News
Teachers at Ave-Atanve ‘flee’ to neighbouring communities for Internet
The absence of network infrastructure is making it difficult for teachers in the community in the Volta Region to make good use of a computer laboratory.
As a result, there is not a single resident teacher at Ave-Atanve Community in the Dzalele Traditional Area of the Akatsi North District due to lack of network to access internet connectivity.
This has, therefore, compelled about 10 teachers of the basic school at Ave-Atanve to “flee” the community in search of internet and cellular phone networks elsewhere.
In order not to abandon the pupils to their fate, the teachers have rather rented rooms in the neighbouring communities where they can readily have access to these facilities.
Torgbui Hodzi Dunyo IV, Chief of Ave-Atanve told The Spectator at his palace last Friday that even the computer laboratory of the school which was fitted with 10 desk-top computers had been of no use owing to lack of network
Shedding more light on the absence of resident teachers at Ave-Atanve, Torgbui Dunyo explained that some of them were pursuing Distant Education programmes and needed to make use of the internet which could not be in the community.
He said that the teachers now commuted to school on commercial motor-bikes (Okada) and public transport.
That, he said, was affecting teaching and learning in the school which had an enrolment of about 250 pupils, as some teachers turned up late for school and left earlier than scheduled.
Apart from that, the Chief said that the situation was dangerous, considering the rugged state of the road to the Ave-Avante located along the Ho-Denu road.
Most cellular phones in the area often pick the signals from the Republic of Togo which is very expensive.
This became readily evident during the chat when this reporter’s cellular phone displayed a signal from Togo and a message welcoming the user of the phone to that country, with tariffs on making calls and sending text messages.
Torgbui Dunyo complained that the situation was also undermining efforts by the traditional authorities to woo investors to the area.
Appeals to the Akatsi North District Assembly to intervene and put things right, he said, had fallen on deaf ears.
He pledged to make land readily available to any cellular phone service provider willing to install a mast in the community “to connect us to the rest of the country and the world.”
From Alberto Mario Noretti, Ave-Atanve
The Diaspora Affairs Office at the Office of the President has hosted a delegation of African diaspora women who are in Ghana ahead of a planned Presidential Conferment of Citizenship ceremony.
The Director of Diaspora Affairs, Kofi Okyere Darko, explained in a Facebook post that the visit was a gesture of appreciation by the delegation to the Government of Ghana for its continued efforts to reconnect Africans in the diaspora with their ancestral homeland.
He indicated that the ceremony, scheduled for next Monday, will officially grant Ghanaian citizenship to members of the delegation as part of the country’s broader engagement with the African diaspora.
The delegation was led by Erica Bennett, Founder of the Diaspora Africa Forum.
According to Mr Okyere Darko, her years of advocacy have played an important role in strengthening ties between Africa and people of African descent living abroad.
He noted that the group’s journey towards citizenship represents not only a legal process but also a cultural and spiritual return to their roots.
Also present at the meeting was Natalie Jackson, an attorney who is also expected to receive Ghanaian citizenship during the ceremony. She works closely with renowned civil rights lawyer Ben Crump.
Mr Okyere Darko emphasised that Ghana remains committed to strengthening relationships with the African diaspora and promoting unity, identity, and shared heritage among people of African descent worldwide.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Ghana has signed a debt restructuring agreement with the Kingdom of Belgium as part of efforts to restore the country’s economic stability after the financial crisis that hit the nation in 2022 and 2023.
The Minister of Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson, today disclosed that he signed the agreement on behalf of the Government of Ghana.
He explained that Ghana experienced a very difficult period during the crisis, which forced the government at the time to declare a debt default.
However, he indicated that the country is now recovering and witnessing a significant economic turnaround.
According to him, stronger systems are also being put in place to ensure that Ghana does not return to such a situation again.
Dr Forson noted that the agreement with Belgium is the eighth deal Ghana has concluded with countries under the Official Creditor Committee as part of its external debt restructuring programme.
He expressed appreciation to the Government of Belgium for its support and partnership with Ghana during the process.
The Finance Minister thanked Carole van Eyll, Ambassador of Belgium to Ghana, for her role in strengthening relations between the two countries.
The agreement forms part of Ghana’s broader effort to restructure its external debts and stabilise the economy following the crisis.
By: Jacob Aggrey
