RAF/AFCAS/07-Info

RAF/AFCAS/09-Info E

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October 2009

AFRICAN COMMISSION ON AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS
Twenty first Session
Accra, Ghana, 28 – 31 October 2009
INFORMATION NOTE

21st Session of the African Commission on Agricultural Statistics (AFCAS)

Accra, Ghana, 28 – 31 October 2009

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.  Introduction

The objective of this General Information is to provide participants at the session with all the necessary information so as to guide them during their stay in Accra, Ghana.

2.  Venue and date

The 21st Session of the African Commission on Agricultural Statistics (CASA/AFCAS) will be held at the «NOVOTEL» Hotel, Accra from the 28th to 31st October 2009. The Session will be preceded by a technical workshop of which details will be finalised shortly, scheduled for the same venue, from the 26th to 27th October 2009.

3.  Registration

Registration of participants will take place at the Front Desk of the « NOVOTEL »Hotel:

Workshop: Monday 26th October 2009, between 8h00am and 9h00am. The

opening ceremony begins at 9h 00am.

AFCAS: Wednesday 28th October 2009, between 8h00am and 9h00am.

The opening ceremony begins at 9h 00.

4.  Technical documents for the meetings

The technical documents related to this session will be available from 1 October 2009 onwards at the following Website: http://www.fao.org/africa/regional-commissions/africa-commission-on-agricultural-statistics/en/

5.  Organisation of the meetings

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, through the Regional Office of Accra, Ghana, is committed to provide the necessary logistics to ensure optimum conditions for these meetings.

a.  Hotel accommodation

The workshop and the AFCAS Secretariats will be situated at the Novotel Hotel. Please find below the address of the Novotel Hotel, venue for the 21st Session of the AFCAS and the Workshop:

HOTEL NOVOTEL

Barnes Road

P.O.Box AN 12720

Accra – North, Ghana

Tel. : +233 (0) 21 66 75 46

Fax : +213 (0) 21 66 75 33

Email :

Unless indicated otherwise, hotel reservations will be made for participants at the Novotel Hotel.

For participants who would like to lodge elsewhere, it will be advisable that they choose from the list of Hotels proposed in Annex 1. The FAO Regional Office for Africa will ensure transportation between the Conference venue and all listed hotels. Participants who wish to stay elsewhere are free to do so, but may have to arrange their own transport to and from the conference venue.

b.  Entry requirements

Entry visa - It is necessary to have a valid passport and an entry visa before traveling to Ghana. Participants are therefore kindly requested to contact the Ghanaian Diplomatic Mission as soon as possible to obtain a visa. For participants from countries where there is no Ghanaian Diplomatic Mission, a visa can be obtained upon arrival at the costs of US $ 100.

Citizens of ECOWAS countries are exempted from the need for a visa to enter Ghana.

Vaccinations - Yellow fever vaccination is required before traveling to Ghana.

Airport tax - There is no airport tax to be paid, neither on arrival nor at departure.

c.  Arrangements upon arrival

Delegates who have earlier on communicated their Flight itinerary (Flight number, Arrival time) will be welcomed at Kotoka International Airport in Accra by representatives from the hotel they will be staying in. Transport will be provided from the Airport to their Hotel through the respective hotel shuttle services. Please look for a hotel staff with their respective signs.

Unfortunately, participants who did not communicate their arrival details to the organizers can not be welcomed at the Airport and would have to find their own way to their Hotel.

d.  Local currency and foreign exchange

Money can be changed at the Airport, in banks, in Forex Bureaux, as well as in Hotels with exchange facilities. The local currency is the Ghana Cedi (GHC).

The exchange rate (@ 20 August 2009), for information only:

·  1 Dollar US = about 1.46 GHC

·  1 Euro = about 2.04 GHC

e.  Delegations

ALL participants are kindly requested to complete the form in Annex 2 and return it to the organizers latest by September 15th 2009. The form contains all the details required for appropriate arrangements to be made to welcome and lodge delegates (Flight numbers and schedule)

6.  Introduction of Ghana

Ghana is a country located on the Gulf of Guinea, only a few degrees north of the Equator, therefore giving it a warm climate. The country spans an area of 238,500km2 . It is surrounded by Togo to the east, Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north and the Gulf of Guinea (Atlantic Ocean) to the south. The Greenwich Meridian passes through Ghana, specifically through the industrial city of Tema. Ghana is geographically closer to the "centre" of the world than any other country even though the actual centre, (0°, 0°) is located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately 614km south of Accra, Ghana, in the Gulf of Guinea. Ghana can be divided into five different geographical regions. The coastline is mostly a low, sandy shore backed by plains and scrub and intersected by several rivers and streams while the northern part of the country features high plains. Southwest and south central Ghana is made up of a forested plateau region consisting of the Ashanti uplands and the Kwahu Plateau and the hilly Akuapim-Togo ranges are found along the country's eastern border. Tha Volta Basin also takes up most of central Ghana. Ghana's highest point is Mount Afadjato which is 885 m and is found in the Akwapim-Togo Ranges. The climate is tropical. The eastern coastal belt is warm and comparatively dry (see Dahomey Gap); the southwest corner, hot and humid; and the north, hot and dry. Lake Volta, the world's largest artificial lake, extends through large portions of eastern Ghana and is the main source of many tribuatry rivers such as the Oti and Afram rivers. There are two main seasons in Ghana, the wet and the dry seasons. Northern Ghana experiences its rainy season from March to November while the south, including the capital Accra, experiences the season from April to Mid-November. Southern Ghana contains evergreen and semideciduos forests consisting of trees such as mahogany, odum and ebony. It also contains much of Ghana's oil palms and mangroves. Shea trees, baobabs and acacias are usually found in the savanna and the northern part of the country

Ghana has a population of about 23.9 million people. The ethnic groups in Ghana are the Akan (which includes the Fante, Akyem, Ashanti, Kwahu, Akuapem, Nzema, Bono, Akwamu, Ahanta and others) 49.3%, Mole-Dagbon 15.2%, Ewe 11.7%, Ga-Dangme (comprising of the Ga, Adangbe, Ada, Krobo and others) 7.3%, Guan 4%, Gurma 3.6%, Gurunsi 2.6%, Mande-Busanga 1%, other tribes 1.4%, other (Hausa, Zabarema, Fulani) 1.8% (2000 census). According to the 2000 government census, religious divisions are as follows: Christian 69%, Muslim 16%, African beliefs 15%.[

·  More than 250 languages and dialects are spoken in Ghana. English is the country's official language used in government and business affairs.

·  Christians are 69%, Muslim 16% and other African beliefs 15%.

·  Capital: Accra (about 2 millions inhabitants).

·  Other major urban centers: Kumasi, Tamale, Takoradi.

·  Country Code: 233

·  Time Zone: GMT + 0

7.  Useful Contacts

All correspondence should be sent to the following address:

Naman KEITA

Senior Statistician / Secretary of the 21st AFCAS

National Statistical Systems Group

Country Statistics Service

FAO Statistics Division Room C 426

Rome, Italy

Tel: +390657053827 Fax: +390657055615

E-mail:

With copy to:

Aleston KYANGA

21st AFCAS/Workshop Secretariat,

FAO Regional Office for Africa,

PO Box 1628, Accra, Ghana

Tel+233-21-675000 ext 3147

Fax: +233-30-7010943

Email:

And:

AmiMassan KUMAPLEY,

21st AFCAS/ Workshop support coordinator

FAO Regional Office for Africa,

PO Box 1628, Accra, Ghana

Tel+233-21-675000 ext 3206

Fax: +233-30-7010943

Email:

And

Diana TEMPELMAN

Technical Team Coordinator. RAFT-ES/TC

FAO Regional Office for Africa,

PO Box 1628, Accra, Ghana

Tel+233-21-675000 ext 3131

Fax: +233-30-7010943

Email: diana.tempelman@fao.org

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Annex 1 : Information on the Hotels

NB: Deadline for reservation:

-  Novotel: 15 September 2009

-  Central: 15 September 2009

-  Afya beach resort: 15 September 2009

-  Kukuhill: 15 September 2009

Annex 2: Participants Form

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ARIAL VIEW OF ACCRA

MAP OF GHANA

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