World Vision Ghana (WVG) has inaugurated a borehole valued at about 9, 000 US dollars for the people of Atosale , one of the deprived communities in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality in the Upper East Region.
The borehole, which is a disability-friendly facility, brings to 121, the number of boreholes constructed by WVG in communities in the Kassena –Nankana Municipality.
This is expected to bring relief to the people in Atosale Community, who used to commute for about five kilometres to six kilometres in search of water from streams, which was not even potable and often resulted in the outbreak of water-borne diseases.
The problem also led to many schoolchildren in the area, whose population was about 950 in 2013, attending school late hence missing the first lessons as they had to fetch go and water, first.
The Partnership Leader of the Global Office of World Vision International, in-charge of Field Operations, Mr Dirk Booy, assisted by the Regional Leader in charge of West Africa, Ms Esther Lehmenn, performed the inauguration.
Dr Stanislaus Alu Kandingdi, the Metropolitan Chief Executive, in speech read for him by, Mr. Maxwell Aborigo, Assistant Director of Administration, lauded WVG and WV I, saying, the Assembly was grateful for the intervention, particularly in the area of WASH, which had led to the reduction of cholera in the area.
“We, as the Assembly, are very grateful for partnering with us to maintain hygiene and sanitation in the area,” he said. “Through your sensitization programmes and capacity building, every house has now a latrine, which hitherto was not so and this led to the outbreak of diseases as a result of the open defecation”.
The MCE stressed that most of WVG interventions were in tandem with the objectives of the country’s Millennium Development Goals and gave the assurance that the Assembly would continue to partner effectively to help improve upon the livelihoods of the people, particularly, the vulnerable.
Mr Booy, expressed optimism that with the intervention of World Vision’ s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) component, particularly, the water facility, it would help empower the women in the area to cater properly for their children to attend school in time and also help curb sanitation-related diseases.
Mr Booy, who said World Vision was committed to the welfare of children, impressed upon the community members to ensure that the facility was properly and routinely maintained to prolong its lifespan.
Ms Lehmenn said one of the best methods of empowering women was the provision of water and income generating activities and stated that she was happy that the women now could have better hygiene.
WVG , in all its operational areas, including the Talensi , Bawku West and Garu-Tempane and Kassena-Nankana District in the Region, had instituted the WASH programmes, which has components such as the provision of water facilities, toilets and urinals to schools as well as empowering the community members to put up their own household latrines, using locally produced materials, and the provision of hand wash facilities in schools.
