Hot!
Uneven school compound poses danger to visually-impaired pupils in Wa
- /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/2022/08/Some-members-of-Rotary-Club-presenting-the-sight-box.jpg&description=Uneven school compound poses danger to visually-impaired pupils in Wa', '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/2022/08/Some-members-of-Rotary-Club-presenting-the-sight-box.jpg&description=Uneven school compound poses danger to visually-impaired pupils in Wa', 'pinterestShare', 'width=750,height=350'); return false;" title="Pin This Post">
The Headmistress of the Wa Methodist School for the Blind, Reverend Grace Amoako has appealed to benevolent bodies and individuals to help put the school’s compound in good shape to prevent the rampant fall of pupils.
She explained that due to erosion, the school’s compound had been rendered uneven with small to medium-sized holes and gutters created everywhere around the compound, making it very difficult for the visually impaired pupils to walk freely.
The worrying situation, she said, had left many of the pupils with injuries around their feet and called for support to help put the compound in shape so that the pupils would enjoy free movement without hindrance.
Rev. Amoako made the appeal when the Rotary Club of Wa donated a sight box to the school to facilitate physical education (PE) lessons.
The box which contained assorted items such as goal ball, boccia grid, large hand ball, parachute canopy and running tethers, among others, was meant to aid the pupils in their extra-curricular activities.
“It is really disheartening to see the children fall every now and then when they are trying to move around because the compound is very uneven and these are visually impaired children, who do not even use walking canes”, she lamented.
She called for support to help put the school compound in good shape to ensure that the school children were better protected, but also used the opportunity to call for more donations of food and welfare items to help cater for their needs.
Presenting the items to the school, President of the Rotary Club of Wa, Mr Stephen Mwinkaara explained that the donation was to assist the pupils identify alternative ways of studying outside the classroom with the use of the items in the sight box.
He said that the club was dedicated to the wellbeing of the underprivileged and the marginalised in society as most of its interventions had been geared towards uplifting such groups, stressing that the club was going to work around the clock to secure more support for the school to aid it in other areas.
The donation was part of a project by the club to provide the boxes to the school at Wa as well as the Akropong School for the Blind in the Eastern Region with support from the Rotary Club of Southport Links in the United Kingdom.
From Lydia Darlington Fordjour, Wa
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
