She said the smooth manner in which the program is progressing in the district is very commendable and urged officials to continue to give off their best to ensure the right impact of mitigating poverty is achieved.

The Minister was in the district to monitor the 44th payment of Leap and abreast herself of the progress of the scheme in some selected districts in the Upper East and Northern Regions.

She told beneficiaries that all that is required from them by government is to ensure they feed their children well, enroll them in school as well as send them to hospital for immunization.

She added there are also social interventions in the education and health sector that guarantees them free access to services at the hospital and in school. She thus assured them of free registration under the national health insurance scheme as part of the social interventions to give them better life.

District Social Development Officer, Imoru Fatawu disclosed that 3,605 beneficiaries from 687 households selected from 12 communities are on the LEAP programme in the district.   

On the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Fatawu said the scheme has been a major success adding that though 1265 individuals were to be registered onto the scheme, they have already exceeded that number with 1721 individuals so far registered. “There are also two outstanding communities of 685 people waiting to be registered, and as soon as clearance is given they would be brought on board”, he added.

He said unlike other communities, they do not have any areas to pay LEAP beneficiaries since they are not faced with problems that led to that.

Beneficiaries expressed gratitude to the government for the cash transfere they receive that has brought positive changes to their lives as some were able to get into productive ventures including petty trading and livestock reading.