US Gives $185,000 to Five Organisations

The United States Government has given an amount of $185,000 to fund the activities of five Ghanaian organisations to deal with violence against women and children.

Charles H. Twining, Charge d'Affairs at interim (a.i) of the U.S. Embassy in Ghana, disclosed this at a short signing ceremony between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and U.S Government, at the UNDP offices in Accra yesterday.

Mr. Alfred Salia Fawundu, Resident Representative of the UNDP signed on behalf of the five organisations, whilst Mr. Charles Twining, signed for the U.S. Government.

The five organisations include, Women's Initiative for Self-Empowerment (WISE), the African Centre for Human Development (ACHD), Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Women and Juvenile Unit of the Ghana Police Service (WAJU) and Crises Response Center (CRC).

The organisations focus on providing shelter to battered women and abused children, providing counselling and training to service providers to enable them provide support for victims of gender-based violence.

They also focus on sensitising and educating the public against the trafficking and the abuse of children.

Mr. Charles Twining said American funding of such organizations is aimed at dealing with the phenomenon of child trafficking, ensuring violence-free environment for women among others.

He announced that WISE together with ARK Foundation will be dealing with the needs of abused women and children.

WAJU and FIDA will be assigned a vital role in providing education and training in society to promote people's awareness and understanding of issues affecting women and children and "caring for the victims is only one part of the equation".

Mr. Alfred Fawundu thanked the US Government for the initiative and said the UN is also working to promote the welfare of women in Ghana.

He said the initiative would be incorporated into the Gender and Development Programme of the UNDP, which is implemented by the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs.