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Tag: Ashanti Regional Health Directorate

  • Thousands of Ghanaians stranded in Nigeria after being scammed – Report

    Thousands of Ghanaians stranded in Nigeria after being scammed – Report

    Thousands of Ghanaians have reportedly fallen prey to a travel scam and have been left stranded in Nigeria and Cameroun.

    According to a video report on Akoma FM’s Facebook page, the stranded Ghanaians were promised employment opportunities and visas to travel abroad in a scam which involved persons from both Ghana and Nigeria.

    The report added that some of the scammers were arrested on Friday, January 6, 2022, by the Ghana Police Service in Ejisu, a suburb of Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.

    One of the victims of the scam, a man, who spoke to Akoma FM, said that he was promised employment opportunities and a visa to travel abroad only to be left stranded in an uncompleted building in Nigeria.

    He said that he went to Lagos, Nigeria to meet the travel agents who were supposed to facilitate his travel after paying them with the help of his friend in France.

    “I am one of the victims who was stranded in Nigeria. I met the agent in Lagos who took me to a hotel where I spent 3 days.

    “The agent told me that I was supposed to have an interview and after the 3 days, he took me to a building in Lagos where I was to have the interview. At the office, I met some Ghanaians who presented themselves as security officers which gave me some confidence,” he said in Twi.

    The victim, however, added that in the course of the interview, he realised that he had been scammed when the interviewer started asking him unnecessary questions.

    The news report also showed when the police arrested at least six men in Ejisu who are alleged to be involved in the rip-off and a building in Nigeria where some of the victims of the scam were being kept.

  • Ashanti Regional Health Directorate steps up COVID-19 vaccination

    Efforts to clamp down on the COVID-19 pandemic are on course in the Ashanti Region.

    As part of these efforts the Ashanti Regional Health Directorate has stepped up stakeholder engagements to encourage the public to accept and participate in the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination exercise as the festive season approaches.

    The Directorate has been engaging traditional and religious leaders as a strategy to reach out to the larger population due to their leadership and influential roles in society.

    It has consequently met the Ashanti Regional House of Chiefs to solicit the support of the House in the ongoing National COVID-19 Vaccination exercise which is set to end on December 18,2022.

    Religious leaders drawn from both the Christian and Muslim communities have also been engaged on the importance of the vaccination exercise in fighting the disease.

    Ashanti Regional Health Directorate steps up COVID-19 vaccination  

    The stakeholder engagements, supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other partners form part of the social mobilisation drive to address vaccine hesitancy.

    The goal is to achieve herd immunity and also protect as many people as possible ahead of the yuletide to prevent another wave after the festivities.

    Dr. Emmanuel Tinkorang, the Regional Director of Health Services, at a meeting with religious leaders in Kumasi, reminded the participants that the fight is not over, and the engagement is necessary because the transmission of the disease is mainly through human-to-human activities which are most likely to increase during the yuletide.

    The trend of the disease, he indicated, showed that the country recorded a new wave every six months and called for a concerted effort to eliminate the disease completely.

    The Regional Director said the target of the Directorate is to achieve herd immunity by vaccinating at least 70 per cent of the population in the Region, disclosing that only 48 per cent had been fully vaccinated.

    He added that 68 per cent had taken the first dose and urged such people to voluntarily go for the second dose to ensure the target is achieved in the interest of public health.

    Dr. Tinkorang also advised organisers of public events during the festive season to insist on safety protocols as a civic responsibility towards the protection of lives.

    Madam Charity Nikoi, Social Behaviour Change Communication Specialist, UNICEF, underlined the need for the participants to lead the campaign as leaders for the collective good of society.

    She said vaccination is the surest way to protect oneself against COVID-19 and urged religious leaders to be ambassadors against vaccine hesitancy.

    Source: GNA

  • Parliamentary Committee expresses worry over low COVID-19 coverage in Ashanti region

    The Parliamentary Select Committee on Health has expressed concern about the low COVID-19 vaccination coverage in the Ashanti Region.

    According to the Regional Health Directorate, 70 percent of the total population of the region was targeted to be vaccinated.

    As of the 15th of this month, almost one-point-five million people, representing about 42 percent, had been fully vaccinated. 

    The concern was expressed during an interaction between the Select Committee and the Regional Health Directorate in Kumasi.

    The meeting between the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health and the Ashanti Regional Health Directorate was to see how best the COVID-19 vaccination coverage in the region could be scaled up. 62-point-7 percent of the population in the Ashanti Region has at least taken one dose of the COVID vaccine.

    According to the Health Directorate, Kumasi Metro has the highest COVID-19 vaccination coverage, while Kwabre East Municipality has the lowest.

    The Ashanti Regional Health Director, Dr. Emmanuel Tinkorang, called on the media to lead the advocacy to get people more vaccinated, particularly those who have not taken the second dose of the vaccine.

    The Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Health, Dr. Nana Yaw Afriyie, was not happy about the low vaccination coverage in the region, especially among the rural folk.

    The concern was expressed during an interaction between the Select Committee and the Regional Health Directorate in Kumasi.

    Source: gbconline.com

  • Ashanti Region recorded 174 maternal deaths in 2021 GHS

    According to the Ashanti Regional Health Directorate, the region experienced 174 maternal fatalities in 2021.

    Dr. Emmanuel Tenkorang, speaking to the media at the beginning of a campaign to combat maternal mortality, stated that the majority of these deaths are caused by unsafe abortion.

    “We lose our women through maternal deaths. Last year, Ashanti Region recorded 174 maternal deaths, which means we lost 174 women due to complications of pregnancy. Globally, about 5 to 10 percent of women die through unsafe abortions.”

    He described the situation as concerning and stated that the GHS is committed to bolstering safe abortion to save more lives.

    Global figures estimate that 5 to 10% of women die each year as a result of unsafe abortion, according to the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

    GHS will also aim to reduce the stigma connected with safe abortion, according to Emmanuel Tenkorang.

    He believes that raising awareness about safe abortion will inspire young people, in particular, to seek help in the event of unwanted pregnancies.

    “In Ghana, we want to strengthen safe abortion services and then do away with unsafe abortions. We need to work together to empower them to know what to do in an event of unwanted pregnancy. The campaign will educate and empower them on what to do in the case of an unwanted pregnancy.”

    Source: The Independent Ghana