Jake meets Ghana’s US Embassy staff
Ghana hosts US-Africa Sister Cities conference in 2003
Jake meets
Washington (
He
intimated that the agricultural harvest this year has been tremendous but it
has also created problems of low prices. When this happens, he explained, it
becomes a disincentive for farmers. Though the good harvest has contributed to
low inflation, the government has already spent millions of dollars repairing
machinery and acquiring new ones to store surplus food.
Personnel
are also in from other African countries including
“As humans,
we normally fail to count our blessings in good times,” he philosophised to
explain why the government is being as particular with agriculture as it has
been with the general infrastructure at the local government level.
This, he
said is seen in the work done so far at the districts. “We believe we have done
more in the districts in two years than could have been anticipated. We have
created health posts, markets, schools and using the millions and millions of
cedis from the HIPC relief generations to create some comfort at the local level.”
While
trying to look after the health of the people, the government has had to also
deal with the departure of health personnel. The sad result is, last year for
instance, the country lost 2,900 nurses to brain drain. Of the 120 doctors
trained for the year, almost all of them have joined the 'gravy train.” This
distresses the economy. Notwithstanding the extra duty allowances paid to
doctors, they cannot still withstand the temptation of leaving.
The
Minister also talked on external problems and mentioned that the problem in the
Another
external threat he explained would be, if
Obestebi-
Lamptey who is in the United States to follow up on President Kufuor's
investment visit to Salt Lake City said some companies in the US have expressed
interest in doing business with Ghana and advised the officers and staff of the
Embassy to continue working hard since in Europe and every advanced economy he
has visited, the interest in investments and tourism in Ghana keeps rising.
These
investment dividends he said, will shine when in March 2003; the National
Communication Policy comes out with its explosion of IT related businesses,
which will create about 20,000 employments.
The
Minister who is also in the US on a E-governance International Seminar, said,
he will make the case for progress in Ghana's IT industry and to improve the
on-going dialogue between the Government and the people, adding that a website
(www.ghana.gov.gh) has been created to explain Government public issues and
general news.
When some
of the staff wanted to know about the security situation and the operation of
armed robbers, he explained that with the facilities being put in place, the
police are doing excellent work and that there are more news of police arrests
of armed robbers. The Minister at the end of the meeting said he believes
Francis
Tsegah, the Deputy Head of
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Wiredu
said, the relationship provides enormous potentials for public, private and
popular partnerships locally and internationally. The two could also team up to
address their problems and determine how efforts could be galvanized to deal
with mutual issues.
The Local
government and Rural Development Minister said, as a programme which seeks to
promote a people to-people relationship between citizens of US cities and
others in other parts of the world, there is the need to build into the
deliberations of the programme an element for inter-cultural exchanges, information
technology promotion and business relationship.
These were
contained in an address read for him at the launch of US/Africa Sister Cities
Conference in
In an
address, Solomon Offei Darko, Mayor of Accra, said, his visit to
The Sister
Cities International (SCI) Foundation established in 1956 and headquartered in
Washington, D.C. USA, has as its objectives the development of municipal
partnerships between US towns, cities, countries, states and those of similar
jurisdictions in other nations for the mutual benefit of their citizenry; the
creation of opportunities for the citizens of member-cities to experience and
explore other people through long-term partnership and creating an atmosphere
in which economic development and trade can be developed, implemented and
strengthened.
The Sister
Cities International Foundation has as its arm the US-Africa Cities Foundation
which promotes the goals and activities of SCI in
Mrs Shirley
Rovens Smith is the President of the US-Africa Sister Cities Foundation whiles
Prince Kofi Kludjeson serves the International Country Coordinator and
President of the Ghana Sister Cities Foundation.
Presently,
there are nine registered Ghanaian cities and districts with a relationship
with cities in the
From 29
June to
The
Conference, which will host about 2000 Mayor from 120 major cities around the
world, will be organised under the auspices of the Ministry of Local Government
and Rural Development. It will be the third to be held in
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