Health NGO appeals for assistance to rehabilitate school dropouts

Agroyesum (Ash), Sept 23, GNA - Healthcare Christian Fellowship, an NGO based in the Amansie West district of Ashanti, has appealed to donor agencies and philanthropists to provide funds to facilitate the rehabilitation of more than 150 children and youth identified to be HIV orphans, abandoned or school drop-outs. Miss Esther Mensah, Executive Director o f the NGO, was speaking to the GNA after the inauguration of a community counselling unit to facilitate general counseling on malaria and HIV/AIDS which has a high preventive in the area at Agroyesum on Thursday. She said out of the figure, 70 were found to be HIV orphans while the rest were either those whose parents have left them to their fate to look for greener pastures in the cities and outside the country or those who have been enticed by illegal mining activities (galamsey) in the area to dropout of school.

Miss Mensah said while the HIV orphans and abandoned children will be put back to school to take advantage of the capitation grant, but finds will still be needed to see to their care and rehabilitation. The executive director said the school dropout who are in the category of the youth have expressed the desire to undergo skill training to make them self-employed.

The NGO had earlier organized a day's seminar at Manso-Akropong also in the district to sensitise farmers on HIV/AIDS and malaria in a bid to bring down the incidence of those diseases to the barest minimum. Miss Mensah called for concerted efforts to bring down the high incidence of malaria, the deadly nature of which can account for much earlier fatalities than HIV/AIDS.

She appealed to the contractor working on the Manso-Atwedie Junction-Akropong stretch of road to expedite work to enable commuters to use the road since the diversion of road from Agroyesum to Ankam due to the road construction also poses a great danger to huge heavy-duty trucks that ply the road.