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800 school children in Wa benefit from free eye screening by Bliss Eye Care
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800 school children at Charia community in the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region have benefitted from a free eye screening programme by Bliss eye care, a private eye clinic in Wa.
The screening formed part of the implementation of the “Blissful Sight for Kids” project being funded by Ghana Vision, a Non-profit Organization based in Switzerland, aimed at assisting school kids with visual problems to enable them to pursue their education without problems.
Dr Zakarea Al-hassan Balure, an Optometrist and Manager of Bliss Eye Care told the Spectator that conditions detected during the screening included conjunctivitis, allergies, refractive errors glaucoma, among others. Dr Balure said kids who required reading glasses were provided at no cost as part of efforts by the benefactor to ensure that eye problems did not hamper quality teaching and learning or denied children their right to education.
He explained that one of the most important human organs that needed proper care was the eye and appealed to the public to pay critical attention to their eyes by undergoing frequent screening and seeking early treatment to prevent damage to the eyes.
“This is a free screening exercise but we realize that most of the parents brought their children here and left without waiting to hear what conditions their children suffered from and a discussion on how to get them treated”, he noted with concern.
The President of the Ghana Vision Mr. Martin Roost believed that every little thing done to put smiles on the faces of children, especially for those in less privileged areas, would go a long way to impact their lives positively.
He used the platform to encourage the public to go for check the functionality of their eyes at least every three months to help detect any problems early for treatment.
Some parents expressed gratitude to Bliss Eye Care for the intervention and said bringing the free screening to their doorstep was commendable and proof that Bliss Eye Care was committed to the welfare of children in the region.
FROM RAFIA ABDUL RAZAK, WA.
The Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) has announced changes to how the purity of gold will be tested for local purchases, with the new rules taking effect from October 1, 2026.
The notice was issued today by the Compliance Directorate of the Ghana Gold Board.
Under the new arrangement, the Water Density method will only be used to give an indication of the purity of gold and will no longer serve as the final basis for determining its purity, price or payment.
In a compliance notice issued on September 28, GoldBod said X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) testing would become the definitive method for determining the purity of gold doré purchased by the Board and its licensed buyers.
It explained that the applicable payment for gold would therefore be based on the purity determined through the XRF method.
However, GoldBod said where a licensed buyer is unable to use XRF due to genuine operational or logistical challenges, or where both the buyer and seller voluntarily agree to use the Water Density method, the gold would be purchased at a 0.7 percent purity discount.
The Board introduced a tolerance level for differences between successive XRF test results for the same gold or transaction.
According to the notice, the permissible difference between one XRF report and another must remain within plus or minus 0.1 percent.
GoldBod said any difference beyond that range would have to be verified before the transaction is completed or reported to the Board.
The new requirements apply to all aggregators and licensed gold buyers, who have been directed to ensure that they are fully prepared to comply with the changes by October 1.
GoldBod said the notice forms part of the terms and conditions of licences issued to aggregators and licensed gold buyers.
It warned that failure to comply with the new requirements would constitute a breach of the applicable licence conditions and could result in regulatory or enforcement action under the Ghana Gold Board Act, 2025 (Act 1140).
By: Jacob Aggrey
Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has waded into the debate over government support for Ghanaian evacuees, describing complaints over the amount given as “nauseating entitlement.”
In a strongly worded post shared on Facebook, Manasseh argued that Ghanaians who were airlifted from South Africa after xenophobic threats should show gratitude rather than discontent.
“Some countries abandoned their people because they either did not care enough or they did not think it was economically wise to spend huge sums of money chartering planes and evacuating their people. Your country did not abandon you. It chartered aircraft and lifted you,” he wrote.
According to him, government spent huge sums to bring citizens home at a time when the country has pressing needs that could have been addressed with that money, but no one complained because “your life as a citizen is just as pressing.”
Manasseh said it was therefore worrying that after the evacuation and subsequent financial support from the state, some beneficiaries are complaining that the amount is not enough.
“Sir, some people need only 2000 cedis to start a business, but the state has not given them anything. Others worked and paid taxes while you were away, but have not received a pesewa from the state. Think about that,” he stated.
He added that while the frustration of losing opportunities abroad is understandable, the evacuation was not forced but was done to save lives.
He added that “We can sympathise with whatever opportunities you may have lost by returning home, but note that the government did not forcibly evacuate you. Your safety was paramount. You could have lost your life if the government had abandoned you.”
Manasseh warned that such complaints only fuel negativity in the political space.
“Your complaints will please a section of our society that lives in perpetual search of negativity with which to score cheap political points. But to the discerning people, it is a nauseating sense of entitlement,” he stressed.
He concluded with a call for appreciation “And whatever you have been given to ease your return is an added bonus. Appreciate it and pray for more. There’s a vast difference between a favour and an entitlement.”
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
