Hot!
Cultural display at Wa Jubilee Park
• A cultural group
It was a sight to behold at the Jubilee Park Wa, in the Upper West Region as the region climaxed its maiden Cultural Week Celebration and the festival of arts and culture.
There was a display of colourful smocks designed with beautiful patterns, the swift movement of waists and feet to traditional sound from xylophones and traditional drums as well as the display of artefacts among others.
his dancing skills
Categorised into the Dagaaba, Waala, Sissali, Lobi and Brifo uniquely displayed their respective native dance to the admiration of the gathering.
The Fulani community in the region added an icing to the cake with their presence and a spectacular performance of their native dance.
Dance troupes from Wa, Nandom, Lawra and the Sissala Land displayed the Bawa, Bene, Kobine, Dogu, Tumpani and Dumba dances.
Interacting with participants, the Acting Director at the Centre for National Culture in the region, Mr Jamal-Deen Yahaha expressed his delight for the successful occasion which according to him, allowed the participants to showcase the culture of the land through music, dance, theatrical enactments, artifacts, handicrafts, folklores, among others.
He said the idea of the cultural week celebration was conceived by some individuals and institutions over decades until recently when the Centre in conjunction with Radio Progress, a local radio station in the region, jointly worked together to bring the concept to fruition.
He said that with the support of the chiefs and other stakeholders, the Centre was able to mobilise resources for the celebration of the week which was also used to graduate some 20 ladies who had undergone training in smock weaving at the auspices of the Centre.
In a speech read on his behalf, the President of the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs, Naa Dikomwine Domalae said culture should be included in every aspect of national discourse to ensure that people held their values in high esteem even as they moved along with ‘modernity’.
Speaking on the theme “revisiting out culture for business and wealth creation in the era of global insecurity”, the chief charged government to work closely with traditional authorities to research, document, conserve, manage and promote positive traits of Ghana’s cultural heritage.
“Government should also facilitate the development and promotion of archaeological and historic sites as well as national and community festivals and various classes of artefacts in addition to tourist infrastructure to support the tourist industry”, he added.
Dignitaries such as a Member of the Council of State, Professor Daniel Bagah and representative from the Dr Hilla Limann Technical University as well as the Simon Diedong Dombo University for Business and Integrated Development Studies graced the occasion.
From Lydia Darlinton Fordjour, Wa
Hot!
Prof Alidu Seidu files nomination for Tamale Central seat
The newly elected parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for Tamale Central, Prof Alidu Seidu, has submitted his nomination forms to the Electoral Commission.
As of 10:00 a.m. today, he was the only person who had filed to contest the seat.
Nomination of candidates will close at the end of the day.
Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ghana Legon, Prof. Alidu Seidu won the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primaries in the Tamale Central constituency with a landslide victory.
The elections, supervised by the party’s Elections and IT Directorate in the Northern Region, saw Prof. Seidu poll 840 votes out of the total valid ballots cast.
His closest contender, Lawyer Hanan Gundadow Abdul-Rahaman, secured 536 votes.
The other aspirants could not make significant gains, with Dr. Seidu Fiter obtaining 44 votes, Aliu Abdul-Hamid 23 votes, and the rest recording fewer than 10 votes each.
In all, 1,500 ballots were cast, with 6 ballots rejected and 7 spoilt ballots recorded.
The results were signed and declared by Dr. Arnold Mashud Abukari, NDC Northern Regional Director of Elections and IT.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) held parliamentary primaries in Tamale Central to choose a candidate for the upcoming by-election following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. Dr. Mohammed, who also served as Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, tragically died in a military helicopter crash in the Adansi Akrofuom District on August 6, 2025, alongside seven others.
His passing left the Tamale Central seat vacant, as required by Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the by-election for September 30, 2025. While the NDC moved quickly to open nominations and vet aspirants, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) announced it would not contest the seat, citing the need to respect the somber circumstances and promote national unity.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Hot!
Ghana to locally refine its gold starting October 2025 – Sammy Gyamfi
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, Sammy Gyamfi, has announced that plans are far advanced for the establishment of a state-owned gold refinery in the country.
Speaking at the 2025 Minerals and Mining Convention, Mr Gyamfi said the refinery will process locally mined gold into bullion instead of exporting it in its raw state.
According to him, it is unacceptable that Ghana, despite being a leading gold producer in Africa, continues to export raw gold known as dore.
He explained that the Gold Board, working with the Bank of Ghana and local refineries, will from October 2025 begin refining gold locally.
He also disclosed that an ultramodern assay laboratory will be built to ensure international standards in testing gold quality.
Mr Gyamfi noted that the refinery will be wholly state-owned and will help Ghana move away from raw mineral exports to value addition.
This, he said, will boost foreign exchange earnings, create jobs, and position Ghana as a hub for gold refining and jewellery production in Africa.
The CEO stressed that the project forms part of government’s strategy to ensure the country benefits fully from its natural resources and to transform the mining sector into a driver of economic growth.
By: Jacob Aggrey
