E/R Minister advises drivers as Christmas approaches
The Eastern Regional Minister, Seth Kwame Acheampong, has urged drivers to be conscious, observant, alert and tolerant when driving on the roads in the region.
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That, he said, would reduce the rate of motor accidents which had caused a high number of deaths and destruction of properties.
The minister made the statement at the second meeting of the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) at Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital, last Wednesday.
The meeting, which was attended by all the municipal and district chief executives (MDCEs), as well as presiding members of the assemblies, heads of departments and agencies, was to take stock of activities in the region and brainstorm to address inherent challenges and plan for the following year.
According to Mr Acheampong, there was a need for the drivers to be careful while behind the steering wheel because the region, between January and October this year, had a total number of 1,224 crashes resulting in 340 deaths and 2,474 injuries, notwithstanding the destruction of properties.
He indicated that although such figures were relatively high for the region, there had, however, been a considerable decline in the indicators compared to the same period for the year 2022.
Safety, security
Mr Acheampong said despite the decline in road accidents in the region, drivers had to be encouraged to observe road safety measures at all times by observing the driving motto of "Consciousness, Observant, Alert and Tolerant” (COAT) any time they were on the roads.
He told the participants to also encourage drivers in the region to participate in road safety training since that would go a long way in ensuring a positive attitude and awareness on the roads.
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Seth Kwame Acheampong (right), Eastern Regional Minister, addressing participants in the RCC meeting in Koforidua
On security, Mr Acheampong stated that the situation had remained calm because the security agencies in the region had been resolute in ensuring that security standards were maintained.
He, however, gave the assurance that the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) would stay on course to ensure and maintain public safety, peace and security in the region at all times.
He told the gathering that last month, the Ministry of National Security and its United Kingdom (UK) partners undertook "EX HOMESHIELD 2023", an interagency counter-terrorism simulation exercise which was conducted in the Upper West, Northern and Eastern Regions on the theme "Fostering Inter-agency collaborations for effective counter-terrorism response in Ghana".
That exercise, the regional minister said, was meant to test the preparedness of security and intelligence agencies and institutions to respond effectively to crises and emergencies in terrorist settings.
In the Eastern Region, Mr Acheampong emphasised that the exercise which was held at Akateng in the Upper Manya Krobo District had been the best.
Health, education
Touching on the health sector, he said the Koforidua Polyclinic had been upgraded to a Municipal Hospital to make it possible for it to perform key general and basic specialised services.
He also noted that the Kabaka Foundation funded by Nana Owiredu Wadie I, a traditional ruler, also handed over a newly constructed multi-purpose neonatal intensive care unit to the Regional Hospital in Koforidua.
Such a gesture by the traditional ruler, Mr Acheampong said, would help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets on health.
The Regional Minister stated that the education sector had witnessed improvement and that 100 teachers had been trained in ICT, particularly in areas of basic programming, coding and scratch.
The teachers, Mr Acheampong indicated, in turn, trained 1,000 girls in all the 33 districts and municipalities in the region.
The teachers and girls, he said, were each awarded with computers.
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He also pointed out that ICT laboratories were constructed in the schools of the 10 top girls while the three top girls were given cash prizes.
Agriculture, roads
Touching on agriculture, Mr Acheampong said the introduction of the phase II of the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme had been a positive indication of food security.
He said the region had been very pivotal in its contributions to the success of phase II and thanked farmers for their efforts as well as for the successful celebration of the 39th Regional Farmers’ Day at Ofoase Ayirebi in the Akyemansa District on December 1.
Speaking to the rehabilitation of roads, he said out of 684.70 km of roads to be worked on, 324.0 km was awarded on contract, out of which 120 km had been completed with funds from the Road Fund.
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On the asphalting of roads, Mr Acheampong said out of 301.70 km of roads planned for the year, 200.70 km was given on contract, out of which 166.28 km had been completed.
He explained that in all, 991.4 km of roads were scheduled to be reconstructed, out of which 529.7 km were awarded and 299.19 km had been completed.
On asphalting of roads in the Koforidua township, Mr Acheampong said 2km of roads at Effiduase had been asphalted, making it a total of 11.21 km while those in the New Juaben South area also had an additional 9.80 km of asphaltic overlay, bringing all the total to 30.40 km.
Mr Acheampong also spoke on various sectors such as local governance, disaster management and budgeting, adding that all had gone on well and thanked the MDCEs for their co-operation.
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Earlier, the Regional Coordinating Director, John Donkor, called on all Municipal and District Assemblies to always submit their reports on time for the smooth execution of the administrative functions of the RCC.
He urged MDCEs to continue supporting their staff with the needed logistics and resources to aid the performance of their functions.
Writer's email: haruna.wunpini@graphic.com.gh