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‘Patronise local foods to boost economy’
The Eastern Regional Director of the Department of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Mrs Juliana Abbeyquaye has urged Ghanaians to patronise locally manufactured foods to help build a stable and better economy.
She said patronising such local food stuffs would help support local farmers financially and promote agricultural development in the country.
“Purchasing fresh local foods from your typical markets instead of those huge supermarkets that import most of their foods will help place money in the hands of local farmers and build the local economy as well.” She added.
Mrs Abbeyquaye said these when she addressed participants at a cooking competition organised by the Eastern Regional Centre for National Culture (CNC) with support from Onga, last Wednesday.
The cooking competition was for organised groups including the Beads Market Association, Wood Workers Association, Garment Traders Association among many others who were tasked to prepare different Ghanaian dishes.
At the end of the competition, Beads Market Association emerged first, Ghana Association of Visual Arts chalked second and the third position was won by the Ghana Hairdressers and Beauticians Association.
The winners received prizes including souvenirs from the Onga company.
She said that by buying and eating local foods, Ghanaian would be helping to reduce the unemployment rate in the country.”
Speaking on child’s development, Mrs. Abbeyquaye stated that to guarantee a bright future for the young generations, there was the need for parents to focus on the nutrition of their children, by patronising local foods that would give the children the right nutrition to grow well.
She noted that in the era of COVID-19, it was essential for Ghanaians to boost their immune system by eating local foods to ensure their overall wellbeing.
On his part, the Acting Eastern Regional Director of CNC, Mr Peter Marfo also said there was the need for parents to patronise the country’s local foods and introduce same to their children, not only for health benefits but to also preserve and promote the country’s culture by encouraging their children to make good use of Ghana foods.
“Food gives a clue to any person’s culture and we know that our culture is a way of life of a group of people,” he said.
He added that recently, the influx of foreign foods was worrying adding that it did not only compromise our health but made the country lose its foreign exchange.
He said as a Centre established to promote the nation’s culture, they were ready to partner with organisations to promote the culture of the country.
He expressed appreciation to Onga for their support and thanked all the Associations for actively participating in the competition.
From David Kodjo, Koforidua
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Minister for Education leads monitoring visit to BECE Centres
As part of efforts to encourage candidates writing the 2025 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), the Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrissu has led a government delegation to the 5 Garrison Education Centre and Emmause Cluster of Schools earlier today in Accra.
The visit aimed at monitoring the conduct of the examination, interacting with candidates, and offering words of motivation.
The minister urged the students to remain focused, confident, and determined, encouraging them to do their best to make themselves and the nation proud.
Accompanying the Education minister were the Minister for Defence, Edward Omane Boamah; Deputy Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs and Member of Parliament for La Dadekotopon, Rita Naa Odoley Sowah and the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Prof. Ernest Davis.
The rest included the Chief Director of the Ministry of Education, Mrs. Maamle Andrews; and the Municipal Chief Executive for La Dadekotopon, Alfredos Nii Anyetei.
Other dignitaries present also reiterated government’s commitment to educational excellence and the holistic development of every Ghanaian child.
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Interior Minister calls for correctional reform as Prisons Service graduates New Officers
Speaking at the Passing-Out Parade of Recruit Course 125 at Ankaful Prison Officers’ Training School in the Central Region, the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak has emphasized the need for correctional reform in Ghana, highlighting the government’s commitment to transforming the Prisons Service into a modern correctional facility that focuses on rehabilitation, reformation and reintegration.
He noted that Government remains committed to expanding vocational training, educational programmes and productive inmate enterprises that reinforce rehabilitation, reformation and reintegration.
The minister pointed out that correctional facilities must become centers of reform, not just detention.
According to him, “is not an act of charity but a strategic investment in national security and human capital. When we empower an inmate with employable skills, we reduce the opportunity for that inmate to re-offend. Rehabilitation and reformation do not occur in isolation but must be linked to purposeful activity.”
To give practical effect to this policy, Muntaka Mohamed-Mubarak announced that Government will scale up support for prison-based ventures, saying that entures such as carpentry, tailoring, agriculture, and industrial operations, including bottled water production, will be central to a sustainable, self-reliant correctional economy.
The Minister also directed all institutions under the Ministry for the Interior to prioritise the purchase of bottled water and toilet rolls produced by the Ghana Prisons Service.
This, he said, will not only reduce the financial burden on the state but also generate revenue and promote inmates’ productivity.
He reassured the leadership and personnel of the Ghana Prisons Service of the Government’s unwavering support, emphasizing that the commitment goes beyond improving logistics and infrastructure to reforming the very foundation of correctional practice in Ghana.
Muntaka Mubarak urged the new officers to serve with integrity, compassion, and professionalism, and assured them that their actions would reflect the high standards of the Service and the trust the nation has placed in them.
