Kwami Ahiabenu,II Knowledge Chief

Although there is a lot of activity when it comes to monitoring mainstream media, there is currently only an inefficient manual tracking of trends in social media here in Ghana. Social media provides the insight and up to the minute information that will be imperative in ensuring a peaceful Ghana Elections 2016. It is because of this gap in efficient data monitoring that Penplusbytes' Flagship "Social Media Tracking Centre" (SMTC) is set to roll out ahead of the December 7 polls. The SMTC is a system to monitor and respond in real-time to reports emanating from social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, etc. The technology at the middle of  SMTC is the Aggie social media tracking software, developed at Georgia Tech. Aggie is able to present trends grouped around voting logistics, violence, political parties, etc. Penplusbytes will pass the information on to the National Elections Security Taskforce. Through rapid citizen feedback, gathered through social ...

Participants in a day's forum have expressed the belief that social media can be used positively to promote development and national security. According to them, social media could be a platform to provide security tip-offs for early-warning alerts to combat crime. The participants were contributing to the topic: "Social media and peace-building; social media and traditional media", at a public forum on free and responsible use of social media in Accra. The forum It was organised by the National Media Commission (NMC) and sought to bring together the participants to brainstorm on finding a framework for setting up policies and guidelines for social media to be responsible, while safeguarding freedom of expression in the country. Leading the discussion, the Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Mr Sulemana Braimah, said even though social media could be used as a platform to foment trouble, there was the need to look at it from the positive s...

The cover page of the Governance Social Media Index. Penplusbytes has released the  second edition of the Governance Social Media Index (GSMI) report , which assesses and ranks the presence of political parties, political party leaders and key election management bodies in Ghana on social media based on their followers and level of engagement on Facebook and Twitter. Generally, the report shows that political actors in Ghana have increased their use of social media ahead of the 2016 general elections. The flurry of politically minded social media activity hadn't gone unnoticed, even before Penplusbytes's report. Ghana's Inspector General of Police John Kudalor hinted in May 2016 that Ghanaian authorities might consider  shutting down social media platforms  during the December 7 elections to "maintain peace". Following a public debate among major stakeholders after his statement, Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama  declared  on Augus...

A 14-day media training course on governance of oil, gas and mining has opened in Dar res Salaam, capital of Tanzania in the Eastern part of Africa. Sponsored by the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), a Non Governmental Organisation, the training is being organized by the Journalist Environmental Association of Tanzania (JET) in partnership with  Penplusbytes   Ghana and the African Center for Media Excellence in Uganda. Being attended by 24 selected participants – eight each from Tanzania, Uganda and Ghana, the course is aimed at building the capacity of the reporters to enable them tell the true story in the extractive industry particularly oil, gas and mining and get themselves abreast with trending and contemporary situation in the sector. Mr George Lugalambi, the Media Capacity Development Officer of the NRGI, said the course also offers opportunity for participants to establish relationships and share ideas and divergent views in the extractive sector. He said...

By Matthew Mpoke Bigg SALAGA, Ghana, Sept 6 (Reuters) - The leader of Ghana's main opposition party, Nana Akufo-Addo, climbed from his car, picked up a microphone and made a bold election promise to give every constituency the equivalent of $1 million a year if his party wins power. The money would be used to alleviate poverty by installing basic services such as electricity, running water and sanitation in a country that has accepted an IMF bailout in part to help manage debt accumulated from past government spending. Akufo-Addo and his running mate Mahamudu Bawumia did not explain to the crowd how they would finance the plan, which would cost $1.1 billion over four years, given that Ghana has 275 constituencies. But this did not appear to matter to the hundreds who had waited until after dark for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) rally on Friday in Salaga, a trading town in one of Ghana's poorest regions. They blew vuvuzelas and roared their approval. "We have...

Security Analyst Adib Saani has impressed upon officialdom to be forthright with information to avoid people relying on unofficial sources such as social media for information. Commenting on calls on security services to put in place measures to curb the misuse of social media, Mr Saani said citizen's reliance on official sources of information is key. The Security Analyst said the media must also double check information from social media sources before publication, but stifling it will represent an affront to freedom of speech. Meanwhile, governance and Technology expert, Kwami Ahiabenu says the Ghana Police Service needs to intensify policing of the social media space and expose those caught abusing the medium ahead of the December Elections. Mr Ahiabenu said even though regulating social media on Election Day is possible, it comes with a huge technological and human cost that may not be necessary. Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) 

by Benjamin Larbi, Communication Officer On July 11, 2016, Professor Abid Yahya, a distinguished scholar in engineering and a researcher of international repute,  delivered the maiden edition of the 10 th  Anniversary Public Lecture series at the McCarthy Hill campus.  The topic for the lecture was “The Importance of Mobile Computing and Cloud Technology in the 21st Century”. The lecture series forms part of activities earmarked to celebrate the University’s 10 th  anniversary.  In attendance at the lecture were Regent staff, students, participants from various industries, and friend s of the University College. Dr. Prince Kofi Kludjeson, the Executive Chairman of the Kludjeson International Group of Companies  served as the chairperson for the lecture. In his introductory remarks, Dr Kludjeson expressed delight at the progress  the University had made over the years, and recounted memories of Regent’s humble beginnings  wh...

By Tope Adebola Through a series of straightforward steps, audience members at the Social Media and Elections workshop were encouraged to devise their own social media coverage plans on the spot. Facilitated by Penplusbytes executive director, and new Highway Africa Fellow, Kwami Ahiabenu II, audience participation in this workshop was at peak level right from the start. In a newsroom, some of the stages ofimplementing a social media coverage plan successfully are defining anaudience; evaluating what tools to use; and, monitoring progress and takingcorrective action. “Now, I want you to give me examples of the use of social media in elections,” Ahiabenu said, opening up the floor for further audience input. Ahiabenu spoke in an edifying manner, a teacher accustomed to conducting training sessions and mentoring people. His tone was warmly rhetorical, “one of them is the ability to, what? Connect with the candidate,” Ahiabenu said, exemplifying the value of socia...

KWAMI AHIABENU  11 JULY 2016 Passwords are the key to your online life. They are the most popular mechanism to enable authorised access to various online resources for users. At the basic level, this type of security is made up of two parameters; a user name and password. The user name is usually static while best security practices demand that passwords are changed periodically.  The genesis of passwords dates back to ancient times when watchmen would require those wanting to enter an area to supply a password or catchphrase. Only persons with the correct password gained access.  Fast forwarding to our modern days, user names and passwords (a word or a string of characters) are now required to get access to protected computer operating systems, networks, database, Internet access via Wifi, online resources, mobile phones, automated teller machines (ATMs) and cars, among others.  Fundamentally, passwords are used to identify and distinguish between users, determine...