Hot!
Ensure strict adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged heads of basic schools throughout the country to ensure that the COVID-19 safety protocols are religiously adhered to by all students when schools resume next week.
“It is a big task you have, apart from doing the teaching which is your normal activity. Because of the pandemic, you are now going to act as paramedics to make sure that the children are also safe,” he said at a meeting with the heads of basic schools at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday.
Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country on March 12, the government closed down all educational institutions as part of measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic.
Final year students in Junior High School (JHS) will resume academic activities on Monday July 29 to prepare for their Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE). University students as well as final year and Gold Track students in Senior High Schools (SHS) have already reopened after three months.
President Akufo-Addo noted that in addition to the 531,000 students who will be going back to school to prepare for their BECE are teachers, invigilators, education supervisors, among others. This, he said, will bring the total population to nearly 900,000.
The President said the government will provide at least three reusable face mask to all the 900,000 people who will resume duty and provide the schools with sanitizers, veronica buckets, and thermometer guns.
According to him, the government aims to prevent an outbreak in the schools and appealed to the heads of the schools to make sure that there are proper social distancing, regular hand washing, and wearing of face masks to make everyone safe.
President Akufo-Addo said class sizes should not be more than 30 students and added that head teachers should ensure that children do not play during break time.
He indicated that students will be in school from 9am to 1pm.
The President of the Conference of Heads of Basic Schools, Mercy Akayila Anuembee, appealed to the government to ensure timely provision of medical supplies to schools in peri-urban and rural areas to ensure that they observe the COVID-19 safety protocols.
She urged the government to motivate teachers to deliver their best and appealed to the President to continue to invest in education to secure the future of the country.
Source: Ghanaian Times
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
