general news
MASLOC to disburse funds through electronic system
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The Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), is considering the introduction of an electronic system for the disbursement of funds.
This is to help reduce the difficulties associated with the current manual system where beneficiaries had to spend long periods before they can access loans.Â
The acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MASLOC, Mrs Sedina Christine Tamakloe Attionu, made this known during a familiarisation visit to the Ashanti Region to acquaint herself with progress of work there.
Currently, disbursement of funds is done in two categories. One involves individual loans where cheques are issued directly to individuals.
There is also a group loan where the leader of a group of 25 members is responsible for sharing funds to each member at a meeting place.
Mrs Attionu, however, believed the system was beset with so many problems that could be avoided by the electronic disbursement system.
On the challenges associated with the recovery of loans, she said steps had been taken to address the bottlenecks.
She said loans taken from MASLOC were revolving funds and advised all beneficiaries to endeavour to pay back for other needy people in the country to benefit.
Accompanied by the Ashanti Regional Manager of MASLOC, Mr Isaac Dekiayie and other MASLOC officials, the CEO visited the Atonsu Dompoase M/A Cluster of Schools to interact with two caterers who benefited from the intervention.
The caterers, Mrs Lydia Norshie and Vida Donkor, said they had each been feeding 313 pupils at the Dompoase M/A Primary B and Dompoase M/A KG, respectively, under the school feeding programme.
They said having benefited from the loan for six months, they were motivated to use the funds profitably and pay back for others to also benefit and advised all beneficiaries to do same.
At Ejisu Besease, a Poultry Farmer, Ms Lydia Asare, also a beneficiary, told the CEO that she took a loan of GH¢8,000 to support her project and said it was currently producing 1,500 chicken and 25 crates of eggs every day.
The CEO and her team also paid courtesy calls on the Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr Eric Opoku and the Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, Mr Kojo Bonsu.
She appealed to the Ashanti Regional Co-ordinating Council and the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly to help MASLOC to acquire a parcel of land to set up a regional office to assist in its operations.
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general news
Ending violence in militarised homes, communities and nations
Although the home is supposed to be a safe haven for all those living in it, the lived experiences of inhabitants of some homes indicate a pathetic picture.
The current reality is that some homes are under siege from gender-based violence. Not a single day passes without Ghanaians being inundated with stories of children, women and some men devastated by violence in the media.Â
The last three years had seen rising cases of reported spousal murders. Several gory newspaper headlines had gripped Ghanaians with awe in the past. A few examples will suffice: “60-year-old driver kills wifeâ€; “60-year-old farmer arrested for killing wifeâ€; “Man sets lover ablaze, ends up burning to deathâ€; “Farmer chops off wife’s armsâ€; and “Man beheads girlfriendâ€.Â
In 2011, most Ghanaians woke up to the painful experience of a house-help accused of conniving with armed robbers to attack her benefactor’s residence.Â
Combatants at the battlefield even do not suffer the multiple injuries this poor house-help suffered. But the shocking reality is that these headlines constitute a tip of the iceberg! Most incidents of violence against women and children go unreported!
Global Trend
Globally, statistics on violence against women (VAW) show that one in every three women has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime; between 30 per cent and 60 per cent of ever-partnered women have experienced physical or sexual violence or both by an intimate partner, and according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), between seven per cent and 48 per cent of girls and young women  aged 10-24  report their first sexual encounter as coerced.
VAW in GhanaÂ
A 1998 study on violence against women in Ghana put the prevalence of violence against women at par with the universal trend. Â This means one in every three Ghanaian women has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime.Â
These figures are buttressed by the yearly regional compilation from the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service, which indicates that violence against women is still unacceptably high.
It is clear from the above statistics that some Ghanaian homes are under siege. The fate of victims/survivors who find themselves in such homes is even compounded.Â
Adressing militarismÂ
Militarism is a belief that constructs a culture of fear and supports the use of violence, aggression or military interventions for settling disputes and enforcing economic and political interests.Â
As a mindset, it has deleterious costs for the true safety and security of women and of society as a whole. Militaristic thinking creates otherness and privileges violence as an effective way to solve problems. When militarism is not challenged, it perpetuates hierarchies of power and grants impunity to perpetrators of violence against women.Â
Addressing militaristic ways of thinking encourages more varied and nuanced ideas about genuine security, promotes inclusiveness for example bringing more women into public life, creates a world built not on the competitive sale of weapons, but on authentic relations of trust and cooperation.
It is therefore imperative to address militaristic beliefs in all of our societies – homes, communities and the nation as a whole. It is erroneous to think of militarism only in the context of war. Ghana may play ostrich by believing it is an oasis of peace in a desert of conflicts. Let’s hope it is not a mirage! Militarism neither ends nor begins in war zones, nor does it confine itself to the public sphere.
The families of militarised men and women may experience violence in their homes where ‘war crimes’ and armed domestic violence are hidden from public view.Â
Is Ghana militarised?
Responses to this question may differ in proportion to the different shades of political opinion we have in this country. Nevertheless, after all is said and done, it is the lived experiences of people that matter.Â
Have we, for once, wondered how people live within the domestic setting of armed robbers, belligerent security officers, gun-wielding political activists and chiefs with gun-protected skins and stools?
As we search for answers, maybe we may come to appreciate the rationale for the international theme for the 2013 16 Days Campaign  “From Peace in the Home to Peace in the World: Let’s Challenge Militarism and End Violence Against Womenâ€, and why the local theme’s focus on “Working with Men and Boys to End Violence in our Homes†is apt.Â
general news
Ruut Extra supports National Farmers Day
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Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited (GGBL), producers of Ruut Extra Premium Beer, Ghana’s first cassava beer, has presented a sponsorship package of GH¢27,500 to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture towards the organisation of the 2013 National Farmers Day.
Solange Kuimo, Marketing Manager of Innovation – GGBL, revealed that the package included three tricycles, each to be awarded to the Best National Cassava Farmer, Best Regional Cassava Farmer and Best District Cassava Farmer.
“In addition, the National Best Farmer will receive a monthly donation of two crates of Ruut Extra Beer for six months; the Best Fisherman will also receive a monthly donation of two crates of Ruut Extra Beer for six months. All 70 winners from the different categories will also receive three crates and branded shirts each of Ruut Extra Beer.Â
Over 200 crates of GGBL’s assorted drinks, including Alvaro and Malta Guinness, have also been presented to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to refresh farmers and dignitaries at the event,†Solange added.
Preba Greenstreet, Corporate Relations Director, said “GGBL has been investing in local raw material sourcing for more than a decade working in partnership with local farmers, key government ministries and agencies, as well as researchers to help develop sustainable local raw materials for production. We are proud to recognise and support our farmers as we celebrate this year’s National Farmers Day.Â
Ruut Extra Premium Beer was introduced in December 2012 to provide Ghanaian consumers a drinking experience that would enable them to demonstrate their national pride with a beer derived from our own soil. Since its introduction, Ruut Beer has been adored by many Ghanaians and adjudged the ‘Emerging Brand of the Year 2012’ by the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG), a testament to the quality and impact it is making in local farming communities.
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