ECOWAS Business News

ECOWAS BUSINESS NEWS TALKING POINTS:* * INSIGHTS* : *Africans Must Resist Being Slaves to a Terror Construct* By E.K.Bensah Jr 21 January, 2019 As a West African familiar with terrorism attacks in the region since 2012, the prospect of terror chills me to the bone. I cannot imagine going about my normal business in a mall -- only to be caught in the web of a terrorist's dystopian construct. As a Ghanaian, terrorism is so close yet so far. So close is it because our porous borders (read ECOWAS free movement) means Boko Haram can cross borders easily and, possibly, hide in any country like Ghana with sleeper cells ready to launch anytime and anywhere. Conversely, it is so far, because to date, Ghana has not appeared to be on its immediate radar. Kenyans cannot say same about Al-Shabaab: it is clearly almost-always too close to call. The 15 January attacks are the third since the Westgate attacks in 2013. In Easter 2015, Garissa attacks united the East Africa Rising whatsapp group, r...

The United States Embassy has issued a security alert to Nigerians as the 2019 general elections draw closer. This comes after recent terrorist attacks in the Northern part of the country. In a statement, the US Embassy disclosed that terrorist groups, ISIS West Africa and Boko Haram plan to disrupt the upcoming presidential elections, although it has not received any specific threats. Read the full statement below: There is an increase in ISIS propaganda videos specifically directed to Nigeria and the ongoing civil unrest in Borno state and the Northeast. ISIS West Africa (ISWA) and Boko Haram have both stated they plan to disrupt the upcoming 2019 presidential elections by conducting attacks on Nigerian Security and infrastructure , as well as places of gathering such as markets, hotels, and malls. While we have no specific threat information to the U.S. Embassy or within Nigeria during the election season, U.S. citizens in Nigeria should remember to follow personal security pre...

Penplusbytes has followed the news of the killing of Ahmed Hussein-Suale , an investigative journalist with the Tiger Eye PI team, with a deep sense of sadness and regret at the unnecessary loss of life. Journalists have long been a key stakeholder in deepening democracy, bridging the information gap as well as more recently in the fight against corruption in all spheres of the Ghanaian society. In this direction, media houses continue to invest in resources, tools and technologies which will improve their work and bring light to issues ranging from enterprise to graft in local and international contexts. As these media houses have grown, the impact of their work has increased. Therefore to see one of these journalists' life cut short in such a brutal manner deserves condemnation from all. We, at Penplusbytes, join others in calling for thorough investigations into the killing, and for the perpetrators to be apprehended and made to face the full rigours of the law . We also urg...

Following the widely-attended public Forum on workplace justice that was held here in Accra last December, the Gender Centre for Empowering Development(GenCED) has made good on its advocacy on workplace justice with the operationalization of hotlines to help women address injustice at the workplace. Manned by GenCED staff, the hotlines are to enable women obtain legal redress in the event of either a termination of contract on grounds of pregnancy, or infraction of the labour law. The operationalization of the hotlines comes in the wake of a simultaneous launch of a social media strategy, entitled "#KnowTheLaw", which is to help victims of injustice at the workplace better-understand Ghana's Labour Law. GenCED has opened the year with a blitzkrieg of information about the said law that seeks to be as digestible and comprehensible to all. Supported by OSIWA, the Gender Centre for Empowering Development(GenCED) is on a mission to change the conversation around the workplace...