News
Abubakar Zico Newton changing educational narrative in Madina Zongo
Chancing on a report indicating that people with pre-school experience were likely to be in school far more than those without pre-school education was the spark Ishaq Abubakar Zico Newton needed to turn around the fortunes of young people in Madina Zongo.
Growing up in the same community where pre-school was not valued as he himself was not a beneficiary, Ishaq Abubakar Zico Newton decided to change the narrative of the children with the help of his mother’s already established foundation.
The foundation started on the compound of his home as an afternoon classes for children in the community.
“It was the brainchild of my aunt who never had the opportunity to go to school but always felt that education was going to be the game-changer in the near future.”
With this in mind, his aunt started a free after school classes in the afternoon.
The classes helped children with their home works as their parents could neither read nor write. This single act by his aunt really impacted the lives of most children in the community.
“My mother took over after the death of my aunty when she returned from Germany and thought it wise to create a foundation around it. She named it ‘Mother for all Foundation.’’’
She later took the foundation to another level by supporting the foundation with books for the children and paying the teacher to continue the afternoon classes.
In 2010, King Zico, as he is affectionately called in the community, felt the need to support his mother’s idea and take the foundation a notch higher.
With his educational background, he turned it into a pre-school for children in Madina Zongo where children from the ages of two to five years have access to free pre-school education.
Currently, there are about 250 children in the school which initially started with only two children.
“The goal of the foundation is to educate and also help improve on the educational standard of the people within Madina Zongo,” he said.
According to Mr Newton, most of the people supporting the foundation were beneficiaries of the afternoon classes started by his aunt.
He said the foundation embarked on several projects including a ‘Readcamp’ aimed at enhancing the literacy skills of school pupils, a play-based training programme for educators and facilitators with innovative tools to transform classrooms.
“Other projects included mask up and sanitise campaign and covid-19 food relief project,” he stated.
He said that over the period of eight years, close to thousand youths and children have had their lives transformed through the foundation.
Background
Zico loves to describe himself as Zongo boy who at a point realised that actors of change are community people who wish to see the change in their communities.
He grew up from a very deprived family where he and his siblings as well as friends had to go look for mangoes in the bush and sell.
At other times “we looked for ‘alumi’ in the gutters and in people’s homes and at times we have just pick peoples cooking utensils at their blind side, crash them and sell,” adding that “that was how we survived.”
Education
King Zico never had a pre-school experience. He started school at Gospel International School in Madina Estates. After owing so much in terms of fees, he secured a scholarship from the school.
This followed the headmaster’s decision to allow him attend the school for free because it was obvious he couldn’t pay.
He move from there to the Faith Community Baptist School where he had my Junior High School (JHS) education
King Zico continued to the West African Secondary School (WASS) but could not write the final examination because “my name was synonymous to school fees arrears.”
King Zico later registered for Nov/ Dec and continued to the Institute of Professional Studies (IPS) now University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) where he studied Diploma in Business Studies (DBS) with accounting option.
“I was of the hope that I will be able to secure a job with the certificate, but unfortunately, I did not, so I ended up on the streets again and did some basic jobs and finally enrolled myself into the African University College of Communication.’’
Hobby
At his spare time, King Zico loves to listen to music and enjoys rice and stew at any given time.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
The National Identification Authority (NIA) has announced the commencement of enforcement of the National Identity Register (Amendment) Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2523), warning institutions that fail to comply with the new requirements of possible fines of up to 2,000 penalty units.
The Authority says it will deploy a Biometric Verification Implementation Task Force to inspect institutions and ensure they comply with the regulations, following the expiration of a three-month grace period granted to businesses and public institutions.
Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Monday, November 2, 2026, the NIA’s Corporate Affairs representative, William Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, said the Authority had completed its public education and stakeholder engagement activities and was now moving into the enforcement and compliance monitoring phase.
He explained that the regulations require institutions that verify the identities of customers or applicants as part of their operations to use the NIA’s approved biometric verification platform instead of relying solely on visual inspection of the Ghana Card.
Under the new rules, institutions are prohibited from photocopying, scanning or keeping copies of the Ghana Card for identity verification purposes.
Mr Darlas stressed that simply collecting a customer’s Ghana Card, looking at the photograph and comparing it with the person presenting it would no longer be accepted as a valid method of identity verification.
He, however, clarified that the Ghana Card remains the country’s official national identity document and that citizens are not required to register for a new card or capture their biometrics again under the new regulations.
He said the new system is intended to reduce identity fraud, impersonation and other crimes by ensuring that the person presenting the Ghana Card is the actual owner.
According to him, the biometric verification process will rely on information already captured during Ghana Card registration, including fingerprints, iris details and facial features stored in the card’s chip.
Mr Darlas warned institutions against using third-party companies or individuals to access the NIA’s identity verification platform, insisting that the Authority does not work with intermediaries.
He said institutions seeking access to the National Identity Register must deal directly with the NIA and complete its official onboarding process.
The process requires institutions to prove that they are legally registered companies in Ghana, obtain certification from the Data Protection Commission and work with the NIA’s technical team to establish the necessary connection to its platform.
He further cautioned institutions already connected to the platform against subletting their access to other businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises.
He disclosed that the Authority had received reports of some institutions providing their verification services to other businesses without the NIA’s approval and warned that those involved would face legal action.
Mr Darlas said organisations that fail to comply with L.I. 2523 could face fines ranging from 500 to 2,000 penalty units, depending on the nature of the offence.
He explained that the NIA does not have the authority to impose the fines directly but would take offenders to court for the appropriate punishment.
He indicated that Institutions found guilty could also face additional administrative measures, including being barred from accessing the NIA’s verification platform in the future.
The NIA representative further clarified that the new regulations do not prohibit all institutions from physically using the Ghana Card during transactions.
The Managing Director of the Ghana Publishing Company Limited, Nana Kwesi Boatey, has revealed how he transformed a major overstaffing challenge into a success story through the government’s 24-Hour Economy initiative.
Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on Monday, November 2, Mr. Boatey disclosed that when he assumed office in February 2025, and inherited a bloated workforce of 250 employees doing work that could be efficiently handled by 150 people, a situation that created serious liquidity challenges for the state-owned company.
Instead of resorting to downsizing, he adopted an innovative approach by instituting a 24-hour operational system.
Under the new system, staff were redistributed across three shifts: 7 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., and 10 p.m. – 4:30 a.m.
This not only ensured optimal use of labour but also maximized machine utilization and improved overall output.
According to him, the single move redefined the productivity culture within the company, reinforcing discipline, accountability, and efficiency.
The Ghana Publishing Company’s turnaround is being cited as a practical example of how the 24-Hour Economy policy can drive growth without job losses.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
