Hot!
The Ghana to London Drive : The woman’s story.
- /home/u249204778/domains/spectator.com.gh/public_html/wp-content/plugins/mvp-social-buttons/mvp-social-buttons.php on line 27
https://spectator.com.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/092b2968-9417-49c3-a245-192cc2ed22bc.jpeg&description=The Ghana to London Drive : The woman’s story.', 'pinterestShare', 'width=750,height=350'); return false;" title="Pin This Post">
- Share
- Tweet /home/u249204778/domains/spectator.com.gh/public_html/wp-content/plugins/mvp-social-buttons/mvp-social-buttons.php on line 72
https://spectator.com.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/092b2968-9417-49c3-a245-192cc2ed22bc.jpeg&description=The Ghana to London Drive : The woman’s story.', 'pinterestShare', 'width=750,height=350'); return false;" title="Pin This Post">
Day 1 (22nd /23rd): The Journey Begins
The airy Saturday morning was a combination of excitement and anticipation of the unknown terrain that lay ahead.
Were the cars prepped for the journey? Oh yes!. I will tell you about it later as we get deeper into the story
You all know how plans made in a group hardly moves from the chat to “we dey move” . Well not this one . Wanderlust GHANA was determined to make this happen and they sure did!
Meet up spot, BLAY Apartments(Oyarifa). I met Quincy for the first time . The youngest amongst the lot. His was a 10,000km road-trip to bond with his father , and I thought that was special. Mrs Peprah kept me company whiles the men were being men (lol). The $1 million in the room saga was trending so discussing it with her was a good distraction.
9:30am , took final photos . Husbands said their final goodbyes to wives and children. Time asooooo- time aso!
Let’s go!!!!!
We Drove to Dormaa Ahenkro so we connect to the mid entry point into Ivory . But 453km road that we should do in just a couple of hours, will take us having to stop at Eusbett Hotel and continue next day, SMH.
Eusbett was a lovely place. Food was good . Customer service on point. But they wouldn’t allow me to take pictures of the breakfast buffet which I found odd.
Oh we took some pictures and that’s one of the photos circulating. My white shoes meant I was still in Ghana. It changed colors as we moved from country to country.
In about 2 hours we got to Gonokrom, an exit town into Ivory Coast. Wait….. there was a need to stop and help one of the vehicles with a leak in one of his brake hoses. This one was a “national agenda” because the speed with which they squad got together to help was awesome. It was at that point I knew there was a lot Shecanic could learn from. This was my first introduction to Kwame Peprah. Oh my heart was immediately drawn to him. He got his hand dirty. Saka Homes brought his tool box and quickly went back to exercise ( that’s another story lol).
In just about 45 mins we had diagnosed, fixed the issue and was back on the road .
Gonokrom, Ghana’s border town to Ivory Coast was my first introduction to the concept of no man’s land where there is no law . You can do anything, anything at all and get away with it. I thought that was interesting.
At the border they asked for pass and license of all the vehicles, passports and yellow card. There was a heat sensor device to check our temperature. Not sure the purpose of it but I will give them an A for effort. Did they ask for Ghana card? No it was the passport the needed. Old school style of book keeping. Stamping the passports means there will be fewer pages for international visas . Why can’t the Ghana card be enough?!
After an hour of what should have been a a 10 minute session, we (passengers)were given back our document and was allowed to walk into Ivory Coast.
Did we pay any bribes? Well not at this port. Or if they did I was shielded.
The Journey is the destination!!!!
Writeup by: Shecanic, the only female who joined the trip from Accra to London by road
African leaders have been urged to strengthen political commitment and domestic investment to end preventable maternal deaths and AIDS by 2030.
The call comes as African health ministers and policymakers meet in Accra to deliberate on health financing, health security and universal health coverage across the continent.
Mr Edouard Bizimana, Burundi’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and Development Cooperation, made the call on Tuesday at the opening of the African Union’s (AU) 25th Extraordinary Summit on Health in Accra.
He said Africa needed increased domestic investment to build resilient health systems as it continued to grapple with infectious diseases and the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Mr Bizimana, who is also Chairperson of the AU Executive Council, said although Africa accounted for nearly 17 per cent of the world’s population, it bore 24 per cent of the global disease burden while having less than three per cent of the global health workforce and only one per cent of global health expenditure.
“Despite maternal mortality declining by nearly 40 per cent since 2000, Africa still accounts for about 70 per cent of maternal deaths globally, while almost two-thirds of people living with HIV reside on the continent,” he said.
Mr Bizimana said the growing burden of NCDs was placing additional pressure on already stretched health systems.
“These figures are not merely statistics. They represent painful human realities, preventable losses and unacceptable inequalities, they remind us that health is not an expense it is a strategic investment and a prerequisite for our sovereignty and development. “he said.
Mr Bizimana said recent global health emergencies had exposed Africa’s vulnerability and underscored the need to expand local production of medicines and vaccines, strengthen the health workforce and improve emergency preparedness.
“Our citizens expect resilient health systems where every mother can give birth safely, every child has access to essential healthcare and every African enjoys quality health services regardless of where they live,” he said.
The two-day summit, being held ahead of the 20th Extraordinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government, has brought together health ministers, policymakers and health stakeholders to identify solutions to Africa’s health financing and security challenges.
Madam Florence Samizi, Tanzania’s Deputy Health Minister, called for stronger collaboration among AU Member States to accelerate progress towards universal health coverage.
The summit is being held on the theme: “Advancing Justice, Equality and Universal Health Coverage: Ending AIDS, Tuberculosis, Improving Maternal Health, Addressing Endemic Non-Communicable and Neglected Tropical Diseases in Africa.”
The meeting is expected to adopt the Accra Declaration, a roadmap to strengthen Africa’s health systems and advance health sovereignty by 2030. -GNA
Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana’s Department of Political Science, Dr. Joshua Jebuntie Zaato says the imprisonment of the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, will have little meaning unless it leads to a broader crackdown on illegal mining.
In a post on his Facebook page on the July 21, 2026, Dr. Zaato said the judgment should mark the beginning of efforts to completely eradicate galamsey and hold all those involved accountable, regardless of their political affiliation.
He said the country must work towards restoring polluted rivers, protecting forests and ensuring that people implicated in illegal mining activities are prosecuted.
According to him, those the President has publicly acknowledged to be involved in galamsey should face prosecution.
He called for the prosecution of district chief executives (DCEs), members of Parliament (MPs) and senior political party officials who have been accused of engaging in or supporting illegal mining.
Dr. Zaato further urged the government to take decisive action to end the destruction of the country’s forests caused by galamsey.
He maintained that the imprisonment of Chairman Wontumi would only have a lasting impact if it results in a comprehensive and impartial fight against illegal mining across the country.
By: Jacob Aggrey
