First Lady commissions 240 million cedi centre

Odomase (B/A), Nov. 12, GNA - The First Lady Mrs Theresa Kufuor on Thursday commissioned a 240-million-cedi Mother and Child Community Development Centre at a ceremony at Odomase near Sunyani, in the Brong-Ahafo Region.

The Centre was built through the collaborative efforts of the Social Investment Fund (SIF), Sunyani Municipal Assembly and Mother and Child Community Development, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in Accra formed by Mrs Kufuor.

SIF contributed 75 percent of the cost of the project while the Sunyani Municipal Assembly (SMA) and the NGO contributed 15 percent and 10 percent respectively.

The spacious three-room Centre with a sleeping room and an office would accommodate 60 pupils with 20 pupils to each classroom. Addressing a durbar of chiefs and people held in her honour, Mrs. Kufuor thanked the chiefs for their support for the project, which took six months to complete.

The First Lady advised parents and guardians especially women in the community to make maximum use of the Centre by sending their infants there.

Mrs. Kufuor cautioned the management of the school not to discriminate in its administrative procedures especially in the enrolment of pupils at the Centre.

Mr. J.H. Mensah, Senior Minister and Member of Parliament (MP) for Sunyani East, noted that education was the bedrock of a nation's development saying the government's new educational reform would go a long way to help direct her youth not only towards better educational standard but also to make them acquire skills to enable them to obtain gainful employment.

The Senior Minister expressed disgust about the poor staffing in some schools in the basic level saying during his recent visits to some schools in his constituency he found out that Krosoa Number One had only four teachers to man the whole school.

In a welcoming address Nana Ampaabeng Kyeremeh, Kronkorhene of Awuah-Domase thanked the First Lady and other partners for putting up the Centre.

Nana Kyeremeh also thanked the local Methodist Church for providing a portion of land earmarked for the Church in its development for the construction of the Centre.

Nana Kwadwo Seinti, Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister chaired the function.

In another development, the First Lady inspected a Day Care Centre at Fiapre also near Sunyani, which is still under construction and supported by the same NGO.