News
‘Make yourselves marketable to attract customers’
• Resource persons and the caterers.
A one-day stakeholder engagement and customer service training for the informal caterers also called traditional caterers has taken place at Takoradi in the Western Region.
The workshop is to sensitise the caterers on how to prepare their locations, the servers and the food to meet the demands of foreign tourists who will travel to Ghana during the Christmas and New Year and will like to taste Ghanaian dishes.
Addressing the caterers, the Deputy Chief Executive of Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Mr Ekow Sampson said that in 2019 over one million tourists visited Ghana and also in the year of Beyond the Return celebration.
He said these tourists spent GH¢3.3 billion in the Ghanaian drinking and chop bars and some attractive areas like the forts, castles, beaches and places of interest among others.
He told them that Christmas was fast approaching and the tourists would visit Ghana and other African countries to dodge the cold in their countries.
He said all informal caterers must adequately renovate their bars, customise uniforms for their workers and brand their locations to attract the tourists who would be visiting Ghana.
Mr Sampson said these tourists would visit places of interest but would also like to taste the Ghanaian foods by coming to the local bars instead.
A resource person, Yvonne Ohui MacCharthy said five basic services were needed to make their places attractive for the tourists to call on them for their services.
She said the tourists must look and feel the caterers, attitude of the caterers must be accommodating, their knowledge in the business must be current without any doubts, processing and procedures must be up to date and lastly sales techniques.
She told the caterers to clean cobwebs hanging in the windows, ceiling fans and the walls because these marks would be a minus for them.
The Western Regional Director of GTA, Mr Henry Yeleduor said that a series of programmes and activities had been organised by the “Beyond the Return” Secretariat under GTA to prepare them and sharpen their knowledge and skills in the hospitality industry.
He said the main objective was to prepare caterers to receive visitors, guests and revellers to their facilities as part of the “December-in-GH” activities organised by the GTA.
He said these programmes were to give them some skills on how to attract, satisfy, maintain and keep their guests as they come into their facilities and to return during the next visit looking for the same bar because the services were so nicely delivered.
He said there was absolutely no way that one could divorce successful business practices from quality services adding “it is common cause that good customer service surely builds enduring customer loyalty which is an important element for sustainable development and success in business”.
He asked the caterers to become ambassadors of excellent service in their areas of operation through skills transfer and mentoring other similar establishments especially the emerging businesses.
From Peter Gbambila-Takoradi
News
Ghana makes history with first female Vice President-elect, Prof. Naana Opoku-Agyeman
Ghana has made history by electing its first female Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyeman. This milestone marks a significant step forward for women’s representation in Ghanaian politics.
This is also a testament to the progress Ghana has made in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment which has the tendency to inspire future generations of women to pursue careers in politics and public service.
This historic feat comes at a time that Ghana’s Parliament had passed the Affirmative Action and Gender Equity law which has been assented by the President, a legal document to demand gender parity in Ghana.
Currently, the agenda to increase women’s participation in political leadership is receiving universal support through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 5.5 which seeks to ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership, and at all levels of decision-making including political, economic and public life.
Women’s representation in political decision making continues to increase but at a dragging pace, years after the Beijing Platform for Action, which remains the world’s most comprehensive agenda for gender equality.
Globally, research by the United Nations Women (UN Women) estimates that men represent 77 per cent of parliamentarians, 82 per cent of government ministers, 93 per cent of heads of government and 94 per cent of heads of state.
Today, it is possible for one to name all of the current female leaders within few minutes, which is why whenever a woman gets to the top of an organisation or political party, it makes global headlines.
Since the nomination of Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyeman as the running mate of NDC’s flag bearer, many women groups have issued congratulatory messages with many women fan clubs springing up.
In order to pave way for women and girls to enter into politics in the near future, Ghana’s Vice President-elect on Monday reaffirmed her commitment to inclusivity and empowerment and vowed to pave the way for others to succeed in her groundbreaking role.
She said her election as the first vice president in Ghana’s history was not about personal glory but it was about creating opportunity for all.
Prof Opoku-Agyeman said “I know this is a big responsibility, and I don’t intend to travel the journey by myself. You are all part of it. NDC is an inclusive party, and we are demonstrating it in many ways.
“My job was to open the door and it does not end there, actually, that is where the work begins. I will hold the door open. The method is holding the door open so other wish to travel that door is what I’m implying. It is not self-aggrandising positing, it is a position that empowers others”, she said.
Prof Opoku-Agyeman called on all Ghanaian to contribute to the collective goal of improving collective growth particularly for the marginalized and vulnerable in society.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
News
Election 2024: ‘Men of God under siege as prophecies go wrong’
Periodic elections have always come along with spiritual twists and the lead up to this year’s presidential and parliamentary election in Ghana was no exception.
Prior to the polls on December 7, 2024, several men of God gave prophecies which either proposed a win or loss for either of the two leading contenders in this year’s race – Dr Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
However, following outcome of the election which gave an emphatic win for Mr Mahama who polled 6,328,397 representing 56.55 per cent of the total votes cast, many Ghanaians have raised eyebrows over the genuineness of these ‘Men of God’.
Notable among those that prophesied a one-touch victory for Vice President and flagbearer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Bawumia, were founder and leader of the Power Chapel Worldwide, Dr Victor Kusi Boateng.
As far back in July 2024, during a church service, Dr Boateng predicted that Dr. Bawumia would be declared the winner on December 9, after the polls.
Others were Apostle Agyenim Boateng of the Peniel Outreach Ministries International, Prophet Azuka who dared doubters of Dr Bawumia’s win to burn his church to the ground should he lose and Prophet Kusi Appiah (Warrior prophet) of the Charismatic Temple International Ministry (CTIM) who went further to describe an attire Dr Bawumia and his running mate, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, would wear for their inauguration on January 7, 2025.
On the other hand, Prophet Bernard Elbernard Nelson-Eshun, Head pastor of the Springs of Life Chapel International, Prophet Nigel Gaisie of the Prophetic Hill Chapel, Rev. Isaac Owusu Bempah, founder and leader of Glorious Word Power Ministry International and Prophet Emmanuel Badu Kobi, Glorious Wave Church International, prophesied a landslide win for John Dramani Mahama.
With an overwhelming win for the opposition NDC and John Dramani Mahama as president-elect at the end of polls as declared by the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Mrs Jean Mensah, some pastors who predicted a loss for Mr Mahama have spoken.
Rev. Kusi Boateng, delivering a sermon last Sunday, December during church service insisted he saw and prophesied right.
“I saw right, I heard right but the opposite has happened and there is nothing I can do. I will not blame God and this will not stop me from prophesying because God never gets it wrong. If there is any mistake, I made the mistake,” he said.
For Evangelist Patricia Asiedua, popularly known as Nana Agradaa who is General Overseer of the Heaven Way Chapel who swore a win for Dr Bawumia, claiming to return to fetishism if Mr Mahama wins, reacting to the turn of events said, Dr Bawumia’s loss was as a result of disobedience.
“I saw clearly that NPP has won the elections and I was instructed to openly declare it but there was a direction that from the time of the prophecy till the election results are declared, Dr Bawumia should always wear white and change the slogan from “It is possible” to “It is possible to win” among other spiritual instructions to be performed to support fulfillment.
However, these instructions to the party were not obeyed leading to their loss,” she said in a media interview amidst wild jubilation with her church members last Sunday following Mr Mahama’s win of the 2024 elections.
The question remains though that are electoral prophecies really from God or they are borne out of one’s love and affinity to parties involved?
By Abigail Annoh
