Day: March 28, 2022

Bolt is aware of an article that was published which details that Bolt has blocked 100 drivers without any valid reasons after they had decided to protest in light of their concerns about operating on the Bolt platform.

We categorically state that this is false and request this article be amended to reflect the true nature of events in relation to the drivers who were blocked.

As per the operating terms and conditions for drivers which is found here, drivers can only be blocked if their behaviour is in contravention of the terms and conditions.

Drawing you to Point 13 on the link, listing the various circumstances for drivers to be blocked. Bolt will never block drivers for practising their constitutional right to protest.

However, Bolt will not tolerate drivers who intimidate non-protesting drivers, threaten other drivers with physical harm, and/or inflict physical harm on other drivers or their property.
Bolt has not, would not and does not intend to block drivers based in Sekondi-Takoradi or any other city where we operate as a result of them advocating for various issues.

We continue to work on new features to improve driver earnings and safety on the platform and we will share more information about them when they are ready to be rolled out.

Source: Ghana Web

Accra, March 28, GNA- Vivo Energy Ghana’s Corporate Communications Manager, Shirley Tony Kum, has been named among Ghana’s Top 10 Women in Public Relations (PR) in the fifth edition of the Women in PR Ghana Ranking.

She has been recognized for this honour for the fourth time in a row among other PR minds in the industry.

The Women in PR Ghana ranking recognizes public relations professionals who demonstrate value, agility, and digital savviness to project their contribution to the industry and their respective companies.

A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency on Monday said “Shirley is that light that keeps shining at all corners. The year 2021 has been another remarkable and impactful career journey for Shirley and her organization as reflected in their projects, campaigns, and recognitions.

“From driving her company’s National Road Safety Campaign dubbed ‘Stop, Think & Drive’ to launching the Vivo Energy Community Digital Literacy Project and International Women’s Day (IWD) celebrations, we can appreciate the strategic role of the communications function at Vivo Energy Ghana. Her works also highlight several activities targeted at their employees, customers, communities, and other stakeholders.”

It said Shirley has led Vivo Energy Ghana (Shell Licensee) to win many awards and accolades, including being inducted into the Hall of Fame for Excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) at the Ghana Oil and Gas Awards in 2021, and their Stop, Think, & Drive Road Safety Campaign being adjudged winner of the Vivo Energy Group’s Reputation Award Category.

The statement said other recognitions won by her company include winning the Employee Communications Category of the 2020 SABRE Awards at the African Public Relations Association (APRA) Conference in September 2021 and being adjudged the Most Promising Organization in Learning and Development Practice at the 2021 HR Focus Awards.

“Shirley continues to shine her light as an all-around senior communications executive through mentorship and speaking engagements. Shirley has spoken at a number of events including the Today’s Woman Empowerment Summit, Africa Corporate Lounge, UKGCC Press Freedom Day roundtable event, and mentored a number of young professionals at the Agrihouse Foundation AG-STUD Africa Career Guidance and Mentorship Dialogue Boot camp, among others.”

It said in the year under review, Shirley was appointed a member of the Governing Council of the African University College of Communications (AUCC) and continues to serve as the Honorary Secretary of the Institute of Public Relations, Ghana.

“Shirley has demonstrated a solid record of accomplishment in managing Vivo Energy Ghana’s reputation by demonstrating a deeper understanding of the synergy between the PR function and sales growth. With all these achievements and more in the year 2021, we are proud to name her as one of our top 10 women,” the recognition announcement stated.

Commenting on the award, Shirley congratulated her fellow Women in PR and said, “I am really humbled by this recognition and I thank God for this feat. I see this as a challenge to do more for our profession, organization, partners and the entire PR ecosystem that supports our growth.

Communication is an enabler for organisational growth and may this recognition inspire us to achieve business excellence whiles creating a shared value for our stakeholders including communities where we operate.”

She also commended the Women in PR Ghana Team and urged them to keep up the good work.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Proposed new spending rules to replace Uefa’s current Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations would limit club spending on wages, transfers and agents’ fees to 70% of their revenue from 2025.

If agreed, the plans will be phased in from 2023, when clubs will be allowed to spend 90% of their income, reducing to 80% in 2024 and 70% a year later.

Europe’s top clubs will be updated on the new spending rules at the European Clubs Association’s (ECA) two-day meeting in Vienna this week.

Crucially, the plans, that are being put together by Uefa and the influential ECA also double the permitted losses over a three-year period from €30m (£24.98m) to €60m (£49.96m), providing they are covered by cash injections.

The idea is to address complaints that the current system protects the biggest clubs by limiting additional owner investment, although many have also been uneasy at the ‘artificial’ funding of what La Liga president Javier Tebas has dubbed ‘state’ clubs, such as Paris St-German and Manchester City.

It is thought new, reinforced punishments, including points deductions, demotion to lower-ranking competition and potential exclusion from European football completely, will be introduced as part of the new regulations.

In his new role as ECA chairman, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is due to speak to the media on Tuesday after his organisation’s meeting. As one of the clubs who could benefit from additional investor funding, his thoughts will be monitored with interest.

Newcastle are an associate member of the ECA and it will be observed with interest whether the Magpies are represented in person on Monday at the first General Assembly of the ECA since the Saudi-backed takeover of the club in October.

In addition to FFP, ECA clubs attending the General Assembly in Vienna will also be updated on the situation in Ukraine from a football perspective.

The country’s World Cup play-off with Scotland has been delayed until June, although there has been no clarification from Fifa about what will happen if Ukraine are unable to play at that time.

There is also likely to be further debate around the two Champions League slots due to be allocated for the 2024-25 season onwards to clubs with the highest coefficient that have not qualified directly for the competition but have for a different European competition.

If the controversial concept had been in place this term and the current standings remained as they are, Manchester United and Roma would be the beneficiaries even though both clubs are sixth in their domestic leagues.

In the Premier League, Tottenham are fifth but would remain in the Europa League, as would Atalanta in Serie A.

What are the current FFP rules?

Currently, clubs can spend up to €5m more than they earn per three-year assessment period. However, they can exceed this level to a limit of €30m if it is entirely covered by a direct contribution/payment from the club owner(s) or a related party. According to Uefa, the idea of this was to ‘prevent the build-up of unsustainable debt’.

Uefa has a wide-ranging list of potential punishments for clubs who break these rules, from a warning to loss of European titles. In 2020, Wolves were fined €200,000 and given a 23-man squad limit instead of the usual 25 after breaching Uefa’s FFP rules.

However, given the financial impact of COVID, which has seen European top-flight clubs lose £7bn, Uefa felt the rules needed to be changed.

There had been speculation around the implementation of an actual salary cap but this idea has now been abandoned.

Source: Modern Ghana

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has disclosed that as of Friday, March 25, the total number of active covid-19 cases stood at 72.

Out of this number, there are no severely or critically ill persons.

The President said the country’s Covid-19 treatment centres are empty and the “fourth wave appears to be over.”

The improvement in the cases according to the President, is the availability and uptake of vaccines by the population.

He noted that while “we’ve not achieved our national vaccination target, it is significant to know reasonable vaccination coverages have been achieved in the hotspot of infections particularly in the urban areas of Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi.

Nana Akufo-Addo stated that his government is determined to use all means to increase the deployment of vaccinations across the country “to achieve our target of vaccinating some 20 million Ghanaians by June”.

The President said these in his 28th Covid-19 update to the nation on Sunday, 27 March 2022.

Source: Modern Ghana

Mr. Abraham Koomson, Secretary-General, the Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) has described the GHC0.15 pesewas per litre reduction of the price of fuel as inadequate and drop in the ocean and called on the government to undertake pragmatic measures to mitigate the suffering of the people.

Mr. Koomson, told the media in an interview in Tema that “reduction GHC0.15 pesewas is a drop in the oceans judging from the increment of petroleum product consistently this year which has affected the price of other commodities in the market.

“The high prices of goods and services in the country has eroded the benefits of negotiated salaries and working conditions with employers, there must be more pragmatic interventions by the government to mitigate the impact on workers.”

Mr Koomson said it was really difficult to understand the ‘strategic’ measures being applied by the government through the Finance Minister to save the ailing economy to alleviate the escalating high cost of living.

The GFL Secretary-General said “We expect a significant reduction in the multiple taxes afflicting the fuel price determinant; a drastic cut in the number of Ministers and Presidential staffers to free up the loaded budget of the Executive”.

The GFL added that they also consider that in the medium term an absolute need for the government to focus attention on enhancing, and enriching the environment for local raw materials production for the manufacturing of goods.

The Federation stated for instance that the government could revive the cotton production in the country to feed the textile manufacturing industry, as well as consider other agricultural products for consumption and local processing instead of dependence on expensive imported raw materials for local processing.

“We observe that the interests of workers are being sacrificed under the government austerity due to hasty actions by some Ministers and appointees.

“A classic example resulting in financial loss to the state and creating unemployment is the unilateral decision of the Roads Minister to close down the Toll Booths across the country.”

The GFL expressed the hope that the government would revisit the measures being adopted aimed at addressing the challenges facing the Ghanaian economy, and fix the enormous financial waste to be able to achieve results that the Federation believed would impact positively on the lives of workers.

Source: Modern Ghana

To boost local transactions and to offer more convenience for its customers, Fidelity Bank Ghana has commenced the issuance of gh-link cards.

The gh-link EMV Card is Ghana’s domestic card payment scheme that was launched in 2012 by the Ghana Interbank Payment & Settlement System (GhIPSS) Limited.

The card scheme works on the gh-link platform; a system which interconnects all banks and financial institutions in Ghana and enables accredited financial institutions to issue EMV (Europay, Mastercard, and Visa) white label cards that are accepted nationwide across ATM and POS terminals.

The card supports ATM cash withdrawals, ATM PIN changes, ATM balance enquiries and purchase transactions on POS devices and on online platforms. Customers who use the gh-link card are assured of affordability and protection of their transaction data.

Speaking on this initiative, Nana Esi Idun-Arkhurst, Divisional Director, Retail Banking of Fidelity Bank Ghana, stated that Fidelity Bank is devoted to meeting the growing needs of customers.

“The introduction of the gh-link card is a perfect blend of convenience and affordability for our cherished customers. As a bank at the forefront of digitalization in the banking sector, we believe that the issuance of the gh-link card is an opportunity to further expand our digital footprint and promote financial inclusion.”

She encouraged all customers to visit their respective branches to pick up their cards in order to enjoy the unique benefits such as lower recurring monthly or annual fees, improved turnaround times for chargeback and transaction refund requests as well as relatively cheaper transaction fees.

Fidelity’s partnership with GhIPSS to issue gh-link cards forms part of the Bank’s “Together We’re More” brand promise that identifies collaborative efforts as the catalyst to success. The many successes chalked by the bank as a result of the partnership with its customers, stakeholders and the general public is an attestation to the fact that together, we can achieve more.

About Fidelity Bank Ghana

In a little over a decade, Fidelity Bank Ghana has grown from a discount house to a Tier-1 Bank and is now the largest privately-owned Ghanaian Bank in Ghana. The bank currently serves its approximately 2 million customers in 75 branches across Ghana and is a leader in the digital banking space.

The bank has two subsidiaries, Fidelity Asia Bank Limited, which is a wholly owned subsidiary in Malaysia and Fidelity Securities Limited, an asset management firm.

In a short period of time, Fidelity Bank has become a household name in Ghana by adopting a customer-centric culture and delivering consistently on the promise of making a difference in the lives of all stakeholders.

Source: Ghana Web

Cape Coast, March 28, GNA- Police in the Central region have arrested three members of one family, including a 70-year-old man, for allegedly burying a two-year-old boy alive on the shores of Dutch-Komenda in Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipality.

However, the timely intervention of the Police, the youth of the area and Mr. Cosmos Bassaw, the Assembly Member of Dutch -Komenda Electoral area, saved the victim, considered to be a spirit, from dying.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mrs Irene Serwaah Oppong, Regional Public Relations Officer (PRO) who confirmed the incident to the Ghana News Agency on Monday, said, the boy’s mother 29, father, 37 and the 70-year-old grandfather of the victim were the perpetrators of the crime.

DSP Oppong, said about 23:45 hours on Saturday, March 26, the Elmina District Police Command received information that a male toddler with special needs had been buried alive.

She said on receipt of the report, the Police proceeded to the crime scene and met the Assemblymember for the area and some youth who have rescued the boy, whilst preliminary investigations revealed that due to the impairment of the boy, his parents consulted a spiritualist at Dutch-Komenda who might have advised them to get rid of the child.

She said the suspects are in Police custody assisting in investigations while the victim was sent to the clinic and had been treated and discharged.

DSP Oppong said frantic efforts were underway to apprehend Kweku Bar, the spiritualist who is currently on the run.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Sarkodie recently took on the Dubai desert, making him the first African artist to host a full concert in the UAE desert, made possible by CEEK, an award-winning developer of premium social virtual and augmented reality experiences.

According to KJ Spio, Creative Director of CEEK, the virtual concert was inspired by the visuals of Sarkodie’s smash hit song, ‘Illuminati’.

He comments: “The inspiration for the virtual concert came from the Sarkodie music video ‘Illuminati’, which he shot in the desert a few years back. So that was the original inspiration for it and that’s why we even started the virtual concert with that song. It is also to celebrate the 10th anniversary of ‘Rapperholic’, which was the second album from Sarkodie. I think that album has had a major impact on Sarkodie as far as his live performances are concerned.”

Sarkodie took to the desert under beaming sunlight, opening with ‘Illuminati’, leading into ‘Rollies and Cigars’, he continued his charged performances, right through to finishing with ‘Adonai’ which is taken off his Sarkology album.

“The highlights for me were definitely how quick the CEEK team came through. They flew people from America. Big shout out to ‘Big Cap’ he was super instrumental in getting us some people on the ground. Another highlight I will also say was just seeing a kind of a striped back performance from Sarkodie, just him and the music in the desert, without too many distractions. I think that was that was very special,” adds KJ Spio.

CEEK are ushering in a new era of entertainment, with a mission to empower creators with the tools needed to generate new revenue streams. With the virtual reality headset CEEK simulates the communal experience of attending a concert without leaving the comfort of your home. It allows fans to engage with artists in ways that they have never been able to before.

You can have a front row experience for Sarkodie’s Rapperholic22 in the desert via www.ceek.com , the 360 VR experience can be viewed via CEEK’s virtual reality headset, you can also access the Sarkodie experience in 2D via your laptop and phone.

Source: Modern Ghana