Ghana’s High Commissioner to the UK, His Excellency Annan Arkyin Cato, over the weekend bemoaned poverty as the greatest challenge facing Africans in this generation. Mr. Cato made the declaration at the studios of OBE Television in North Acton, London, during the launch of Three Cheers for Ghana, a book written by Dr Robert Peprah-Gyamfi, a medical practitioner based at Loughborough, UK. Addressing the gathering as the Chairman of the function, Mr. Cato said: ‘‘our greatest enemy as a country is poverty, but we are making progress in many areas of national development.’’

Mr. Cato, who also took the opportunity to remind and congratulate the gathering on the forthcoming March 6 Independence anniversary celebrations, said the road network in some parts of Ghana is so efficient and well planned that the driving pleasure one gets when using them would compare favourably with that of some advanced economies. “From Accra through Brong Ahafo to Paga, from Accra through Sogakope to Aflao, driving on some of the roads in the country reminds you of driving in a place like London”, he said.

The book, the fourth by the author, is an account of the experiences of the writer who visited Ghana after practicing medicine abroad for a continuous thirteen year period. It adopts a sociological and a superb narrative style to take the reader on a journey to Ghana, where the social, political and economic realities of a developing economy are painted in a way that would appeal to the Ghanaian reader and the outsider.

The High Commissioner, however, expressed grave dissatisfaction that the launch of a quality reading material attracted only a handful of Ghanaians. “The reading culture has not consumed us as a people. We would expect to see a larger number of people on an occasion like this, but we can understand the pressures that people here have to deal with”, he added.

Mr. Cato also admonished the gathering to do a lot more reading in today’s information age. He said we can no longer rely on oral tradition, where our older generation told our story. “When our grandfathers die, they die with the story”, he observed.

On his part, the author of the book thanked the High commissioner and attendees at the ceremony for making time to support the event. He said proceeds from the sale of the book will go into the building of Christ the King Hospital, a health facility that he proposes to establish in Ghana.

Dr Peprah-Gyamfi, who is also the founder of Thank You Jesus Ministry, a radio and internet Christian outreach group, seized the moment to move for the mounting of road side health joints in Ghana, where motorists involved in road accidents would readily receive first aid treatment. He decried the practice where Ghanaians spend millions on pricy automobiles and extravagant mansions instead of investing in ideas to save lives and plan for sustainable development.

The first autographed copy of the book was bought by Joseph Nana Prempeh, Managing Director of Terry Joseph Properties Limited, London.

Three Cheers for Ghana, the new 224 page book by Dr Robert Peprah-Gyamfi, is available on the internet at www.3cheers4ghana.com, by telephone on 0800612 2191 and at all recognized bookshops.

Other books by the writer include: The call that changed my life, A letter to my dying mother and Be encouraged in Jesus.