ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
Under the National Medical Equipment Replacement Project, Government is providing life support equipment, and medical imaging in selected District Hospitals nationwide as well as re-equipping radiology departments in the teaching and regional hospitals with state of the art Magnetic Resonance Imagers, and CT scanners.
These centers are also receiving mammography units to make breast cancer screening routine.
Equipment will be supplied and installed in district hospitals as well as health centers across the country.
As a matter of fact, state-of-the-art Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machines are currently being installed at the Komfo Anokye and Tamale Teaching Hospitals.
It is expected that in the course of the year, MRI machines will be installed at the Volta and Central Regional Hospitals.
Basic Obstetric equipment have also been supplied and installed in selected district hospitals and health centers across the country as part of efforts at reducing maternal mortality.
15 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 The National Ambulance Service will take delivery of 160 ambulances this year to augment the existing fleet.
Apart from health structures and equipments, we have established new Health Assistant Training Schools, Nurses Training Schools, as well as Midwifery schools in various parts of the country to train more health personnel.
Madam Speaker, with the help of the Cuban Government, 250 Ghanaian students will benefit from medical training in Cuba.
200 of them will study for their first degree in medicine while 50 of them will benefit from specialist training.
Government has also succeeded in reaching an agreement with the Cuban Government to increase the yearly medical personnel quota to Ghana from 200 to 300.
Guinea Worm Madam Speaker, The last guinea worm case in Ghana was reported in May 2010 at Diare in the Northern Region.
We have since not heard of any.
In 2012, we will intensify our disease surveillance to make sure that guinea worm is not re-introduced into Ghana and to also prepare Ghana for certification by the World Health Organization as a country free of guinea worm.
ROADS Madam Speaker, We continue to make strides in road infrastructural development.
Permit me to highlight a few: • As at January 2009, the Tetteh Quarshie-Madina road was about 30% complete.
At the moment it is about 80% complete.
• As at January 2009, funds were still being mobilized for the Madina-Pantang road.
This road is now about 45% complete.
• The Achimota-Ofankor road is now over 80% complete • The Koforidua bypass has been completed and is in use so has the Kumasi- Techiman road 16 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 • The Nsawam bypass, the Nkawkaw bypass, the Oforikrom-Asokwa bypass, the first phase of the Sogakope-Adidome-Ho-Fume and the Bamboi-Tinga road are all nearing completion.
• Reconstruction of the Asikuma Junction-Hohoe road, the 147 kilometre Fulfulso-Sawla road, the 60-kilometre Assin Praso-Bekwai road, the Dodi Papaso-Nkwanta road and the Nkwanta-Oti Damanko road is on course.
Interestingly, on one of my working visits to a road construction project, one happy resident remarked “wompewei, nawope den”!
SECURITY, LAW AND ORDER Madam Speaker, Because 2012 is an election year, it goes without saying that our security institutions must be in a state of readiness to ensure peace and calm before, during, and after the elections.
The Police, Military and other institutions charged with law enforcement will have the fullest support of Government to act decisively and fairly.
Our commitment to ensure the safety of Ghanaians is as strong as ever.
Over the past years there has been a reduction in major crimes such as armed robbery, car snatching, highway robbery, narcotics and murder and the law enforcement agents are under strict instructions to sustain the arrest of narcotic traffickers and their collaborators.
The Police Madam Speaker, We have increased the strength of the Police Service by over 4,000 and at the same time taken steps to modernize its forensic facilities to assist in crime prevention and detection.
A large quantity of vehicles, communication gadgets, bulletproof vests have been provided to boost operational efficiency of the Police.
17 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 Immigration Madam Speaker, The Ghana Immigration Service is expected to complete installation of Digital Border Surveillance System at strategically selected Border control points.
This around-the-clock monitoring equipment seeks to enhance border security especially in the face of new sub-regional threats of religious and ethnic nature.
The Military Madam Speaker, The Ghana Armed Forces, in the last three years, is not in the near-moribund state it used to be before January 2009.
A lot of acquisition has been made in equipment and hardware for the Navy and the Air Force.
We will leave no stone unturned in our effort to develop a credible defence system capable of protecting our Oil and Gas Industry and our territorial integrity as a whole.
Last year, I made the point that the 48 Engineer Regiment will once again be mainstreamed into the area of road construction and I must say that I am very much impressed with the good job the Regiment is doing thus far.
Ayekoo to them!
Prisons Service Madam Speaker, This Administration last year commissioned a new medium security prison at Ankaful; the biggest in West Africa.
Under phase two, the Ankaful prison is expected to be a model prison which will compare with any worldwide.
The Service is also being provided with the needed logistics and manpower resources to make it more efficient.
Fire Service Madam Speaker, 18 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 Last year alone, the Service took delivery of 152 new vehicles to enhance operations.
The scourge of fire outbreaks and resultant loss of lives and property remain a source of grave concern and we are determined to reduce it to the barest minimum.
As a way of building capacity, a number of officers and men last year received training in the, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Belgium.
It goes without saying however that there is a need to enforce safety regulations and standards and I expect the Fire Service to be fearless in that respect.
GOVERNANCE Foreign Policy Madam Speaker, Continued protection of the nation’s land and maritime resources and ensuring good neighbourliness between Ghana and her neighbours is of priority to this Administration.
Ghana is a country with an impressive track record on fostering international peace and we will stay on that path.
This administration will conduct our foreign relations on the basis of national respect and good neighbourliness.
We believe in using the tools of diplomacy and existing bilateral and multilateral structures in resolving questions of boundary disputes.
To this end, I have tasked the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to coordinate the activities of the Ghana Boundary Commission in pursuit of delineating the outer limits of the continental shelf of Ghana beyond 200 nautical miles (M) which is currently at the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
I have also instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to intensify its activities in ensuring the security and welfare of our many countrymen/women and youth all over the world.
We have consular and moral responsibility for them all.
19 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 Youth and Sports Madam Speaker, On the youth front; through the Better Ghana Caravan Project we are focusing on activities in the priority areas of employable skills, Youth Health and Sexuality education, drug use and substance abuse education, conflict prevention, management and resolution.
In sports, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) which had suspended the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC) lifted the ban last August paving the way for Ghana’s participation in the upcoming London 2012 Olympic Games.
Ghana is to play host to the second ECOWAS Games in June this year.
At the 10 th All Africa Games held in Maputo, Mozambique in September last year, Team Ghana put up the best performance ever by winning 19 medals.
The National U-23 male football team and their U-20 female counterparts won gold and silver respectively at the Games.
On behalf of the people of Ghana, I once again congratulate our gallant sportsmen and women on their fine achievements In the course of last year, the Senior National Football team, the Black Stars was rated 14 th in the FIFA world ranking and 1 st in Africa.
That has so far been Ghana’s best ranking in world football.
The Black Stars did not lift the African Cup as anticipated; better luck to all of us next time.
Parliament Madam Speaker, I am assured that the Job 600 project will surely be completed this year and ready for your occupation next year.
I am confident that I will be the first President to address you at a time when you will be working from the comfort of your new offices.
This year, I hope to work with Honourable members to review three initiatives that I announced will be instituted in the course of my Presidency.
20 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 These are the assignment of National Service personnel as Research Assistants to MPs; the construction of constituency duty offices for Honourable members; and the establishment of an MPs’ Constituency Development Fund separate and apart from the District Assemblies Common Fund.
Together, we will work to find solutions to the challenges that have impacted negatively on the agenda of the Executive and the Legislature to work in tandem to broaden the frontiers of our democratic dispensation.
Constitutional Review Commission Madam Speaker, Last year, I noted in my address that the work of the Constitutional Review Commission was on schedule.
I also noted that all governance reforms must ultimately take their ethos from the Constitution Review Process.
I still stand by this Resolve!
I am happy to report that the Commission has since presented its Report to me ahead of schedule and I have identified a Technical Implementation Committee to assist Cabinet develop the white paper and begin with the implementation of the recommendations without delay.
Madam Speaker, I hope that this House will join me in thanking the Chairman and members of Commission for a job well done.
Corruption Madam Speaker, Let me state here and now that I remain undaunted by attempts to thwart the fight against corruption by legal and technical means.
I do not care whose ox is gored when it comes to the fight against corruption and neither will I be off-tracked by all the sideline comments that are being made to befuddle the hardcore issues.
The “Cocaine” Commission Madam Speaker, The fate of the abortive Ghana@50 Commission prosecutions stayed my hand in going the route of appointing a Presidential Commission to re-open 21 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 investigations into the disappearance of cocaine from the Police vault as well as the 77 parcels of cocaine that got mysteriously missing from the MV Benjamin that I announced in my Address last year.
We have since identified what went wrong with the Ghana@50 Commission and we will address it and definitely begin the cocaine investigations this year.
Indeed, as I speak, the National Security has in its custody a very key player in the case of the 77 parcels of supposedly missing cocaine.
I have also received a report from the BNI on the results of the investigations into the cocaine which got missing from police vaults.
I intend to get to the bottom of the matter, and I will!!!
Under my watch, Ghana will continue to be an unattractive destination for the illicit drug trade and I feel no pain for those who are no longer benefiting from the trade.
Justice Madam Speaker, In many of these matters that reflect negatively on governance, the Judiciary as the institution of state with the mandate to dispense justice, and the Executive with the mandate to implement the law, must act as partners engaged in a collective effort to rid the country of corruption, drugs and other harmful activities.
Any perception that the Judiciary is on the side of wrongdoers undermines democracy and the institutions of democracy.
Whilst urging our Honourable Justices to live up to their noble calling of independent arbiters, I would also like to remind them that they are an arm of government and that they have as much responsibility as the other arms of government in ridding the society of criminal elements, thereby ensuring justice for the citizenry and other persons.
The 2012 Elections Madam Speaker, There are four critical matters that should engage our attention in this Election Year.
22 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 The first is the Judiciary’s role in the settlement of election disputes.
The ability of the judiciary to settle election disputes expeditiously will be a big plus for the forward march of our democracy.
The second matter is the role of the media in the elections.
Polarized or not; aligned or not; biased or not; the Ghanaian media has a responsibility to work to preserve Ghana’s democracy.
Speaking for myself, I have confidence in the ability of my brothers and sisters in the media to rise to the occasion.
On the perception of polarization, alignment and bias, however, the media has to speak for itself through its deeds.
The third matter has to do with the state of industrial relations in an election year.
It is often the case that in election years, labour demands escalate to such an extent that they do not only create industrial tension but also ultimately prove economically very costly to the nation.
My appeal to the tripartite partners in labour negotiations this year is for them to have an eye on the national interest and to ensure that they create the kind of labour environment that will engender peaceful elections and post-election stability in the country.
The fourth is in relation to chieftaincy disputes and ethnic conflict.
We have had our fair share of these problems in parts of the country.
In some instances they have resulted in loss of lives and destruction to property.
The Security Services have been tasked to be proactive in dealing with those who for reasons of political expediency may want to escalate chieftaincy or ethnic tensions.
Madam Speaker, Whatever be the case, we expect this year’s elections to be free and fair, free from fear, transparent and with the results acceptable to and accepted by all.
We as Government will do all in our power to support the Electoral Commission to ensure these.
And whatever the security challenges we will not be found wanting.
23 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 The sovereign will of the people will reign supreme!
Conclusion Madam Speaker, I have always preached peace and I am happy the leadership of political parties are responding to the clarion call I have sounded over the years.
I am also glad that those who did not see the need to pray for peace are now praying for peace.
I hope however that we show proof of genuine commitment to peace by our utterances and actions.
Let us all remember that the stability we enjoy as a country can turn instantly to brittleness if we fail to be circumspect and if we fail to hold in check those who may want to hold the country to ransom.
Madam Speaker, This Government is intent on continuing with the pace of development right until the election period.
It is true that we will have to campaign at some point in time but I promise you this will not be at the expense of pushing the Better Ghana Agenda.
We will also not sacrifice the gains we have made on the economic front on the altar of election year politics.
Ghana must grow; and Ghana will only grow if we take bold and courageous decisions!
Madam Speaker, Our common yearning to see Ghana moving forward binds us as one people.
Even as we seek to promote our respective political ideologies, we must be willing to synthesize the best ideas from both sides of the House for the advancement of the country.
We must all be willing to put aside unnecessary partisanship and keep in mind the big picture of how to sustain together our middle-income status through sustainable economic development.
24 | S t a t e o f t h e N a t i o n A d d r e s s 2 0 1 2 That will be the multi-party democracy dividend for which we all continue to toil in the name of Mother Ghana.
Madam Speaker, Many Honourable Members of the House have been through a hectic period of campaigning towards Constituency primaries.
Whether you won or lost, you remain MPs and I will treasure your input at all times.
Do not forget there is still a lot of work to be done here in the House.
I wish Members on both sides a fruitful session and may all that we do help in building a Better Ghana.
Let us always bear in mind that as a people, we have much more common ground than we make it seem.
Therefore let us build on the things that unite us.
Madam Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity granted me, and look forward with a lot of optimism to being back here in this august house next year to deliver the State of the Nation Address.
1 MESSAGE ON THE STATE OF THE NATION BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC, NANA ADDO DANKWA AKUFO-ADDO, ON TUESDAY, 27TH FEBRUARY 2024, AT PARLIAMENT HOUSE, ACCRA.
It is always exhilarating to be back in Parliament, and to discharge the duty, in fulfillment of Article 67 of the Constitution, of delivering to the House a Message on the State of the Nation on this occasion for the penultimate time.
Speaker, Alice Adjua Yornas, Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, and Justices of the Supreme Court, Chairperson Nana Otuo Siriboe II, and Members of the Council of State, the new Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General Thomas Oppong- Peprah, the Inspector General of Police, Dr.
George Akuffo Dampare, and Service Chiefs, are all present, as are the Dean and Members of the Diplomatic Corps.
Speaker, the House is duly honoured by the welcome attendance of the former President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, and former First Lady, Her Excellency Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings.
Mr Speaker, I am glad to be able to report that the entire territory that makes up our nation is safe, secure and under the control of the government and people of Ghana.
This might sound like a pedestrian statement with which to start a Message on the State of the Nation.
Unfortunately, far from it being an everyday truism, this is no longer a statement or claim that can be easily made in these times in the neighbourhood in which we are.
West Africa is under threat of terrorism and violent extremism, rapidly spreading southwards from the Sahel to coastal West Africa.
We can no longer take the territorial integrity of our countries for granted.
Indeed, many of our neighbours have already fallen victim, and lost large portions of their territories to extremist groups, and Ghana, by the grace 2 of the Almighty, is the only coastal state along the Gulf of Guinea that has so far not recorded a terrorist attack.
Mr Speaker, the peace and security we have in our country has not happened by chance.
It has taken deliberate policy and planning on the part of Government, and a lot of hard work and dedication on the part of our security services to keep our country safe and secure.
I might add that it has also meant we have had to spend a lot of money that would otherwise have been available to spend on many of our development needs.
But I believe we are all agreed that the primary responsibility of the state towards its citizens is to provide and guarantee peace and security, and we are doing just that.
Since we came into office, we have ensured a significant expansion of the Armed Forces and all the other security agencies.
We are paying diligent attention to their welfare as well.
The accommodation and physical environment generally of the security agencies are being improved.
We have quickened the pace of the retooling and equipping of the security agencies to ensure readiness towards the emerging security threats.
For the majority of us and our everyday activities, it is the security of our streets and homes and communities that concern us most.
We want our children and grandchildren to grow up in a safe atmosphere, and the Ghana Police Service play the lead role in this.
Again, Government has performed most creditably.
They are much better equipped than they have ever been, and their increased visibility on the streets goes a long way to reassure the community.
The changing image of the Police is, perhaps, best exemplified by the dramatic facelift they have given to the frontage of the Police Headquarters on the Ring Road in Accra.
It is beautiful, and I recommend it to all institutions and, indeed, households.
Whilst we are spending money, time, energy and lives keeping the country safe from external dangers, I must add that it is a matter of great concern that we continue to have so many chieftaincy and land disputes around the country, which tend to be breeding grounds for internal tensions and destabilisation.
Mr Speaker, I must make special mention of the troubles in Bawku.
The tragedy is not only that a thriving and dynamic town is being reduced to a wasteland of destruction and distrust, we are spending money and 3 energy that would have been better spent on development needs of Bawku, providing security to keep brothers and sisters from killing each other.
Mr Speaker, what should concern all of us and not just the people of Bawku is that, in its current state, Bawku is an alluring magnet to mischief makers and extremists operating a few kilometres across from the border.
In the bid to find a lasting solution to the conflict, Government has, in the past year, undertaken a number of measures, including the establishment of a special Bawku Taskforce, and the intensification of engagements with the factions for the resolution of the chieftaincy dispute.
On the recommendation of the Upper East Regional and National Security Councils, four (4) radio stations, that have been broadcasting incendiary language and propagating hate speech, have been shut down by the National Communications Authority.
The Chief Justice has also recently established specialised Courts in Accra and in Kumasi to deal expeditiously with criminal matters emanating from the Bawku conflict.
Government is determined to do all it can to ensure there is security in every inch of the territory of our country, but it also is very much up to the citizens to help create the needed atmosphere, and I am, thus, appealing to all citizens to take the See Something, Say Something campaign of the Ministry of National Security very seriously.
There is, indeed, Mr Speaker, a state of palpable anxiety and tension in every corner of West Africa, raising the spectre of regional instability, which we thought had been banished.
Unconstitutional changes in Government in parts of Africa, especially in West Africa, through a series of coup d’états and military interventions in governance, testify to an unfortunate democratic regression in the Region.
It is in the interest of democratic growth that this development is reversed as soon as possible, and we, in Ghana, continue to give maximum support to ECOWAS, the regional body of West Africa, and the African Union, Africa’s continental organisation, in their efforts to restore democratic institutions in the affected nations.
We must help stem the tide of this unwelcome evolution, and help entrench democracy in West Africa.
We believe also that a reform of the global governance architecture, such as the Security Council of the United Nations, to make it more representative and accountable, will help strengthen global peace and stability, and, thereby, help consolidate democratic rule in the world.
4 Mr Speaker, we in Ghana have had our fair share of political instability and experimentation about how we should govern ourselves.
There might be new names being ascribed to some of the supposed new ideas being canvassed by some today, but I daresay, on close examination, we would discover they are not new, we have tried them here, and they have failed.