Category: General

Addis Ababa: The priority given to Ethiopia’s startup ecosystem and the changes in terms of policy and investment are commendable, according to the Ethiopian Association of Startup Ecosystem (EASE).

In an exclusive interview with ENA, Ethiopian Association of Startup Ecosystem (EASE) General Manager Nebiyou Yirga said the startup ecosystem used to be a bit fragmented and nobody shared any kind of information.

‘What we are now demonstrating is that the ecosystem is not built by one person. It has to be built by a lot of people and there is no single owner of the ecosystem. It is owned by everybody.’

Finding the gaps in the ecosystem and solving problems with all the ecosystem players, parties and the government are essential steps, he added.

For the general manager, considering all the innovations and startup ecosystems in other continents ‘we are late, but we have started at last; and it is good.’

According to him, the startuppers have now learned that there are going to be some changes in the ecosystem;
and they are optimistic to see the good effects of the changes that are being promoted.

In addition to praising the very good start in the ecosystem, Nebiyou hopes to see the effect of the policy and the kind of investments in the ecosystem.

The Ministry of Innovation and Technology reaffirmed recently that the government is making a concerted effort to foster a startup-friendly atmosphere in the country by offering essential resources, including funding, workspace, and technical assistance.

Efforts will be intensified to help startups enter the market as their contribution to job creation, productivity in agriculture, industry, and tourism, among others, is crucial, it noted.

In a recent post on X, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also wrote that ‘Startup Ethiopia aims to cultivate an environment conducive to youth entrepreneurship, fostering innovative problem-solving businesses.

Recognizing the youth as the nation’s engine brimming with innovative ideas, policy support for the ecosystem is vital to translate
these ideas into reality.’

Recall that a three-week ‘Startup Ethiopia Exhibition’ opened at the Science Museum in Addis Ababa on April 4, 2024 with the goal of fostering business connections, providing resources, and showcasing the innovation of participants in the ecosystem.

The exhibition was a national event hosting over 900 participating startups engaged in various fields, including information technology, agriculture, health, education, industry and finance.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Some Parents and guardians of three communities in the Dabo Electoral Area, Wa West District have expressed worry about the inability of their children to access basic education.

The communities were Gongo, Gongyogloo and Guomaal all within one enclave of the electoral area but none of them had a basic school.

The children from those communities had to endure the ordeal of trekking several miles to the Kulkpali community to access formal education, which some children were not able to endure.

The plight of the children of the Gongo and Gongyogloo communities was compounded during the rainy season as a river had cut the Kulkpali community from those communities making it excessively difficult for the children to cross to access the school at Kulpkali.

Mr Kojo Gangnaa, a parent at Gongo, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview at the community that the situation was a source of concern for them as their children were lagging in education.

He said it was more worrying that anytime it rained the chi
ldren could not go to school and when they were in school before it rained, then they had to be on the road in the bush until the water in the river subsided before they could cross to go home.

‘Look at where the school is located, it is very far. When they go to school and it rains and the river gets full, they sleep in the bush for the water to reduce before they can cross.

We are really suffering here. Our children are struggling to be educated but we are now helpless. We are only hoping that a kind-hearted person will hear our cry and help us,’ Mr Gangnaa explained.

Madam Alimatu Nuhu, a parent from Gongyogloo, lamented that their children were dropping out of school due to inherent challenges they had to endure to access the school.

She said due to the lack of a school closer to the community, the children dressed every morning and pretended as if they were going to school but ended up in the bushes engaging in activities that were inimical to their survival as children.

The helpless-looking residen
ts of the three communities passionately appealed to the government through the Wa West District Assembly and philanthropic organisations and individuals to come to their aid by constructing a school within the three communities to help ease the challenges of their children in accessing education, especially during the rainy season.

Meanwhile, Mr Ambrose Gambozie, the Assembly Member of the Area, describing the distance from the school at Kulkpali to the three communities, said only children above ten years in those communities could attend the school at Kulkpali.

He suggested that if there were a school at Gongo, it could serve the children in the three communities, thereby promoting education in the area.

Ghana, as a signatory to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), was obliged to ‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’ by 2030.

Target one of SDG 4 sought to ensure that by 2030, ‘all girls and boys complete free, equitable and qualit
y primary and secondary education leading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning outcomes.’

Target two of that Goal also states: ‘By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education’.

However, for the children of Gongo, Gongyogloo and Guomaal, access to basic education is a privilege rather than a right as provided by the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, the Children’s Act 1996 (Act 560) and the UN Convention on the Right of the Child (UNCRC) among others.

Imperatively, the government and its development partners must double their efforts in making basic education accessible to every child residing in Ghana irrespective of his or her geographical location, social or economic status, creed, cultural or political affiliation to achieve these targets by 2030.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Yaw Osafo Marfo, Senior Presidential Advisor, has asked the government to reconsider the introduction of the Fiscal Responsibility Act to tackle the election year budget overrun.

The Parliament of Ghana suspended the implementation of the Act in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2018 (Act 982) charges the government to ensure that the overall fiscal balance on a cash basis for a particular year does not exceed a deficit of five percent of the gross domestic product for that year.

He said elections in the country since the inception of the Fourth Republic Constitution were characterised by budget overruns where the governments spent beyond their budget.

These budget overruns, he said, were usually caused by promises made by politicians in an election year; therefore, most projects in that period were unbudgeted.

Mr Marfo said this in Accra at the Open Government Partnership (OGP)-Infrastructure Transparency Initiative (CoST) Stakeholder Meeting on Revitalising Infrastruc
ture Investment in Ghana.

‘It is very important that the Minister of Finance go by the budget that has been presented to Parliament. If the government is not able to match additional revenue, it should not go for an additional expenditure.

If the budget exceeds the revenue, then there is going to be a cost overrun.

‘So far, in our history in the fourth republic, in every election year, we have a situation where we have serious budget and cost overruns,’ he said.

Mr Marfo, who is also the Chairman of OGP, said, ‘I think that the government must reconsider implementing the Act very well to address cost and budget excesses during the election year.’

The Presidential Advisor stated that if the Act was not fully implemented, it could lead to distortions and affect government finances in the subsequent financial year.

The Infrastructure Accountability Initiative, he said, promoted transparency, participation, and accountability in the delivery of infrastructure projects.

‘This is done through multi-stakehold
er working, disclosure of data, an independent review known as CoST assurance, and social accountability,’ he said.

The project has been piloted in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly.

Through the project, he said, the Assembly earned a strong reputation for transparency and accountability as one of the sub-national OGP members.

Mr Christian Poortman, the Board Chairperson for CoST, said his outfit aimed at enhancing capacity, promoting effective governance in local infrastructure projects, and fostering engagement with stakeholders.

He said Ghana’s hosting of the 28th CoST Board Meeting in Ghana underscored the collective commitment to transparency, accountability, and good governance in infrastructure development.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Vulnerable girls from rural communities in the Upper East Region enrolled onto various vocational and technical training by the Advocacy for Social Inclusion and Girls Education (ASIGE), a non-government organisation, has reached 100 within five years.

This follows the latest admission of 20 selected young vulnerable girls to undergo a three-year practical training in various trades such as hairdressing, smock weaving, dressmaking, and welding, among others.

With funding from the Amplify Action based in the United Kingdom, the beneficiaries were also provided with learning materials and equipment as well as payment for the entire training duration.

Since 2019, ASIGE has been working with various stakeholders to help reduce unemployment in the region through the support of young vulnerable girls, particularly out of schoolgirls and teenage mothers, to learn various trades in vocation skills.

It has also been advocating for policy directions for African countries to prioritise technical and vocational train
ing as means to reduce unemployment, reduce poverty and strengthen efforts towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Ms Dorcas Apoore, Executive Director, ASIGE, told the Ghana News Agency that apart from the training, the beneficiaries would also be given entrepreneurship and digital training to enable them to establish their businesses, attract and retain customers.

She said so far about 33 girls had successfully graduated from the training and five had already started their own businesses, earning income and employing other young girls.

‘Majority of these girls were on the streets of Accra, Kumasi and other parts of Ghana but since we brought in this programme, these so many girls are engaged and we believe in five years-time, should they all graduate, they will support other vulnerable girls,’ she said.

The Executive Director explained that technical and vocational skills training was key to reducing unemployment and boosting socioeconomic growth and development.

However, e
ducational systems of Ghana and other African countries were mostly based on theories.

The situation, she indicated, had contributed significantly to the high rate of unemployment and limited graduates from establishing their own businesses and contributing to solving social problems.

Ms Apoore underscored the urgent need to align policy framework that prioritised handwork for young people, adding ‘we have so many graduates on the streets, but they don’t have the practical skills.’

Madam Rita Abamah, Bongo District Girl Child Officer, Ghana Education Service, indicated that most of the young girls enrolled had missed out on the formal education and the support would go a long way to build their capacity to live dignified lives.

She advised the beneficiaries to humble themselves and learn so that they would acquire the needed skills that would enable them to establish their own business and become economically independent.

Ms Martha Asaane, one of the Master Trainers, said they were willing to train the g
irls at reduced fees and urged the parents of the beneficiaries to support their wards.

Ms Matilda Adombire, one of the beneficiaries, expressed gratitude to ASIGE and its partners for the intervention and noted that the support would enable her make up for the formal education she missed and become responsible in society.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Addis Ababa: Ethiopia’s Green Legacy tree-planting program is a leading example for Africa, UK Climate and Nature Africa Directorate Head said.

UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Climate and Nature Africa Directorate Head, Julian P. Wright, told ENA that Ethiopia has shown progress in its seedlings planting programs since international climate conferences in Durban and Dubai.

‘Ethiopia has progressed since the Durban COP in terms of planting, and a number of examples stand out. The tree planting (Green Legacy), is really good, really important in a country where forestry is a key part of the economy.’

According to him, the UK has a long-standing partnership with Ethiopia on climate change initiatives and hopes that the country can successfully deliver on its ambitious commitments.

The UK is a strong advocate for locally-led adaptation strategies and social protection programs to build resilience at community level, the head stated.

“In Ethiopia we are big supporters of social protection; the
SNP programme for example as a way of improving resilience to climate change on the ground, and locally led adaptation is key.”

The head said the UK has played a key role in establishing the new loss and damage fund at COP 28, aimed at assisting developing countries facing the brunt of climate change impacts.

Continued collaboration between Ethiopia and its partners like the UK will be crucial in ensuring a sustainable future for the African continent, Wright noted, and promised to continue the partnership in the field between the countries.

Planning and Development State Minister, Seyoum Mekonnen on his part expressed Ethiopia’s desire to expand the Green Legacy program and become a renewable energy exporter in Africa.

He revealed that sharing seedlings and exporting renewable energy to neighboring countries are already underway.

‘We are striving to connect countries in Africa through the Green Legacy program and energy transition,’ the state minister added.

Building a climate-resilient economy and red
ucing greenhouse gas emissions are central pillars of Ethiopia’s 10-year development plan, with the ultimate goal of achieving net-zero emissions and a climate-resilient economy by 2050.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

The Institute for Energy Security (IES) has asked the Energy and Finance Ministries to urgently provide the money required to solve the current energy sector challenges.

The Institute noted that the current challenges in the sector were mainly due to inadequate liquidity in procuring fuel for some power plants to operate to full capacity and said the two Ministries must fix it.

It also reiterated the call for the government to resource ECG to bring down its technical and commercial losses, deploy more smart metres capable of detecting theft, and have an efficient distribution system to rake in more revenue.

Doing so would help in fulfilling ECG’s mission of providing quality, reliable and safe electricity services to support the economic growth and development of Ghana, IES noted.

The Institute’s recommendation is on the heels of recent sanctions by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) against the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for various regulatory breaches.

Speaking with the Ghana New
s Agency on the matter, Nana Amoasi VII, Executive Director, IES, said the liquidity challenges had resulted in effective maintenance of some of the plants, as scheduled, leading to the outages.

‘We expect the Ministry of Energy to coordinate and work with the Ministry of Finance to find alternative funding sources to deal with the challenge, thus, to procure fuel to get some of the power plants online,’ Nana Amoasi VII said.

On the regulatory sanctions, he said the action by PURC was necessary to send a signal to other service providers of the readiness of the Regulator to bite anyone who went contrary to the rules of engagement?in the sector.

‘The current action is consistent with the oversight responsibility that PURC must have over the industry,’ he said and encouraged ECG to oblige with the orders of the Regulator.

Nana Amoasi also urged the Regulator to carry out any other sanction against ECG should it fail to honour the April 22 payment to PURC and the April 30 payment to cash waterfall mechanism
beneficiaries.

The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission ordered the Management and Board of ECG to pay GHS446,283,706.29 before or by April 30, 2024 to ‘Category B’ beneficiaries of the cash waterfall mechanism.

This comes after ECG failed to pay shortfalls from August 2023 to February 2024 to beneficiaries by March 25, 2024.

For failure to submit details of all bank accounts to the Commission, PURC imposed an initial regulatory charge of 3,000 penalty units on ECG amounting GHS36,000, which is to be paid by April 22, 2024.

Mr Ishmael Edjekumhene, a Commissioner with PURC, on Wednesday, told GNA that they were yet to receive any update on any action taken by ECG on payment or negotiations on the sanctions.

Last month, Mr Sam Dubik Mahama, Managing Director, ECG, highlighted the need for consumers to promptly pay their bills to increase revenue and enhance the Company’s operational efficiency.

Meanwhile, the Energy Commission in its 2024 Energy Outlook for Ghana, highlighted the need for critical inves
tment for the energy and electricity sub-sector, particularly, improved gas supply reliability, owing to the increasing dependency on natural gas for power generation.

‘The government should expedite action on the proposed construction of gas pipeline connecting Tema and Tarkoradi power enclaves,’ the Commission recommended.

The Commission noted that the security and adequacy of fuel supply to thermal plants remained the single most important risk to power supply reliability in the country.

‘In this regard, it is strongly recommended that all stakeholders work together to ensure that the fuel supply is adequate and secure at all times,’ the Energy Commission stated in its report.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Teachers, caregivers and education officers in special schools have received training on the use of brail materials to educate children with special needs on menstrual health and hygiene.

The three-day intensive training was put together by the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources and the Ghana Education Service.

It falls under the Ministry’s Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA) Sanitation and Water Project (SWP) which is being funded by the World Bank.

Mrs. Charlotte Adjei Marfo, Programme Manager, Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, at the opening of the training at Fumesua near Ejisu, said girls with special needs normally stayed out of school because of inadequate access to infrastructure, outdated educational materials and stigmatization during their menstrual periods.

These girls, according to her, mattered a lot and if supported to menstruate hygienically and privately could boost their confidence to stay in school and learn.

It was against this background, she noted, that Water, S
anitation and Hygiene (WASH) activities being undertaken by the Ministry over the years in ‘normal’ schools had been extended to these special schools.

Mrs. Adjei Marfo mentioned that through the World Bank funded project, stakeholders had prepared brail materials on menstrual hygiene education for all the 10 visually impaired schools in Ghana.

There were also others on flip charts and audio-visuals for those with hearing and speech difficulties.

She was of the view that since the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlighted equity and inclusion, all special kids should not be left behind, adding that it was time intentional efforts were made to prioritize their needs.

She called on benevolent organizations and individuals to help menstrual hygiene interventions, especially to special schools, since most of the materials (pull-ups, tampons) during the periods were quite expensive.

Mrs. Theresah Oppong-Mensah, Director in-charge of School Health Education Programme at the Ghana Education Service, note
d that girls faced a lot of challenges during their menstrual periods, and it was important conducive environment was created for them to have sound and safe periods.

Talking about menstrual stigma, she said deliberate efforts were being made to expose both boys and girls to accept each other as they were.

This, she noted, had become important to boost the confidence of the girls to attend school during that time of the month.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Some passengers have appealed to transport operators to officially announce new fares to avert petty quarrels between them and drivers.

The GNA observed that some commercial drivers have increased fares by about 20 per cent since last Saturday, with drivers charging GH9 .00 instead of GH7.50 from Madina to Accra Central Business District.

Also, some passengers are paying GHC7.00 instead of GHC5.50 for a taxi trip from Old Ashongman to Madina.

This is causing misunderstanding between drivers and passengers, some leading to assaults.

Some passengers whom the GNA talked to, said they had not officially heard from the Ghana Private Road Transport Union on any new increment hence unwilling to pay new fares.

Comfort Okyere told the GNA that she was surprised at the increment, saying the Ghana Private Road Transport Union had earlier told the drivers to hold on with the collection of any new fares.

The GNA gathered that some drivers started collecting new fares on Saturday April 20, 2024.

The GNA also observe
d that some commercial drivers (trotro drivers) have printed and pasted new fares in their vehicles.

Source: Ghana News Agency