News
Don’t interfere with accidents at mining sites – expert
A Plant Metallurgist working at Aboso GoldFields Limited, Ing. Mrs Gladys O. Sarkpor, has warned host communities to desist from interfering with cyanide accident scenes at mining sites, especially when the chemical is being transported to the Damang Mine.
She explained that cyanide was a general term for a group of chemicals containing carbon and nitrogen, which was very dangerous and therefore, pleaded with the communities, especially children, not go near emergency sites.
Mrs Sarkpor gave the warning when she made presentation on the International Cyanide Management Code (ICMC) awareness and emergency response at an emergency meeting of the Damang Mine Community Consultative Committee (DMCCC) at Huni Valley, in the Western Region last Thursday.
She stressed: “In case of emergency response during cyanide transportation, do not interfere. We don’t want the community to be involved in the evacuation. Move away from the scene and allow the driver of the truck to notify the office and AGL Cyanide Emergency Response to handle it.
“Don’t allow children to go near the scene for curiosity sake; it looks like salt and they will be tempted to touch it. The site should be cordoned and everybody except the team should be about one kilometre away from the scene.”
Mrs Sarpoh said that sources of cyanide included sodium cyanide, hydrogen gas, potassium cyanide and sodium cyanide and it is generally used in the production of gold.
She mentioned that the chemical was highly poisonous when mixed with moisture in air, steam, acid or water, and was also dangerous when some lethal dose was taken orally or inhaled.
The plant metallurgist told the meeting that exposure routes of cyanide to the human body were inhalation, face splash and consumption.
She continued: “Cyanide looks like camphor and bigger than salt and transported by road only between sunrise and sunset, the truck which must be road worthy at all times is fitted with tracking systems.”
Mrs Sarkpor said, cyanide loads travel in convoy from Tema Port with escort emergency response and well secured away from the public.
“In case of cyanide accidents call AGL security control on 0277555311. Cyanide is poisonous and dangerous. We will evacuate everybody; as far as possible, everybody should go home because you can inhale it.
We will do our part to protect human life and the environment, but you also have a role to play so that together, we are all safe from cyanide accidents,” she said.
Mrs Sarkpor assured that AGL was committed to safeguarding the transportation of cyanide to the Mine site and would protect mine plants against any spillage into the communities, adding “our safety engineers are well-equipped with personal protective equipment to handle emergencies.”
The Municipal Chief Executive of Prestea-Huni Valley, Dr Isaac Dasmani, encouraged communities to take the lessons on cyanide serious so as to safeguard their safety and security of the environment.
From Clement Adzei Boye, Huni Valley
News
Ghana-Colombia strengthens ties through diplomatic engagement
In an important diplomatic engagement, the Colombian Ambassador to Ghana H.E. Daniel Garces Carabali paid a courtesy call on the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, at his office in Accra to discuss some key areas of collaboration.
The meeting focused on pressing issues, including security, decongestion of Ghana’s prisons, prison reform programmes, training programmes, improving the welfare of prisoners and enhancing disaster management in the country.
The courtesy call underscores the growing bilateral ties between Ghana and Colombia, building on previous engagements, such as the visit of the Colombian Vice President to Ghana in 2023.
The meeting demonstrates the commitment of both nations to fostering cooperation and addressing shared challenges.
News
Ghana to host African Catholic Journalists from August 10
The Union Catholique Africaine de la Presse (UCAP), also known as the African Catholic Union of the Press, in collaboration with the Catholic Association of Media Practitioners-Ghana (CAMP-G), is set to host its prestigious Triennial Congress from August 10 to 17 August, 2025.
The programme would be held at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Legon, Accra, Ghana.
This landmark event, the most significant gathering of Catholic journalists in Africa, will bring together media professionals, researchers, and experts in digital technology from across the continent and beyond.
The theme for the Congress is: “Balancing Technological Progress and the Preservation of Human Values in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.”
Congress Highlights
The UCAP Congress 2025 will feature discussions and deliberations on critical issues arising from or related to integral human development, particularly within the framework of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Some of the key sub-themes to be addressed include:Corporate Social Responsibility in Managing the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Human Values, Deploying AI in Eco-friendly Business Start-ups in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges, Technology and the Reprogramming of Social Reality, Distortion of Reality in Social and Digital Media, Ecological Education and Action Against Unsustainable Exploitation of Natural Resources, and Media and the Promotion of the Recommendations of the Synod on Synodality in Africa.
Participants will include media professionals from both ecclesiastical and lay organisations, media researchers and academics, representatives from the Vatican, government agencies, NGOs, civil society, and the digital technology sector.
Objectives of the Congress
The primary goal of this Congress is to strengthen the capacities of media professionals and educate the public on the necessity of preserving human values amid rapid technological progress. Specific objectives include; Training 100 media practitioners in Artificial Intelligence and emerging technologies, with a focus on balancing innovation and human values.
This will include promoting ethics and bioethics in technical research and technological innovations through media.
Advocating for human values such as respect for life, human dignity, charity, solidarity, and human rights and assessing the impact of technological progress to better understand the challenges, risks, and opportunities presented by AI will be part of the objectives.
UCAP is a continental organisation dedicated to promoting communication within the Catholic Church and its partners in Africa. With a mission to foster spiritual growth, collaboration, and responsible journalism, UCAP works to spread the Gospel, uphold human values, and support developmental initiatives across Africa and beyond.
UCAP is an independent, autonomous, non-political, and non-profit organisation comprising African Catholic journalists, communicators, academics, researchers, and institutions in various media fields.
