Roland Affail Monney – GJA President
The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) last Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote matters bordering on nuclear energy.
The MoU has become necessary to the originators of the deal following the activation of matters related to nuclear energy and how these can impact positively on our industrial development. The collaboration will create a platform for the media in Ghana to manage public information in relation to the subject.
At the African Regency Hotel in Accra, officials of the nuclear energy-related agencies, some of them recently established, and representatives of the GJA engaged in exchange of ideas. This was after presentations by the renowned scientists.
Setting the tone for the engagement was the Director General of the GAEC, Prof. Benjamin Jabez Nyarko, who gave a brief historical background of Ghana’s nuclear reactor programme that dates back to 1963.
The importance of nuclear energy in the country’s socio-economic development was not lost on the first president who was advised by a foreign expert on how to go about the subject.
The project which was started in 1963 was abandoned after the 1966 coup only to be reactivated during the Acheampong’s regime.
The Prof said although things had not been rosy along the road, there was hope as the country continued to achieve a solid footing in key aspects of the programme, especially in the area of the 19 infrastructure required for the establishment of a nuclear reactor programme.
The media, he said, should encourage vendors to join in the project.
He said so far four candidate sites had been identified for the construction of the Nuclear Power Plant and a vendor identified, with the final decision resting on the government.
The Executive Director of Nuclear Power Ghana, Dr. Stephen Yamoah, was full of praise for the GJA for showing commitment towards the nuclear energy programme.
The Director General of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority, Dr. Nii Kwashie Allotey, assured Ghanaians of efforts taken to ensure their safety.
The Deputy Director of Renewable and Nuclear Energy at the Ministry of Energy, Robert Sogbadji, spoke about the importance of collaborating with the media which, according to him, would enhance advocacy and public education.
He pledged the support of the ministry to achieve Ghana’s vision of becoming a net exporter of energy.
The President of the GJA, Affail Monney, was elated about the partnership, adding that the optimism expressed by the scientists would lead to an eventual reactivation of a project which was abandoned and lately reactivated.
“We wield the power to the minds, hearts and activities of our people and would provide a holistic framework for media relations and management of information in support of the implementation of Ghana’s Nuclear Power Programme,” he added.
By A.R. Gomda