Ghana

Accra 16 May 2018—The UN Resident Coordinator for Ghana Christine Evans-Klock, says the novel collaborative efforts of the four agencies that worked on the Joint UN programme on WASH in Disaster Prone Communities (DPC) project in selected areas of Ghana was something that must be encouraged.

Accra 16 May 2018—World Health Organisation (WHO) is satisfied with the unity of purpose exhibited by the various UN agencies involved in the WASH DPC project.

Ghana Country Director Owen Laws Kaluwa says: the success rate of the project was reasonably high considering that this was the first time we were working together as different UN agencies but delivering in unison.”

Accra – Earlier this week (15/05), IOM, the UN Migration Agency, in partnership with the Government of Ghana and the Airport Authorities, facilitated the return home of 148 Ghanaians via charter from Libya. The group, which included four women and two children, arrived at Kotoka International Airport in Accra in what was the fourth charter flight organized by IOM through the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration.

In Numbers

43,000 beneficiaries targeted for Nutrition support

30,000 adolescent girls receive take-home rations as incentive for school attendance

10,000 smallholder farmers targeted for capacity strengthening and market linkages

US$ 0.28 m cash-based transfers made

US$ 5.1m six months (May-Oct 2018) net funding requirements, representing 50% of total

47,420 people assisted in April 2018

In Numbers

43,000 beneficiaries targeted for Nutrition support
30,000 adolescent girls receive take-home rations as incentive for school attendance
10,000 smallholder farmers targeted for capacity strengthening and market linkages
US$ 0.17m cash based transfers made US$ 5.1m six months (April-Sept 2018) net funding requirements, representing 50% of total
29,006 people assisted in March 2018

Operational Updates

4 April 2018–Chief Zanman Sambian of Timpant area in Bunkpuguru District of Ghana runs his chiefdom in a democratic way not found in many African communities. As he holds court, the 65-year-old father of 17 welcomes a hodge-podge of his subjects to sit under a shade as the fiery sun pushes the thermometer to the near reaches of 40 degrees. Children, women, the youth- almost anyone able to attend- is allowed the chance to sit and drink from the chief’s deep well of knowledge.

Accra – IOM, the UN Migration Agency, in Ghana in partnership with the Government of Ghana and the Airport Authorities facilitated the arrival of 106 Ghanaians, including 9 women, 2 infants and one child, from Libya via charter at the Kotoka International Airport.

This is the third charter flight organized by IOM to support the dignified return of Ghanaians from Libya, since July 2017; bringing the total number of returns to 496 (457 men – 39 women).

Highlights

• WFP Ghana has received Government counterpart Cash Contributions (GCCC) to support its operations. This amounts to USD 4.5 million covering the 2008-2016 period.

• Selection of community level women processing groups (targeted for blending of high quality nutritious foods) has kicked off in selected regions. In partnership with Food and Drugs Authority, WFP will enhance their capacity in food safety and quality.

Operational Updates

Accra – IOM in collaboration with the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) this week launched a new Counter Migrant Smuggling National Action Plan and Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) on Information Sharing and Regional Cooperation. The launch was part of a reflection event to conclude IOM’s counter migrant smuggling project Addressing Counter-Smuggling and Protection Gaps in Ghana, Benin and Togo: Strengthening National and Regional Mechanisms. The project is funded by the Government of Canada through its Anti-Crime and Capacity Building Programme (ACCBP).

Accra – Communities in the Brong Ahafo region in Ghana last week participated in an outreach and sensitization campaign organized by IOM, the UN Migration Agency, and the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS). From 5 to 10 February, the communities of Sunyani, Berekum, Dormaa, Seikwa and Wenchi joined the event, which is part of the Aware Migrants Information Campaign - Engaging West African Communities Programme funded by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany.

Ghana is widely considered to be the most peaceful country in West Africa, but numerous hot spots of conflict still exist in the North. In past years, pockets of politically-motivated violence have flared up during election seasons. Why is there still electoral violence in the Northern Ghana and how can we prevent this violence?

Highlights

• A national consultation has been held with government partners as part of preparatory activities towards the 2019/23 Country Strategic Plan.

• Senior technical, policy planning, monitoring and evaluation directors of about 30 key Ministries,
Departments and agencies identified their priority areas for collaboration with WFP in achieving zero hunger, as well as the indicators and targets to be met under SDG 2.

Operational Updates

Accra – IOM Ghana has donated document fraud detection equipment to the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) with funding provided by the Government of Canada. The equipment included passport reference manuals, compact magnifiers and document verification devices.

The 50 compact magnifiers will allow frontline GIS officers, in direct contact with travellers at entry/exit points to increase their document examination capacity on the ground while the document authentication and verification devices will ensure greater scrutiny in case of referrals for secondary level examination.

The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has indicated that, in his view, access to education is the only way by which the world can foster a sense of cohesion and solidarity amongst displaced persons, especially of those of school going age, and, help create for them, an enabling environment, which will spur them on to lead more purposeful and dignified lives.

I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Ghana – IOM Ghana held a closing workshop (2/11) for its project: Increasing Child Protection and Combatting Child Trafficking in 8 Districts of the Volta Region through Community Child Rights Education.

Under this two-year project, supported by UNICEF, a toolkit on child protection and counter trafficking titled Free to Be Me was developed in 2013. The toolkit was distributed in 43 selected communities within eight districts of the Volta Region, with an additional six communities reached through the project’s pilot phase which began in November 2012.

Fill the Nutrient Gap (FNG) is a situation analysis and decision-making tool developed by World Food Programme (WFP) with inputs from University of California, Davis; International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI); Epicentre; United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); Harvard University; and Mahidol University.

27 octobre 2017 – Plus de 500 Togolais ont trouvé refuge au Ghana voisin, fuyant les atteintes aux droits humains dans la région de Mango, dans le nord du Togo, a indiqué vendredi le Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies pour les réfugiés (HCR).

Le HCR travaille avec les autorités du Ghana « pour assister ces Togolais arrivés récemment dans le pays, fuyant les troubles politiques dans leur pays », peut-on lire dans un communiqué de presse de l'agence onusienne.

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is working with the authorities in Ghana to support over 500 recently arrived Togolese asylum-seekers, fleeing the recent political unrest in their country.

(MissionNewswire) Don Bosco Boys Home is a Salesian-run program for street children in Sunyani, Ghana. The program provides shelter, education and social development services for poor youth who have been abandoned, have runaway or are at risk of violence and exploitation. The program is directed by Salesian Father Ubaldino Andrade.

“Every child is like a book and every chapter engages me more and more as I get to learn more about their lives and they tell me about their joys and sorrows, their plans, their hopes and their dreams,” says Fr. Andrade.