Policy Dialogue: An interview with Felix Adom Boateng, Ghana

An interview with Felix Adom Boateng, Development Planning Practitioner, Regional 
Coordinating Council (Ho, Ghana) http://www.ghana.gov.gh/index.php/about-ghana/regions/volta.
Volta Region is one of Ghana's ten administrative regions. It is to the east of Lake Volta. Its 
capital is Ho. The Volta region of Ghana, lies to the east of the Volta lake. The region covers an area 
of 20,570 square kilometres representing 8.6% of Ghana. Between latitudes 5° 45’N and 8°45’N.  
Between the Volta Lake by the west and east by the Republic of Togo and south by the Atlantic Ocean.  
20,570 sq. kilometers i.e. 8.6% of the total area of Ghana.  The Region spans all the vegetational zones 
of  the country stretching from the Atlantic coast in the south to the north.
The region’s population in 2000 was 1,635,421. This implies, an increase of 35.0 per cent over the 1984 
count 1,211,907, giving an annual growth rate of 1.9 per cent. The intercensal growth rate shows little 
change from 2.0 per cent in 1970, 1.8 per cent in 1984 and 1.9 per cent in 2000. The population density 
of the region increased from 59 persons per square kilometre in 1984 to 79.5 persons in 2000.
Felix talks about the roles that Regional Coordinating Council plays to ensure good development programmes, 
the kind of evidence consumed for planning purposes and why he will recommend the course on evidence-informed 
policy to Metropolitan, Municipal and Districts Assemblies (MMDAs).
The VakaYiko Consortium www.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working in Ghana, South 
Africa and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, evaluate and use evidence in policy-making. 
This interview was filmed during the policy dialogue workshop held in Ho, Volta Region of Ghana on 3rd 
November 2015. Editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Policy Dialogue Workshop: An interview with Abdulai Abdul Gafaru, Ghana

An interview with Abdulai Abdul Gafaru, Internal Auditor, Ho Municipal Assembly,  
Ghana http://ho.ghanadistricts.gov.gh/
Ho Municipal is one of the twenty five (25) Municipalities and Districts in the Volta 
Region of Ghana. The Municipality is also the administrative capital of the People of 
the Volta Region. The Municipality lies between latitudes 6 ᵒ 207N and 6 ᵒ55; N and 
longitude 0 ᵒ 127 E and 0 ᵒ 53 E. The Municipality shares boundaries with the Republic 
of Togo to the east, to the west with Ho West District, to the north with Hohoe Municipality 
and to the south with Agotime–Ziope. Abdulai talks about the opportunities that exist for 
Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to use evidence in their 
development planning, the role MMDAs play to ensure good development  projects
 within the municipality, the opportunities that exist for MMDAs to use evidence in 
their development process and why he will recommend the course of evidence-informed
 policy making course to all MMDAs.
The VakaYiko Consortium www.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working 
in Ghana, South Africa and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, 
evaluate and use evidence in policy-making. Gafaru talks about the roles Metropolitan, 
Municipal and District Assemblies play to ensure good development projects within the 
municipality, Opportunities for Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) 
to use evidence and whether or not he will recommend the course on Evidence-informed
 policy making (EIPM) to MMDAs.

This interview was filmed during the policy dialogue workshop held in Ho, Volta Region of 
Ghana on 3rd November 2015. Editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Policy Dialogue, An interview with Johnson Addison, Ghana

An interview with Johnson Addison, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Hope for 
Future Generations, Ghana  http://www.hffg.org/
Since 2001, HFFG has worked in close collaboration with her Donors and Implementing 
Partners, national, regional, and district level stakeholders, communities, and other civil 
society organisations to inform communities and thereby transform lives, achieving the
 following in the process;
Established a reproductive health centre at Ekumfi Ekrowful in the Mfantseman East District 
of the central region to improve access to quality maternal, neonatal, child health and primary 
health care services to over 5,000 people in the facility’s catchment. Partnered the Ghana Health 
Service (GHS) to revamp and also rehabilitate health centres in communities in the Ajumako 
Enyan Essiam and Mfantseman districts of the central region.
Trained 50 Models of Hope to provide HIV related prevention, treatment, care and support services
 to Persons Living with HIV (PLHIV) across the central region of Ghana. Reached an average of 3,000 
PLHIV with HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services annually since 2007 in the Central and 
Brong Ahafo regions. Reached an average of 10,000 key population (Most at Risk Population) –sex 
workers and non-paying partners with HIV prevention messages since 2010 in the Brong Ahafo region 
of Ghana. Johnson talks about the extend to which Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies 
(MMDAs) use evidence in project development planning, the opportunities that exist for MMDAs to
 use evidence in project development planning and why he will recommend the course on evidence 
informed policy making to MMDAs.

The VakaYiko Consortium www.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working in Ghana,
 South Africa and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, evaluate and use evidence 
in policy-making. This interview was filmed during the policy dialogue workshop held in Ho, Volta Region 
of Ghana on 3rd November 2015. Editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Policy Dialogue Workshop: An interview with K. Tenasu Gbedemah, Ghana

An interview with Tenasu Kofi Gbedemah, Voice Ghana, (Ho, Ghana) http://www.voiceghana.org
Volta Region is one of Ghana's ten administrative regions. It is to the east of Lake Volta. Its capital is Ho. The Volta region of Ghana, lies to the east of the Volta lake. The region covers an area of 20,570 square kilometres representing 8.6% of Ghana. Between latitudes 5° 45’N and 8°45’N.  Between the Volta Lake by the west and east by the Republic of Togo and south by the Atlantic Ocean.  20,570 sq. kilometers i.e. 8.6% of the total area of Ghana.  The Region spans all the vegetational zones of  the country stretching from the Atlantic coast in the south to the north.
Voice of People with Disability Ghana (VOICE GHANA) is a registered nonprofit, Ghanaian non-governmental organization with Charity No: G -10, 042 and DSW/5710. The organisation was formed in 2002 by a small group of people with disability who had a vision to form an NGO managed and staffed by people with disabilities for the benefit of persons with all category of disabilities in the Volta Region and Ghana.
This philosophy continues to this day as VOICE GHANA has a policy of recruiting more persons with disabilities as Board and staff members. The organization was formerly known as VOLPHIG. This name was changed to VOICE GHANA in 2009 as a result of our strategic direction to transform the organization from a regional based NGO of people with disabilities to a national organization to work with all people with disabilities at the grassroots level in Ghana. Tenasu talks about the extend to which Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies use evidence in development planning and why he will recommend the course on evidence-informed policy making to MMDAs.
The VakaYiko Consortium www.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working in Ghana, South Africa and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, evaluate and use evidence in policy-making. This interview was filmed during the policy dialogue workshop held in Ho, Volta Region of Ghana on 3rd November 2015. Editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Evidence informed policy making: An interview with Dr. Joris Jerald Niilante Amissah, Ghana

An interview with Dr. Joris Jerald Niilante Amissah, Lecturer, Family and Consumer 
Sciences Department, University of Ghana (UG) www.ug.edu.gh . Jerald was one of 
the External speakers/ facilitators at the Evidence-informed policy making training 
for Parliament of Ghana staff.
The University of Ghana, the premier university and the largest university in Ghana 
was founded as the University College of the Gold Coast by Ordinance on August 11, 1948 
for the purpose of providing and promoting university education, learning and research.
As a University poised to distinguish itself in the area of research to make an impact at the 
national and international level, the University has launched a new Strategic Plan.
Dr. Aissah talks about how knowledge of research design can benefit parliamentary staff and 
also some factors to be considered in assessing research design of a piece of information.
The VakaYiko Consortium wwws.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working in 
Ghana, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, 
evaluate and use evidence in policy-making. This interview was filmed during Evidence informed 
policy making training course for Parliament of Ghana staff held in Afienya, near Accra, Ghana 
from 11th to 20th January 2016. Video and editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Evidence informed policy making - An interview with Dr. Isaac Frempong Mensa-Bonsu, Ghana

An interview with Dr. Isaac Frempong Mensa-Bonsu, Director for Plan Coordination, 
National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) https://www.ndpc.gov.gh/. 
 Dr. Mensa-Bonsu was one of the External speakers/ facilitators at the Evidence-informed 
policy making training for Parliament of Ghana staff.
The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) was established under 
Articles 86 and 87 of the 1992 Constitution as part of the Executive. The National 
Development Planning Commission Act, 1994, (Act 479) and the National Development 
Planning (System) Act, 1994, (Act 480), provide the core legal framework for the establishment 
of the Commission and the performance of its functions. (Other laws of relevance to the 
Commission’s work are: the Local Government Act (Act 462) 1993; Local Government 
Service Act (Act 656) 2003; Petroleum Revenue Management Act (Act 815) 2011; Civil 
Service Act (PNDC Law 327) 1993; and Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund Act, (Act 877), 2014).
Dr. Mensa-Bonsu talks about the nature of policy making process in Ghana, the use of evidence in 
Ghana's policy making process and the opportunities that exist for the use of research evidence in 
the national policy making process in Ghana.
The VakaYiko Consortium wwws.inasp.info/en/work/vakayiko/, a three year project working in Ghana, 
South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe to build the capacity of policy makers to access, evaluate and use 
evidence in policy-making. This interview was filmed during Evidence informed policy making training 
course for Parliament of Ghana staff held in Afienya, near Accra, Ghana from 11th to 20th January 2016. 
Video and editing by Joseph -- joetigo@gmail.com

Knowledge café on evidence-informed policy-making in Zimbabwe

There are examples of successful policies in Zimbabwe, informed by evidence. But, since independence, policymaking has largely been reactionary and ideologically driven. This has resulted in many policy inconsistencies and failures. The need to build institutional capacity to make informed policy decisions in Zimbabwe is especially urgent now, as Zimbabwe faces major economic challenges.

ZeipNET, in partnership with US Embassy Public Affairs Section Food for Thought series, hosted a knowledge cafe to provide a forum to discuss success stories, challenges and opportunities for evidence informed policy-making in Zimbabwe. Of particular note, the forum sought to obtain insight into what can be done to promote the routine use of evidence in policy-making processes in Zimbabwe.

The event took place 20 October 2015, in Harare.
Moderators: Ronald Munatsi and Gilchrist Ndongwe, ZeipNET
Speakers: Onesimo Maguwu, a public health expert from USAID; Charles Dhewa, a Knowledge Management Specialist from a local agro-based think-tank Knowledge Transfer Africa; and Grey Chivanda, a former policy maker from the ministry of higher and tertiary education, science and technology development.