Bolgatanga, July 11, GNA - Participants at a workshop in Bolgatanga organised by the Ministry of Health with the support of UNICEF on food fortification on Tuesday identified the lack of political will on the part of political leaders as a major problem confronting development in the region.
They held that if political leaders had demonstrated much political commitment by infusing developmental issues into messages on their platforms there would have been accelerated development. They cited the High Impact Reproductive healthcare Delivery on Child Survival, which was started in the Upper East and extended to Upper West, and indicated that the programme was yielding more positive results in the Upper West than in Upper East because of the political will demonstrated by the political leaders in that Region. Participants, therefore, urged political leaders in the Upper East Region to show more commitment to developmental issues, saying that it would enhance their political career.
On fortification of food, the participants explained that many people especially those in the rural areas could not consume fortified food such as bread and vegetable oil because they could not afford the cost.
The Upper East Regional Health Education Director, Mr Gampson Bozie, urged the participants to explore and popularise cheap alternative sources of fortified food including vegetables, groundnuts, sheabutter and dawada.
The workshop which drew participants from the Regional and District Health institutions, Food and Drugs Board, and other Heads of Department was aimed at educating people on the need to fortify their food before consumption to energise them for development and prolonged lifespan.
