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 Introduce policies to reduce production, transport cost of staple food —GSS

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 The government has been urged to introduce poli­cies to reduce the cost of production and transport of staple food and fish items such as large onion, tomato, fresh and smoked herrings, and kenkey and fish to market centres.


Mr Simon Tichutab Onilimor (inset), Data Scientist, GSS, addressing stakeholders at the programme Photo: Ebo Gorman

That, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) stated that would help increase their production and reduce their cost on the market in order to help control inflation to bring relief to the citizens.

A Data Scien­tist at the GSS, Simon Tichutab Onilimor, made the call yesterday in Accra stakeholders’ engagement on con­sumer price inflation, and staple food continue to drive inflation up since 2018.

The objective of the engage­ment was to foster collaboration and dialogue among key stakehold­ers, including government officials and the media on Consumer Price Inflation (CPI).

It was attended by represen­tatives from Bank of Ghana, Ministries of Finance, Agriculture, and Trade and Industry.

Mr Onilimor in a presentation underlined that some specific staple food items continue to drive inflation up since the CPI basket was rebased in 2018.

He mentioned some of the food items as beans, beef, yam, kenkey and fish, fried plantain, smoked river fish, and smoked herrings continue to drive inflation

“The items consistently re­cording the highest price changes constitute almost of a third of average household expenditure,” Mr Onilimor stated.

The Data Scientist emphasised the need to introduce measures to bring business and trotro fares down.

Mr Onilimor said the median prices of bus and trotro fares in­creased substantially since the CPI was rebased.

He said several factors contrib­uted to consumer price inflation.

The Data Scientist mentioned some as seasonality and cost of production.

Additionally, he stated that the duty of GSS was not to project inflation but to show the rate of change of inflation and data to help policymakers to come out with interventions to help control inflation.

The Acting Government Statistician, Asuo Afram, said the programme was to provide infor­mation that would help support the development of targeted and strategic interventions aimed at reducing inflation, particularly food inflation.

He said the computation of inflation was also to help families to plan on their expenditure and know the rate at which prices of goods and services were going up coming down.

Mr Afram said the media were involved in the programme be­cause of the important role they played in information dissemina­tion.

He said without the media, the work of GSS would not be known by the public.

The Head of Price Statistics at GSS, J. F. K Agyaho said the computation of inflation had no political influence.

He said the GSS followed inter­national standards and robust rules and guidelines in the computation of inflation.

My Agyaho explained that there was no way any government could influence the process for the com­pilation of data for the computa­tion of inflation.

 BY KINGSLEY ASARE

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 Heritage Month Ghana trends

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Since the institution of the Heri­tage Month celebration in Ghana, it has offered citizens opportuni­ties of a lifetime to learn about their cultures and lifestyles.

Ghana’s version is observed in the month of March, coinciding with the country’s Independence Day celebra­tions on March 6.

Heritage Month features festivals, food fairs, arts, crafts, and music events to highlight the economic and social value of preserving national heritage.

Though a brainchild of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), the celebra­tion has been driven to greater heights by local media with the organisation of several events to create the needed euphoria.

Among the events are the Heritage Caravan and Back To Your Village Food Bazaar pow­ered by Accra-based Citi FM and Citi TV, Wear Ghana Festival and the Gɔbɛ festival powered by 3News.

The Heritage Caravan is a road trip which takes patrons across more than half of Ghana’s regions to offer a distinctive road trip that allows participants to explore the various re­gions of Ghana, providing an up-close encounter with the country’s histori­cal and cultural heritage.

In addition to these roles played by the media, news anchors and other presenters appear on screens immac­ulately garbed in locally made outfits, bringing out the beauty of our tradi­tions.

Today, The Spectator news­paper selected a few of the media personalities that are working to give the cel­ebration a global dimension to project the country.  

 By Andrew Nortey

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 MoMo vendor 24 murdered at Kwadaso

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• Mobile money shop
• Mobile money shop

 A disturbing crime has shaken the Kwadaso Onion market communi­ty in Kumasi, leaving family and friends grieving the loss of a young life.

Identified only as Junior, a 24-year-old mobile money vendor, was found murdered in his room on Saturday, March 8, 2025.

According to eyewitnesses, Junior had returned home the previous day with a substantial amount of money, over Gh¢20,000.

It was suspected that the killers might have been motivated by the large sum of money in Junior’s posses­sion.

A police source that confirmed this to The Spectator, said investigation has been launched into Junior’s mur­der, but so far, no arrests have been made.

The Kwadaso community is reeling in shock, calling for justice and an end to the atrocity that has claimed the life of a young and promising individ­ual.

Junior, is believed to be a native of Ejisu Onwe, and was known to his col­leagues and friends as a hardworking and diligent individual who worked at the Kumasi Race Course.

His tragic death serves as a stark reminder of the risks and challenges mobile money vendors faced.

The incident comes barely a month after Patricia Nimako, a 27-year-old Mobile Money (MoMo) vendor, was shot and killed at Krofrom, Kumasi in the Ashanti region by an unknown assail­ants.

The suspected armed robbers fled with the deceased cell phones and an amount of GH¢10,000 on Thursday, February 13, at approximately 3:00 p.m.

The two armed robbers reportedly stormed the kiosk where the deceased was operating and without any provo­cation shot her dead.

There has not been any arrest yet by the police.

 From Kingsley E. Hope , Kumasi

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 Learn how to prepare local dishes…Queen mothers urge young women

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• Some local dishes

 In a heartwarming display of inter­generational wisdom, queen moth­ers from local communities in the Obuasi enclave shared their expertise on how to prepare local diets with young ladies on the International Women’s Day event, courtesy of An­gloGold Ashanti, Obuasi Mine.

Beyond the fanfare, these revered women leaders took centre stage to impart a vital life skill: traditional cooking as they guided eager students and other young ladies through the art of preparing local delicacies.

In fact, the aroma of ‘Abunabunu’, ‘Aprapransa’, ‘Enuhu’, ‘Akaw’, ‘Tuo Zafi’ (TZ), among others, wafted through the air to the extent it could attract people from a distance, as the queen mothers entertained the young women with tales of resilience, entrepreneurship, and community building.

This year’s International Wom­en’s Day Celebration was under the theme: ‘Accelerate Action for Wom­en’s Equity.’

As the event drew to a close, the queen mothers gave words of wisdom upon their young guests.

From Nana Amoanima Dede, Queen mother of Adansi she stated that: “Never forget your roots, and always remember that the kitchen is not just a place for cooking, but for building connections and forging communi­ties.”

Nana Akua Dwum II, Queen moth­er of Edubiase, on her part urged the young ladies to learn how to prepare traditional dishes in order to preserve cultural heritage of the nation.

Earlier, the Managing Director of the mining company, Samuel Boakye Pobee, mentioned their readiness to roll out an “All-Women Apprentice­ship Programme, aimed at empow­ering young women in the Obuasi communities in entrepreneurship.”

He said the project would include women in basic technical skills and their capacity building to boost their employability to reshape perceptions of women’s roles in traditionally male-dominated industries.

According to the Managing Director, the mining company’s commitment “is to empower young people with specialised skills, and progressive knowledge to make them financially independent.”

The company, he indicated, was accelerating action towards wom­en’s equality at the Obuasi Mine and within host communities with the aim to build a foundation to create an inclusive and supportive business culture.

Mr Pobee expressed the need for innovative approaches and dedicated efforts to encourage and invest in women’s participation in all fields, including all levels of technical and operational areas and must be inten­tional and deliberate.”

 From Kingsley E. Hope, Obuasi

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