This Week in Parliament

Page 42, Dec 12, 2009 (Mirror)
By Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE brisk business that characterised deliberations in Parliament during the debate on the 2010 budget was absent this week as the various parliamentary committees continued to hold meetings to consider budget estimates of the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).
That notwithstanding, the House found time for some sector ministers to answer some questions that had been posed by some Members of Parliament (MPs).
They include the Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kunbuor, Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Dr Hanna Bissiw and the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Kwesi Ahwoi.
When he appeared before the House on Monday, Dr Kunbuor said that the ministry intends to overhaul mental care to de-emphasise institutional care and rather place emphasis on community care.
In an answer to a question posed by the MP for Kintampo North, Mr Stephen Kunsu, the minister said by that every regional hospital and eventually every district hospital would have mental health wings of up to 20 beds.
He explained that these wings would be manned by medical assistants in psychiatry adding that a programme would was being started this year at the Kintampo Rural Health Training School to train the medical assistants and community psychiatric nurses.
Mr Kunbuor said that the ministry, would over time construct three 50-bed psychiatric institutions in the middle and northern belts of the country so that patients who might require long stay care would not need to travel to Accra, Pantang and Ankaful to receive such care.
On the National Health Insurance Scheme, the minister disclosed that from January 2009 to October 2009, the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) released an amount of GH¢248.44 million to the various health insurance schemes for the purpose of meeting claims payment.
He said that a total of 13,840,198 persons, representing, 67 per cent of the country’s population had registered to be part of the scheme.
For his part, Mr Ahwoi told the House more than 12,504 families engaged in farming have benefited directly from programmes under the Afram Plains Agricultural Project.
The benefits, he said include knowledge in good agricultural practices, increased output in food production, enhanced food security as well as improved environmental management through increased forest resource conservation.
Mr Ahwoi, stated that the project was aimed at providing temporary employment for about 5,000 farm hands in maize, cashew, yam, cassava and fish production.
Mr Ahwoi was responding to a question posed by the Member of Parliament (MP) for Afram Plains, Mr Raphael Kofi Ahaligah, on the extent to which the Millennium Challenge Account and the Afram Plains Agriculture Project had impacted the lives of the people of Kwahu North.
He added that so far 726 farmer groups comprising 12,245 farmers have been formed and received a number of various training and support in promoting agriculture production in the district adding that 45 community extension volunteers had been trained and equipped to beef up extension delivery in the district.
During the week under review Parliament moved closer to the passage of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Bill into law when the Bill was read for the second time.
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrissu, moved the motion for the second reading of the bill
The Bill, which was read in the House for the first time on July 7, 2009, seeks to replace the existing Arbitration Act, 1961 (Act 38), and harmonise the law governing arbitration with international conventions, rules and practices in arbitration, mediation and customary arbitration.
It also seeks to establish an Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre to facilitate and encourage the settlement of disputes through alternative dispute resolution procedures and to provide for related matters.
A report by the parliamentary committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on the bill noted that the bill was organised into five main parts consisting of arbitration, mediation of disputes, the Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre and financial, administrative and miscellaneous provisions.
The report presented to the House by the Chairman of the committee, Mr Inusah Fuseini, said the Arbitration Act, 1961 (Act 38) was currently the only existing legal framework, which guided alternative dispute resolution in the country.
The report said, Act 38, which replaced the Arbitration Ordinance of 1928 was based on the then English Arbitration Act of 1950.