Ghana Drops By 1 Point To 72nd In World Corruption Perceptions Index

The 2022 Corruption Perception Index has been released, with Ghana scoring another 43 points.

This makes it the third time the country has scored these points.

The index, which looked at perceptions about corruption in 180 countries of the world, also showed that “most countries are failing to stop corruption.”

According to details on the website of transparency.org, the organizers of this index, the rankings are done looking at the levels of public sector corruption, scoring on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

The country listed as the cleanest when it comes to corruption is Denmark, with a score of 90.

Botswana is the country listed as the first in Africa with the best corruption index, and a score of 60, with Cabo Verde (60 points), and Rwanda (51 points) following in that order.

Mauritius (50 points), Namibia (49 points) and Benin (43 points) follow right after, with Ghana being the 7th on the list of African countries featured in the index.

Source: www.GhanaCNN.com

Stop National Cathedral Project, Cut-Down Government Expenditure And Leave Our Money Alone – Nurses To Akufo-Addo

Members of the Registered Nurses and Midwives Association are asking government to halt construction of the National Cathedral and focus on cutting down on government expenditure to save the country from its current economic woes.

They have also suggested to government to among other things seal leakages in the mining sector and ensure all entities given tax waivers start contributing to the national coffers.

The nurses and midwives were speaking during a government meeting with organized labour on the domestic debt exchange programme.

Government is currently working with stakeholders to arrive at a consensus on its domestic debt exchange programme.

President of the Ghana registered Nurses and Midwives Association , Perpetual Ofori Ampofo, says hair-cuts to their investment will have dire consequences on contributors, especially retirees.

The association wants government to implement suggestions made during their engagement and suspend the domestic debt exchange programme.

According to her, government should consider cutting down it’s expenditure, seal loopholes in revenue generation including tax exemptions to foreign companies.

Mrs Ampofo wants government’s technical team to come out with ideas to address the debt of the country and desist from tapping into bonds and savings.

Speaking to the media during the Kumasi branch commissioning of the health sector occupational pension scheme, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Dr Derek Amoateng, said the current economic situation has affected the returns of contributors investment.

Notwithstanding, they are working assiduously to ensure health workers retiring will go home with a smile.

Source: www.GhanaCNN.com

Construction Of Agenda 111 Project Still At Ground Level After Government Paid Contractor $1.2m

Work on many Agenda 111 facilities across the country have stalled, including the project at Jasikan in the Oti Region.

It has been revealed that despite the $1.2 million paid to the contractor as a mobilisation fee, the project is yet to start after three years after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo launched the Agenda 111 project.

The Jasikan project, since the sod-cutting ceremony is still at the ground level.

Ranking Member on the Health Committee, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh said it is worrying for the project to be at its current stage, taking into account the amount of money invested into the project.

He said “Records available to us, each of these sites have been given not less than one million dollars, Jasikan has been given $1.2 which is more than GH¢15 million.

“The only thing that convince me that – that particular site was for Agenda 111 was the sign board. Nobody would have convinced me that, that place is not a football park.”

Akandoh, who doubles as the Member of Parliament for Juaboso stated that the government has no plans to complete the hospitals.

What is even worrying, he stressed, is the lack of dedicated funding for the Agenda 111 project which he feared would become the burden of successive governments.

Nana Addo on August 17, 2021, launched the Agenda 111 project to ensure Ghanaians nationwide have access to quality healthcare services.

Each of them will be a quality, standard-design, one-hundred-bed hospital, with accommodation for doctors, nurses, and other health workers, and the intention is to complete them within a year.

However, for over two years, none of the promised hospitals have been completed.

Source: www.GhanaCNN.com