The Upper West Regional Minister, Dr. Hafiz Bin Salih has restated the need for all interested parties to join forces with the government to respond successfully to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He made the appeal during the Upper West Regional launch of COVID-19 Humanitarian Response Project in Wa.
The initiative which is targeted at five Districts in Upper West is under the auspices of ActionAid Ghana (AAG) and it involves the distribution of relief items to the vulnerable.
GBC’s Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo reports that the project, which is in three phases is being implemented with funding from European Union (EU) under the Northern Ghana Integrated Development Project and the Players of the People’s Postcode Lottery in the United Kingdom (UK) under the Building the Agency of Adolescent Young Girls’ for Inclusive Leadership Project.
The plan equally demonstrates ActionAid’s flexibility and adaptability to build upon the resilience of communities and vulnerable groups that it works with in Ghana. The beneficiary areas are Jiripa, Lawra, Sissala East, Wa East and Lambussie.
The Regional Minister, Dr Hafiz Bin Salih indicated that government is ready for partnership and entreated all stakeholders to roll up their sleeves to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I believe strongly that together we can surmount the challenges we are confronted with by the coronavirus pandemic as a Region. I have enormous confidence in the resourcefulness of everyone here. I have no doubt in the ability of Actionaid Ghana and COVID-19 Humanitarian Response Project if we simply give them our fullest cooperation,” he stated.
Dr Bin Salih added that the doors of the government are opened to the private sector in any partnership geared towards development in the country.
The ActionAid Ghana Head of Programmes and Policies, John Nkaw, said the first phase of the ActionAid Ghana’s COVID-19 response entails a series of awareness creation campaigns on health and safety protocols with that of the second phase which started on the June 1, 2020 involving the distribution of food and non-food items in 31 Districts across the country.
The total cost of the phase two is GH₵ 2,190,000.00 and more than 15,000 households and 15 rural government hospitals will have relief items distributed to them.
The items are made up of 1,500 reusable nose masks, 45 cartons of hand gloves, 45 cartons of disinfectants, 75 gallons of liquid soap, 934 boxes of soap, over 600 boxes of hand sanitisers, 500 veronica buckets, 290 boxes of sanitary pads, 3,117 sacks of rice, 1,314 boxes of oil and 330 bags of cocoa powder and sugar.
Touching on the final lap of the project, Mr. Nkaw said: “The third phase of our COVID-19 response will consist of another relief package for additional 10,000 households and a National advocacy Campaign which will focus on the need for the provision of Gender Responsive Public Services and Enhanced Social Protection interventions for people living in poverty.”
The Upper West Regional Programmes Manager of Actionaid Ghana, George Dery, said since AAG started operations in the Upper West Region in 1999, it has had a very cordial relation with various stakeholders and thanked them for being good allies.
He entreated all collaborators to continue to strengthen the relationship for the common good of the Upper West Region.
Story filed by Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo.
