Palm-wine Taper jailed for stealing a sheep

Half-Assini (W/R), Oct. 6, GNA - Richard Nyarko, a 40-year-old palm wine taper of Ahobre, near Half-Assini, was on Monday jailed three months by a Half-Assini magistrate's court for stealing a sheep valued at about 150,000 cedis.

He pleaded guilty to the charge and asked the court to deal leniently with him.

Police Inspector Wisdom Boglo, prosecuting, told the court that in the early hours of September 28, this year, members of a neighbourhood watchdog committee on their patrolling duties spotted Nyarko with the sheep.

When he was confronted as to how he came by the animal, he could not give any tangible answer and was handed over to the police for further interrogation.

The following morning, Mr Robert Essien, a farmer of Ahobre went to the police station to report the loss of his sheep and identified the one found with the accused as his missing sheep.

Government is implementing aspects of Land Policy - Deputy Minister Accra, Oct. 6 GNA - Government has started implementing certain aspects of the Ghana Land Policy (GLP), which was launched in 1999. Madam Theresa Ameley Tagoe, Deputy Minister of Lands and Forestry, who announced this on Monday, said the 15-year Land Administration Policy (LAP) had been designed purposely to address the problems in land administration and delivery in the country.

The project, she said, had been divided into three phases. LAP One, the first phase, would cover five years.

Madam Tagoe was speaking when she received computers, printers, survey field bags, books and measuring tapes all valued at 200 million cedis from Geo-Tech Systems Limited, local representative of Swede Surveys.

The equipment is to support the Ministry to facilitate the production of adequate geo-information in form of maps and maps substitutes.

She said it was estimated that phase one of the scheme would cost 55 million dollars, part of which would be funded by the World Bank and other donor organisations.

She said the LAP one would strengthen the six main public land sector agencies, including the Survey Department.

She said under the capacity building process, the department would receive equipment, which includes, digital photogrammetric workstations, global position systems, computers and software for field processing and drawing.

Madam Tagoe also noted that there would be systematic training programmes for senior management, middle-level staff and technicians.

She said the training would take place at both local and foreign institutions, adding that the project would cover all the other public land sector agencies to provide a more efficient land administration system.

Mr Emmanuel Kwame Awornyor of GEOTECH said the donation was to help strengthen the Department's capacity to deliver. He said the Ministry benefited from the Swedish Training in Geo-Information Management for top management personnel almost every year and this was expected to increase in the coming years.