Ghana - The African Mirror

Apr

2024

Ghana accused of expelling Fulani asylum seekers from Burkina Faso

WHILE Ghana has welcomed thousands of Burkinabé refugees fleeing escalating jihadist violence across the border, Fulani rights groups allege that it has also been expelling ethnic Fulani asylum seekers, targeting a community unfairly accused of supporting the insurgency. Belko Diallo*, a 45-year-old former herder, is one of thousands of Burkinabé Fulani that the Ghanaian authorities have failed to register as refugees. Instead of being welcomed to Ghana’s Traikom refugee camp, he has had to settle with his family in a hastily erected hut in the dusty scrub land near the northern border. “When we first heard about Tarikom, we thought…

Apr

2024

By PELUMI SALAKO and SADIYA ANSARI

Anti-LGBTQ+ laws in Ghana and Uganda feel the heat from sanctions

NEWS

A ruling this month by Uganda's Constitutional Court to water down a tough anti-LGBTQ+ law may have stemmed from concern to avoid further international sanctions over the controversial legislation, rights activists and analysts say. The court's decision to strike out several of the law's most contentious clauses came weeks after a similar law passed by Ghana appeared to have hit a roadblock amid Finance Ministry warnings it could derail $3.8 billion in international aid. Steven Kabuye, a Ugandan LGBTQ+ activist, said the court's April 3 ruling appeared aimed at appeasing international donors who had raised particular objections about the affected clauses on the grounds that they…

Apr

2024

By RACHEL SAVAGE and MAXWELL AKALAARE ADOMBILA

Ghana fails to reach debt deal with international bondholders

BUSINESS

GHANA has failed to secure a workable debt deal with two bondholder groups in its push to restructure $13 billion of international bonds, the government said on Monday, in a blow to its efforts to swiftly emerge from default and economic crisis. Formal talks were on hold for now after the International Monetary Fund indicated that the deal would not fit its debt sustainability parameters, the government said in a statement. "We will regroup to continue negotiations until we reach a deal that is consistent with IMF debt sustainability targets," the office of Finance Minister Mohammed Amin Adam said on…

Apr

2024

By The African Mirror

Ghana ruling party presidential candidate says he opposes same-sex relations

NEWS

THE presidential candidate of Ghana's ruling party, Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia, said that he was opposed to "the practice of homosexuality", a stance he promised to maintain if elected in December. President Nana Akufo-Addo faces pressure to sign into law one of Africa's most severe anti-LGBT bills, which has been criticised by rights advocates and the United Nations. Speaking at prayers marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Bawumia did not refer to the bill but said: "It is important to note that our cultural and societal norms and values as Ghanaians frown on the practice of homosexuality. "All…

Apr

2024

By YAW AGYEMAN BOAFO

Why is Ghana so hot this year? An expert explains

ENVIRONMENT

GHANA’s meteorological agency and the state’s health service have issued warnings about a period of very high temperatures expected in the first half of 2024 around the country. Ghana’s experience is part of a global phenomenon: record temperatures were recorded in 2023. Yaw Agyeman Boafo, the programmes coordinator and a senior research fellow at the University of Ghana’s Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Studies, answers some key questions. What is unusual about the weather in Ghana? Since the 1960s, Ghana has been getting warmer, with temperatures going up by about 1°C – a little over 0.2°C every ten years.…

Mar

2024

By MAXWELL AKALAARE ADOMBILA and CHRISTIAN AKORLIE

Ghana seeks to speed up debt restructuring negotiations

BUSINESS

GHANA wants to speed up remaining debt restructuring negotiations, its finance minister said, as the government pushes for a deal to rework over $13 billion of international bonds. The West African country has been overhauling its debts as it tries to emerge from its worst economic crisis in a generation with the help of a $3 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme. The government reached a deal in principle in January to restructure $5.4 billion of loans with official creditors. It has since started formal talks with one bondholder group under non-disclosure agreements, Reuters reported about two weeks ago, citing sources familiar…

Mar

2024

By VICTOR OSEI KWADWO and ROSE VINCENT

Ghana’s free high school policy is getting more girls to complete secondary education – study

EDUCATION

EDUCATION drives economic growth and individual well-being. Secondary education, in particular, plays a crucial role. In recent decades, this recognition has encouraged several African countries to make secondary education free. One example is Ghana’s Free Public Senior High School (FreeSHS) policy, initiated in 2017. The policy aimed to remove cost barriers to secondary education, including fees, textbooks, boarding and meals. As scholars of public policy, we conducted research into the impact of the policy, particularly its effect on the number of girls completing secondary school. We emphasised the educational outcomes of girls because they are at a disadvantage when accessing…

Mar

2024

By The African Mirror

Ghana parliament speaker criticises president for delaying anti-LGBTQ bill

NEWS

GHANA'S speaker of parliament has said President Nana Akufo-Addo's refusal to act on an anti-LGBTQ bill for the time being was unconstitutional and that parliament would stop approving new ministerial appointments. One of Africa's harshest anti-LGBTQ laws, unanimously passed by Ghana's parliament last month, has been on hold since the president's office said it would wait for the outcome of two legal challenges before the law goes to Akufo-Addo for assent. The decision to wait came after a finance ministry warning that the bill could jeopardise $3.8 million in World Bank financing and derail a $3-billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan package. But it has sparked…

Mar

2024

By The African Mirror

Ghana says repairs on subsea cables could take five weeks

NEWS

REPAIRS on damaged subsea cables that are causing internet outages across West and Central Africa are expected to take at least five weeks before completion and full-service restoration, Ghana's communications regulator said. The break in the cables has led to widespread disruption of internet and telecommunications-linked businesses, including banks, mobile phone operations, money transfer agencies and stock exchange markets. Ghana's National Communications Authority said it held a meeting with the four subsea cable landing service providers - Africa Coast to Europe (ACE), MainOne, owned by data centre operator Equinix, South Atlantic 3 (SAT-3) and the West Africa Cable System (WACS) - and…

Mar

2024

By The African Mirror

Ghana re-appoint Addo as coach

FOOTBALL

GHANA has re-appointed Otto Addo as their new coach following the exit of Chris Hughton at the end of the dismal first-round exit at the Africa Cup of Nations in the Ivory Coast earlier this year, officials said. Addo is to take over the reins permanently in May but will take charge of friendlies against Nigeria and Uganda in Morocco this month having led Ghana at the World Cup in Qatar. He combined his post in Qatar with his role as a talent scout for Borussia Dortmund, who have now agreed to release him from his contract to lead the…