The Tertiary Education Workers’ Union of Ghana (TEWU-GH) has distanced itself from what it calls an “illegal and misleading” claim by Mr Charles Arthur, the KNUST Local Chairman, who has been circulating information suggesting that he is the National Chairman of the Union.

In a statement issued by the National Secretariat on Saturday, November 29, 2025, the Union said Mr Arthur’s actions constitute a deliberate misrepresentation intended to create confusion among members and stakeholders.

The Secretariat stressed that it has no mandate to speak or act on behalf of TEWU-GH at the national level.

According to the statement, Mr. Arthur has in recent weeks engaged in a series of actions that the Union considers unconstitutional and disruptive.

These include convening unauthorised meetings, mobilising a small group of sympathisers to support what the Union calls his “divisive agenda,” and orchestrating the signing of a letter dated November 5, 2025 in an attempt to declare himself National Chairman.

TEWU-GH revealed that it had cautioned him after the letter was circulated, but the KNUST local chairman allegedly disregarded the directive. The Union further noted that Mr. Arthur refused to attend a meeting scheduled for November 27, 2025, which was intended to address the matter amicably.

Instead, he released yet another statement proclaiming himself National Chairman and threatening strike action if the Union does not receive its bargaining certificate by December.

The National Secretariat described his behaviour as “immature” and “gross misconduct,” emphasising that leadership within TEWU-GH is determined strictly through established constitutional procedures—not personal declarations.

Stakeholders, including university authorities, regulators, and the public, have been urged to ignore communications from Mr. Arthur or any group aligned with him.

TEWU-GH insists that he does not represent the Union and has no authority to issue directives on its behalf.

The statement also revealed that Mr. Arthur’s conduct has been a recurring issue in engagements with the National Labour Commission and the Labour Department.

His alleged refusal to follow due process, particularly in matters concerning the bargaining certificate, has reportedly contributed to delays in the certificate’s issuance.

AgriFair: Three days of innovation, fresh produce, and bold economic possibilities for Ghana

The Member of Parliament for Garu, Dr Thomas Anaba, has appealed to all factions involved in the protracted Bawku conflict to accept the ruling of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, as the final mediation process scheduled to conclude on Monday, December 1, 2025, at the Manhyia Palace.

He lamented the extensive loss of lives, property, and resources over the decades, stressing that peace remains the only acceptable path forward for the people of Bawku.

The Asantehene, whom the government tasked to help find a lasting solution to the Bawku chieftaincy crisis, is expected to deliver his final ruling today—an outcome many hope will bring an end to years of tension and violence in the area.

Speaking to Citi News on Sunday, November 30, 2025, Dr Anaba urged all stakeholders to embrace the Asantehene’s pronouncement in good faith and commit to restoring harmony in the Bawku enclave.

He emphasised that only unity and acceptance of the ruling will pave the way for sustainable development.

“There’s not much to expect but peace in Bawku. We have spent a whole lot of years, a lot of resources, time wasted, lives lost, and businesses destroyed because of this conflict. I know it’s not an easy task. President Nana Akufo-Addo handed it to the Asantehene to manage, and President John Mahama also came and recognised that he could manage it and left it for him to complete. He has handled it gently, step by step, and finally brought us to this point,” he said.

Dr Anaba added that the Asantehene’s ruling should serve as a new beginning for the area.

“What we are expecting is that his pronouncement will bring peace, so the government will take his recommendations and everybody will accept their implementation to the letter. We will all be happy with ourselves and live harmoniously in Bawku because we are already one people.

“We don’t have any real differences—just a small misunderstanding about ownership that has brought us this far,” he indicated.

He further prayed for a peaceful and successful resolution that would restore Bawku to its past glory of stability, vibrant commerce, and growth.

Asantehene to conclude Bawku mediation by December 1

Jabesh Amissah-Arthur was recognised and honoured for his Lifetime Achievement at the Ghana Energy Awards, held yesterday in Accra.

The recognition celebrates more than four decades of service during which he helped shape Ghana’s modern energy sector. He currently serves as the Board Chair of the Volta River Authority (VRA).

Reflecting on the honour, Ing. Amissah-Arthur said the recognition belongs not only to him but to the many Ghanaian professionals he has worked with over the years.

“I am humbled by this recognition. Every achievement has been a collective effort, and I remain proud of what Ghanaian engineers continue to accomplish.

Early in his career, which began in 1979 at VRA, he successfully solved a complex IT challenge that had stalled VRA’s consultants—an indication of the ingenuity that would define his leadership.

He was later asked to lead the Authority’s major digital transformation as head of the MIS Department, modernising operations and improving efficiency across the institution he now chairs.

One of his most significant national contributions was through the Northern Electrification & System Reinforcement Project, where his technical leadership helped secure financing for the project.

He then went on to coordinate all aspects of project Implementation for the extension of the national grid beyond Kumasi to the northern-most parts of Ghana within four years.

This project laid the groundwork for the National Electrification Programme and expanded access nationwide.

At just 42, he was appointed Deputy Chief Executive of VRA, overseeing the country’s generation and transmission systems at a crucial time in Ghana’s energy development.

Later, as CEO of the Bui Power Authority, he led the successful delivery of the 400 MW Bui Hydroelectric Dam—completed on schedule, within budget, and supervised entirely by a Ghanaian technical team.

The dam remains one of Ghana’s landmark engineering achievements.

Mr Amissah-Arthur also authored the Ghana Grid Code, the regulatory framework that continues to guide the safe and reliable operation of the national transmission system and ensures open access to all parties.

Beyond Ghana, he has contributed to more than 40 major energy projects across West Africa, holding key leadership roles including Chair of WAGPA, Chair of TiCO, and CEO & Board Member of Bui Power Authority.

The Lifetime Achievement Award reflects a career defined by innovation, integrity, and a commitment to building national capacity.

It honours a leader whose work has expanded electrification, built a major national generation plant, strengthened energy institutions, and improved millions of lives across Ghana and the subregion with his service to mankind.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

Capt Kofi Amoabeng decorating one of the leaders

Captain Prince Kofi Amoabeng has stated that his greatest fear is that the very environment he is preparing young leaders to transform will ultimately consume them.

His remarks came during the graduation and induction ceremony for the PK Amoabeng Scholars, where 19 graduands, including best graduates Solomon Boakye and Lady Ithra Rachel Naadu, completed the program, and 19 new inductees joined.

“Now, they are fresh. They are ready to change the world. But then we throw them back into the toxic environment, and if there are 20 of them, I will pray hard that not more than 10 are changed by the system,” Amoabeng said.

He framed the initiative as a race to build a critical mass of ethical leaders who can withstand prevailing norms.

“The idea is if we have more funding, we can form an academy and throw in a lot of these hopeful young people so the system cannot eat most of them up,” he explained.

The guest speaker, Nana Sam Agyensaim VI, provided a practical example of the discipline required for leadership.

He recounted working two grueling jobs in London: a 12-hour overnight security shift followed by a day job at Harrods for 18 months to establish himself. His story underscored the resilience the foundation aims to instil.

The event also served as an induction for a new cohort. On their behalf, Gloria Ansah accepted the charge.

“Our promise is to do better as a generation. You can count on us to not simply walk a path already built, but to forge our own,”she said.

But the central conflict remains. The foundation is creating “decent young men with the right values,” yet Captain Amoabeng likened the effort to making asana, a local drink. “The more sugar you put in, the more you can drink it,” he said.

This means the bitterness of the national status quo requires an overwhelming amount of “sweetness” of ethical, trained leaders to make any difference.

Captain Amoabeng’s deepest thanks went to sponsors and mentors, especially Nana Sam Agyensaim VI, whose support provides a counter-cultural sanctuary for the scholars.

The PK Amoabeng Leadership Foundation is running a rescue operation. It is deliberately plucking promising youth from the jaws of a system that threatens to eat them alive, arming them with values, and praying that enough of them survive to leave a legacy that can change the narrative for Ghana and for Africa.

Ghana’s hard-won progress in reducing air pollution is being quietly reversed, not by traffic or household fuels, but by the growing menace of waste burning.

New scientific findings presented at the Breathe Accra National Stakeholder Convening show that while emissions from vehicles and cooking fuels have stabilised or improved over the past two decades, the open burning of refuse is now driving dangerous spikes in particulate pollution across urban communities.

Researchers, policymakers and clean-air advocates warn that the country risks losing decades of progress if urgent action is not taken to curb the practice.

Accra’s traffic continues to pump pollutants into the air, with more than two million vehicles crowding city streets daily. Yet, contrary to popular perception, transport-related pollution has remained largely unchanged for 20 years.

“What we have found is that the proportion that is coming from traffic remains the same. It hasn’t changed over the last 20 years,” said Dr Raphael Arku.

Dr Raphael Arku, Associate Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and his team have spent two decades collecting and analysing particulate matter in multiple communities, mapping the evolving sources of air pollution.

The good news, he explained, is that emissions from biomass burning — charcoal, wood fires and fish smoking — have dropped significantly as more households shift to improved fuels.

“But the good news is that we have also found that the one that is coming from biomass burning, like when we burn wood for cooking or fish smoking or charcoal, that part has reduced significantly, a lot,” Dr Raphael Arku said.

Policies like the ban on old vehicle imports and the new emissions levy were expected to further cut pollution from transport. But the emissions levy fell short of its goals.

A trend analysis by Dr Dan Westervelt of Columbia University found no statistically meaningful improvement.

“We did not see any PM2.5 change between the post-levy period and the pre-levy period. Basically, there were some changes, but statistically insignificant changes, very, very tiny, like a fraction of a per cent change in air pollution due to the policy.

“So we can say pretty definitively that at least for PM2.5, which is the primary pollutant of health concern for air quality, at least for PM2.5, there was not a substantial reduction due to this emissions policy,” said Dan Westervelt.

PM2.5, fine particles that penetrate deep into the lungs, remains the most dangerous air pollutant.

But the biggest red flag from the new research is this: waste burning is on the rise, and it is cancelling out pollution gains from cleaner fuels.

With weak waste-collection systems, many communities resort to burning rubbish, releasing toxic smoke directly into the air people breathe.

“But unfortunately, that reduction, we are making up for it, making it more negative by burning waste. So even though we are making progress in people switching to gas, which is less polluting, we are also not doing well in trash collection.

“So people are now burning the trash. So it’s making up for the gains that we make in biomass burning,” Dr Raphael Arku said

Experts also highlighted the lack of safe pedestrian and cycling infrastructure as part of the broader problem.

Director for Planning and Programmes at the National Road Safety Authority, Martin Afram, said mainstreaming non-motorised transport is crucial.

“We lose about 2,400 people to traffic crashes. And out of this number, 31.3% of them are as a result of the pedestrians. So this tells us that if you’re able to reduce the numbers with regard to the pedestrian fatalities, we’ll be reducing overall road traffic fatalities.

“The key thing is that we want to mainstream the provision of bicycle lanes and pedestrian walkways into the road infrastructure. And this is well spelt out in the National Transport Policy,” said Martin Afram

Breathe Accra, which funds air-quality research, including Dr Arku’s work, says the next phase is ensuring policies can actually be implemented.

“We are hoping we can see some more mainstreaming and then build more on our awareness and also the capacity to implement these policies. Because it’s good to know that we’ve done an air quality action plan, but do the people know how to implement it?

“So we’re hoping to build on the work we’ve done, the foundation we’ve laid, and see how things can scale off to even be able to create more impact and get more results at the end of the day,” said Dr Elvis Gyeabuor

With air pollution now linked to nearly 32,000 deaths, he argues that the stakes are too high for weak enforcement.

Technical Head for Breathe Cities Africa, Seneca Naidoo, praised Accra’s multi-district coordination but urged consistency.

“We want to make sure that we’re able to strike a good balance between protecting people’s health, but still making sure that economies are growing. This is not a problem that respects boundaries, you know, it doesn’t stop at the, you know, the border of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly and say, okay, I can’t go past this, right?

Now you’ve got those in 13 different districts, that’s a lot of people to come together to make sure that you move this work forward. And the fact that the city has been able to do that, I think, is really, really a great achievement. So I think that’s something that we want to see a lot more,” said Seneca Naidoo.

The message from researchers is clear: Ghana has made real progress — cleaner fuels, stable transport emissions, coordinated policy efforts. But without urgent action on waste management and community behaviour, that progress will vanish.

Cleaner air is still within reach. But it demands enforcement, investment in waste systems, and the collective will to stop burning trash.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.

This was contained in a speech read on her behalf by the Director of Administration at the ministry, Yaw Sekyi, at the National AfCFTA Dialogue in Accra yesterday.

The minister said in spite of their resilience and economic significance, women and youth continued to face major obstacles, such as limited access to affordable finance, high trade-related costs, customs delays, difficulties meeting product standards, the lack of export information and barriers to digital adoption.

These challenges, she stressed, must be addressed intentionally for Ghana to harness the full benefit of AfCFTA.

“Ghana welcomes this protocol wholeheartedly and remains committed to advancing a structured and inclusive roadmap for its implementation.

As we gather here today, it is important to recognise that women and youth are not peripheral actors in our economy.

They are central to our national productivity,” she said.

The ministry, therefore, pledged its support through regulatory improvements, capacity-building and business development programmes via the Ghana Enterprises Agency, export-readiness and market facilitation through the Export Ghana initiative and agribusiness value-chain interventions.

Mrs Ofosu-Adjare mentioned that inclusive participation in AfCFTA could not be achieved by the government alone, emphasising that it required collaboration across the public and private sectors, financial institutions, civil society and development partners.

“The minister eagerly awaits the recommendations that will emerge from this engagement to support the upcoming revision of Ghana’s AfCFTA Policy Framework and Action Plan,” Mr Sekyi read.

“Together, we can build a trading system that is not only inclusive and fair but full of opportunities; a system where women and youth are not just participants, but the architects of Ghana’s economic future,” he added.

Dialogue

The event, jointly organised by the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, the National AfCFTA Coordination Office and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), focused on harnessing the AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade to promote inclusive growth, access to finance, and trade readiness for women-led and youth-led MSMEs.

The dialogue, which opened with an exhibition of products and services from women-led and youth-led enterprises, featured speeches, presentations, a panel discussion and a plenary session.

It was held on the theme: “Empowering Ghanaian Women- and Youth-Led MSMEs”.

In attendance were UNDP Ghana Resident Representative, Niloy Banerjee; Principal Officer, Women and Youth in Trade, AfCFTA Secretariat, Gemma Mbegabolawe, and the Head of Micro and Small Enterprises of GCB Bank, Cedric McAddy.

Action through financing

The acting National AfCFTA Coordinator, Benjamin Asiam, called for decisive national action to implement the AfCFTA Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade, emphasising its strategic importance for Ghana’s economic future.

He stated that women led 44-51 per cent of all registered MSMEs, and youth entrepreneurs were powering growth across agriculture, ICT, manufacturing, and the creative economy, making their inclusion “indispensable” to Africa’s single market project.

He mentioned that simplified trade procedures, capacity-building support, rules of origin, and digital inclusion measures could help these sectors to scale into continental markets.

He, however, cautioned that major constraints such as limited access to finance, challenges in certification and standards, harassment at borders, logistical bottlenecks, and inadequate sex and age-disaggregated trade data persisted.

Without precise data, he warned, policies risked being “well-intentioned but insufficiently targeted.”