SOMETHING NEW NOW: May 2014

31 May 2014

In Africa, America promotes security, China does business.

Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang both made high-profile visits to Africa within a week of each other this month. Kerry sought to resolve the continuing violence in South Sudan and the Central African Republic, Li came bearing aid and investment deals.
The United States could learn something from Beijing’s economic playbook.

The two leaders’ agendas could not offer a more vivid picture of the different priorities that each power pursues in Africa. Washington plays regional peacemaker, while Beijing focuses intently on its long-term economic interests.

ECOWAS says it has no intention of sending troops to Nigeria to fight Boko Haram.

ECOWAS Chairman, President John Dramani Mahama, who made this known at a press conference at the end of the one-day extraordinary session in Accra yesterday, said already, the Nigeria President Goodluck Jonathan had assured his colleagues in the sub-regional group that he was "doing everything possible" to resolve the burning issue.

The African Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) has revealed that the current government has spent $176 million which accrued to the Contingency Fund as petroleum revenue from January to May this year without approval from Parliament as required by law.
Speaking to Public Agenda in Accra yesterday, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, Executive Director of ACEP, challenged Parliament to probe the unlawful expending of the $176 million from the Contingency Fund. Dr. Amin Adam showed this paper a document that he claimed ACEP sourced from the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to support his assertion that the government actually spent the money.

Opinion

After 50 years of independence, Africa is rippled with conflicts and it is foremost Africa's leaders who are to blame. African leadership has to care about the African people and invest in them in the sense of Ubuntu.

The African and international elite have just concluded the African Development Bank's 50th anniversary celebrations and annual meeting under the theme: "The Next 50 Years: The Africa We Want". Over 3,500 delegates, seven African Heads of State, the Governor of the Central Bank of China and U.S Deputy Secretary of Treasury were among the dignitaries to grace the occasion.

At the African Union Commission Retreat of Foreign Ministers held at Bahir Dar, Ethiopia on 24-26 January 2014, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, chair of the AU, gave the following address. It is addressed to the great visionary Pan-Africanist, Kwame Nkrumah in a futuristic look at Africa’s continental achievements in the year 2063.

Akufo-Addo Mourns Kofi Ansah.

My attention has been drawn to ongoing media reportage and commentary being made by some members of the New Patriotic Party, and, unsurprisingly, by our political opponents to the effect there is a fractured relationship between President John Agyekum Kufuor and myself.
The allegations that are making the rounds include the fact that President Kufuor did not support my presidential bids in 2008 and in 2012, and is also not in support of my bid to lead the party into the 2016 general elections, amongst others.

Publication Date: May 30, 2014

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Summary: KEY ISSUES Short-term vulnerabilities have risen significantly amid high fiscal and current account deficits. The international reserve position has weakened alongside mounting public debt. High interest rates and a depreciating currency have begun to weaken private sector activity, and spreads on Ghana’s Eurobonds have risen above those of regional peers. Economic growth is slowing from previously high levels. Following estimated GDP growth of 5½ percent in 2013, staff projects a further deceleration to 4¾ percent in 2014. Driven by the depreciation and administered price increases, inflation reached 13½ percent at end-2013 and 14½ percent in March.

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/bbwjp8/ghanas_mining) has announced the addition of the "Ghana's Mining Fiscal Regime: H1 2014" report to their offering.

Ghana fiscal regime report outlines governing bodies, governing laws, rights and licenses, and key fiscal terms covering three commodities: bauxite, gold and manganese.

The mining industry is regulated by the Minerals and Mining Act 2006. Ghana's mining industry is managed by the Ministry of Land and Resources and Environment Protection Agency. The Minerals Commission is also involved in the coordination and implementation of mining policy.

Document

Africa Rising—Building to the Future

Keynote Address by Christine Lagarde
Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
Maputo, May 29, 2014

Introduction

Good morning, bom dia.

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to this conference on Africa. I wish to thank President Guebuza and the government of Mozambique for hosting this event, and the many other partners who have made it possible.

Determined to explore various options that can rein in the increasingly destructive attacks on Nigerians by the terrorist group, Boko Haram, President Goodluck Jonathan has announced the offer of amnesty to members of the outlawed Islamic sect.

The offer may be patterned after the type offered the Niger Delta Militants who renounced violence, surrendered their arms and embraced dialogue; after which they were put through a de-militarisation process and non-violence training.

The scheme is presently running in batches supervised by the amnesty office Abuja.

The General Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, on Thursday told an international conference in Maputo that "Africa's achievements are remarkable, and the overall outlook for the continent is optimistic".

The conference, entitled "Africa Rising: Building to the Future", has been organised by the Mozambican government and the IMF, and is attended by finance ministers and governors of central banks from across the continent.

In her opening speech, Lagarde declared that Mozambique "epitomises this positive spirit", with its average growth rate of 7.4 per cent a year sustained over two decades, one of the fastest growth rates in sub-Saharan Africa.

Editor-In-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Jnr, has asked the leadership of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) to crack the whip as internal wranglings within the party intensifies.
It surprises him that some members of the NPP who are supposed to be neutral and thus bring unity are rather spearheading some of the ongoing controversies concerning the flagbearership position of the party.

LeBron James Breaks Michael Jordan's Playoff Record for Most 25-5-5 Games.

LeBron James has something Michael Jordan doesn't: the NBA playoff record for most games with at least 25 points, five rebounds and five assists.

In Monday night's victory over the Indiana Pacers, James tallied 32 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. It was the 74th time he eclipsed the 25-5-5 plateau in the playoffs, so he now owns a piece of postseason history:

Studies conducted by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) on “radio coverage of local governance issues in selected districts across Ghana” has revealed that many radio stations in Ghana continue to give far less attention to local governance and local development issues.
The studies, which focused on 28 selected radio stations spread across 24 districts in eight out of the 10 regions of Ghana, also evidenced weak capacity and limited understanding of local governance issues among journalists. Consequently the few local governance programmes and issues that are broadcast on the studied radio stations tended to be of low quality, highly un-critical and thus less impactful.

Deputy Information Minister, Felix Kwakye Ofosu says the Mahama-led administration is not bothered by what the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) portrays it to Ghanaians.
According to him, the opposition party has vested interest in painting a picture of doom and gloom about the economy for partisan political interest.

Kwakye Ofosu was reacting to the NPP’s claim that the Mahama-led administration has exacerbated the suffering of Ghanaians.

A leading member of the Conventions Peoples Party (CPP), Prof. Agyeman Badu-Akosa, has stated that governments after the reign of Kwame Nkrumah have worked in favour of Western countries.
He said most of the programmes and policies rolled out by governments after Kwame Nkrumah favoured foreign countries other than Ghana and chastised governments after Nkrumah for their inability to oppose neo-colonialist ideas.

Bui Dam project, Ghana

Located on the boundary between the Northern and Brong Ahafo Regions, Ghana's second largest hydroelectric generating station was commissioned by the country's President, John Dramani Mahama, in December 2013. Commissioning of the project means the country is one step closer in its goal of becoming a major power producer in West Africa.

The development of a hydropower scheme on the Black Volta River at the Bui Gorge had been the subject of many studies; including detailed studies by J.S. Zhuk Hydroprojeckt of the USSR in 1966, a Feasibility Study by Snowy Mountains Eng. Corp (SMEC) of Australia in 1976 and another Feasibility Study by Coyne et Bellier in 1995, which was subsequently updated in October 2006 to enable commencement of the project.

Hon. Samia Nkrumah was this week awarded the “Grand Prix Communication and Social Commitment Award”, as “one of the new women leaders of the African continent” in the Italian city of Milan in northern Italy. Milan is preparing to host “The Universal Exposition 2015 “, popularly known as Expo 2015 next year and Ghana will be one of the main participants in the event.
Samia received the Communications and Social Commitment Grand Prix Award for her social intervention activities to improve the quality of life in the district she served as member of Parliament th elast four years in the Western Region of Ghana, as well as to her contributing to achieving peace in communities through development. These activities ranged from sanitation to health and the environment.

The 2012 presidential candidate of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Mr. Hassan Ayariga, has said Ghana would not make progress unless it had a National Development Plan and implement it.

Addressing the party’s Regional Executives and delegates in Bolgatanga, he said he drew the government and stakeholders’ attention to the issue during the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) platform organized for presidential aspirants.

A leading Youth Activist of the Convention People’s Party(CPP) James Kwabena Bomfeh, popularly known as Kabila, has descended heavily on former President Jerry John Rawlings, describing him as a burden to the country.
The CPP youth leader also says former President Rawlings has no moral authority to accuse his colleague ex-President, Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor or any other leader of corruption, since he is the number one culprit in Ghana’s history, when it comes to corruption. According to him, Mr. Rawlings will continue to be the darkest spot in Ghana’s democracy and an unnecessary burden the country would have to accommodate, since he has no intention of behaving like a statesman as he ought to be.

College Kid Records Confession Before Going On A Killing Spree.. All Because He Couldn't Get A Girl! "I'm 22 Years Old & Still A Virgin" (7 Dead Including Himself).

Description: Witnesses described seeing a black BMW speeding through the streets, spraying bullets at people and various targets.

Brown said at 9:33 p.m. the suspect exchanged gunfire with deputies then veered down Del Playa and crashed into a parked car.

Deputies found the suspect inside the BMW dead from a gunshot wound to the head. Brown said he did not know if the suspect was shot and killed by deputies or if the wound was self-inflicted.

"Senchi Declaration cannot meet everyone's expectation"- President John Dramani Mahama.

President John Dramani Mahama on Thursday said the Senchi Declaration might not have met the aspirations of Ghanaians but it certainly presented the nation a way forward to consolidate its economic gains.

He said the Senchi Declaration would serve as the foundation for a sound ethical value on which the economic policies and prescriptions would stand the test of time.

This was contained in a message read on his behalf during the opening of the 4th African Bible Leadership Initiative (ABLI 2014) in Accra.

The 49th Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank has come and gone. Last week, Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, was abuzz with a lot more than the usual activity, when more than 3,000 delegates from around Africa and elsewhere congregated to reflect on the past half-century of the Bank’s existence and look ahead to Africa’s next 50 years.

That the AfDB has been around for roughly the same number of years as many African countries have been independent reminds those who old enough to remember and those who have read the history, of the heady days of the early post-colonial period.

Africa: Celebrating African Liberation Day.

Document

On this African liberation day, we, the undersigned, note with grave concern the continent-wide deepening crisis including, growing militarism, the crisis in democracy, an expanding neoliberal economic order, deepening patriarchy, homophobia, transphobia and heterosexism, amongst others.

We especially note the worsening social and economic conditions of those who have been dispossessed of dignity and autonomy over their lives, bodies, lands and natural resources, and denied rights to access shelter, food, water, education & healthcare.

South Africa's president, Jacob Zuma, was inaugurated for a second term on Saturday in a ceremony marked by dance, prayer, a 21-gun salute and air force flyovers.

Leaders from Nigeria, Zimbabwe and other African countries attended the event at the Union Buildings, a government complex in the South African capital of Pretoria. It was the same place where Nelson Mandela, the anti-apartheid leader who became South Africa's first black president, took the oath of office 20 years ago in a ceremony officially ending white minority rule.

On May 7, the ruling African National Congress won elections, continuing its political dominance since the end of the apartheid system that it had fought for decades.

Ghana to suspend issuing new gold prospecting permits.

Ghana is to suspend issuing new gold-prospecting permits while it carries out an audit of existing licences to free up unused concessions for prospective investors, the chief executive of the minerals commission said on Thursday.

There would be an initial 90-day moratorium on new prospecting permits which could be extended if necessary, commission head Tony Aubynn told Reuters.

Former President Jerry John Rawlings has expressed concern about certain decisions taken by the late Senior Presidential Adviser, Paul Victor Obeng, on how to deal with the members of the immediate New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration.
Mr. Rawlings said PV Obeng advised the late President Atta Mills – when he won the election in 2008 – not to investigate what he (Jerry) described as “misdeeds and atrocities” committed by the former NPP regime.

Ghana: Peace Corps Ghana Cashew Initiative Benefits Local Farmers.

Using mobile technology, Peace Corps volunteers help Ghana cashew farmers boost business

Peace Corps volunteer Michael Underwood of Pineville, Ky., is helping cashew farmers in his Ghana community use mobile technology to boost production and improve their business. Giving local farmers the tools to map their farms and better track sales of cashews enables them to identify operational efficiencies and ensure fair prices.

When the world's attention turns to the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ next month, Michael Essien will be making his second appearance on the biggest stage, but many question marks surround the AC Milan midfielder. Still considered an automatic choice for Ghana's Black Stars when healthy and available, the former Chelsea star has struggled with injuries and playing time over the last few years, and at 31 years old, he is eyeing the end of his career.

In a victory for fairness and equality, sexually active gay men are now finally allowed to donate blood in South Africa.

In the past, gay men or men who have sex with men (MSM) were seen as being at high risk of being infected with HIV and could only donate blood to the South African National Blood Service (SANBS) if they had been celibate for six months or longer.

The policy was widely criticised as discriminatory because, unlike in Western countries, the HIV epidemic in South Africa is a primarily heterosexual one. The policy was also perceived to unfairly target gay men while allowing heterosexual people who engaged in equally risky or casual sex to donate.

Among the sub-Saharan frontier markets that have piqued investor interest, one of the most attractive is the West African nation of Ghana. Nestled on the coast between Cote d’Ivoire and Togo, Ghana has long been regarded as one of the most politically and economically stable countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
The economy is relatively diverse compared to many other more resource-dependent countries in the region. While substantial offshore oil deposits were discovered in 2007 and the country is enjoying a boom in oil revenues (reserves are estimated at 700 million barrels), the industrial sector is more developed than in other African countries.
Agriculture accounts for 50% of employment and 39% of exports, and the country is rich in other resources including gold, timber, bauxite and industrial diamonds.

Nana Akufo-Addo has again called on his supporters to refrain from any negative acts or statements that could jeopardise the unity of the New Patriotic Party. In this regard, he refers supporters to the statement in his Easter message:
“In particular, I urge all NPP members, who support my bid to lead the Party for the 2016 elections, not to be provoked by comments or actions, and be dragged into any discourse that may damage the Party’s forward march to victory.

Hakeem Olajuwon has spent the last few years training NBA players – from Dwight Howard to LeBron James to Rudy Gay – on the finer points of post play.

Now, the former Houston Rockets great is moving onto more important work.

NBA release:

WATCH: This Kid's Reaction To Meeting A Gay Couple For The First Time Is Priceless.

Sometimes kids have the darnedest responses and sometimes they're the best.

When a little boy met a married gay couple for the very first time, he couldn't help but show his surprise. Then, he had some questions: Your husband's a boy? You're both husbands? So, that means you love each other?

The Taskforce on Seizure and Disposal of Pirated Ghanaian Textile Designs has finished a nationwide exercise of educating and sensitizing the general public and traders on the affect of the import and trade of pirated textiles on Ghanaian economy, according to a Ghana News Agency report.

During the sensitization exercise, several workshops were held across all the ten regions of Ghana, including the Central, Western, Volta, Upper West, Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, and Upper East regions.

Vodafone Ghana has been suffering a shortage of prepay top up cards in some parts of the country, and says that it is working "expeditiously" to fix the problem.

Vodafone's Commercial Director, Michael Nii Boye Adjei said that the shortage was due to some technical challenges on a system upgrade affecting pin number generation for recharge cards.

Why Africa needs an intelligent capital revolution.

The most important solution to poverty has long been obvious: provide quality jobs and economic opportunities that give rising incomes and dignity.

But the ‘hijacking’ of the development agenda by a few interest groups has confused the issue. So it is refreshing to see the conversation around this crucial challenge shift for the better.

There is now an emerging consensus that entrepreneurship is an important key to prosperity. This is great news for Africa. But the word entrepreneur is overused and somewhat abused. There are few people who can identify a need, provide a product or service, turn a profit and create jobs in the process. All of this with limited capital.

AngloGold Ashanti, the world’s third-biggest gold producer, will consider selling part or all of its Obuasi mine once it has undertaken a major restructuring of the Ghanaian operation, its chief executive officer said.

AngloGold is working to upgrade the more than 100-year-old mine as the gold price has fallen 23 percent since the start of 2013.

The company wants to restructure the mine’s underground operation, cut jobs and increase reliance on machinery rather than rock drills.

Interview

Indomitable Lions striker Samuel Eto'o was in the Ivory Coast from 14th through 18th May at the invitation of the Ivorian Board for Sports to grace the Copa Cola-Cola youth tournament. In between his busy schedule shuttling between the capital Abidjan and Bouaké, Eto'o took time to share his thoughts about the FIFA World Cup Brazil2014, predicting that Africa teams will do well and have a big say as to which way the trophy goes. The Lions go to Brazil together with four other African teams - Algeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Nigeria.

Ghana fans buying tickets meant for disabled for the 2014 World Cup.

The Brazilian Ambassador to Ghana, Irene Vida Gala, has made a startling revelation of Ghanaian fans who have bought tickets meant for the disabled for the 2014 World Cup, GhanaSoccerNet reports.

The Brazilian consulate have started issuing out visas to the numerous Ghanaian fans who intend to travel to Brazil to support the Black Stars in June’s finals.

UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, has expressed serious concerns about the negative impact that a new tourism tax on air passengers and hotel guests in Africa, currently being discussed among members of the African Union, would have on Africa´s tourism sector. Tourism is one of the main contributors to Africa’s balance of payments, a source of livelihood for millions in the continent and one of the sectors where the region has a major competitive advantage in international markets.

Fellow citizens I write to you today on behalf of my Party, the Convention People’s Party (CPP) to share with you the position of the CPP on the National Economic Forum (NEF) called by the ruling National Democratic Congress.
The purpose and objective of the Forum according to the ruling government was to discuss and develop a national consensus on policy actions that will address the current economic and financial difficulties that threaten a social upheaval arising from widespread unemployment and financial hardships of our people.

Life of Paul Victor Obeng popularly known as P. V. Obeng.

Paul Victor Obeng popularly known as P. V. Obeng was a Ghanaian mechanical engineer, politician and chairman of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology council. In 2010, he was appointed by the President John Atta Mills administration as chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC). Obeng was the chief consultant and Chairman of OB Associates, a public and private sector consulting firm and chairman of Ghana Agro and Food company (GAFCO).

Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan canceled a scheduled visit today to Chibok, the town from which more than 200 girls were kidnapped from a school by terrorist group Boko Haram, the BBC reports.

Sources had told the BBC he would stop in Chibok, in the north-east, on his way to a conference in France on the threat from Boko Haram militants.

But the visit was called off for security reasons, the officials said.

The president - under pressure over his government's failure to rescue the girls - will fly direct to Paris.

Possibly The Most Amazing And Greatest Speech Ever Said… You Have To Hear This.

I’m telling you, this is probably one of the best speeches you will ever see in your life. A speech given twenty years later by Adenoid Hynkel (cf. Adolf Hitler), also played by Chaplin, now the ruthless dictator of Tomainia, who has undertaken to persecute Jews throughout the land, aided by Minister of the Interior Garbitsch and Minister of War Herring.

Michael Addo left behind a wife and child in Ghana when he was shot and killed at a Lansing pharmacy. Now, the Lansing Regional Sister Cities Commission is working to get him home to his family.

Addo, a pharmacist at the Rite Aid in Frandor Shopping Center, was one of two people shot and killed in separate incidents. The alleged shooter, Ricard Walter Taylor, has been charged with two counts of murder in the shootings.

This article will examine some areas of leadership failings in tackling our problems and the price Ghanaians are paying for these failings.

It will also offer some tips on how these failings can be addressed. It has to be said at the outset that the article is not about failings of any particular political leadership. It is about failings of all leadership—be they past or present.

Undoubtedly, Ghanaians are facing a multitude of severe economic and social problems. It is like all imaginable problems have come together simultaneously—power interruptions, water shortages, poor sanitation, poor health care, violent crime, traffic congestion, poor public services, high cost of living and corruption—to mention a few.

AKUFO-ADDO said:

I join many other people across the world in extending my warmest congratulations to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modi on their resounding electoral victory in India’s historic national elections.

The 540 million voters out of 814 million eligible voters, representing a record 66.4% turnout, who cast their vote in the 5 week long electoral process, have spoken loudly and clearly. It is the first time in three decades that voters have delivered a resounding mandate to a single party to rule the world's second-most populous nation.

Some discussants at the just-ended National Economic Forum have suggested that in spite of the boycott of the forum by the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the government must make a conscious effort to consider some of the constructive criticisms and ideas that will be offered by the NPP and others even after the event.

They said the forum was meant to offer a platform for all sections of Ghanaians to express diverse views on how best the economy could be managed, for which reason the door should be opened to all Ghanaians to feed into the content and direction of the national economic policy.

West African leaders on Saturday agreed to work together to wage "total war" on Boko Haram saying the Nigerian Islamist group had become a regional al Qaeda that threatened all of them.

Nigeria's neighbors Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin, and Western officials, met in Paris to flesh out a plan enabling them for the first time to share intelligence, coordinate action and monitor borders.

Although Boko Haram has been fighting for five years, carrying out bombings and attacks on civilians and the security forces, the kidnapping last month of more than 200 girls from a school in the northeast has focused world attention on them.

A former Information Minister under the erstwhile Kufuor government, Stephen Asamoah Boateng says the just ended National Economic Forum was "unnecessary at this time".
According to him, the whole idea of a forum "was not thought through," insisting the recommendations dubbed the Senchi Consensus were nothing new which government did not know.
He said the challenge of government has been the implementation of what it already knows.

Ghana Black Stars coach James Kwesi Appiah will call the shots at the FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil for the first time and he has insisted he will do it his own way. The 53-year-old former international defender made history when he became the first local coach to guide Ghana to the World Cup last year.

"Since I took over the job, I have been my own man. If you let someone influence your decision, they won't respect you," said Appiah, who was an assistant to Serbian Milovan Rajevac when Ghana reached the quarter-finals at the 2010 World Cup.

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