SARPONG'S BLOG

The Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme, the flagship project of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, is projecting to disburse about GH¢47,449,626 to some 150,785 beneficiary households this year. Already, some 88,932 beneficiary households across Ghana have been paid a total of GH¢6, 714,666 this January, 2015. The amount includes four months arrears of 11, 926 new beneficiaries that were added to the project this year to end the programme’s 34th payment cycle. Mr Alexander Ackon, a Deputy Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection disclosed this on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday when answering a question posed by the Member of Parliament for Ayawaso Central, Mr Henry Quartey, who sought to know how much money had been disbursed towards the LEAP programme during the 2013/2014 financial year. Breaking down the total projected pay out for 2015, Mr Ackon told the House that by the 35th payment cycle of the LEAP, that is du...

The Attorney-General, the Office of the Chief Justice and the Ministry of the Interior, are considering the review of the criminal code to introduce community service as one of the punishment for the violation of the law for minor crimes. The aim is to reduce custodian sentences, and help de-congest prisons in the country. This was disclosed by the Minister of the Interior, Mr Mark Woyongo, at a durbar of officers and men of the various security services under his ministry in the Eastern Region in Koforidua. He regretted the neglect of the Prison Service which had led to the denial of resources for the officers of the Service and the congestion at the prisons. Mr Woyongo observed that by the nature of the laws of the country, every citizen was a potential candidate for the prisons, and called for the respect for the rights and dignity of prisoners in the country. He said the prisons in the country was constructed for 7,000 inmates but currently there are over 14,000 pr...

The Institute of Democratic Governance, (IDEG) wants the proposed constitutional reforms to be looked into for consideration based on consensus to improve the electoral process in the 2016 polls and beyond. "IDEG’s Executive Director, Dr. Emmanuel Akwetey says Article 290 of the 1992 Constitution which deals with entrenched positions is too ambiguous and will need a Supreme Court interpretation. Receiving the Martin Luther King Award, he noted that although Ghana’s democracy has received international recognition Ghanaians do not have much confidence in it. In an interview with TV3, Dr. Akwetey said election 2016 will be tough if Article 290 which looks at entrenched provisions is not modified.He added that research conducted by IDEG shows that Ghanaians do not believe in the systems they vote for and are losing interest in Ghana’s democracy. He says although the confidence of the International community in Ghana’s democratic credentials appear stronger, the tension t...

By: Mathias Amoah Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, H.E. Ademola Oluseyi Onafowokan has commended Ghanaian-owned international beverage firm, Kasapreko Company Limited (KCL) and its Group Chairman Dr. Kwabena Adjei for deepening existing trade ties between the two countries. According to the High Commissioner, Dr. Adjei has contributed to the development of the African story economically by using the Kasapreko brand to foster deeper ties between Ghana and Nigeria. “It gives me great pleasure to use the medium to recognize and commend your immense contributions to the development of the African story economically and most importantly, using your brand to foster deeper relationship between our two countries, Ghana and Nigeria,” His Excellency Ademola Oluseyi wrote in a letter of commendation dated February 12, 2015. The letter was accompanied with a plague. The Nigerian High Commissioner stated that the success story of Kasapreko on the African continent has “end...

The Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP), a policy think tank of the extractive sector, has called for increase in the proportion of the oil revenue of the country invested in Agriculture. The center argued that increased investment in Agriculture was the fastest way to reduce poverty in the rural areas of the country. The call was made at a stakeholders’ forum organized by ACEP in Koforidua for civil society organizations in the Education, Trade Union and Agriculture Sectors. The aim of the meeting was to inform stakeholders on the spending strategies of revenue generated from oil in the country. The center called for more investment to be directed at modernizing the production of cocoa, to enable the country to maintain its position as the leading producer of cocoa in the world. The center also called for transparency in the allocation of resources for the citizenry, to know what project was receiving support from the oil revenue. Mr. Benjamin Boakye, the Operati...