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BIAKOYE: 53 PWDs receive items for economic empowerment

A total of fifty-three (53) Persons with Disability (PWDs) in the Biakoye District of the Oti Region have been presented with economic empowerment items and equipment at a colorful ceremony at the forecourt of the District Assembly at Nkonya Ahenkro, the district capital.

Date Created : 8/19/2020 8:43:14 AM : Story Author : Bless Nenyewode/Ghanadistricts.com

The beneficiaries, including more than twenty (20) women, were selected from a number of communities in the district by the Social Welfare and Community Development (SWCD) of the Assembly.

The uniqueness of the event was that the Assembly sought the consent of the beneficiaries of the items before their acquisition so as to ensure that the PWDs realize the full benefits of the package.

Thirteen (13) of the beneficiaries had Double Decker Fridges with thirteen (13) others also receiving Deep Freezers. Three (3) PWDs had Sewing Machines while fifteen (15) of them went home with Fufu Machines. Five (5) PWDs had Cassava Milling Machines with the remaining two (2) and one (1) persons getting Corn Mills and a Container respectively.

The ceremony was witnessed by a number of Assembly Members from the District, Staff of the Biakoye District Assembly, some Party Officials and Sympathizers, the ruling NPP Parliamentary Candidate (PC) for the Constituency in the 2020 elections, Mr. Daniel Korsinah as well as the Presiding Member (PM) of the Assembly, Mr. Moses Kwabena Ansah.

Speaking at the ceremony, District Chief Executive (DCE) for the area, Madam Comfort Akua Atta, regretted that most of the severely and moderately disabled persons in developing countries do not enjoy equal opportunities and rights let alone participate in sustainable human development programmes. According to her, PWDs often become victims of deprivation, pain, and poverty, adding that disabled people should not depend on charity.

The DCE said it is against this backdrop that the current government did not only make critical impact assessment of the support scheme to PWDs but also reviewed it in order to give hope and aspirations to the disabled.

Madam Atta disclosed that forty (40) PWDs comprising twenty-three (23) females and seventeen (17) males received various items of this nature last year and have since ventured into vibrant economic activities till now. She assured the PWDs that in spite of their huge registered number of 723 in the district, the government would remain committed to ensuring that every potentially disabled person received his or her fair share of the national cake, adding that nobody would be left behind.

Earlier in his welcome address, the District Social Welfare Officer, Mr. Benjamin Adzorbor said since the start of the programme in 2018, a significant number of PWDs had received similar items, explaining that some of the beneficiaries are making giant strides in their fields of endeavour.

He disclosed that the Assembly has instituted a monitoring and evaluation mechanism not only to track the economic activities of every potential beneficiary but also to give feedback to the Common Fund Administrator.

Mr. Adzorbor urged the beneficiaries to adopt simple book-keeping methods by recording their daily income and expenditure. They should also cultivate the habit of savings in order to take care of any eventualities apart from the maintenance of such machinery as well as payment of electricity bills.

A number of the beneficiaries our news team spoke to were extremely happy about the gesture, saying it would go a long way to positively impact on their economic, social, and cultural lives.