LIONS CLUB LAUNCHES SILVER JUBLIEE CELEBRATIONS

THE Lions Clubs International (LCI) Ghana has launched the silver jubilee celebrations of the formation of the club in the country.

The celebrations are also intended to recognise and appreciate the dedicated service rendered to the less privileged and needy in society.

Addressing the media at a ceremony in Accra, the Lion District Governor, Madam Gloria Esi Lassey, said during the 25-year period, the club embarked on serveral projects which included the construction of an eye care centre at the Tema General Hospital and a hearing aid assessment centre for the Cape Coast School of the Deaf.

“The 11 lions clubs in the country have rehabilitated the Weija Leprosarium, built classroom blocks for schools, distributed text and exercise books, donated spectacles, eye drugs, insecticide treated mosquito nets and medication for treating diabetes,” she explained.

Also, as part of the its social responsibility, the clubs undertook educational programmes on the preservation of eyesight and the prevention of blindness, as well as career guidance and counselling sessions in schools.

“They also organised club, zonal and regional meetings, where they invited personnel from various sectors of the economy to talk on selected themes, and participated in district and international conventions,” she added.

Madam Lassey added that serveral activities had been outlined to mark the anniversary celebrations.
The activities include eye screening exercises at some selected organisations, radio and television discussions on Lionism, blood donation activities, and the donation of assorted items to needy institutions such as the homes for lepers.

She said the year-long programme would come to its climax on December 21, 2013 with an anniversary fundraising and dinner dance which would include a journey for sight and the distribution of books under the name “Reading Action Programme” and a photo exhibition.

She, therefore, called on members to participate fully for the success of the celebrations and invited Ghanaians to come and join the club in order to help serve the needy in society.

MTN PRESENTS MODEMS TO HIPS CHARITY SCHOOL

Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN), has presented 15 modems to the Hips Charity School in the Ga South Municipality.

The GH¢1,500 worth of modems, which came with 5.5 data SIM cards for the first month and an additional one gigabyte data for the next five months, formed part of the organisation’ss efforts to bridge the gap in the provision of internet service to deprived communities in the country.

The presentation of the modems was a follow up to the presentation of a number of computers to the school by Interplast Ghana Limited.

In his address, the Innovations Manager of MTN, Mr Abdul Latif Issahaku, said the presentation of the modems is to help improve education in schools with the help of quality internet access.

With the provision of the modems, he said, the students would be able to access news and other pieces of information from various internet sources.

He, therefore, urged the teachers to make good use of the internet while improving teaching and learning in the school.

Receiving the modems, the headmaster of the school, Mr Richard Allotey, thanked MTN for their support and called on other benevolent organisations to provide equal services to deprived schools in the country.
   

DONT SECURE ADMISSION WITH FRAUDULENT RESULT SLIPS

The Vice Chancellor of the Valley View University (VVU) College, Professor Dr Dr Daniel Buor, has warned that students found to have secured admission with fraudulent result slips would be dismissed and handed over to the law enforcement agencies.

He was speaking at the 18th Matriculation Ceremony of the college in Accra last Tuesday to initiate fresh students to the university to pursue various academic programmes.

“We do not only educate our students to succeed in their academic aspiration; we educate them to position them to effect a positive transformation in society which will lead to academic, as well as moral and spiritual development,” he said.

Out of 2,087 applicants, the university admitted 1,426 made up of 880 males and 537 females.The number exceeded last year’s enrolment of 936, representing an increase of 52.3 per cent.

The students will pursue courses in Business, Computer Science, Development Studies, Education and Health sciences, and Theology and Missions. The Bachelor of Education (Sandwich) programme made the highest enrolment of 782, representing 54.8 per cent of the total enrolment.

Professor Buor charged the matriculants to uphold discipline in all that they do and urged them to “show respect for lecturers, staff, fellow students, and adhere to all rules and regulations of the college.”

He said the college was collaborating with the Ghana Employers Association to introduce a Postgraduate Diploma programme in Industrial Relations next year.

He, however, indicated that the expansion of the academic programmes calls for massive infrastructure, adding that seven projects; three student’s hostels, three blocks of flats for faculty and staff and a 2000 seat lecture complex building were under construction and would be inaugurated in May 2013.

“A part of our responsibility to train you morally and spiritually, and for the sake of social decorum and uniformity, we expect you to attend our religious gatherings because it is part of your training process,” he said .

Professor Buor urged the students to attach all seriousness to their  studies, saying” tertiary education is very expensive so we expect you to avoid  unproductive activities and concentrate on your studies  in order not to jeopardise  your future.”

He also urged the faculties to continue to search for current information on their various areas of speciality and new methodologies that will help train students.

NEXANS KABLEMENTAL HONOURS DISTRIBUTORS

 Nexans Kablemental Ghana Limited, a Tema- based company that manufactures electrical cables, has honoured their distributors for promoting and marketing the company’s product over the past years.

Six of the distributors, who performed exceptionally well in 2012, were given cash prizes worth GHC 26,500 to help support and grow their businesses.

The distributors included; Zion Electricals, GHC12,000, Cable Link Limited, GHC5,000, Serboat Electricals GHC4,000, Beckland Ventures GHC2,500, Lawdan Enterprise GHC1,500 and Lydlyn Enterprise GHC 1,500.

Other distributors which include Tip Top Electricals, Aggressu Electricals, Buela Ventures, Modisco, Irafa, Classic Rahna, Clipsel, Bruruku and Fiesta Royal each received gift packages for their efforts.

Speaking at the thanksgiving ceremony in Accra, the Commercial Manager of the company, Mr Aaron Segoe, said the company was appreciative of the contributions of the distributors.

He said the ceremony was also intended to provide a platform for the distributors to interact with management of the company and discuss how best they could move the company forward.

 He observed that the distributors were the backbone of the company’s success adding that,”We at Nexans are committed to ensuring that our distributors are given the best of service,”

He further called on them to put in their best at all times in order to be able to deliver the company’s product to the door steps of the final consumer.

The Assistant Marketing Manager of the company, Mr Mahama Dollah, also reaffirmed their commitment to providing quality products and services to the people.

He said the company was a responsible industrial company that regarded sustainable development as integral to its global and operational strategy.

“Continuous innovation in products, solutions and services, employee development and commitment, customer orientation and the introduction of safe industrial processes with limited environmental impact are among the key initiatives that place Nexans at the core of a future,” he said.

He, however, urged the distributors to continue to work with the company for the benefit of all.
Speaking on behalf of the distributors, Mr Ebenezer Amanor Dautey of Zion Electricals, thanked the company for recognising their efforts over the past years.

He advised the other distributors to work hard and show commitment in everything they do for the benefit of the company and themselves.

PAY MORE ATTENTION TO THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY-GOV'T URGED

THE General Manager of the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel, Mr Ralph Aryitey, has called on government to pay more attention to the tourism and hospitality industry in the country.

That, he said, would help generate more revenue for national development, as the sector brings in more foreign exchange every year.

“If someone gives us a listening ear, we will be able to do a lot more for the economy. We will create more jobs and brand the country as one of the best in West Africa,” he said.

Mr Aryitey said this at the annual end of year dinner and awards night for the staff of the hotel and added that challenges such as the irregular supply of electricity, water and other basic amenities for clients sometimes hindered the quality of service in the sector.

He, therefore, called for an immediate solution from government in order to maintain the hospitality industry.
He further commended the staff of the hotel for their constant support and hard work, which has made the hotel one of the best in the country.

Mr Aryitey said the hotel had one of the uniquely packaged best customer service strategies to meet the needs of its clients.

“We do our best to offer our clients memories worth repeating,” he said.

The Vice President of Group Nduom, Mr. Chiefy Nduom, in his remarks, lauded the staff for keeping the philosophy of the hotel alive.

He urged them to aspire to be greater than they were now and work together as a team in order to face the challenges that they may encounter their line of work.

“Face the challenges together as they come and work hard to support one another,” he added.
Some of the staff who exhibited exceptional loyalty and hard work throughout the year were awarded.

ENCOURAGE MORE GHANAIANS TO USE BANKING SERVICES

Mr Millision Narh

 THE Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Mr Millison Narh, has encouraged banks in the country to  encourage more Ghanaians to use banking services.


He said there were a lot of Ghanaians who were keeping significant percentage of money outside the banking sector.

Those people, he said, were engaged in the productive sectors of the economy such as commerce, farming and the provision of services in the informal sector.

“They charge for their services and receive payment but income generated is held outside the banking sector,” he explained.

Mr Narh was speaking at the launch of the Bank of Africa (BoA) first business centre in Accra yesterday.
The centre would provide services such as trade facilitation, transactions, trade finance, loans and advances, investment services among other banking needs with the view to providing  its customers with an integrated channel for better service delivery.

Mr Narh said it was important that those individuals outside the banking sector were roped into the formal economy saying, “It is only when this is achieved that they can be accounted for in the larger economy.”

“We owe it a duty, as regulators, to protect the interest of players in the informal sector as well as encourage them to take advantage of the obvious gains in using the banking system,” he added.

Mr Narh, therefore, urged banks to design and offer product propositions and solutions that resonate well with the informal sector.

He, however, lauded the initiative of BoA for their renewed focus on segmentation and technology while providing quality services to its customers.

The Managing Director of BoA, Mr  Kobby Andah said the centre was ready to help customers  and also to provide them with regular updates of information from the bank.

“We will also work with speed and accuracy to always ensure that we meet and exceed any customer deadlines we set,” he said.

The Group Chair and Chief Executive Officer of BoA, Mr Mohammed Bennani, said the bank’s passion for doing business in Africa was driven by the desire to contribute to the long term development of African economies.

“We believe that we have identified an approach to doing business on the continent that creates substantial and long term opportunities,” he said.

VODAFONE LAUNCHES BLACKBERRY Z10 IN GHANA

As part of efforts to prove its leadership in innovation in the country, Vodafone Ghana Limited on Tuesday launched the Blackberry Z10 in Accra, a week after its global launch.

Customers of Vodafone would, therefore, be the first to own the latest handset which has created consumer frenzy all over the world, along with 1.5 GB of data.

The new Blackberry Z10 is a complete re-design from the traditional ‘BB’ and introduces new user friendly features.

For the first time, users will not have to subscribe to the Blackberry service before experiencing the full capabilities of the handset.

The Blackberry Messenger service has also been revamped with added features such as video calling and screen share which allows users to share their handset screen and camera view with their friends.

Another innovative feature is the ‘Blackberry Hub’, where users can customise their handsets so their favourite applications are on one page. The enhanced security features also make the phone an invaluable business tool.

Addressing the media at the launch in Accra, the Chief Marketing Officer at Vodafone, Mr Uche Ofodile, said Vodafone was committed to bringing the most innovative devices to their customers.

“We know our customers are driven by innovation and like to set the pace for others to follow. They expected Vodafone to be the first to deliver one of the most sought after handsets in the world and we have not disappointed,” he said.

He said customers could pre-order the new Blackberry Z10, which was available exclusively on the Vodafone network .