Minister Of Communications & Digitalization, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has assured staff and management of the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) of government’s commitment in ensuring that, all necessary equipment’s needed for the betterment of their duties are provided.
She indicated that, this has become priority for government because, the work of GMET is “an essential service provider per the Labour Act of Ghana, Act 653” adding that, “it is imperative we pay critical attention to the operations of the Agency and provide the needed resources and personnel to support its operations.”
She made this known at the ‘Deployment & Closing Ceremony Of Training Organized For Newly Recruited Staff Of The Ghana Meteorological Agency’ which happened on Tuesday, April 11, 2023.
“The recruitment of these personnel attests to the commitment of government to ensure that GMET is adequately equipped to deliver on its mandate. As policy makers and the supervisory authority, we shall continue to provide the necessary support and guidance to ensure that the Agency is properly positioned to contribute better to climate and weather services delivery, especially in this period where matters of climate change have become more topical globally and institutions like the Ghana Meteorological Agency are expected to lead national efforts to address same commitment of government to ensure that GMET is adequately equipped to deliver on its mandate” she said.
Making reference of herself as the Member of the African Ministerial Conference on Meteorology (AMCOMET), she promised of her full support to promoting political and national cooperation to streamline policy-making both at the national level and Pan-African level to strengthen climate action.
“In 2019, I led efforts to amend the GMet establishment Act, Act 682 (2004) by Act 1002 of 2019 to broaden the composition of the GMet Governing Board and set out sustainable sources of funding for the operations of the Agency. We have seen implementation challenges and we are working to resolve them. The Ministry of Communications & Digitalisation facilitated payments for operational vehicles procured by the Agency, Calibration equipment and Message Switching System. Several other Automatic weather stations have been installed with funds from Government’s E Transform Project to expand GMet’s network of stations across the country since 2018. We are all witnesses to the improved accuracy of forecasts and efficiency in their service delivery. GMet is also a beneficiary institution to receive support under the World bank funded GDAP which is currently awaiting parliamentary approval” she further indicated.
