DOVVSU child help line out of coverage area

A most recent improvement at the office of the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) in Accra was the “child helpline” launched to make for people across the country to call toll-free and lodge complaints of violence against children.
Sadly, the child help line launched with funfair is now a mere dream. The MTN helpline with supposed toll -free number 1622 is no longer free. Public Agenda’s investigations have revealed that complainants who call the much publicized number actually lose some credit on their phone. Worse of all, the line perpetually gives an engaged feedback. “We used to receive a lot of complaints countrywide. However, because most callers were children, they could no longer call,” a source at DOVVSU told Public Agenda. Originally designated to work 24 hours a day, it worked only eight hours and broke down. Through the help line though, the unit was able to rescue persons who had been abused. Domestic violence is defined as a family member, a partner or an ex-partner physically or psychologically dominating through economic, sexual or emotional abuses. DOVVSU, formerly known as the Women and Juvenile Unit ( WAJU ) of the Ghana Police Service was established in October 1998, to provide timely and equitable response to victims of abuse. The unit’s functions include: to investigate all female and children related offences, handle cases involving domestic violence, handle cases of child abuse, handle juvenile offences, handle cases of child delinquency and to prosecute all such cases, where necessary.DOVVSU does not operate as a regular police station. Services provided by DOVVSU are cost-free and include taking statements, briefing victims on their cases, providing advice on crime prevention, referring clients to community-based medical and counseling services, as well as providing the services of a clinical psychologist and social workers.It has offices in each of the capital cities of the 10 regions and in some districts.A typical day at the offices of the DOVVSU often reveals a crowd of complainants in a long queue with majority of them being women. However, the renaming of the unit from WAJU to DOVVSU between 2004 and 2005 has helped a great deal to encourage men to lodge their complaints as well. In Ghana, the Domestic Violence Bill (DV) passed in February 2007 mandated financial assistance to fight domestic violence and set up a Victims of Domestic Violence Support Fund supported by voluntary contributions and Parliament. The fund is supposed to provide enough money for the DOVVSU to provide basic support to victims and assist with matters of rehabilitation and reintegration. But the funding has not come. Although, the DV Bill is gender-neutral, an overwhelming majority of the victims / complainants at DOVVSU are females.As at now, DOVVSU understaffed and lacks supplies to effectively respond to increasing caseload.



Maame Dokono’s orphanage is the first casualty of illegal orphanages

As announced last year, the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) is now embarking on an exercise to clamp down on institutions that have, in many cases not complied with most basic social welfare requirements, as conditions of care in these homes are found not to be the best, with about 80% of the staff being unqualified. All the orphanages in Ghana are said to be registered as non-governmental organisation (NGOS) and are currently operating not in accordance with Section 105 of the Children Act. The Peace & Love Orphanage situated at Adenta and belonging to popular actress Grace Omaboe alias Maame Dokono is the first to be axed. When Public Agenda contacted an official of the Department of Social Welfare (DSW), Ms Helena Obeng-Asamoah, she said they moved in when they received a report that an eight month baby had been sodomized by an eight year old boy. Consequently, she said a directive was given by the director to relocate the children to other orphanages and some to foster homes, after officers had visited the facility and given their report. Since last week when news about the closure of the orphanage and other developments broke out, a section of the public and indeed Maame Dokono herself, suspects her ordeal was politically motivated. However, Ms Helena Obeng-Asamoah, who is the Coordinator of the Care Reform Initiative (CRI) of DSW, emphasized that the closure was solely due to the fact that her facility did not conform to the required minimum international and national standards of an orphanage. How long it has taken for the DSW to realize this raises more questions.She said the department realized that the incident might have happened because supervision was not the best since Maame Dokono was away. “Maame Dokono understood our action when she returned from abroad. She can continue to do her NGO work but for an orphanage she has to improve her place.” She disassociated the department from further developments on the matter involving the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit of the Police (DOVVSU), saying that the DSW’s prime concern was the children and to relocate them to a place where supervision is better.
“We do not have the right to take legal action against her. It’s the duty of the police. We also heard about the alleged scuffle between her and DOVVSU in the news.” A census by the department revealed that operations of most orphanages do not conform to the required minimum international and national standards. Ms Obeng-Asamoah disclosed that the DSW is now working in the Central, Western and Greater Accra regions under the CRI, aimed at ensuring that all departments, agencies and NGOs in the country have the training and resources to encourage appropriate parental or alternative care, and to ensure that institutional care in orphanages is used as a last resort.
She said the CRI also seeks to de-emphasize over reliance of care systems for children based on institutions and move towards a range of integrated family and community based care services for such children without appropriate parental care. Meanwhile, the DOVVSU has said that the action was meant to protect the inmates of the orphanage. Chief Inspector Irene Oppong, Public Relations Officer of DOVVSU is quoted to have said that the orphanage was operating illegally. Officials of DOVVSU last Thursday stormed the orphanage to invite Grace Omaboe for questioning, but a scuffle ensued in what Inspector Oppong said was triggered by insults from Ms Omaboe.But Maame Dokono has denied and claimed attempts were made by the officials to forcibly arrest her, even though she had informed them of her willingness to come to the office with her lawyer.Grace Omaboe popularly called Maame Dokono had been with the NDC but cross carpet to the then ruling NPP. Inspector Irene Oppong said her outfit has preferred charges of exposing a child to harm against Maame Dokono as stipulated by the Children’s Act.This is because under the Act, a person under 12 years cannot be charged with a criminal offence, rather the parent or guardian of the child.

Women hail micro loans
Over 90 percent of the working population of women are engaged in the private informal economy. Of these, 50 percent are in services of which trading forms a major part.Their predominance in the informal sector of the economy is said to be a reflection of gender inequalities in Ghana. It thus came as no surprise when Dr. Dzodzi Tsikata of the Institute for Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) at one time advocated the removal of biases against the informal economy.“Women do have a special though unhappy relationship with the informal economy, since the face of the informal economy is female,” Dr. Dzodzi Tsikata ISSER said, while calling on government to recognize, resource and take them on board when discussing policy issues that affect trade.After the 1997 Micro Credit Summit, the United Nations declared 2005 as the year of micro credit. In recent times, even in Ghana, micro loans have come as a ready source for traders for the expansion of small businesses such as the selling foodstuffs and thereby reducing extreme poverty. A report by the Micro credit Summit Campaign (MSC) states that more than 106 million of the world’s poorest families received a micro loan in 2007, surpassing a goal set 10 years earlier. The MSC recognizes the world’s poorest as those who live in the bottom half of those living below the poverty line, or any of the nearly one billion people living on less than $1 a day in the world. Following the establishment of the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC), the micro unit was established to empower female traders economically.“It is necessary because when the woman is economically empowered she can contribute meaningfully to economic development,” stated Mrs. Adiza Ofori-Adu, Public Relations Officer of MOWAC. She said that before the loans are given out, the women are offered training in business and financial management. MOWAC through the National Investment Bank, Agricultural Development Bank and the rural banks disbursed micro-credit to women. An amount of GH¢120, 000 has been disbursed to 120,000 women countrywide with each receiving GH¢100. Ninety women involved in small scale businesses have also benefited from the ministry’s small loans ranging GH¢200 to GH ¢2,500. These loans build women’s self-esteem, leadership and creativity.The Makola Traders Union (MTU), an affiliate of the Ghana Trades Union Congress, is one of such recognized associations benefiting from micro loans by some bank and non-bank financial institutions. Majority of the members of MTU Public Agenda spoke to were grateful to the financial institutions for their assistance, more so when no collateral is demanded. They only need to open an account with the financial institution in question. The union’s Welfare Officer, Madam Juliana Brown Afari, expressed the union’s gratefulness, “It has helped us a lot because some of us lacked money to trade. But now through the loans we have been able to expand our trading activities.” They however, appealed to the financial institutions to give them lesser interest rates and an extension of the repayment period. The competition for micro loans has been extremely keen to the extent that some banking and non-banking financial institutions, which previously ignored the informal sector (small traders), have made it their primary focus. Some claim they are determined to empower many women financially to grow their businesses, which in turn, will impact favourably on the economy.
The Head of Credit of EB-ACCION Savings & Loan, a subsidiary of ECOBANK Ghana Ltd., Mr. Tim Biwott, said his organization deemed it a corporate social responsibility to leverage the market by providing finance to the informal sector so they can generate income to sustain themselves.
“Because there was a missing gap of financiers, people could not access funds and we decided to fill the gap. What we are doing is to try to create funding within Africa; that is mobilize savings ourselves and lending to ourselves,” he explained. He noted that Africa could just share what it has but not always rely on funds from outside. He stressed, “Financial laws should be stricter. If we really want to change and bring wealth in Africa, all governments should be concerned with micro credit.” The Bank of Ghana’s Financial Stability Report, November 2008, states that latest credit conditions survey shows a general net tightening of credit conditions for enterprises, with a shift in accommodation from corporates to small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs).It said the net percentage of banks reporting net tightening of credit stance for loans to enterprises increased further (up from 6.12% as of July 2008 survey round to 25.30% in the October 2008 survey round).
The most important factors cited by banks as contributing to net tightening are cost of funds and expectations regarding economic activities. Competition from other banks and non-bank financial institutions, however, contributed to easing of credit stance. Small and medium-sized companies
(SMEs), however, continued to benefit from increased access to credit.Net demand (percentage of customers applying for credit) for loans to households for house purchase fell further in the third quarter of 2008 (to 24.89 per cent of respondents not demanding credit, from 8.45 per cent willing to contract loans in the previous quarter).
Small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SME) net demand for loans continued to be strong while large enterprises’ net demand declined marginally in the third quarter of 2008.The informal economy is said to be generating 10 times more jobs than the formal economy since the 1980s, as it is the last resort for the unemployed.It also contributes 20 to 40 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country.




Tobacco is chief preventable cause of death

Tobacco use is regarded as the chief preventable cause of death around the world accounting for over five million deaths and related illness annually. The figure is expected to increase to over eight million by 2030 and 80% of these deaths will occur in developing countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) adopted in May 2003 and which contains evidence-based policies for reducing tobacco use describes the health impact of tobacco use and outlines a shared global commitment to action. The objective of the FCTC is to protect present and future generations from the devastating health, social, environmental and economic consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke. Advocates of tobacco control in Sub-Sahara Africa are seriously pushing for the domestication of the FCTC treaty in their countries. At a workshop on Tobacco Control Policy and Advocacy in Accra the Executive Director of Environmental Rights Action of Nigeria (ERA) Mr. Nnimmo Bassey, said it was sad that the African continent had become a major target of the tobacco industry and that there was the need to develop a homegrown strategy curb this threat. More than 85% of the world’s 1.8 billion young people living in developing countries are aggressively targeted by tobacco companies following stricter regulations in Europe and North America. “Africa has unfortunately been saddled with a number of diseases and we cannot afford a clearly avoidable addition manufactured by the tobacco industry,” he stressed. The Africa Tobacco Control Regional Initiative (ACTRI), supported by the Cancer Research, UK and American Cancer Society (ACS) organised the workshop for civil society groups in Anglophone African countries. The objective was to strengthen the knowledge of the tobacco control advocates and empower them to initiate actions to push for effective control policies within their countries. Tobacco shortens the lifespan of smokers by 25 years with about 70% of people who start smoking from their teens dying by 45.The Project Coordinator of ACTRI, Ms Sandra Moreira, noted the rise in the use of tobacco products among the youth and women is one of the most ominous developments of the tobacco epidemic in Africa. She said that since the continent had few resources for tobacco control, the challenge ahead was to put the FCTC in perspective. “ACTRI is working to promote the adoption, implementation and enforcement of effective in-country tobacco control policies and legislation, by providing institutional support and capacity building among tobacco control advocates and public health experts from the continent.” Currently, the FCTC has been signed by 42 and ratified by 35 African countries while national legislations are undergoing reviews in several African countries. In Ghana, the Ministry of Health is collaborating with other stakeholders to get the Tobacco Bill passed into law. This will give more meaning to the ratification of the WHO FCTC and will constitute a legal framework for the enforcement of tobacco control activities in Ghana.The WHO is encouraging member states and policy-makers to introduce a law that provides for a ban on all forms of advertisiments, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products. It is believed that a 100% smoke- free environment is the only means to protect people from the harmful effects of tobacco smoke.


New report says Ghana is unlikely to meet MDGs
A new report has revealed that Ghana is highly unlikely to meet most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. It states that if the country merely keeps up current rates of progress, only a small number of targets would be reached. According to the report, although there have been efforts to expand coverage of social interventions, real access remains patchy; significant pockets of communities and even entire districts lag behind the picture of progress portrayed by national aggregate statistics.SEND-Ghana and Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights (ARHR) launched the report, “The Ghana Civil Society MDG Monitoring Report, 2008” at a ceremony in Accra. The report states that Ghana can foster real progress towards the MDGs when she adopts a much resolute effort to deepen the quality delivery and to diffuse the spread of relevant social policies. It focused on the performance and progress Ghana has made in achieving MDGs on health and education in selected districts. They are namely Kwahu North district in the Eastern Region, Bongo in the Upper East and Komenda Eguafo Edina Abirem in the Central region. Ultimately, the report is expected to facilitate advocacy to accelerate progress and to fine processes towards achieving the MDGs in Ghana. The MDGs are drawn from the actions and targets contained in the Millennium Declaration that was adopted by 189 nations-and signed by 147 heads of state and governments during the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000.The MDGs are eight goals to be achieved by 2015 that respond to the world’s main development challenges. Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education, Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women, Goal 4: Reduce child mortality, Goal 5: Improve maternal health, Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability and Goal 8 : Develop a Global Partnership for Development. Prof. Kwame Ninsin of the Institute of Democratic Governance (IDEG) during a review lauded the report, saying that it contains what policy makers refuse to see. On Education goals, MDGs 2 and 3, he noted that there have considerable inputs in access to education, especially at the lower levels due to interventions such as the Capitation Grant. Yet, he said there are certain challenges being faced by teachers and pupils because consistent efforts in official circles substitute quality with quantity. He stressed that policy makers should not confuse access with participation. He bemoaned that most schools do not have conditions for effective teaching and learning, with most classrooms dilapidated, inadequate textbooks and teaching aids and most children compelled to work before going to school. “Children should have encouraging reasons to remain in school and feel motivated by the environment to study.”According to Prof. Ninsin, state financing for basic education is declining, while the National Youth Employment Programme has become an instrument for dumping young women and men in schools in several villages. This, he described as an indictment on the government. With regard to girl child education, he said the principle to achieve gender parity had a negative impact. He said the policy has been pursued without regard to quality education and remarked that it is decay in particularly public rural schools. “We as citizens must be concerned about the decay in education system has a contribution in the worth of human beings, the youth.” He said education is a fundamental right of very child but the study failed to emphasize the fact education is a right to be provided by government. Looking at health MDG 4,5 and 6, Dr. Esther Ofei-Aboagye Director of the Institute of Local Government Studies said the analyses suggest that health MDGs remain largely achievable if needed investments are made now, but then time is running fast. She said traditional beliefs and taboos continue to have adversely impact on health choices. However, she said the report would be very useful to propel the country to development.