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British High Commissioner unwraps climate-inspired Queen’s birthday present to Ghana
Three years since the British High Commission to Ghana held a party to mark Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s birthday and Platinum Jubilee.
Guests included Minister for Tourism, Dr Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Sir Tony Blair, chiefs, representatives from political parties, and members of the diplomatic corps as well as colleagues, friends, artists, performers, and leaders in business and industry.
On February 6, her Majesty became the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking seventy years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth.
Her extraordinary reign has seen her travel more widely than any other monarch, undertaking more than 260 official visits overseas, and two of those visits have been to Ghana.
Held in person for the first time since 2019 and hosted by the first female High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson, and her husband Nick Thompson at their home in Accra, guests saw some of the newest and most vibrant British-Ghanaian innovations including a Kofa e-mobility motorbike.
During her speech, British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson announced £1 million of funding, matched by UK charity Shell Foundation, over the next four years to turbocharge Ghana’s e-mobility, battery, solar and charging sector.
The announcement honours the global commitments made at COP26 by leaders from around the world including his Excellency President Nana Akofo-Addo. Hosted by the UK and Italy in Scotland last year, COP26 marked a decisive shift in the world’s approach to tackling carbon emissions and setting a clear roadmap to limiting the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees.
British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson said, “Hosting this very special event after three long years is a tremendous honour and a pleasure for my family and me.
“Tonight we celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s 96th birthday, her unprecedented achievement of reaching 70 years on the throne and the deep, broad and growing UK-Ghana partnership.
“The Queen’s Birthday is the biggest event in the British High Commissioner’s calendar, and it is the perfect moment to announce that the UK, matched by UK charity Shell Foundation, is investing almost ¢10 million of funding, over the next four years, in Ghana’s e-mobility, battery, solar and charging sector, bringing technological innovation and climate action together.”
Representatives from British e-mobility business Kofa based in Accra attended the party bringing along their e-mobility motorbike. Guests had a chance to sit on the motorbike and understand more about how the new battery technology works.
The company has been able to create its new motorbike thanks to the support from the UK charity Shell Foundation and the UK government.
Jaguar Landrover has also displayed the new model Landrover Defender, which later this year, will be available as a hybrid vehicle for the first time in Ghana.
Shell Foundation Regional Manager, West Africa, Kwaku Owusu-Achaw said, “Shell Foundation’s partnership with the UK government, as part of the Transforming Energy Access programme, has already improved the lives of 12.5m people and reduced 1.8m m/t of carbon emissions through improved access to energy and transport technologies and business solutions across Africa.”
“We’re excited to see this new commitment support innovative, game-changing solutions such as Kofa. With Kofa’s battery technology viable for multiple household and business applications, it is a great example of how entrepreneurial talent can Ghana to transform income, health and education through access to renewable energy.
Guests enjoyed music from the amazing Kelvyn Boy and Gyakie and had a chance to watch archive footage from Her Majesty the Queen’s Coronation. Speeches and highlights from the birthday party were live-streamed around the world on Instagram.
Source: Myjoyonline
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Richard Appiah, the footballer who killed two children and stored part of their bodies in a fridge at Abesim in the Bono Region in 2021 has been handed a lifetime sentence.
This was after a five member panel of judges at the Accra High Court returned a verdict of guilty against the convict.
Appiah, 32, also a draughtsman would spend the rest of his life in prison after he was convicted of murder.
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BY MALIK SULLEMANA
