Nigerian government adopt combination of strategies of which the military option should be the very last and that there should be no short term solutions.

He said Nigeria should deal with issues of corruption, provision of the needs of the greater majority whilst the elite community must face the economic realities of their actions on the masses.

He also expressed reservation about the recent removal of oil subsidy in Nigeria and said it was an unfavourable economic policy which the Boko Haram and allied forces are exploiting to advance their cause.

More than 935 people have been killed in some 164 suspected attacks by the group during the period.

The group has claimed responsibility for bombing churches, police stations, military facilities, banks, and beer parlors, in northern Nigeria, as well as the United Nations building and police headquarters in Abuja, the nation’s capital.   

Suspected Boko Haram members, often riding motorcycles and carrying Kalashnikov rifles under their robes, have gunned down numerous Christian worshipers, police officers, and soldiers, and assassinated local politicians, community leaders and Islamic clerics who oppose the group.

GNA

Supreme Court orders Registrar to serve hearing notices on two Deputy Ministers

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Supreme Court orders Registrar to serve hearing notices on two Deputy Ministers Accra, Jan. 24, GNA – The Supreme Court (SC) has directed its Registrar to serve hearing notices on Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Deputy Minister of Information and Dr Edward Omane Boamah, Deputy Minister of Environment Science and Technology.

The court gave the directive on Tuesday in the case in which the two Deputy Ministers are challenging Mr Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey’s right to purchase a Government bungalow he occupied as a Minister of State.

At its sitting presided over by Mr Justice William Atuguba, the court noted that hearing notices had not been served on the two Deputy Ministers of State.

He, therefore, directed the Registrar to ensure hearing notices were served on them for the substantive issue to be heard and adjourned the case sine die.

At its previous sitting, the court unanimously dismissed preliminary objections raised by Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey, National Chairman of New Patriotic Party (NPP), quizzing its jurisdiction to hear the case brought against him.

In the latter part of 2008 the two Deputy Ministers of State sued the Attorney-General, Chairman of Lands Commission and the Chief Registrar of Lands at the Lands Title Registry for allocating the property to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey.

In a writ invoking the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, the applicants prayed the court to declare that by virtue of Articles 20(5), 23, 257, 258, 265, 284 and 296 of the 1992 Constitution, the Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing in the NPP Government, did not have the power to direct the sale, disposal or transfer of any Government or public land to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey or any other person or body under any circumstances whatsoever.

The applicants also prayed the court to order that any such direction for the disposal, sale or outright transfer of the said property in dispute or any other public land to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey was illegal and unconstitutional.

They were seeking a declaration that by virtue of Articles 20(5), 23, 257, 258, 265, 284 and 296 of the 1992 Constitution, the Government was obliged to retain and continue to use, in the public interest, the property in dispute.

The applicants were also seeking a further declaration that the purported sale of the said Government bungalow, located at St Mungo Street, Ridge, Accra, by the NPP Government to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey was in utter contravention of Articles 20(5), 23, 257, 258, 265, 284 and 296 of the 1992 Constitution.

According to the plaintiffs, the Supreme Court should order that the purported direction by the then Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, for the disposal, sale or outright transfer of the said property in dispute to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey smacked of cronyism, was arbitrary, capricious, discriminatory and a gross abuse of the discretionary power vested in a public officer under the 1992 Constitution.

They were praying the court to declare that a publication by the Chairman of Lands Commission and the Chief Registrar of Lands, which announced that the said property had been allocated to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey was unconstitutional, void and must be struck out as such, since it was in contravention of Articles 20(5), 23, 257, 258, 265, 284 and 296 of the 1992 Constitution.

Furthermore, the plaintiffs were praying for an order of perpetual injunction to restrain the Chairman of Lands Commission and the Chief Registrar of Lands and their agents “From perfecting the registration of a parcel of land designated as Parcel No 29, Block 12, Section 019, in extent 1.04 acres more or less, as delineated on Registry Map No 003/019/1998, on which is situated in the Republic of Ghana Bungalow No 2, located at St Mungo Street, Ridge, Accra, in the name of Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey”.

A statement of case accompanying the writ said Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey allocated onto himself the Government bungalow in dispute as his duty post and resided at the said duty post at a huge cost to the State from 2001 to 2008, although he resigned from his public office sometime in 2007 to pursue his presidential ambition.

It said in 2001, when Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey was the Chief of Staff at the Presidency, the head office of Public Works Department carried out, at his behest, renovation to the tune of GH¢ 17,254 “Through Brockwell Construction & Engineering Limited, not to mention further additional refurbishment carried out at his instance to his taste at extraordinary expense to that State”.

According to the statement of case, Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey subsequently applied to the Chairman of Lands Commission and the Chief Registrar of Lands for a land title certificate to effectuate what it termed “The illegal and unconstitutional transaction”.

It said the Chairman of Lands Commission and the Chief Registrar of Lands took the above steps to regularise the grant to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey a land certificate in relation to the said property to effectuate the purported sale of the said government bungalow and plot to him.

The statement of case said, the applicants wrote to the then Attorney-General, protesting the sale of the said bungalow, but the Attorney-General replied and pointed out that the matter was a Constitutional issue.

They further argued that the then Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, did not have the power to “Direct the sale, disposal or transfer of any government or public land to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey or any person or body under such circumstances and that any such direction for the disposal, sale or outright transfer of the said property in dispute or any other public land to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey was illegal and unconstitutional”.

The SC panel included Mr Justice Stephen Allan Brobbey, Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo. Ms Justice Rose Owusu, Ms Justice Sophia Adiniyira, Mr Justice Julius Ansah,  Mr Justice Jones Victor Dotse,  Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonney and Mrs Justice Vida Akoto- Bamfo.

GNA

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