Kofi Ahovi

By Kofi Ahovi The new insurance premiums approved by the National Insurance Commission (NIC) would take off today May 10, 2010. The new tariffs were supposed to have taken effect last week but were postponed to allow the commission to consult with the transport owners and driver unions before commencement. Under the new tariffs approved by NIC on April 23, to correct the eight-year review interval and close the gap between third party insurers and comprehensive insurers, commercial vehicle owners would pay a 200% increase, while private vehicle owners will pay 150% increase. Taxis would now pay GH₵232.28, mini buses of up to 20 passengers will pay GH₵268.88 and maxi buses of up to 33 passengers would pay GH₵280.28, while ambulances would pay GH₵218.60 annually. Also, Third Party Property Damage (TPPD) limit had been raised from GH₵1,000 to GH₵2,000, while personal accident benefit which was previously GH₵500 has been increased to GH₵2,000. Interestingly, the NIC has reduced the insuran

By Kofi Ahovi The Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) has since the inception of the Millennium Challenge Cooperation committed US$401 million representing 74% of the US$547 million allocated to Ghana under the Millennium Challenge Account. However, MiDA has only re-disbursed US$154.2 million representing 30% through the Bank of Ghana (BoG). According to the Chief Executive of MiDA, Martin Eson-Benjamin, at the institution’s turn at the meet-the-press, he said the five-year program is on course, adding that all major contracts have been awarded for execution and “It is our expectation that the program budget will be fully exhausted within the 5-year period.” He therefore called on contractors engaged by the authority to work diligently to meet their contractual obligations. He also asked the project affected persons to vacate the road corridors to allow work to progress without any hindrance. The programme, which is being executed through public-private partnership arrangement, has

International Youth Fellowship (IYF) Ghana, a non governmental organization, would for the third time host its annual camp, world camp 2010, in Ghana. The event which would start from the July 18-25, is under the theme “Youth and conflicts”. Ato Edwin, the deputy general secretary of IYF Ghana, said, a large number of students from various parts of the country and the world are expected to attend the camp. Last year the IYF Ghana world camp hosted a total of 2,000 youths from Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, La Cote D’Ivoire, Korea, America, etc. “This year we expect to exceed this number” he added. Owing to the importance attached to this program, the ministry of education, the ministry of youth and sports, the national youth council and the national union of Ghana students, Zain and a number of media houses have partnered with the international youth fellowship. The program will be mainly held at the premises and auditorium of the good news mission at community 12 in Tema, as well as a

rLG Communications, distributors of mobile phones and accessories in Ghana, have partnered with Huawei Technology Investment Limited of China to import and sell L9 series of Smart phones in Ghana. The chairman of rLG, Roland Agambire, said the move is very strategic as it would enable the company to brand itself widely in the world, while providing alternative in mobile communication for Ghanaians. Under the agreement, Huawei Technology together with rLG will agree on the specifications of the Smart phone to be produce by the former and solely distributed by rLG in Ghana. According to Agambire, 10,000 pieces of the phone is expected to produce for distribution in the country this year, and further 100,000 for next year. The project is expected to cost US$2.5 million Huawei is a leading telecom solutions provider. Through continuous customer-centric innovation, it has established end-to-end advantages in Telecom Network Infrastructure, Application & Software, Professional Services

By Kofi Ahovi A recent air-borne survey conducted over the Volta and Keta Basins and other areas including Nkwanta, Hohoe, Akwatia and Konongo have shown a good potential for discovery of new resources in gold and base metals such as iron, nickel and chrome. The survey conducted by Fugro Airbone Surveys Limited, an international organization which specializes in low-level airborne geophysical and remote sensing surveys, is under the Mining Sector Support Programme (MSSP) sponsored by the European Commission and government of Ghana. According to the survey, the satellite imagery acquired and interpreted through the Versatile Time-Domain Electromagnetic (VTEM) system provides a framework for future geological mapping. The objectives of the survey was to enhance the processing and interpretation skills of the Geological Survey Department(GSD) geophysicists, test hypothetical possibilities of the occurrence of sediment-hosted base metal mineralization and diamondiferous kimberlites as well