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EC to compile new voter register last week in June
The compilation of a new voter register will begin in the last week of June and end in the last week of July, the Electoral Commission (EC) has confirmed, ahead of the announcement of the precise dates.
However, the over 33,000 registration centres would be divided into clusters with strict adherence to COVID-19 hygienic protocols to ensure swift and safe exercise.
Deputy Commissioner of the EC, Dr Bossman Asare disclosed these to the Ghanaian Times in an interview after yesterday’s Inter-party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting convened by the commission in Accra.
The meeting, held in two batches; one in the morning and the other in the afternoon, amidst heavy security presence, was to update the political parties and other stakeholders on the upcoming registration.
The registration exercise, which has been opposed by some political parties and civil society organisations including the National Democratic Congress (NDC), was initially scheduled for April but was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Explaining the cluster system, Dr Bossman, said the registration centres across the country would be grouped into clusters of five to enable the commission compile the names in five phases.
“This time, what we are saying is that five registration centres will constitute one cluster. What that means is that we are going to have five phases in the registration because the clusters will be five.
“In the first phase, we are going to begin from all the registration centres that are numbered one on the cluster then to the next phase and cluster,” he said.
According to Dr Bossman , in due course, details and further explanation would be communicated to the public and assured eligible voters to exercise patience when the registration begins as they would all be attended to.
On safety measures, Dr Bossman, said social distancing would be observed with not more than 25 people at a time, nose masks would be mandatory, temperatures would be checked, hand hygiene materials would be provided.
“Whatever must be done, whatever is necessary to be done to ensure that the compilation is done in a safe and sure environment is being done. We are liaising with the health authorities to ensure safety,” he said.
Aside Ghana Card and passports that would be accepted as proof of nationality, the deputy commissioner said, two persons who are able to register with either of the documents, could vouch for an eligible voter who had neither of them.
That notwithstanding, he urged Ghanaians who do not have the two documents to get them.
Present at the meeting were representatives of parties including New Patriotic Party (NPP), Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), United Progressive Party (UPP) and Convention People’s Party (CPP).
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) stood by its earlier decision to boycott the meeting.
General Sectary of the NPP and Jacob Osei Yeboah, an independent presidential candidate, in separate interviews with the Ghanaian Times, after the meeting, welcomed the arrangement EC had put in place and pledged their cooperation.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
Ghana Tourism Authority is leading Ghana’s participation at ITB Berlin, which opened in Berlin with a vibrant national pavilion highlighting Ghana’s rich cultural heritage, tourism destinations and investment opportunities.
March 5 has been designated as Ghana Day, a special platform to promote Ghana’s languages, cuisine, Kente, festivals and business prospects to the global tourism community. The stand has already drawn strong interest with traditional arts and crafts displays, immersive multimedia presentations and popular Ghanaian snacks.
Seven private-sector players are exhibiting alongside government officials as part of efforts to deepen trade partnerships, expand market access, and attract investment across the hospitality, heritage tourism, ecotourism, and creative arts sectors.
Ahead of the official opening, the Ghana delegation also engaged young Ghanaian investors in Germany in collaboration with V Afrika-Verein and the Ghana Embassy, strengthening diaspora investment linkages and highlighting opportunities within the tourism value chain.
Ghana’s coordinated presence at ITB Berlin 2026 reinforces its strategy to position the country as the Gateway to Africa and a competitive destination for leisure travel and global investment.
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
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