The people of Aboadze, a fishing community in the Shama District of the Western Region can now heave a huge sigh of relief over the handing over of a market with sanitary facilities, water storage tank and a car park to them.
The 200-square-meter market facility with a capacity to accommodate forty (40) traders was initiated and funded by METKA, the business unit of MYTILINEOS SA, a Greek Sustainable Engineering Solutions Company.
The company is currently working on the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning of a 192MW combined cycle power plant in the Aboadze power enclave with the capability to operate on both natural gas and light crude oil.
SUPPORT FOR HOST COMMUNITY
In line with its policy of acknowledging local needs, METKA identified the need for a market among other requests presented by the community.
This is because traders were selling foodstuffs including fish and vegetables on the ground, which posed a great health risk to the people.
The market project was therefore identified as a development tool that has the potential of promoting the development of a sustainable economic environment.
It also dovetails into the company’s policy of adding value to its host communities in Ghana on the actual needs of the people.
The company fully undertook the construction of the market and supported the construction of a haulage truck terminal in Sofokrom.
The market is a 200-square-meter shed with a sanitary facility, a water storage tank and parking area for trucks.
The market can accommodate close to 40 traders.
The Chief of Aboadze, Nana Kwabena Atom in a joyful mood commended METKA for living up to their responsibilities as a corporate institution.
He urged the traders to cherish the market, promising his support to make it a key market in the district.
Nana Atom entreated the leadership of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) to connect their services to the market to ensure increased patronage.
He also appealed to the Shama District Assembly to change roofing of the markets to that of asbestos.
A Director of ΜYTILINEOS, Gavriel Marianna in her speech read by Portia Asamoah , encouraged operators and management of the market to visibly display the notice of ‘No face mask, no entry’, place Veronica buckets at vantage points and enhance social distancing.
She was hopeful that the facility will be well maintained to serve the community for many years.
The Planning Officer for the Shama District, Abu Mahama said the market was a relief to the Assembly and he also urged the community to uphold the market and other facilities around it.
According to him, the assembly intends to designate it as a fish market to boost fishing business in the district.
The Operations Manager of the Company, Mawuli Asempa, stated that, “we identified with the people in our host communities and their main economic activities and noticed that one other thing the Aboadze community needed was a market. To us, that was an appropriate project since it would ensure continuous economic activities in the community during off fishing seasons.”
OTHER PROJECTS
ΜYTILINEOS also aims to improve the social, environmental, and educational activities in all host communities in Tema, the company has constructed and fully furnished a three-classroom block and a 140–seat canteen for St. Nicholas School at Tema New Town.
The infrastructure provided to the school was to support the St. Nicholas Charity Foundation expand its social services, in addition to the free basic education offered to the less privileged in the community, to include Junior High education, and also to provide the children with a clean and healthy environment where they can enjoy the free meals provided by the school.
MYTILINEOS is committed to playing a positive role in the broader community to promote human values and social integration, as well as follow environmentally responsible practices in all of its business operations.
STORY BY: DESMOND CUDJOE
