GROW creates livelihood for vulnerable groups in Nabdam
The Ghana Rural Opportunities for Women (GROW), a local-based non-governmental-organisation (NGO), has supported some selected underprivileged women and children in the Nabdam District of the Upper East Region with livestock worth GH¢50, 000.
The livestock made up of goats and donkeys, donkey-carts, and an undisclosed amount of money were presented to brilliant but needy students who are undertaking their studies in the various senior high and tertiary institutions in Ghana.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony organised at Nyobok, a farming community in the Nabdam District of the Upper East Region, on Sunday, the Executive Director for GROW, Dr Vida Nyagre Yakong, said the support formed part of her commitment to improve upon the economic status of women and vulnerable children.
She revealed that she had a long-standing resolve to contribute significantly in that direction, adding it was pathetic to see women, especially those from the most underserved communities living in despair, hopelessness and destitution.
According to her, she started her philanthropic works way back in 2004, where she supported school girls and women from Nyobok and other neighbouring communities to continue their education at the SHS and acquire more skills to make them competitive and relevant.
Dr Yakong, a senior lecturer and Foundation Dean for the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University for Development Studies (UDS), told the Ghanaian Times on the sidelines of the presentation that, the GROW project came into inception in 2008, with the University of British Columbia, Canada, serving as collaborators for its effective implementation.
Dr Yakong used the platform to rally other philanthropic individuals in Nabdam and the region to partner her fight some obnoxious practices and barriers that hampered the progress of women and girls in rural Ghana.
“15 years down the line, over 500 women have benefited from leadership training; and 1,255 goats, 102 donkeys and 100 donkey carts have been donated to the women in the 52 beneficiary communities,” she added.
Some beneficiary women who spoke to the Ghanaian Times, expressed excitement at the kind gesture, and pleaded with other NGOs and philanthropists to contribute their quota by helping GROW to continue to turn round their fortunes.
“We used to carry firewood on our heads to sell in the markets, but since the donkeys and donkey carts have been given to us, we transport the firewood to our homes and the markets with ease,” an extremely excited beneficiary, Naya Ndeog, noted.
FROM FRANCIS DABRE DABANG, NYOBOK
