News
EC improves social distancing protocol at voters registration centres
Adherence to social distancing protocol at voters registration centres in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area has witnessed improvement, following the institutionalisation and implementation of Queue Management System by the Electoral Commission (EC).
The improvement according to registration officers has facilitated the increase in the daily rate of cards issued to prospective voters.
A tour by the Ghanaian Times, yesterday to the Okaikwei South District, showed that there have been progress in observing physical distancing among individuals, who were at the centres, compared with what was experienced during phase one of the registration exercise.
At the District EC office in Okaikwei South, provision had been made for plastic chairs and benches to facilitate the queuing system.
According to the District Registration Supervisor, Mr Joseph Quartey, although the compliance level of applicants has generally been satisfactory, the centre occasionally saw the aged and lactating mothers not obeying the social distancing rules.
He explained that this was because such people sat on the benches and occasionally congest themselves on the bench, but officials ensured they allowed enough distance among themselves, once they realised such situation.
“The behaviour of some applicants, especially the aged and lactating mothers who use the benches sometimes leads to the social distancing not been observed, but on the whole, people comply with the queuing system,” Mr Quartey told the paper.
Mr Quartey said that the introduction of the Queue Management System had led to the centre issuing 160 cards on daily basis.
One of the health personnel at the same centre, Mr Daniel Asamoah explained an incidence that was recorded on Monday.
He said a 65 old man had collapsed while seated in the queue but was attended to and stabilised before being rushed to the Kaneshie Polyclinic, where he was admitted.
Mr Asamoah added that, the situation was due to high blood pressure.
Similarly, at the three cluster centres at the Saint Theresa’s Catholic School, applicants were seen respecting social distancing protocols, as they sat apart from each other.
A Registration Assistant at the centre, Claudia Azumah said that they were able to register and issue about 120 cards to prospective voters each day.
In all the centres visited by the paper, it was observed that, applicants were in masks and their temperatures were checked using an infrared thermometer before they started the process of registration.
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.
