The former Black Stars skipper has admitted his delight after Caf confirmed that Ghana have qualified for the 2019 Afcon with one game to spare Former Ghana captain Stephen Appiah says he is excited with the Black Stars’ qualification for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. The four-time African champions booked their place in the continental championship following the omission of Sierra Leone from the qualifiers after a ban from Fifa due to government interference. “Everyone is happy that Ghana will be at the 2019 Afcon. This is good news and at least, we will know how to handle the last game against Kenya because I see it as a good opportunity to prepare for the tournament,” Appiah told Abusua FM. “However, to win the tournament doesn’t depend on the players that we have alone but how we approach every game at the tournament. Over the years, we’ve been present but failed to win it so we need to work extra hard. “Football has changed now, nobody imagined that Korea and Iran will surprise some of the big names at the 2018 Fifa World Cup. We need to prepare adequately and support the technical team if we want to lift the trophy for the first time in many years. We have good players but we need to start working on them from now,” he added. Ghana, who will be making their eight consecutive appearance at the tournament since 2006, will host Kenya in the last qualifying game in March next year to decide who tops Group F. The tournament will be held from June 15 to July 13 next year but the host country is yet to be named after Cameroon were stripped of the rights last week due to poor preparation. Source: https://www.goal.com/
Some African countries said to have $300b in pension funds
Some countries in Africa are reported to have as much as $300 billion worht of assets being managed in pension funds. Ms Jihane Hakimi, a Blended Finance Specialist at the African Development Bank Group, has called on Ghana to take steps to unlock domestically available capital for investment in impact enterprises. She said there was money in African countries, and Ghana is not an exception, noting that insurance funds, pension funds, philanthropic funds and high net worth individuals could be attracted to fund impact businesses. Speaking to the Ghana News Agency at the Ghana Impact Dialogue in Accra, Ms Hakimi said a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) had found that in 2017, 12 African countries had $300 billion of assets under management in pension funds. Ghana also received about $2.2 billion in formal remittances from abroad in 2017, which could be diverted from consumption to investment. “…So it’s huge and the question is where does this money go? And what can you do with it?” she asked. Ms Hakimi said pension funds, while they had so much money, were very traditional, investing mainly in infrastructure and government bonds. “They have a role to play…local pension funds have a role to play in investing in Africa’s development; in Ghana’s development, because these are Ghanaian pension funds. It could be like 0.5 per cent dedicated to impact investing,” she stated. Ms Hakimi said it was critical to create channels or funds that would allow non-traditional capital providers, like high net worth individuals and philanthropic organisations, to invest in such enterprises. Ms Hamdiya Ismaila, the General Manager of Ghana Venture Capital Trust Fund, said there was the need to sync policies in Ghana to allow portions of long-term capital like pension funds to impact businesses. “In other countries, pension funds have been able to put money in this space so we need to see how we can create vehicles to pension funds to invest in funds who can then invest in social enterprises and other companies that really drive impact,” she said. Ms Ismaila said insurance companies also had long term capital that could be used to fund such businesses, however, some policies prevented them from doing because of the risk-based insurance system, thus the need to look at how those policies sync together to drive impact in the economy. She said Ghana must take the lead in driving her impact economy by looking at the revision of laws or policies that hindered investments of such funds into impact businesses. “…..You don’t expect people to bring their money and you don’t want to put in yours. Pension funds are private capital, let’s unlock it,” she said. Source: https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com
Jidenna, Fuse ODG, others for ‘Ghana Rocks’ concert
Charterhouse has announced the date and venue for the 2018 edition of the ‘Ghana Rocks’ musical concert which will feature a number of award-winning artistes. To be held at the Fantasy Dome at the Trade Fair Centre in Accra on Saturday, December 29, ‘Ghana Rocks’ 2018 will feature celebrated American rapper Jidenna as the headline act. Jidenna, who is expected to thrill Ghanaian music fans with good hip-hop songs, has promised a massive showdown at the most anticipated concert. According to the organisers, the event will also feature performing artistes such as Burna Boy from Nigeria, R2Bees, Kidi, Kuami Eugene, King Promise, Kwesi Arthur, A.M.G. Medikal, Wendy Shay, DJ Black, DJ Vyrusk, among others. Also coming from the UK is award winning UK-based Ghanaian recording artiste Nana Richard Abiona, better known by his stage name Fuse ODG, who will thrill his fans with interesting endless tracks. ‘Ghana Rocks’ has witnessed amazing performances over the years from both home-based and visiting international acts. This year, the artistes billed for this year’s event are impressive enough to convince anyone who has doubts on where to be on December 29. Charterhouse introduced the ‘Ghana Rocks’ concert a decade ago to celebrate various musical acts. As the years went by, the concert grew to incorporate Ghanaian and other artistes who were making impacts globally. Past shows have featured top acts like Sarkodie, Samini, Fuse ODG, Tinchy Stryder, Chipmunk, Donae O, Tim Westwood, Yemi Alade, MzVee, DJ Black and a lot more. Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com/
Feature: Who’s your favourite lyricist in Ghana?
Taking a look at the lyrics of the current top hits in Ghana, it is easy to conclude that lyrical quality or lyricism to some artistes is just not that important. Lyrics are words that make up a song usually consisting of verses and choruses. A writer of lyrics is a lyricist. So how important are lyrics to a music lover? It’s easy to make the assumption that the more easily the lyric is understood, the better chance your song has to become a hit. Ghanaian songs often contain political, social, and economic themes—as well as aesthetic elements—and so can communicate culturally significant messages. These messages can be explicit, or implied through metaphor or symbolism. Interestingly, report by Daily Guide Africa on March 16, 2018 stated Hiplife artiste Barima Sidney is not enthusiastic about the current trend of music ‘flooding’ the airwaves in Ghana. He stated that most of the songs lack deep lyrical content and mature storylines. Even though he likes the works of some musicians, he thinks that the general music trend is a worrying one. Listening to popular music is considered by society to be a part of growing up. Music provides entertainment and distraction from problems and serves as a way to relieve tension and boredom. Some studies have reported that adolescents use popular music to deal with loneliness and to take control of their emotional status or mood. It is therefore an undoubtable and unwavering fact that some people adore musicians for the words they use, and I’m not trying to devalue that appreciation. Again, there have been times when I’ve asked myself if I’m missing out because I’m not enjoying that aspect of the song as much as the next person. If you want lyrics, you will surely love Obrafour, Sarkodie, Teephlow, Kofi Kinaata, Manifest, Stonebwoy and Sonnie Badu. Lyrics allow the songwriter to connect with the listener, affecting a person’s mood, vibe, or spiritual energy. So as a consumer of music, you may want to be aware of the meaning or purpose of the song. I appreciate the value of a well-written song because it allows you to truly connect with the lyrics. The lyrics that songwriters produce now have changed throughout the years losing its essence. Lyrics used to make you feel connected to the words, make you think about life or even empower you. Lyrics matter because they have the influence to bring change in a way of impacting someone’s life either negatively or positively. A great songwriter aims to make music about personal experiences that will touch millions of people. Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com/
We will deliver a ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ – Bawumia
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has called for enhanced trade and investment between Ghana and the European Union in order to reflect the collective resolve towards helping to attain the vision of a Ghana Beyond Aid. Dr Bawumia made the call when he took part in the 2018 edition of the Ghana-EU Political Dialogue in Accra on Thursday 6th December 2018 in Accra. The theme for this year’s dialogue was “EU Partnering Ghana Beyond Aid”, and was attended by heads of European countries represented in Ghana, led by H.E. Diana Acconcia, Head of the EU Delegation to Ghana. Addressing the participants, which also included Ghana government officials such as Foreign Minister Hon Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Defence Minister Hon Dominic Nitiwul, Interior Minister Hon Ambrose Dery, and Education Minister Hon Mathew Opoku Prempeh, Vice President Bawumia indicated that this year’s theme, which is a follow up on last year’s theme of “EU Partnering Ghana Beyond Aid”, is indicative of the greater cooperation between the two bodies. “These themes chosen for our Dialogues reflect the collective resolve of our two sides to re-orient our cooperation towards the attainable vision of a ‘Ghana beyond Aid.’ “That, undoubtedly calls for enhanced trade and investment in a veritable spirit of partnership. It is, therefore, gratifying to note that since last year we have witnessed an increase in the number of trade missions from EU Member States to Ghana, and a sharp climb in investments, much in line with the optimism we have harboured and the aspirations we nurse for a Ghana beyond aid.” Vice President Bawumia pointed out that Ghana’s relations with the individual EU-Member States and the EU delegation to Ghana “have been excellent and fruitful over the years, thanks to our convergence of views on matters of mutual importance both internationally and in our bilateral engagements”, in part due to regular dialogue. “The mechanisms for dialogue provided for by the Cotonou Agreement have not only given us ample opportunity to regularly engage and exchange ideas in a frank and transparent atmosphere, but has also brought us closer in the spirit of a good partnership. Remember, Africa, is the closest continent to Europe, historically and geographically, and the choices we make impact each other greatly.” The primary objective of such dialogues, Vice President Bawumia indicated, “should be to build on the achievements recorded since last year’s event, deliberate and make concrete proposals that would advance our common interests, contemplate solutions to the challenges confronting our two continents and sides, and reconsider pragmatic ways to strengthen Ghana’s capacity towards industrialization, and a brighter future.” “I hope the conclusions reached at the end of today’s Dialogue will not only provide a better vision and end in consensus for our two sides, but would also provide guidance on how we collectively proceed within our common areas of interest, and in a manner that would further mould the quality and strength of our partnership in the years ahead.” Click to Watch video: http://content.jwplatform.com/players/WztOllL2-GtVgZhNx.html Source: https://www.ghanaweb.com/