Gender Ministry announces programme to support flood victims

The Gender Ministry has announced a four-million-Ghana-Cedi emergency Livelihood Empowerment against Poverty (LEAP) intervention programme, for the families who were affected by the floods in Accra.

The package would be given to the 13,000 households affected by the flood.

“An amount of GH100.00 would be given per household to beneficiaries every month for three months, after which an assessment would be made,” Nana Oye Lithur, the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, said.

The Minister who led a delegation to visit four communities which suffered losses from the uncontrolled floods, said with the assistance from the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), 1,000 mattresses, 1,000 blankets and 1,020 five kilograms bags of rice would be given to the victims.

Also 1,000 five kilogramme gallons of oil and over 1,000 kilogramme cans of tomato paste would be given to affected victims within a week.

The LEAP programme seeks to target three main categories of victims, comprising “households who lost their business in the floods and fire, households who lost personal effects in their homes, and households who lost a bread winner”.

Direct Aid, a Non-Governmental Agency assisted with the items that were distributed in the four communities which consisted of school bags, shoes, rice, blankets, tin tomatoes, tooth pastes and brushes.

They were donated to Gbegbyise, Glefe, Osu – Doku and Osu – Alata communities.

Nana Oye Lithur noted that from NADMO’s assessment, a total of 53,000 people have been affected by this disaster and based on the LEAP translation, it summed up to 13,000 households.

The Gender Minister said of the four regions that experienced the disaster, the majority of households which suffered were in the Accra Metropolis.

Nana Oye Lithur said questionnaire had been distributed, and with the help of the Local Government Ministry and the security agencies, victims who were truly affected by the flood would be ascertained.

She said the Ministry of Health was providing psychological help for those who were affected considerably resulting in a mental break down.

The assembly men who received the items on behalf of the communities expressed their gratitude for the ministry.

They said this was the first time such a devastating disaster had taken place, and they believed it was due to human behaviours, but assured the ministry of a change.

Mrs Augustina Kotey, a victim seized the opportunity to announce to the public about her 37-year old son, Joseph Otoo, who went missing during the fire incident at Circle, and their efforts to locate him had proved futile, and therefore pleaded with the Gender Ministry and the public to help find her son.