News
Abuakwa residents assured of more devt projects in era of COVID-19
The Abuakwa South Municipal Chief Executive, Kojo Ofori-Safo, has assured residents of the assembly’s commitment and readiness to improve on the Internally Generating Fund (IGF) of the assembly in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He appealed to assembly members to support and assist in efforts by the assembly to plug loopholes in generating funds to improve livelihoods of residents through growth and development projects.
Mr Ofori-Safo said the assembly had done quite well despite challenges including the COVID-19 pandemic and enumerated completed and ongoing projects in all sectors including education, security, health, sanitation, local governance in communities in the municipality.
He gave the assurance when he addressed the first Ordinary meeting of the first session of the 8th Assembly of the Abuakwa South at Kibi in the Eastern Region on Friday.
Mr Ofori-Safo also spoke extensively on the COVID-19 pandemic and sanitation and called on assembly members to help educate and sensitise residents on the need to stop stigmatisation, and adherence of safety directives of health authorities.
He asked security services especially Ghana Immigration and Police Services in the municipality to devise means to deal with illegal migrants who are not willing to comply with mining regulations of the country in the mist of COVID-19 and urged them to take legal action against landlords who accommodate such migrants in their households in the municipality.
He appealed to the assembly members to assist the security services to flush out those illegal migrants from the municipality because they were becoming a threat to the environment especially those from West African region who had colluded with some of the youth in the area and brought in sophisticated equipment to exploit the environment at an alarming rate.
“The influx of illegal migrants in the municipality has surged illegal mining (galamsey) to worrying levels with its attendant damage to the environment despite the assembly’s best efforts, including advocacy by Okyenhene’s Foundation, the youth continue to engage in galamsey with impunity which has worsened galamsey menace when they engage in business which has made it difficult to contain the situation,” Mr Ofori-Safo noted.
Source: Ghanaian Times
The Northern Regional Police Command has arrested three men believed to be part of a kidnapping syndicate responsible for abducting a 42-year-old man in Wapuli, a community in the Yendi District.
The suspects, Haruna Seidu, Amidu Bandi and Osman Bandi allegedly kidnapped the victim and demanded GH¢100,000 from his family for his release.
According to a police statement, officers from the Regional Police Intelligence Directorate were deployed to Wapuli after the incident was reported.
The team conducted surveillance and launched a rescue operation.
On Friday, December 5, 2025, police successfully rescued the victim and arrested the suspects after what was described as an intense exchange of gunfire.
The suspects were later taken into custody and are expected to be arraigned before court.
The Police said the a fourth suspect, who is believed to have sustained gunshot wounds during the operation, is currently on the run.
They urged the public to provide any information that may lead to his arrest.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News
Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong advocates Bold educational reforms at the UK House of Lords during Global Education Summit.
On November 27 2025, global development leaders, policymakers, education experts and civil society organisations gathered at the UK Parliament’s House of Lords for the Global Education Summit hosted by The Baroness Verma of Leicester and organised by the African British Business Forum.
The high-level event focused on the global rise in out-of-school children and the urgent reforms required to deliver equitable, quality education for all.
Among the distinguished Speakers was Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong, Founder & President of Women in Sustainability Africa (WiSA) and General Manager of the EIB Network, who delivered a compelling address on the theme “Breaking Barriers: Empowering Out-of-School Children Through Education.”
In her remarks, Nana Yaa who is currently celebrating 26years of Service in the Media, emphasized that education must be viewed as essential national infrastructure, not charity.
Borrowing experiences from her 18 years of empowering women and young people, she presented a strong case on how Africa’s poor educational systems tie into the poor state of its Gender Equality gap.
According to her, unlocking access to education is one of the most effective ways to strengthen economies, empower women and young girls, build resilient communities and drive sustainable development.
She highlighted that each child excluded from learning represents deferred innovation, delayed opportunity and a weakened society.
Nana Yaa noted that the barriers keeping millions of children out of school are complex and interconnected—ranging from poverty and cultural norms to geographical isolation and digital exclusion.
Addressing these challenges, she argued, requires solutions that are equally comprehensive and multi-layered.
Nana Yaa stressed that girls remain disproportionately affected, and investing in girls’ education has a transformative impact across several Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality, poverty reduction, health outcomes and climate resilience.
Nana Yaa advocated for the expansion of flexible, inclusive and community-responsive educational models, such as mobile classrooms for remote and nomadic communities, community learning hubs, after-hours programmes for working children, radio-based instruction for low-tech areas and digital platforms designed to reach learners regardless of connectivity challenges.
She warned that without deliberate action, the digital divide would continue to widen, pushing already vulnerable children further to the margins.
During her presentation, she introduced three major reforms WiSA is seeking Partners for, aimed at reshaping educational access across Africa and beyond.
These are the Digital Bridge for Out-of-School Children (DBOC), the Community Education Stewardship Hubs (CESH) involving local women educators and youth volunteers and the Teen-focused Global Skills Accelerator for Out-of-School Teens (GSA-OT).
She also underscored the need for education systems that support instruction, inclusivity and healing, particularly for children experiencing autism, trauma, displacement or conflict.
Nana Yaa emphasised that emotional and psychological support must be integrated into educational frameworks in order to restore confidence, stability and long-term learning capacity.
The summit concluded with strong commitments from stakeholders to adopt sustainable financing models, strengthen data-driven policies and expand cross-sector partnerships.
The African British Business Forum reaffirmed its commitment to championing innovative, scalable solutions to educational inclusion across the UK, Africa and the wider global community.
