Monthly Archives: February 2024

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Vanuatu trade Commissioner to Ghana meets H.E President Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo Implementation of ECO-6 Lumi Currency.

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A 12-member delegation from the Vanuatu Trade Commission led by H.E. Amb. Professor Hugh Keku Aryee, Vanuatu Trade Commissioner to Ghana, has met with H.E. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to start discussions on the implementation of the ECO-6 Lumi currency in Ghana.

The meeting among other things was to upraise the President on the buy in by some Africa countries which have already triggered processes to facilitate use of the currency, the huge opportunity for Ghana, businesses and critical institutions which can tap into a pool of AKL 105 billion Lumi equivalent to six trillion dollars already been injected into the African economy by the African Diaspora Central Bank (ADCB).

In his welcome address, the Executive Secretary to the President, Nana Asante Bediatuo, welcomed the team and assured the delegation of President Akufo Addo’s interest in the project.

His Excellency Professor Hugh Keku Aryee, in his remarks, after introducing his delegation, recalled a previous encounter with the President during the latter’s tenure as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration over two decades ago, and expressed his excitement to reconnect with him again, but now as the President of the Republic of Ghana.

H.E Hugh Keku Aryee officially informed President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo of his historic appointment as the first Ghanaian Trade Commissioner of the Republic of Vanuatu, with an additional responsibility over the West African sub-region.  He explained that the Commission’s mandate is to promote trade, tourism, and investments as outlined in the credentials presented to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.

H.E Prof. Hugh Aryee also briefed the President about his earlier engagements with key Ghanaian government officials which included visits to the Speaker of Parliament, Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ministry of Arts and Culture, and the Ministry of Fisheries. In outlining the focus of the visit, the Vanuatu Trade Commissioner intimated the need for speedy introduction and implementation of the ECO-6 and Lumi in Ghana.

Congratulating the Trade Commissioner on his appointment and enthusiasm, Ghana’s President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, expressed optimism about improved bilateral relationship for mutual economic benefits despite Vanuatu location, far away in in the South-western Pacific Ocean,

The President gave an insightful knowledge and appreciation of the inspiration behind the new Africa and African Diaspora currency when he shared the connections between the image on the currency and Ghana.

President Akufo-Addo noted with interest that, the “ACCOMPONG “on the Lumi currency with the inscription “Bank of Accompong, was the corrupt version of the name Acheampong, a Ghanaian name. He recounted his visit to the Maroons in Jamaica, then as Foreign Affairs Minister years back emphasizing that said the Maroons are Ghanaians who migrated to Jamaica.

Narrating his experience, he recounted his visit to their settlements high up in the mountains, where they found refuge from being captured into the slave trade. He also revealed that the late ex-President Jerry John Rawlings was the first Ghanaian to visit the Maroons of Jamaica.

The two sides agreed that since Ghana has signed and ratified the treaty that initiated the ECO-6 Lumi, the country must benefit from it, especially, at a time, the nation is under the present economic challenges. He subsequently requested for a formal communication be subsequently sent to his office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Regional Integration for further deliberations and action.

On behalf of the President of the Republic of Vanuatu, the Trade Commissioner presented a specially customised portrait, containing the pictures of the President of Vanuatu and Ghana and which also featured some tourist’s attraction sites of Vanuatu, to His Excellency, the President of Ghana, to cement the new friendship between the two countries.

The delegation from the Vanuatu Trade Commission included Christian Aryee (Special Assistant to the Commissioner), Asiwome Kwame Dzineku (Head of Business Development & Trade Promotion), Belinda Ewoenam Nyamadi (Executive Secretary), Senyo Kofi Ayayee (Head of Marketing), Neo-Nayer Adam-Tandoh (Multimedia Officer), Dr. Moses Okine (Director of Public Affairs), Dr. David King Boison (Project Team Lead & Head of IT), Raymond Ablorh (Head of Communications), Daniel Glover (Marketing & Business  Development Consultant), and Bright Amu ESQ (Legal Advisor).

 

WHAT IS ECO-6

The Economic Community of States, Territories, and Realms of the African Diaspora Sixth Region (ECO-6) was established by Treaty on August 1st, 2019.  The Treaty signed and ratified by African Union; AU countries obligates them to implement the ECO-6 Lumi currency. ECO-6 and State of Africa Diaspora (SOAD) adopted the Lumi as the official currency of ECO-6.

The Lumi, as a currency originated from the 6th region representing Africans in the Diaspora of the African Union and is designed to provide stimulus packages to collaborative governments for developmental purposes.

The LUMI is underwritten by 100KWh of solar energy and convertible to 4 grains of gold which in weight is equivalent to 0.2592grams. The current value for 1 LUMI is US$15.96. The Lumi currency implementation process promises to strengthen Africa and African diasporan economies through the injection of stimulus packages to governments, businesses, and citizens of 18 years and above.

Countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, and other members of Africa and Africa diaspora have started benefiting from the Lumi (AKL) with over $6.6 trillion equivalent to the USD introduced into 194 countries since 2019.

Individuals and organizations in ccountries such as Ghana, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Liberia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, and many other nations have received various stimulus packages since its implementation.

 

 

 

Sports

Conor Bradley stars as leaders Liverpool thrash Chelsea.

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Liverpool retained their advantage at the top of the Premier League table with a dominant 4-1 win over Chelsea at Anfield.

Diogo Jota opened the scoring with a solo effort before Conor Bradley scored his first senior goal for Liverpool to leave Chelsea behind at the break for the first time in the Premier League this season.

Darwin Nunez hit the post with a penalty before the half was over, one of four occasions on which he struck the woodwork – the most on record in a Premier League game.

Jurgen Klopp did not have to wait long to see his side make it three in his first Premier League game since announcing his decision to leave at the end of the season, Dominic Szoboszlai heading in midway through the second half.

Christopher Nkunku pulled one back for Mauricio Pochettino’s side and was very unlucky not to be awarded a penalty soon after but Luis Diaz ended any hope of a comeback with the fourth.

The Blues had not even mustered a shot when Bradley added a second. Diaz slid him in down the right channel but the young full-back, having got the run on Raheem Sterling, had plenty left to do. His finish was perfect, beyond Petrovic and into the far corner.

If only Nunez was so accurate. It was another boisterous performance by the Uruguayan forward – everything but the goal. When Jota was caught by Badiashile inside the box, Nunez had the chance to make it three but struck the upright instead.

Pochettino made a triple substitution for the second half and it almost paid off instantly when two of the new arrivals combined. Malo Gusto crossed into the path of Mykhailo Mudryk but the winger’s finish was all wrong, stabbing the ball well over the bar.

It was against the run of play because Liverpool did not relent in their pursuit of goals, Nunez racking up the shots. But it was Szoboszlai who found the third, nodding in from close range to convert Bradley’s right-wing cross. The youngster received an ovation when subbed.

Nkunku, the third of the half-time substitutes, found space and a nice finish to score and should surely have won a penalty when Van Dijk kicked his standing foot inside the area but VAR failed to intervene. When Diaz converted Nunez’s cross, Liverpool had it won.

It ends a run of seven consecutive draws between these teams, four of them goalless, and is ominous for Chelsea ahead of that Wembley meeting. With Liverpool still unbeaten at Anfield this season, their form is ominous for their Premier League title rivals too.

 

 

Source : skysports

Sports

Spurs leapfrog Villa with epic turnaround win over Brentford.

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Tottenham Hotspur completed an epic second-half turnaround to beat Brentford 3-2 and leapfrog Aston Villa into fourth place.

Trailing 1-0 at the break to Neal Maupay’s goal, Spurs scored three times in eight minutes after an inspired double substitution during the interval by Ange Postecoglou.

Spurs began the match with a new lease on life, as James Maddison started his first Premier League match since facing Chelsea in November. 

However, against the run of play Brentford took the lead from a quick break in the 15th minute.

Moments after Mads Roerslev had a goal ruled out for offisde, Ivan Toney beat the offside trap and saw a shot saved by Guglielmo Vicario, but the rebound fell to Maupay to bundle in.

Brentford continued to threaten on the counter-attack and at half-time Spurs head coach Postecoglou reacted by replacing Oliver Skipp and Rodrigo Bentancur with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Brennan Johnson. 

Just three minutes after the restart, Destiny Udogie, who was at fault for giving the ball away for Brentford’s opener, ran into the box and levelled the match.

Just over a minute later Johnson finished a low cross to the far post by Timo Werner, who set up his second goal since signing for Spurs this January.

And in the 56th minute it was 3-1, Richarlison meeting a loose ball in the box and scoring his seventh goal in as many matches.

After dragging a big chance wide of a post, Toney pulled a goal back, punishing another Udogie mistake. The Spurs left-back did not spot his opponent and inadvertently passed straight to Toney, who smashed in from close range for his second goal in as many matches since returning from an eight-month suspension.

In stoppage time, substitute Shandon Baptiste nearly rescued a point for Brentford, but Vicario tipped his effort over the bar.

Spurs move on to 43 points, level with Aston Villa but above them on goals scored. Brentford are 15th, with 22 points, four above the relegation zone.

 

Source : premierleague.com

Sports

Alvarez’s brace sends Man City second with win over Burnley.

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Julian Alvarez celebrated his 24th birthday with two goals to help Manchester City to a 3-1 win over Burnley.

Kevin De Bruyne captained the side, grabbing an assist on his first league start since August, while Erling Haaland came off the bench for his first appearance since 6 December, as City extended their unbeaten Premier League run to six matches, winning five.

here was a warm reception for Burnley manager Vincent Kompany, a former title-winning captain at Man City and club legend who has a statue in his honour outside the Etihad Stadium.

But Kompany watched his side fall behind after only 16 minutes, when Alvarez produced a close-range header from Matheus Nunes’s dinked cross.

Six minutes later, Alvarez added his second. De Bruyne’s clever pass from a free-kick caught the Burnley defence off-guard and allowed the striker to clip his effort over the advancing James Trafford.

In setting up City’s second goal, De Bruyne claimed his 104th assist in the competition to move above Wayne Rooney and go third in the all-time chart.

Burnley responded well and almost pulled one back just before the break, but Lyle Foster curled his effort narrowly wide of a post.

City started the second half far stronger than they did the first and were rewarded with a third goal just 24 seconds after the restart, as Phil Foden cut the ball back to Rodri on the edge of the area and he fired into the bottom corner.

There was a standing ovation on 69 minutes for Haaland, who came on in place of De Bruyne, and the Norwegian missed two chances late on.

Burnley grabbed a consolation goal in the third minute of stoppage time, when David Datro Fofana darted to the byline and pulled a low cross back for Ameen Al Dakhil to bundle in his first Premier League goal.

The result moves City on to 46 points, the same total as Arsenal, whom they are above on goal difference. Liverpool’s win over Chelsea means City remain five points off the leaders.

Burnley remain 19th, on 12 points, seven from safety.

 

Source : premierleague.com

Showbiz

Actor Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to new involuntary manslaughter charge over Halyna Hutchins’s Rust shooting

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Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter over the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Ms Hutchins was shot dead on the set of Rust, a forthcoming Western filmed near Santa Fe in New Mexico in October 2021.

Mr Baldwin, 65, had been practicing firing a pistol for a scene.

Similar charges were dropped in April, just two weeks before he was due to go on trial, but New Mexico prosecutors say there is new forensic evidence.

The actor entered the not guilty plea in a court filing on Wednesday, a day before a scheduled virtual court appearance in a Santa Fe court, which will now not take place.

He was charged on 19 January in New Mexico after local prosecutors said “additional facts” had emerged from forensic tests on the weapon used in the shooting, in which director Joel Souza was also wounded.

Mr Baldwin has maintained he did not pull the trigger of the Colt .45 pistol and only drew back its hammer.

He has also argued he is not at fault for Ms Hutchins’ death because he did not know the weapon contained live rounds and because no live ammunition was supposed to be on set.

But special prosecutors in New Mexico said in October that they had commissioned forensic experts to reconstruct the weapon, after it had been broken during FBI testing.

They said doing so had revealed that the incident could only have taken place if the trigger had been pulled.

“Although Alec Baldwin repeatedly denies pulling the trigger, given the tests, findings and observations reported here, the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently to release the fully cocked or retracted hammer of the evidence revolver,” their report concluded.

The actor – who has expressed “shock and sadness” at Ms Hutchins’ death – said in recent court filings that he had struggled to find acting work since the incident.

When prosecutors dropped involuntary manslaughter charges in April they warned that they could be refiled as investigations continued.

 

Source :BBC

 

Foreign

Houthis claim to have hit US merchant ship in Red Sea.

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The Houthi movement in Yemen says it has struck a US merchant ship in the Red Sea in a fresh attack targeting commercial shipping.

It named the ship as the KOI, which it said was US-operated.

Maritime security firm Ambrey said a vessel operating south of Yemen’s port of Aden had reported an explosion on board but it did not name the ship.

Meanwhile, the US has launched new air strikes in Yemen, targeting 10 drones reportedly being set up to launch.

According to Reuters news agency, the KOI is a Liberian-flagged container ship operated by UK-based Oceonix Services. The same company’s fleet includes the oil tanker Marlin Luanda, which was damaged by a missile on Saturday.

The Houthis regard all Israeli, US and British ships as legitimate targets following Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza, and US and British targeting of Houthi missile positions in what the two countries say are efforts to protect commerce.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said on Wednesday that the movement’s armed forces had targeted an American merchant ship named KOI with “several appropriate naval missiles”.

The ship, he said, had been heading to “the ports of occupied Palestine”, a phrase which is sometimes used to mean Israel.

Yemen, he added, would “not hesitate” to retaliate against “British-American escalation”.

“All American and British ships in the Red and Arabian Seas are legitimate targets for the Yemeni Armed Forces as long as the American-British aggression against our country continues,” the Houthi spokesman said.

US Central Command said the 10 drones being prepared for launch in Yemen had posed a threat to merchant vessels and US warships in the region.

All 10 were destroyed along with a Houthi drone ground control station, it said.

The US added that one of its warships had shot down three Iranian drones and a Houthi anti-ship ballistic missile in the Gulf of Aden.

Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea have slowed down international trade, raising fears of supply bottlenecks.

On 7 October, hundreds of Palestinian gunmen from Gaza infiltrated southern Israel, where they killed around 1,300 people – mostly civilians – and took 250 others hostage.

Israel responded by launching a military campaign in Gaza, during which more than 26,900 people – most of them women and children – have been killed, according to the health ministry there which is controlled by the Hamas group.

 

 

Source :BBC