Communities jubilate over facilities

Djorkpo, (GAR) Feb. 7, GNA - The people of Djorkpo and its environs in the Dangme West District on Wednesday sang and danced in jubilation when an eight bedroom flat for teachers and a six classroom block was commissioned at the village by the World Vision International (WVI), a humanitarian organization.

Djorkpo, one of the deprived communities in the Greater Region lacks basic social amenities including classrooms, accessible road, potable water, health facilities and electricity. "Due to the deprived state of the community, teachers refused postings, absented themselves and sought transfers, but with the intervention of the WVI these are now going to be a thing of the past, Mr Emmanuel Atsu Mensah District Director of Education, said at Djorkpo on Wednesday.

Speaking at the inauguration of the two facilities estimated at 34,000 dollars, Mr Mensah urged parents to ensure that their wards were provided with the basic needs and also attended school regularly. He said education was an important tool for national development hence the need to tap its potentials. Mr. David T. Assumeng, Member of Parliament, Shai/Osudoku Constituency appealed to government to provide the area with poverty alleviation programmes to improve the standard of living in the district.

He noted that poverty was causing inhabitants in the communities most of whom were affected by the construction of the Akosombo Dam to migrate to other areas and urged the government to provide interventions to support them.

Mr Assumeng noted, "in addition to the numerous challenges facing the communities, they were saddled with bilharzia, which was affecting children.

Togbui Awuku Agama III, Chief of Djorkpo commending the WVI for its contribution towards education in the area and said the facilities would enhance teaching and learning as well as solve the perennial accommodation problem which made teachers to refuse posting to the area. Torgbui Agama noted that the community with the population of about 2,500 had been marginalized in terms of education, accessible roads, potable water and health care.

He therefore appealed to government to provide them with electricity and a decent structure for kindergarten and also to rehabilitate the Junior High School.

Reverend Dr. Theophilus B. Dankwah, Chairman, WVI Advisory Council urged the people to ensure the proper maintenance of the facilities. The Advisory Council later inspected a clinic at Osuwem, a Visual Studio at Ghana Senior High School, and a Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre at Dodowa all estimated at 106,000 dollars.