N/R MINISTER URGES RAINWATER HARVESTING TO SOLVE WATER PROBLEM

The Northern Regional Minister, Moses Bukari Mabengba has charged all state and private agencies, schools, landlords and other individual developers in the region to provide either upper or underground rainwater harvesting tanks in their localities so as to meet their domestic water demands and also avoid depending on infested water sources.

According to the Minister, this was one surest way the people could complement the ruling government efforts at ensuring that over 85% of Ghanaians both in urban and rural communities had easy access to potable drinking water to ward off the incidence of Guinea Worm and also to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.

Speaking at a day’s stakeholders’ forum on water and sanitation in Tamale recently, the Northern Regional Minister accentuated that construction of boreholes and dams had not been any beneficial to the people of the region, since about 70 to 80% of those boreholes had refused to yield any water and the few yielding ones were contaminated with high fluoride.

“The Northern Region generally has a very low success rate when it comes to ground water exploitation. The average figure is 50% and sometimes as low as 10% and thus has huge investment cost implications. To further compound the issue, we are challenged with the incidence of high Fluoride in ground water. There is therefore the need to adopt alternative means or technologies that would take due cognizance of these challenges and address them in order to give value for money,” Mr. Mabengba explained.

He expressed worry that about 58% of the rural and peri-urban settlements in the entire region currently had access to safe water and therefore impressed on the people to try hard to adopt the rainwater harvesting strategy to enable them store rainwater for use during the dry seasons so as to avoid the dependence on unhygienic sources of water, which usually brings about some water borne diseases.

Meanwhile, until recently, the Northern Region alone accounted for over 96% of the total number of Guinea Worm cases recorded in the 10 regions of Ghana with Central Gonja, Savelugu-Nanton Districts and the Tamale Metropolis leading the rest of the districts in the country.

This according to health experts was as a result of non-availability of safe drinking water. At the moment, it is only the Tamale Metropolis and the Yendi Municipality that are supplied with treated water by the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) out of the 20 districts in the whole of the Northern Region.

However, majority of the deprived communities that are depending on open Dams are faced with serious challenges as they share the water with cattle of alien Fulanis and other livestock animals.

Some of the Dams are also polluted by human excreta, agro chemicals and other waste materials especially during raining seasons.

The Northern Regional Minister on the other hand, commended the National Democratic Congress government for sourcing 89.1 million dollars for the expansion of the Tamale Water System and additional 77.34 million pounds for the construction of 20,000 boreholes in 54 districts across Ghana which 14 out of the 20 districts of the Northern Region would benefit.

DCE URGE FARMERS TO GROW MORE

Farmers in the Bunkpurugu-Yunyoo District of the Northern Region have been urged to cultivate more food sustainable enough to counteract any hunger or famine problem that may arise in future.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Bunkpurugu-Yunyoo, Philip Laari, made this urgent call during this year’s 26^th edition of the National Farmers Day Celebration held in Bunkpurugu, the district capital.

He noted that, the issue of food security has engaged the attention of governments across the world especially during this period of climate change where floods, inadequate rainfall, draught, wild fires and other natural and man made disasters threaten the society.

Mr. Laari, a retired Deputy Director of the Ghana Prisons Service, also attributed the problem of food insecurity or hunger to rapid population increase saying, “The surest way to meet the food and nutritional requirements of the populace is by growing more food”.

The Bunkpurugu-Yunyoo District Chief Executive cautioned the people of the of his area to desist from the habit of bush burning which is naturally against the laws of this land and can further damage life and properties.

The District Director of Agriculture, Dr Dickson K. Angugah, in statement said the National farmer’s Day began from a humble beginning and finally to the 26^th edition. Over the years, many achievements have been made from an award of radio sets to the Best National Farmer, Cars, tractors, and now buildings as the ultimate prize, he added.

He explained that, all these were evidence of the government and the people of Ghana’s solidarity and appreciation to crop farmers and fishermen which is their contributions towards national development.

Mr. Banoman Bonatan, a 40year old man from a community called Kufuuk emerged the best Farmer from the District. For his prize, he received a brand new 125 Royal Motorbike, Piece of Wax Print, Radio set,10 poly sacks , one pair of wellington boots, and 10 cutlasses, all valued at 1,600.00 Ghanaian cedis.

The Chairman of the occasion, Chief of Jilik in the Bimoba Traditional Area, stressed on the need to give peace a chance, adding that, he was optimistic the DCE can bring significant development to the people if they all bury their differences and come out to support him.

USAID CONTRIBUTES US$4 MILLION TO WFP NUTRITION INTERVENTIONS IN GHANA

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) on Tuesday December, 7, 2010 received a donation of US$3.9 million from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to improve the nutrition of Ghanaian women, children and people living with HIV/AIDS.

WFP’s nutrition activities are part of a relief and recovery operation that assists people who have been badly hit by recurrent floods and droughts as well as recent global food price increases.

“Many Ghanaians have not been able to rebuild their lives after being struck by these successive crises,” said Ismail Omer, WFP Representative in Ghana.

The USAID contribution will help WFP provide a safety net of nutritional support to the most vulnerable populations”, he added.

In a statement copied to The Daily Dispatch in Tamale, he also explained that the USAID’s donation will enable WFP to offer much-needed assistance to malnourished children and pregnant and nursing mothers, saying “it will also help boost the nutrition of people living with HIV on antiretroviral drugs and their families”.

WFP’s relief and recovery operation also includes food-for-work, food-for-training and income-generating activities, reaching a total of 423,000 Ghanaians most especially in the three Northern Regions.

In line with its current food procurement strategy, which includes the Purchase for Progress (P4P) initiative whereby WFP works closely with local smallholder famers, the UN agency will buy a portion of the required food commodities for its operations from Ghanaian producers.

The income from these food purchases will contribute to reducing poverty and improving food security among small-scale famers, who are among the most vulnerable groups in Ghana.

WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP feeds more than 90 million people in more than 70 countries.

THREE YENDI SCHOOLS GET RAINWATER TANKS

Three primary schools in the Yendi Municipality of the Northern Region have been provided with 30,000-litre capacity rainwater harvesting tanks.

This is to enhance the capacity of the schools and communities to store rainwater for use during the dry season so as avoid the dependence on unhygienic sources of water, which usually spark the incidence of water borne diseases.

The schools are located in Gnani, Zakoli and Kpalba, which are rural communities where access to potable water is greatly hindered.

The tanks were provided by the Christian Children’s Fund of Canada (CCFC) under the Tuma Kavi Development Programme with funding from Eaglecom Foundation, a Canadian-based communications company.

Commissioning the tank at the Gnani MA Primary School, the Country Director of the CCFC, Sanatu Nantogma estimated the cost of construction of the three tanks at 11, 945 Canadian dollars.

She pointed out that the CCFC focused much on the provision of rainwater tanks because people in rural communities did not have access to safe drinking water.

Madam Nantogma explained that the provision of rainwater tanks to schools was aimed at promoting hygiene among school children, adding that the lack of water made it difficult for children to practice regular hand washing.

She further mentioned that when clean water is available to children, it decreases their vulnerability to sanitation-related diseases.

The director again noted that rainwater harvesting was a less costly method of utilising rainwater for domestic use and other purposes.

“Each year, the rains fall heavily and we allow it to flow to waste. However, with these tanks, you could store some of the water and use it when it is most needed,” she stated.

Madam Nantogma said the CCFC was very much involved in enhancing the welfare of rural communities, particularly women and children.

“Our priority areas of intervention are health, education, water and sanitation. And as we do these, we also try to empower the women through micro-finance,” she added.

The Programme Officer for Tuma Kavi, Joshua Salifu Mogri commended Eaglecom Foundation and the CCFC for partnering to provide such facilities for rural communities, adding that this would help uplift the people from abject poverty.

He said Tuma Kavi would continue to work with the CCFC to better the lives of rural folks in the areas of education, health and water and sanitation.

SCHOOLS IN KARAGA BENEFIT FROM FREE UNIFORMS

The Karaga District Assembly in collaboration with the District Directorate of Education has distributed about 121,000 books and 5,000 uniforms to 141 basic and Junior High School pupils in the district.

This is in fulfillment of President John Evans Atta Mills’ 2008 campaign promise to provide free school uniforms and exercise books to needy school children nationwide to conform to the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education philosophy.

Some of the beneficiary schools include Ishadia Islamic Junior High School, Nuri-Islam Primary and Junior High school, Tong Primary and Junior High as well as Nyansobga Primary School.

Making the presentations, Hon. Sulemana Hussein Issah, District Chief Executive for Karaga says the distribution of the uniforms is in line with the Better Ghana agenda promised by the NDC.

He mentioned the increment in capitation grant and the School Feeding Programme as some of the few government interventions which are intended to encourage school enrolment.

The DCE therefore appealed to parents to invest in their children’s education because it is the surest way to eliminate poverty in the societies.

Mr. Hussein also a former Headmaster unveiled plans to increase educational infrastructure in the district to eliminate the schools under trees.

Receiving the Uniforms and the books on behalf of the Schools, the Deputy Karaga District Director of Education, Mr. Ngumah Charles commended the ruling government for fulfilling its promise which he says will motivate the pupils to stay in school and also reduce the financial burden on parents.

He attributed the falling standard of education in the district to lack of school infrastructure and teachers accommodation and urged government to find solutions to those problems.

At Ishadia Islamic Junior High School, Savannahnews caught up with a 45 year old man, Abdul-Rauf Abubakar, a popular Petrol Filling Station owner who has enrolled in the school. He also benefited from the free Uniform and Exercise Books.

ACTIONAID GHANA SUPPORTS BUIPE FLOOD VICTIMS

Action-Aid Ghana has presented some building materials and other relief items estimated at Twenty Thousand Pounds Sterling to the Central Gonja District of the Northern Region for distribution to 13 communities that were severely affected by the recent flood disaster and have agreed to move to higher grounds.

The devastating flood, which affected over 32,000 people in 55 communities, also destroyed several homes, farmlands, roads and bridges among others.

However, the gesture forms part of Action Aid Ghana’s humanitarian services to the people under its operational areas. The items included 50 maxi bags of rice, 200 maxi bags of maize, 100 bags of millet, 100 gallons of cooking oil, 50 packets of blended flour, 50 bags of beans, 20 bags of sugar and 20 bags of iodated salt.

The rest comprised 250 mosquito nets, 400 packets of roofing sheets, 20 boxes of keysoap and 20 bags of bathing soap. A total targeted number of 500 households in 13 affected communities including Konoto, Adidodeke, Agege, Freetown, Santa, Mawekrom and Avegorme all in the Central Gonja district are to benefit from the donation.

When Savannahnews visited some of the affected communities it was discovered that majority of the victims are now recovering from their traumas with some also engaged in fish mongering. Some of the women complained about lack of drinking water since their water sources and KVIPs have all been destroyed by the floods.

Making a symbolic presentation at Minpeasem, a fishing community near Buipe, the Deputy Country Director of Action-Aid Ghana, Mohammed Yakubu Saani says human security intervention is one of the top most priorities of Action Aid and unveils plans to also relocate residents of Bonyamo and Kikale NO 4, the worse affected communities as a means of restoring the hope and dignity of the victims.

The DCE for Central Gonja, Issifu Sualisu Be-Awuribe describes Action Aid Ghana’s donation as single major support the victims have ever received.

He passionately advised the flood victims who are still living in low land along the Volta Lakes to relocate to higher and safer grounds.