News
Help Effia Nkwanta hospital install equipment for COVID-19 patients
The Medical Director of the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital (ENRH) in the Western Region, Dr Joseph Tambil has said that the facility had many infrastructural challenges in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He has, therefore, appealed to the oil and mining companies and other well-meaning Ghanaians to help the hospital to renovate its uncompleted buildings to install COVID-19 equipment.
He said that though the COVID-19 was going down, the hospital would have no holding for the patients should there be a second wave because the current structure used as COVID-19 holding place was woefully inadequate.
Dr Tambil was speaking in an interview with The Spectator on preparations to house patients of COVID-19.
“I feel COVID-19 is going down but if there is a second wave it will take us by surprise so the Western Region needs to be adequately prepared to accommodate COVID-19 patients”, he said.
He disclosed that the Mothers’ Hostel needed about GHC800, 000. 00 to complete the facility and make it habitable for about 1,000 patients.
He said the Hostel was started by the former Member of Parliament for Sekondi, Mr Paapa Owusu Ankomah but he could not complete it and it has been on the ground floor for all these years.
He said the facility was the ideal place for COVID-19 patients since it was out of the hospital.
The Medical Director said that though COVID-19 had been bad, it had brought some assistance like ventilators which were badly needed by the hospital to set up an Intensive Care Unit because such cases were always sent to either Cape Coast or Accra.
Dr Tambil asked the good people of the region especially the oil and mining companies to come to the assistance of the hospital because it lacked so many things as a referral hospital
He said with the donation of ventilators and patient monitors, the hospital still needed infrastructure to install these equipment for use, stressing that the hospital had the technicians to handle the equipment but no room to accommodate the monitors and ventilators.
The Medical Director appealed to the paramount chiefs to urge people of good financial standing to come and help because “the hospital had no ward fit enough to admit important personalities when these people were referred to the hospital for treatment.”
From Peter Gbambila, Takoradi.
The Northern Regional Police Command has arrested three men believed to be part of a kidnapping syndicate responsible for abducting a 42-year-old man in Wapuli, a community in the Yendi District.
The suspects, Haruna Seidu, Amidu Bandi and Osman Bandi allegedly kidnapped the victim and demanded GH¢100,000 from his family for his release.
According to a police statement, officers from the Regional Police Intelligence Directorate were deployed to Wapuli after the incident was reported.
The team conducted surveillance and launched a rescue operation.
On Friday, December 5, 2025, police successfully rescued the victim and arrested the suspects after what was described as an intense exchange of gunfire.
The suspects were later taken into custody and are expected to be arraigned before court.
The Police said the a fourth suspect, who is believed to have sustained gunshot wounds during the operation, is currently on the run.
They urged the public to provide any information that may lead to his arrest.
By: Jacob Aggrey
News
Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong advocates Bold educational reforms at the UK House of Lords during Global Education Summit.
On November 27 2025, global development leaders, policymakers, education experts and civil society organisations gathered at the UK Parliament’s House of Lords for the Global Education Summit hosted by The Baroness Verma of Leicester and organised by the African British Business Forum.
The high-level event focused on the global rise in out-of-school children and the urgent reforms required to deliver equitable, quality education for all.
Among the distinguished Speakers was Nana Yaa Serwaa Sarpong, Founder & President of Women in Sustainability Africa (WiSA) and General Manager of the EIB Network, who delivered a compelling address on the theme “Breaking Barriers: Empowering Out-of-School Children Through Education.”
In her remarks, Nana Yaa who is currently celebrating 26years of Service in the Media, emphasized that education must be viewed as essential national infrastructure, not charity.
Borrowing experiences from her 18 years of empowering women and young people, she presented a strong case on how Africa’s poor educational systems tie into the poor state of its Gender Equality gap.
According to her, unlocking access to education is one of the most effective ways to strengthen economies, empower women and young girls, build resilient communities and drive sustainable development.
She highlighted that each child excluded from learning represents deferred innovation, delayed opportunity and a weakened society.
Nana Yaa noted that the barriers keeping millions of children out of school are complex and interconnected—ranging from poverty and cultural norms to geographical isolation and digital exclusion.
Addressing these challenges, she argued, requires solutions that are equally comprehensive and multi-layered.
Nana Yaa stressed that girls remain disproportionately affected, and investing in girls’ education has a transformative impact across several Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality, poverty reduction, health outcomes and climate resilience.
Nana Yaa advocated for the expansion of flexible, inclusive and community-responsive educational models, such as mobile classrooms for remote and nomadic communities, community learning hubs, after-hours programmes for working children, radio-based instruction for low-tech areas and digital platforms designed to reach learners regardless of connectivity challenges.
She warned that without deliberate action, the digital divide would continue to widen, pushing already vulnerable children further to the margins.
During her presentation, she introduced three major reforms WiSA is seeking Partners for, aimed at reshaping educational access across Africa and beyond.
These are the Digital Bridge for Out-of-School Children (DBOC), the Community Education Stewardship Hubs (CESH) involving local women educators and youth volunteers and the Teen-focused Global Skills Accelerator for Out-of-School Teens (GSA-OT).
She also underscored the need for education systems that support instruction, inclusivity and healing, particularly for children experiencing autism, trauma, displacement or conflict.
Nana Yaa emphasised that emotional and psychological support must be integrated into educational frameworks in order to restore confidence, stability and long-term learning capacity.
The summit concluded with strong commitments from stakeholders to adopt sustainable financing models, strengthen data-driven policies and expand cross-sector partnerships.
The African British Business Forum reaffirmed its commitment to championing innovative, scalable solutions to educational inclusion across the UK, Africa and the wider global community.
