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Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas – Diplomat extraordinaire …champions AU’s agenda to ‘Silencing the Guns’
● Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas
Number of Ghanaians have excelled and continue to excel on the diplomatic missions and other international assignments. Some notable names would readily come to mind and that of Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas is no exception.
His portfolio has grown over the years with the most recent being his appointment as High Representative for Silencing the Guns by African Union (AU) Chairperson H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Dr.
Chambas in discussions on
peace and security in Africa
The chairperson, making the announcement, was thrilled that Dr. Chambas’ outstanding credentials and commitment to Pan-Africanism and Agenda 2063 would help him succeed in his new position.
Silencing the Guns is an initiative of the AU promulgated in 2016 to ultimately end all forms of conflicts on the African Continent by the year 2020. However, due to many setbacks the initiative could not be achieved as a result the AU extended the initiative to 2030.
In order to implement the AU Master Roadmap on Practical Steps to Silence the Guns, the release states that the High Representative will prioritise promoting and energising advocacy, mediation, and preventive diplomacy as directed by the Chairperson of the Commission.
Portfolio
Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas is a politician, attorney, diplomat, and scholar from Ghana.
From 2014 to 2021, he held the positions of Head of the UN Office for West Africa (UNOWAS) and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa.
Between 2013 and 2014, Dr. Chambas served as the Joint Chief Mediator (JCM) and Joint Special Representative (JSR) of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), respectively.
He held the position of Secretary General of the African Caribbean and Pacific Group (ACP) from 2010 until 2013. .
Dr. Chambas presided over the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from 2006 to 2009 before taking the helm of the ACP.
Beginning in February 2002, while ECOWAS established a Secretariat, he again served as the organisation’s Executive Secretary.
Dr. Chambas, a former member of the Ghanaian parliament, worked as the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister in 1987 and the deputy minister of education in-charge of tertiary education from 1997 to 2000.
He played a key role in the ECOWAS mediation efforts in Liberia between 1991 and 1996 and actively took part in the negotiations that resulted in the agreements that ended the Liberian civil war.
Advocate
As the Head of United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Dr
Mohamed Ibn Chambas, urged government and stakeholders to provide more support for women leaders and groups so they could continue their “transformative works” towards ensuring peace and security on the African continent and beyond.
He noted that women, over the years, had played leading roles in the mitigation of conflict but their impact was still limited due to inadequate resource allocation, hence the need to scale up institutional support.
The Special Representative of the Secretary General was speaking at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre in Accra to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in West Africa and the Sahel.
Held under the theme: “Beyond 2020: Building Local Capacity to Advance the WPS Agenda in West Africa and the Sahel”, the symposium brought together experts from the sub-region to discuss progress made as well as areas to improve upon.
Call for gender parity
Dr Chambas indicated that immense achievement had been made in the implementation of the resolution for the past 20 years but there was still more to be done, especially for women in peace and security.
While acknowledging the role of African women leaders in peace processes on the continent, he noted that women represented only two per cent of mediators in peace processes. That, he emphasised was woefully inadequate hence the need for gender parity to remain the core of peace and stability discussions on the continent and beyond.
“We have to back our actions with the requisite financial and political support and give more opportunities for women and the youth to advance sustainable development and peace”.
“We need to work and invest in gender parity and women empowerment to achieve the goal of preventing conflict and ensuring peace and prosperity in the region,” he said.
However, he said the inclusion of women in peace process should not only be about “increasing the numbers” but should as well focus on the protection of women’s rights and interest and seeking justice for the vulnerable
By Portia Hutton-Mills
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Seek healthcare at facilities where nursing services are available – Ministry of Health
As a result of the ongoing strike action by the Ghana Registered Nurses and
Midwives Association (GRNMA), it has become imperative for the Ministry of
Health to implement additional measures to mitigate any inconvenience that has been caused.
According to the Ministry, in a statement, it has through all appropriate channels, led negotiations to ensure the smooth approval and implementation of the
new Conditions of Service.
Against this backdrop, the statement added that in line with the Ministry’s policy to ensure healthy population for national development, it has become necessary to make provisions to fill the gaps created as a result of the strike.
Consequently, the Ministry has urged the general public to continue seeking healthcare services at various health facilities, including those where nursing services remain available, to ensure their health needs are met.
They Ministry also attached a link of health facilities across the country in the statement.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
Check the statement below
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MTN, Telecel & AT to increase value of data bundles effective Tuesday, July 1, 2025
The Minister for Communication and Digital Innovation, Sam George, has announced an increase in the value of data bundles by all telecommunication networks in the country.
Speaking at a Meet The Press held today, he said the new directive will take effect from July 1, 2025.
According to him, the implementation date of July 1, is to allow the telcos to recalibrate and reconfigure their systems to reflect the agreed-upon value increases.
He said The new directive will ensure that “AirtelTigo Ghana (AT Ghana): A 10% increase in all data bundles currently offered by the network, additionally, the GH₵400 bundle, which currently offers 195GB, will now offer 236GB.”
Touching on Telecel Ghana, he said, “A 10% increase in data bundles currently offered by the network, their GH₵400 bundle, which currently offers 90GB, will offer 250GB, effective from July 1.”
On MTN Ghana, the minister said, there would be “a 15% increase in all data bundles currently offered by the network and I am pleased to announce the restoration of GH₵399 bundle, which currently has been changed to GH₵350 that offers 92.88GB, will hence be reinstated to 214GB for GH₵399.”
Sam George has also urged the operators to invest in the quality of their network to ensure customers are better served.
He charged the regulator National Communication Authority (NCA) to strictly monitor the changes.
The minister expressed appreciation to the CEOs of the various companies for close collaboration over the last four months.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
