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DEPUTY EXIM BANK CEO URGES WOMEN TO EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY TO COMPETE IN NEW FRONTIERS
The Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Exim Bank(GEXIM) responsible for Banking and Business, Rosemary Beryl Archer, has urged women to embrace technology and leverage it to advance and compete in new frontiers that were previously inaccessible.
Ms. Archer made the call to mark this year’s International Women’s Day celebration, which falls on Tuesday 8th March 2022 with the theme “Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow”. She further sent best wishes to all women around the world making great strides in their fields and making an impact in their communities.
“I extend my warmest felicitations to all women on a day that seeks to honour feminine industry players and those in socio-political spheres the world over. The contribution of women to various facets of our economy has been momentous, although not sufficiently acknowledged. Even in the face of spiraling challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, women have held the fort and ensured stability and progress in many spheres of our economy,”she emphasized.
According to a study by the International Labour Organization, approximately 4.2% of women’s employment was lost as a result of the pandemic from 2019 to 2021, compared to 3% of men. It further revealed that, the number of men in employment was projected to return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2021, while the number of women is expected to be 13 million fewer by about the same time.
While there may be several avenues for remedying the situation, Ms. Archer highlighted trade as one of the most potent sources of hope to this situation and advocated for us to pursue trade as a viable alternative to growth and economic rejuvenation.
“A World Bank publication in 2020 indicated that Trade can radically improve women’s lives, create new jobs, enhance consumer choice, and increase women’s bargaining power in society. in the report, the World Bank Managing Director, Mari Pangestu revealed that Trade can expand women’s role in the economy and decrease disparities with men by giving women more and better employment opportunities and seizing these opportunities will be even more important in a post-COVID-19 world”, she emphasized.
Ms. Archer further appealed to men in relevant spheres of influence to be deliberate in walking hand-in-hand with their women counterparts as they strive forward in the path of growth and progress. She added that such a step is necessary to achieve the campaign for gender equity.
In line with this year’s theme of “Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow” GEXIM is committed to advancing the course of women participating in the local production, agribusiness and exports of made in Ghana products to drive the industrialization agenda of the Government.
GEXIM has in the past couple of years offered support to women involved in agribusiness, manufacturing, food processing and supported the construction of four (4) shea processing centres (through the Shea Empowerment Initiative) and the establishment of the GEXIM SME Tuesday Market platform to primarily highlight made in Ghana products mostly spearheaded by women.
There are several other initiatives soon to be launched by the bank with the aim of furthering the course of Ghanaian women in local production and international trade. These initiatives are expected to give the needed boast to sustainably grow trade and the country’s economy at large
Hundreds of street children received a special treat during the Christmas festivities as a result of a collaboration between the management of the La Beach Hotel and the Street Academy in Accra.
It was part of the Hotel’s current arrangement to provide lunch for the children of the Academy every Friday.
Courtesy that partnership, management of the La Beach Hotel feted hundreds of street children housed by the Street Academy, creating a partying moment for the children.
According to officials of the Hotel, the gesture was to let the children feel part of the festivities and not left out.
The children enjoyed delicious meals and snack after which they danced as they enjoyed the moment.
According to the Hotel officials, “the season represents one that every parent gathers their children and shower them with gifts and others to make them happy but sadly, these unfortunate children are left on their own, having no one to care for them.”
“This is an event we intend to make an annual one. Through this, we hope to put some smiles on their faces. It is not proper to leave them on their own.”
The Executive Director of the Academy, Ataa Lartey, expressed gratitude to the management of the hotel, saying that, “this has gone a long way to excite the children and make them feel part of the celebration.”
He said due to the number of children that join around this time of the year, it becomes difficult for the Academy alone to shoulder this responsibility.
“It is not easy to organise such activities alone because it draws a lot of children, that is, those in the Academy and their friends that follow them but with such cooperate supports, we are able to bring them together to share in moments like this,” he told The Spectator.
By Spectator Reporter
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A 30-year-old surrogate mother has delivered a set of quadruplets at The Walking Egg Medical and Fertility Centre at Pokuase in Accra, in a rare surrogacy success that has brought renewed attention to assisted reproductive care in Ghana.
The babies-two boys and two girls- were delivered through a caesarean section in the early hours of Tuesday at 36 weeks and weighed an average 2.5 kilograms each, a weight doctors say was healthy for a multiple pregnancy.
IUI stands for Intrauterine Insemination, a common fertility treatment where healthy sperm are collected, ‘washed’ and concentrated in a lab, and then directly inserted into a woman’s uterus around ovulation using a thin catheter to help sperm reach the egg for fertilisation, often used for unexplained infertility, cervical issues, or mild male factor infertility, and is less invasive than IVF.
Speaking to The Spectator after the surgery, the Medical Director of the Centre, Dr Nana Yaw Osei, said the pregnancy was achieved through Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) and was not planned to result in multiple births.
“With IUI, you introduce prepared sperm into the uterus and have no control over how many eggs fertilized.”
“Unlike IVF, where embryos are formed outside the body and the number transferred can be controlled, this outcome was left entirely to nature,” Dr Osei explained.
He said unlike IVF which could result in multiple babies, this is “possibly the first IUI leading to quadruplets in Ghana.”
He revealed that the surrogacy arrangement was necessary because the intended mother had lost her uterus during surgery to remove fibroids, making it medically impossible for her to carry a pregnancy.
“She had no womb of her own, through no fault of hers,” Dr Osei said, adding that “Surrogacy was the only option available for her to have a biological child.”
When scans later showed that the surrogate was carrying four fetuses, the medical team considered fetal reduction, a procedure sometimes used to reduce risks in multiple pregnancies. However, the option was rejected.
“As a strong Christian, fetal reduction is abortion to me,” Dr Osei said. “After discussions with the intended parents and the surrogate, we all agreed to continue with the pregnancy.”
Despite concerns commonly associated with multiple pregnancies, Dr Osei noted that the surrogate experienced no major complications, and the delivery was smooth. Paediatric assessments conducted after birth confirmed that all four babies are healthy.
Dr Osei again indicated that surrogacy, though still widely misunderstood, is recognised under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 2020 (Act 1027).
He urged the public to engage the subject with greater understanding.
“Surrogacy is not about convenience,” he said. “It is about restoring hope to people who have lost the ability to carry a child.”
Describing the moment of delivery, he added, “I was in tears in the theatre. It reminded me why I chose this profession.”
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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