The Military Police Personnel says it has arrested a young man named, Rufai Abubakar for posing as a Senior Military Officer and trying to access a military installation inside Burma Camp. According to GAF, the suspect who was dressed in a military camouflage uniform, decorated with fake Lieutenant Colonel ranks, claimed he was stationed at Northern Command Headquarters and was proceeding to the Air Force Base to book a flight to Tamale. The suspect who entered Burma Camp in a commercial vehicle was closely monitored as he alighted at a bus stop and headed to the Air Force Base. The guards on duty noted his suspicious behaviour, questioned him and after some incoherent answers, he confessed he was not a service personnel. He also disclosed that he posed as a Senior Military Officer to enable him to defraud one Mr Abdallah Abdul Fatahu from whom he had collected an amount of Three Thousand Ghana Cedis (GH¢3,000.00) under the pretext of recruiting him into the Ghana Armed Forces. Story by: Thinknewsonline.com

The Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation (MoCD) in partnership with Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has begun a three (3)-day workshop to review the new legal and regulatory framework that would govern the Digital Economy in Electronic Communications in West Africa. The Deputy Minister, Ms. Ama Pomaa-Boateng (MP) who delivered the opening remarks yesterday on behalf of the Sector Minister, Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful (MP), said that, Ghana had been very active in the development of the draft legal and regulatory framework and “we believe that this workshop will further provide the avenue for all to make inputs to finalize the documents for implementation within the sub-Region” She said it was important for stakeholders to note that the digital transformation of all sectors of the economy would ensure the availability of services and accessibility to citizens, hence, the digital economy that was created must therefore be governed by legal and regulatory measures in order to have secured platforms, enforce standards as well as protect the wealth generated. A statement read on behalf of the ECOWAS Commission by the Programme Officer of Telecommunicationa and Networks, Mr. Mawuli Amoa, stated that, due to the importance of innovations and services of the economy, it was imperative that policymakers and regulators develop an approach to regulations that would foster the growth and developments of the difference services under a fair and enabling environment whiles at the same time protecting the interests of consumers. According to him, it was against this background that the ECOWAS Commission started collaborations in 2019 with the Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) to jointly undertake the elaboration of a new legal and regulatory framework to govern the development of the digital economy sector in West Africa. The framework, he said was expected to address the emerging issues in the sector for greater benefits for ECOWAS citizens and businesses. He was therefore hopeful that the workshop would provide the opportunity for participants to objectively reviewed the draft documents by sharing their perspectives of the various sectors they govern, and, to ensure that the new framework would be conducive and complementary to their aspirations for the digital economy, so that its application would contribute materially towards the growth of the digital economy in Ghana and the continent as a whole. The three-day event is being participated by all the relevant stakeholders including key actors in ICT industry, policymaker, MDA, Academia, CSOs and among other. Below are some pictures: Credit: Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation

Celebrated Ghanaian Gospel Musician, Rev. Obaapa Christy has taken to social media to flaunt some breath-taking pictures. The Gospel Musician flaunted her picture following her birthday, which is today. The stunning pictures has received lots of reactions from social media users. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has taken a swipe at Member of Parliament Sam Nartey George on government projects in the Ningo-Prampram Constituency. This follows praises showered on the Minister of Roads and Highways and government, by extension, by the Paramount Chief of Prampram, Nene Tetteh Wakah I, on Tuesday, December 6. It was during the commissioning of a 900-meter road bridge over the Tema-Mpakadan railway line, which is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2023. During the ceremony, Nene Tetteh Wakah I was full of praise for Kwesi Amoako-Atta, the sector minister, as regards the numerous road projects in the Prampram community. This got President Akufo-Addo taunting the MP for the Constituency. "I want to express my appreciation to the Paramount Chief of Prampram, Nene Tetteh Wakah I, for his words of commendation of the work done by my government in the traditional area of Prampram, which I am sure the Member of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, Hon Sam George, heard loud and clear.” Credit: 3news.com

President of Cameroon's Football Association, Samuel Eto'o has heavily descended on an Algerian YouTuber after he was asked about his take on Referee Gassama. In a video making waves on social media, the FA President was captured kicking the face of the YouTuber. Despite numerous attempts by onlookers to stop Samuel Eto'o from harming the YouTuber, the Former Football Legend, did not rescinded his decision but went hard on the man. The video which has gone viral has been greeted with mixed reactions by football lovers. Watch the video below: Story by: Thinknewsonline.com

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon Samuel A Jinapor has underscored the importance of Ghana- South African relations and called for the urgent need for the two countries to collaborate and strengthen the  bargaining position on gold pricing inorder to get a competitive pricing for gold on the international market for their benefits. The Lands Minister maintained that "Ghana and Cote d'ivoire are responsible for 60% of cocoa output and the two countries have worked closely to secure what we call the floor price of cocoa and therefore today there is a minimum price level regardless of what happens at the International stage where cocoa cannot be sold below a certain price" He further indicated that Ghana and Cote d'ivoire are taking a step further and  working jointly to get the International community to take out the issue of premium. The Minister stated this when a high level delegation from South African called on him to among other things exchange ideas and best practices on the mining sector particularly small-scale mining operations. Hon. Jinapor was of the view that the  move by Ghana and Cote d'ivoire in the cocoa industry could be replicated by Ghana and South African in the gold sector. The Ghanaian government, the Minister said, is doing all it can to come to grips with illegal mining activities known in Ghana as galamsey,  in Australia as Prospecting and in South Africa as Zama zamas and charged his technical team to consider the governance structure of the South African delegation since their system is fused from the get go sighting the head of their committee as a Major General concluding that theirs is a broad sectoral nature. On her part, Major General Zulu the leader of the delegation applauded Ghana for allowing her country's top principals to engage them while they are on their knowledge sharing tour in the country adding that the President of the Republic of South Africa tasked them to use Ghana as benchmark to yield broader results. She further stressed that Ghana's small-scale mining sector is focused on improving the lives of the community as well as the economic sector. Ghana and South Africa are leading producers of gold in Africa and relations between the two countries dates back to pre-colonial times as both countries are members of African Union and the Commonwealth of nations. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

The Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Benito Owusu-Bio says the Lands Ministry will establish a multi-stakeholder platform to monitor the implementation of recommendations made after the National Lands Conference, a 4-day event scheduled to officially begin on Wednesday 7th December, 2022. Speaking at what can be considered as a prelude to the grand opening of the National Land Conference on Tuesday, 6th December, 2022, Hon. Benito said is hopeful that after the 4-Day Conference, solutions will be found for some of the most pressing land issues in Ghana. The Deputy Minister responsible for Lands and Forestry noted that he is also expectant that at the end of the conference, the awareness of conference participants will be raised about the Land Act of 2020 and the Land Use and Spatial Planning Act of 2016. He stated the aim of the conference saying that the highly anticipated and much needed conference seeks to provide a platform for stakeholders in land administration and management to deliberate on some of the major challenges that stand between them and the realization of a more efficient land administration regime. Hon. Owusu-Bio gave participants an idea of the form the conference will take, detailing that "the 4-day conference with many seasoned speakers from various disciplines within the land sector will have three high-level policy dialogues on the political economy of land policy and land governance reforms, land use planning and spatial development, and land administration and innovative methodologies. "There will also be a number of technical sessions that will address specific issues in land administration through presentations by experts in various fields", he added. In his statement the Deputy Minister revealed that aside the Land Administration Project, which was one of the most impactful projects of government, a few other interventions have been taken on by the government through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, its agencies and development partners to make land administration visibly better for both administrators and end-users. Hammering on the need and importance of the Conference, Hon. Benito said Urbanization, technology, population growth, and current world affairs have introduced new challenges to land administration that need to be tackled and  therefore, it is imperative to have a platform where stakeholders can fully deliberate on innovative and sustainable solutions to these challenges. "This is why this conference is so important" He humbly requested the officials to attend the opening ceremony slated for Wednesday, 7th December, 2022 at 10am with his Excellency the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo as the Special Guest of Honour. In a short statement the National Chairman of the Lands Commission, Mr. Alex Quaynor indicated that the conference offers a unique opportunity for all stakeholders to contribute towards the fashioning out of a new land policy. He was of the view that the Conference is one that is long overdue as the Land Policy 1999 ought to be reviewed and with such a platform, he is expectant that better deliberations will be made and yield results that will help better manage the Lands sector. The Chairman however cautioned that the discussions should not end with the conference or at political levels but continue at all levels of operations "Let's not leave it at the political level but we must continue this conversation everywhere and show leadership in the management of stool and family Lands" He added. Representatives from the World bank, Development Partners and the Academia were also given the opportunity to make some statements which were mostly to welcome participants and thank organisers for putting together such all important conference. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

The Minister of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, is currently touring northern Ghana. The visit, which is the last leg of the minister’s regional working tour embarked upon early this year, will take him to Upper West, Upper East, North East, Savannah and Northern regions. It follows the celebration of the Farmers Day celebration held in the Central Regional capital of Cape Coast on Friday, December 2, 2022. Accompanying the minister on his tour are national directors of the MoFA. Addressing a staff durbar and stakeholders at the Upper West Regional Coordinating Council in Wa on Monday, December 5, 2022, Dr. Owusu Afriyie stated that he had already been to eleven (11) regions, adding that “I am in the northern part of the country now to check agriculture matters; it is going to take about a week.” “I make it a point to visit each region in the country every year with all my directors to see how policies made in Accra have impacted on farmers outside Accra,” he explained. “…from the Upper West, we will move to the Upper East to carry out same task over there,” he said. On the issue of shortage of inorganic fertilisers, he reiterated that it was a global issue, hence entreated farmers in the region to adopt organic fertilisers. Dr. Owusu Afriyie explained that the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) Market is an intervention by the government to help bring down the soaring prices of foodstuffs on the markets. “Prices of foodstuffs in the urban centres are ridiculous. We’re in the middle of harvest and prices of foodstuffs are expected to be reduced but it’s not so! We had to intervene, and honestly the PFJ Market [initiative] is doing well. We want to cut down prices of foodstuffs,” he averred. From the regional coordinating council, the minister and his entourage visited farm fields including Abu Dassan Ventures, agro processing experts, who deal in groundnut paste, Tombrown, ‘banku’ mix, ginger powder among others. Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the minister’s visit, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Abu Dassan Ventures, Mumuni Dassah Issah, lamented that his outfit’s products only reach a few part of the country. “Bono East is where our sales are most generated. We are looking forward to ensure that our products get to every corner of the country,” he stated. According to him, his company has advanced measures to collaborate with the MoFA “so that some of our products will be given space on the PFJ Market.” “Our major challenges are lack of personnel, funding and infrastructure. We are appealing to the authorities to assist us with loan facilities at considerable interest rates to help us expand production and bring on board new projects,” he appealed. Earlier, the Regional Director of Agriculture in Upper West, Emmanuel Sasu Yeboah, gave a presentation on the state of agriculture in the region. He underscored that agriculture is the main source of livelihood for inhabitants of Upper Wes, revealing that the sector employs about 80% of the rural dwellers in the region. “The farmers mostly produce staple food crops such as maize, rice sorghum wheat, millet, cowpea, groundnut, yam etc...,” he noted. However, he added that shea butter, ‘dawadawa,’ mango, cashew and cotton remain major economic crops grown in Upper West, and also livestock farming. Mr. Sasu Yeboah indicated that both the PFJ and the RFJ were boosting farm yields in the region compared to previous years. "Availability of the soya bean thresher has boosted soya been production and I can say Upper West Region can produce soya for export,” he optimistically expressed. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

Wonder kid of the French National Team, Kylian Mbappé has added his voice to the call for the world to pray for Brazil Football Legend, Pele. In a tweet sighted by Thinknewsonline.com, the young French striker tweeted "Pray for the King 🤴 🙏 🇧🇷 @Pele". His tweet has received lots of appreciation on Twitter. It will be recalled that news broke of World Pele being hospitalised. It is emerging that Pele's condition is worsening by the day. Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), as may have been observed in the last few years, is improving on water supply to most communities in the country. According to GWCL, its management is using it limited internally generated funds/resources to procure New Pumps and other equipment to replace old, dilapidated, and faulty ones to improve on water supply. In a statement sighted by Thinknewsonline.com and signed by the Head, PR and Communications, Stanley Martey it said "The latest on the list is the Tema Booster Station where water from the Kpong Treatment is stored and further treated before distributing to the communities in that eastern part of Accra" The statement added that on Wednesday, Engineers of the GWCL will install new equipment, including new heavy-duty pumps at the Tema Booster Station to replace the 40-year-old pumps. These new pumps, he explained, are expected to improve the volumes of water distributed in that enclave and to boost pressures. "As a result, the Booster Station will be partly shut down for 48 hours from Wednesday 7th December 2022 and baring any technical and unforeseen circumstance, be completed on Friday 9th December 2022" Areas envisaged to be affected include all communities in Tema, Industrial Area, Baatsonaa, Coca Cola, Kasapreko, Lashibi, Klagoon, Sakumono, Ashaiman, Adjei-Kojo, Borteyeman, Santoe, Trassaco, Afresco Estate, Manet Court, Regimanuel Estates, O’Reily senior High School, Airport Hills, Martey Tsuru and surrounding Communities. Management of GWCL has as a result rented, Water Tankers to supply water to essential Service providers like the hospitals and schools to forestall any eventuality. It stressed that consumers in the affected areas are encouraged to store some water while water is flowing now. The Management of GWCL wishes to inform the public know that arrangement has been made to ensure that Engineers working on the project will work around the clock, thus will not leave the project site until the work is fully completed. It further assured the public that, supply will resume immediately the mission is accomplished. "Although the project is in the interest of our cherished customers, Management apologizes for the inconvenience this shutdown will cause the consuming public" The public are been encouraged to contact GWCL via WhatsApp on these numbers; 0555123393, 0555155524, or call 0207385088, 0207385089, 0207385090 for any enquiries. Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

The National Service Secretariat (NSS) in it's quest to end graduate unemployment in the country, has outlined stringent measures to add value to graduates deployment. According to the NSS, the era where newly graduated students are deployed to various agencies and later rendered unemployed after their year long service is over. Addressing the media in Accra, the Executive Director of the National Service Secretariat (NSS), Osei Assibey Antwi indicated that, the rate at which graduates keeps increasing yearly due to Free SHS is projected to be outnumbering the available jobs, hence the need to add value to graduates to ensure they are maintained after their end of service. Osei Assibey Antwi added that, about 51,000 graduates were posted to the educational sector for a 10 day pedagogy training this year. He said his expectations are that by the time the graduates are done with their National Service, those who want to take teaching as a career, would have gotten to know much about that with a certificate. Moreover, Mr Osei Assibey Antwi said the NSS outlook for the year 2023 is to enhance the National Service Scheme's Internal Generated Fund (IGF) mobilization to reduce the dependency on the central government. He added that they will develop a relationship with state agencies such as Ghana Enterprises Agency, Youth Employment Agency, YouStart to enable graduates get enrolled after service. Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith

The Jospong Group of Companies (JGC) and Zoomlion Ghana Limited (ZGL) on Monday, December 5, 2022, began this year's (2022) Service of Thanksgiving. The thanksgiving service is a yearly celebration by JGC and ZGL to commemorate the awesomeness of God throughout the year, despite challenges along the way. Themed "Celebrating The Goodness of The Lord", the five-day event (Monday, December 5 - Friday, December 9, 2022,) which kicked-off at the Adjirigarnor headquarters of Zoomlion in Accra, is also being replicated at the regional offices of the company across the country. Addressing a gathering of staff members of JGC and ZGL, and other invited guests, the Executive Chairman, JGC, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, reiterated that the essence of the annual event is to give glory and thanks to Almighty God for all His goodness in sustaining the JGC and Zoomlion. He added that for the protection of lives and properties, the Lord Almighty deserved loads of praises. Lamenting the number of lives lost to road carnages, floods and fire outbreaks and yet they have been sustained, he underpinned the need for them to be thankful to the Lord. Dr. Siaw Agyepong was equally elated that God has granted journey mercies to staff members of his group as well as himself and family. With a joyful heart, he led the gathering to sing sweet melodies to praise God, stressing that the "Lord deserves more for His mercies on us." Delivering a sermon on the opening day, the Area Head of Church of Pentecost, Teshie-Nungua, Apostle Welberforce Nkrumah Agyemang, espoused situations that should warrant thanksgiving to God. According to him, when God delivers one from a severe situation, that person must offer thanks to Him. However, he pointed out that thanksgiving should not only be done in good times but in all situations (good and bad). Quoting from the book of Psalm 107:7 which says "Oh see that the Lord is good and His mercies endure forever," he intimated that one ought to give thanksgiving when he/she is healed from an acute illness. "You thank God when you have been delivered from financial hardships; you need to offer God thanks," he stressed. Apostle Nkrumah Agyemang urged the gathering to also remember the goodness of God when a new door of opportunity opens. He said one should be grateful and offer thanksgiving when God opens their eyes to new frontiers and enables them to take advantage of them. "We should learn to propagate the goodness of God to repose hope in another," he advised. He recounted the story of a man who fell ill and was discharged following a few days of hospitalisation. According to the man of God, this man broke down into uncontrollable tears upon spotting his bills. He narrated that the healed sick man's bill was eventually paid by his children yet this man never stopped the tears and when asked, he said "for this short period I came to lie yet for all what God has been doing for me, I have held His praise." He used the analogy to emphasise the need for human beings to be thankful to God. Below are some pictures: Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith