WUZDA Ghana

WUZDA Ghana Participates in Sanitation Fair in North East Region in Commemoration of World Toilet Day – 2020

The World Toilet Day, celebrated every 19^th of November, is a day set aside by the United Nations for stakeholders to reflect on efforts towards access to improved sanitation, as well as the management of existing sanitation systems, especially by authorities.

The day is also meant for sector players to gauge the access of peoples across the world, to the basic sanitation amenity of toilet facility and how it could be managed for the support to economic growth and well – being of the people.

In Ghana, this year’s celebration of the World Toilet Day saw various organizations and institutions, both of government and private sector, lead in bringing sector players together, as they deliberated the access to toilet by community members and its related issues.

One such government institution is the North East Regional Coordinating Council, which organized a Sanitation Exhibition Fair for partners in the sector to showcase their sanitation products and services.

The fair, which took place at Nalerigu, the North East Regional Capital, brought together key sector players including UNICEF and CRS, as well as various MMDAs which were represented, for an interaction with CSOs in the sector for information sharing purposes.

WUZDA Ghana, after receiving the invitation from the Environmental Health and Sanitation Unit of the North East Region, as a key development partner, prepared its field officers and latrine artisans for the exhibition, with the aim of showcasing to the public, the sanitation products and services the organization has been providing since 2011, to help bridge the inequality gap between the rich and the poor, with regards to access to household toilet and basic sanitation.

**WUZDA Ghana’s Exhibition of Toilet Designs at the 2020 WTD NE Region Sanitation Fair in Nalerigu**

Presenting WUZDA Ghana’s interventions on sanitation and provision of toilet to stakeholders, observers and participants at the fair, Marketing and Credit Officer for WUZDA Ghana, Salifu Mohammed Mahamud indicated that the organization is running a sanitation credit module, which provides toilet to individuals and households on credit, payable through flexible terms, with up to a 12 month duration.

**Marketing and Credit Officer for WUZDA Ghana, Mahamud Mohammed Presenting to the Audiences, the Organization’s Intervention Areas in Sanitation**

Mahamud stated that access to this facility is not fraught with any discrimination whatsoever, as all an individual or a household requires to benefit from it, is to go through the process of application and be certified as having the need, and is credit worthy.

He reiterated the reasons for WUZDA Ghana to have been intervening in this area as saying, faecal matter can help the nation make some money, if proper attention is paid to managing and recycling it which brought about the need for WUZDA Ghana’s introduction of the Ecosan Digester.

He said the Ecosan Digester toilet allows for the user to turn the faecal matter to produce compost, after it is left covered for some time, allowing the pathogens in it to die, after it becomes full upon use by the individual or household.

The 2020 World Toilet Day is under the theme “Sustainable Sanitation and Climate Change”, which highlights the benefits of recycling and reusing solid waste to reduce effects on climate change, support the growth of economies and to eliminate health problems, as the waste, if managed well, can prevent the people from infectious diseases including COVID – 19.

The day is being used to push for the development of sanitation systems which ensure turning emissions into greener energy.

Interacting with some participants and observers at the sanitation fair in Nalerigu, Mr. Mahamud assured that WUZDA Ghana is ready to support in the quest to providing dignified and affordable toilets to individuals and households through the Latrine Sanitation Credit Scheme, but called for partnership from organizations and institutions that might be interested in supporting to grow the ‘fund’, to help provide coverage for more households.

Back in Tamale at the offices of WUZDA Ghana, a press conference was organized to celebrate the World Toilet Day, where it was revealed to the press that the organization through the Latrine Sanitation Credit Scheme has provided toilets to over 3500 households since 2011.

**From Right: WUZDA Ghana Program Manager, Media and Communications Officer, Intern – Admin. Assistant, Presenting a Press Statement to the Media on World Toilet Day – 2020**

The conference was also used to highlight some issues of concern from the National Solid Waste Management Strategy for Ghana, which was launched at the 31^st Mole Conference in Accra, organized by the Ghana Coalition of NGOs in the Water and Sanitation Sector (CONIWAS).

PRESS RELEASE – WORLD TOILET DAY – 2020

PRESS RELEASE ON WORLD TOILET DAY – 2020

19^th November

Ghana, as a nation, has been saddled with the canker of poor sanitation for a long time. As a developing nation, poor sanitation has been one of the banes to its growth, thereby affecting the well – being of its people.

Over the years, governments and other stakeholders have made efforts to help deal with the problem of poor sanitation, but the problem has always been, especially for duty bearers, a lack of political will and less commitment to policy enactment and implementation.

WUZDA Ghana recognizes the importance of this day, the World Toilet Day, celebrated on 19^th November every year, which highlights the efforts of governments and sanitation sector players, as it reminds all stakeholders of renewed and tightened commitments to the fight against poor sanitation and the benefits the results will bring to the peoples of various societies.

For WUZDA Ghana’s commemoration of the World Toilet Day this year, we would like to focus on the National Solid Waste Management Strategy for Ghana, which was launched at the just ended 31^st Mole Conference in Accra, November, organized by the Ghana Coalition of NGOs in the Water and Sanitation sector (CONIWAS), of which WUZDA Ghana is a member.

We believe the enactment of policies and strategies are not enough, till we make extra efforts to implement them and make them work to the benefit of the people for whom the policies were made.

WUZDA Ghana as a core WASH NGO has since 2011 provided over 3500 household and institutional latrines through our Latrine Sanitation Credit Scheme.

These latrines are mainly scattered across the Tamale Metropolis and the adjoining Metropolitan and District areas in the northern region.

We have also constructed some five institution and communal water systems for schools and communities, to help in cultivating the habit of water conservation in the citizenry, and to support in the management of solid waste.

Nonetheless, with all these efforts, management of the excreta generated from the latrines we have provided for people and others, has always been a challenge for households and institutions.

The overarching aim of Ghana’s Solid Waste Management Strategy is to “set the nation on a path towards progressive, high quality, and cost – effective Solid Waste Management service delivery, which will deliver environmental, public health, and economic benefits for all.”

This is a reminder to all, that waste could be turned into ‘money’, if managed well, as getting rid of it properly also prevents the people from contracting hygiene related and other diseases, making the state save money it would have used to purchase drugs for the OPD to take care of its sick people.

The Solid Waste Management Strategy for Ghana has seven major pillars on which a proper waste management regime is expected to be built.

These pillars are (1) Strengthening sector governance

(2) Increasing private sector participation

(3) Optimizing service delivery and infrastructure

(4) Creating positive social action

(5) Enabling effective waste reduction, recovery and recycling

(6) Ensuring effective Monitoring and Evaluation

(7) Establishing sustainable financing mechanisms for Solid Waste Management

These seven pillars, on paper, indeed look like they can “set the nation on a path towards progressive, high quality, and cost – effective Solid Waste Management service delivery, which will deliver environmental, public health, and economic benefits for all.”

For WUZDA Ghana, we are worried about the spirit with which we implement and enforce our policies and strategies, which in many cases appear very convincing to solving our problems as a nation.

From our end, through our “Farm-Promoting Urban Organic Waste for Food and Livelihood Security” Project, we are empowering 130 vegetable farmers to use faecal matter to produce compost, which they apply on their vegetables for better yield with assurances of better soil composition.

The aim, objectives and roadmap (Pillars) to implementation of the Solid Waste Management Strategy are brilliant and relevant to the problem.

The agencies drawn through the implementation process, especially through MMDAs, is also encouraging, however, we would like to call on the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources to break the tasks of each of the implementing agencies down to specifics, and indicate timelines on which each of them will be achieved.

This will enable sector players monitor on behalf of the citizenry, as well as ask the necessary questions and properly and effectively engage the ministry on the issues of implementation of the Slid Waste Management Strategy.

Finally, we would like to call on the public to make efforts to amend their attitudes with regard to disposing of solid waste, as a properly managed solid ‘material in transition’ (MIT) is wealth and not waste.

Happy World Toilet Day to all!!!

Thank you!

#DoWell

#WasteisMoney

Signed

Shaibu Awudu

Media and Communications Officer

WUZDA Ghana Provides Communities with Credit Support to Boost their Trading Activities

WUZDA Ghana, through its Income Generation Credit Support for women in the Northern Region, has disbursed a total of GH¢31,800.00 to four groups, mostly women, in four rural communities in the Northern Region to help them improve their income levels and make life better for their households.

This initiative is under the Livelihood Initiatives Program, which is one of many thematic areas through which WUZDA Ghana intervenes in rural areas in northern Ghana, to sustainably improve the economic conditions and living standards of the people.

The support program is also incorporated into the organization’s Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) initiative.

The four groups that received this credit support are Tears of Widows Foundation in Zogbeli, Wunzooya group in Manguli, Suglo nbori buni in Bamvim Dohini and Zisung ni Teenaba in the Zieng community.

The groups, cumulatively, consist 55 members, most of whom are women involved in trading activities that largely support the management of the home including taking care of children’s education and health needs.

The group members involved in various trading activities were looking forward to expand, which made the support from WUZDA Ghana come at a better time for them.

Most of these women involved in petty trading, almost winded up their activities after COVID – 19 rendered shocks to many retail businesses and petty trading activities across the country.

Some of the group members who have been speaking to the Communications Department of WUZDA Ghana say they got to a point where their trading activities were almost grounded, due to the COVID – 19 pandemic which affected global and national economies.

According to them, the credit support has come to bring them back on their feet, while they see signs of things getting even better than they used to be before COVID – 19.

As part of this support, 20 women who are widows and belong to the Tears of Widows Foundation also benefitted from a total of GH¢14,400.00 credit to boost their income generation activities.

For some of these widows, they had reached a point where there is no hope for them after their late husbands’ families have deserted them and their children, seizing all properties they toiled with their husbands to acquire.

These women have since been struggling with their children, with some of the children dropping out of school due to lack of support for their education.

The women have been expressing their gratitude to WUZDA Ghana for the timely support and intervention, which is making them smile again, together with their children.

The Suglo nbori Buni group in Bamvim Dohini, with 19 members, has received a total of GH¢12,600.00 for various trading activities both within the community and outside.

These 55 women in total in the various communities are now smiling and engaging in their trading activities to support the growth and development of their children, as they pay this money back in highly flexible and interest free terms, to help for it to be extended to others who are also in need.

**Wunzooya Women Group in Manguli at a meeting to review their contributions on the VSLA and Credit Support**

WUZDA Ghana, as an organization that is interested in the development and well – being of residents of rural communities who are vulnerable, looks to expand this credit support to reach even more communities with more partnership.

WUZDA Ghana and Mundo Cooperante Celebrate Girls with Series of Empowerment Activities on IDGC – 2020

Girls around the world are being celebrated on October 11 every year, which is the International Day of the Girl Child, initiated through a United Nations General Assembly, 25 years ago.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action was adopted by some 30,000 women and men from nearly 200 countries in the Fourth World Conference on Women.

Since the declaration, the platform has remained the most comprehensive policy agenda and reference for Gender Equality across the globe.

WUZDA Ghana, as a Non-Governmental Organization operating in Women and Girl Child empowerment recognizes the need to push for policies that positively affect the rights and well-being of women and girls.

This year, our focus has been on activities that directly affect the career choices of young girls from the Prisons School Complex in Tamale, Ghana.

This idea stems from the theme for the celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child this year; “My Voice, Our Equal Future”!

Our focus this year gave rise to a local working theme “Building Resilience in the Wake of COVID – 19 Pandemic, the Role of Stakeholders in Girl Child Empowerment”.

With funding support from our partner, Mundo Cooperante in Spain, WUZDA Ghana lined up some activities for the girls celebration, including radio talk shows involving the girls themselves talking about issues on Early and Forced Child Marriages, Girl Child and Social Rights in general.

**Girls of Prisons School Complex engaging in a radio discussion on Zaa Radio, Tamale**

There were other activities involving excursion to the National Broadcaster in the Northern Region, GBC Radio Savannah and Sagani Television, both in Tamale.

**Girls of the Prisons School Complex paying attention as they’re being shown how Television is broadcast to the public**

The girls were shown how the systems of radio and TV work, from the engineering rooms through to the broadcast studio, as well as how presenters, journalists and show hosts need to conduct themselves to deliver a successful and an enviable radio or TV show.

**Girls of Prisons School Complex on set, as they’re being taken through the process of hosting a TV Show**

The climax of our event celebration of the IDGC took place at the Pastoral Center in Tamale, where the 100 girl beneficiaries of the “Right to be a Girl – After 24 Years Before Marriage” Project implemented at the Prisons School Complex.

The event, which was christened “Experience Sharing Session on Fighting Early Forced Girl Child Marriages”, had a young lady we chose to name Nasara, share her story to the girls, of how her father, with monetary interests, gave her out for marriage to a man over 70 years old.

Gender Desk Officer, Miss Kaawie Felicia, introducing Nasara to girls explained to them what informed the decision to change her name and hide her face, as saying it is to avoid any form of victimization from society, since she is still a minor.

**‘Nasara’, 16 and a Forced marriage survivor, telling her story to the girls of Prisons School Complex**

Nasara was only 16 when she was forced into marriage, and still is.

Nasara managed to abscond the man’s house and got timely help from WUZDA Ghana.

Nasara was hidden from her family members for over 5 months, as investigations were being carried out by the DOVVSU of the Ghana Police Service.

Dropped out of school, Nasara’s dream has always been to enroll in a skill training exercise of weaving smock, which she is doing now, after all the dust settled on bringing together all family members who were hitherto in support of the marriage, to a realization that Nasara is still young and not ready for marriage.

The girls were both amazed and shocked after Nasara shared her story, as they asked questions about how she was able to gather courage to say no to the man’s advances during her stay in his house.

**Program Manager of WUZDA Ghana giving admonishment to the girls of the Prisons Complex**

Program Manager of WUZDA Ghana, Mr. Ziblim Abdul Karim advised the girls to stick to their books and learn as much as possible to avoid failures in school, which sometimes contributes to parents concluding formal education may not be for a girl, but rather marriage should be her future.

He admonished the girls be time conscious in responding to school and home activities, as it is a sure way of better preparing oneself for the job market.

Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Mr. Ibrahim Abdul Ganiyu, reminded the girls about important it is for them to listen to their parents and respond swiftly to what they are asked to do, to allow for them to stay committed to instructions.

Media practitioner with Radio Tamale and moderator of the session, Muniru Bariyah, herself working and married, took the girls on a step by step journey of how important it is for a girl to reach the age of marriage and have economic reliance for herself before getting married.

Media and Communications Officer, Shaibu Awudu reminded the girls of how significant the International Day of the Girl Child is to stakeholders, but added that all the expectations of stakeholders cannot be met without the girls paying attention to all the empowerment activities carefully thought through and crafted for them.

He asked the girls to learn harder so that by next year at the celebration of the 2021 IDGC, they will be celebrated as advancing into the next stages both in Junior and Senior High Schools.

Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action calls on the global community to

Eliminate all forms of discrimination against girls.
Eliminate negative cultural attitudes and practices against girls.
Promote and protect the rights of girls and increase awareness of their needs and potential.
Eliminate discrimination against girls in education, skills development and training.

Press Statement: International Youth Day – 2020

It is election year in Ghana and in 4 months, the nation goes to the polls. The future of the youth is dependent on the outcome of every general elections.

The youth are expected to be the backbone of the development workforce of every nation, however, the limited or no opportunities in developing nations like Ghana, end up making the youth unresourced enough to contribute to development.

According to statistics of a survey conducted by H. Plecher in July, 2020, Ghana’s youth unemployment rate stands at 9.16 percent, as of the end of 2019.

WUZDA Ghana finds this reality very worrying, especially with a country that has political parties make it integral parts of their manifestos, only to abandon ideas on youth empowerment after winning elections.

This year, election violence has been spotlighted as the continuation of a menace that needs the attention of all and sundry to be severely dealt with.

We find the use of young people and the youth in general, by politicians for perpetuating trouble, a trend that needs to be stopped.

But how do we stop this? It is by ensuring that the youth take their future into their own hands and civil society takes leadership of the fight and steps into the empowerment drive to open the eyes of the youth to realities.

The youth must know that predators would always take advantage of preys that do not form any protection for themselves, by building their capacities.

The youth have the power to stop violence in our elections if they are empowered well enough to pay close attention to promises made by politicians on youth policies and youth empowerment, and go ahead to demand implementation, with threats of no vote if promises are not fulfilled.

The youth have that power, they must use it!

Politicians have failed the youth and it is time they rose up to the occasion to demand!

The youth must demand for the formulation of youth development laws and policies and pile pressure for their implementation.

Arise youth! Engage for action!

“Youth Engagement for Global Action” is a call we support!

Happy International Youth Day!!!

Signed

Shaibu Awudu (Media and Communications)

Press Statement: World Rainforest Day – 2020

It is important for all humans to make efforts at contributing to preserving biodiversity, as it has a huge impact on human survival.

The Amazon rainforest alone provides up to 20% of the oxygen human beings around the world breathe and the freshwater we drink.

They are also responsible for the absorption of carbon dioxide and the stabilization of climate.

22nd of June each year, is used to recognize how precious the Amazon Rainforest is to human life, without which, life will be extinct.

The day is also used to identify and discuss ways by which the natural resource could be preserved for the benefit of generations.

Our own contributions to making this a reality as an organization, include the use of the drip irrigation technology to help farmers in rural communities in the preservation of their scarce water sources.

These farmers, most of whom depend on their farming to feed their families, have problems year – in year – out with the availability of water, due to the long term drought experienced by the northern part of Ghana.

For this reason, the farmers needed a mechanism that helps for them to utilize the limited resource of water they depend on for all their activities, including farming.

As an organization, we are wary of international protocols and national policies that seek to coordinate the various activities of stakeholders aimed at preserving the biodiversity.

WUZDA Ghana is a member of the Civil Society’s Platform on the Sustainable Development Goals which is leading in a coordinated manner, as well as to shine light on the activities and efforts by the civil society on all that is being done to make the SDGs attainable.

Ghana’s Environmental Policy which was enacted in 1995 gives clear definition to what the nation is expected to do to preserve precious natural resources for the sustenance of human life.

It states some of the challenges faced by the environment, which affect human survival as land degradation, deforestation, biodiversity loss, water pollution, urbanization, etc.

Climate change is seen as the major effect on the environment and to the loss of livelihood by many.

We at WUZDA Ghana will continue to ramp up efforts at contributing to preserve the environment which include our water bodies.

Our rural communities in the northern parts of Ghana depend heavily on dams and dugouts as sources of water for drinking and for other activities.

We will also continue to advocate for governments to step up efforts in the implementation of policies aimed at providing potable water for rural communities.

The “One Village One Dam” policy by the government would have been a solution many of the water problems faced by numerous rural communities, but for the poor implementation and partisan politicization approach that has characterized it by both the party in power (NPP) and the opposition (NDC).

We encourage people to avoid cutting down trees without growing more and desist from burning bushes, as all these are activities that contribute to depleting the Ozone layer, thereby making Climate Change extreme.

We wish things were done differently, with commitment and political will for all of life to be preserved and the future generations to benefit.

Happy World Rain Forest Day 2020!!!

…Signed…

Shaibu Awudu (Media and Communications)

Press Statement: International Day Of The African Child – 2020

On the 11th of July, 1990, member states of the Organization of African Unity OAU, moved to adopt the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which sets out rights and defines principles for the status of children on the African continent, as it came into force in 1999.

The Day of the African Child has been celebrated on June 16 every year since 1991,when it was first initiated by the Organisation of African Unity.

It honors those who participated in the Soweto Uprising in 1976 on that day. It also raises awareness of the continuing need for improvement of the education provided to African children.

The African Charter can be a powerful tool to hold governments accountable for ending child marriage.

Indeed, it defines the rights and responsibilities of a child and mandates protection of the girl child from harmful cultural practices such as child marriage.

As part of the implementation of the charter, the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) was established in 2001.

States party to the charter were expected to submit reports to the committee, which documents information and assesses the situation of children.

Member states must submit their first report on their implementation of the charter two years after ratification. After that, periodic reports are submitted every three years.

The reporting process keeps governments accountable to the commitments they have made within the African Charter, and is a great opportunity to raise better measures to end child marriage.

Ghana has drafted a National Action Plan for the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Ghana, which became operational from 2017 and expires in 2021, and is being championed by the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations.

This document shows the way government coordinates all efforts of partners and activity compliments towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 8, target 7.

The Strategic Framework on Ending Child Marriage which was launched in 2017 and being led in implementation by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection is another policy which aims at ensuring the Ghanaian child, especially the female, has the best of future in terms education and not pushed into marriage at a tender age before 18 years.

These documents are but a few of the richly crafted policies that Ghana has to ensure that the right and safety of the child are protected to allow for them to explore their full potentials in education for the betterment of society.

However, the implementation of these policies as many others, has become difficult for governments overtime, due to a lack of commitment and of political will.

Our rural areas still see the worst forms of child labour which many go unreported and the few that get reported, run a haul of frustrating legal processes which relatives of victims and complainants mostly end up abandoning the cases.

Parents still give girls out to men who are sometimes thrice their age, with children older than them for marriage, with collaborations from family and opinion leaders, in return for material things such as money and some form of luxury.

Our water bodies in the coastal areas are inundated with children who serve as “slaves and apprentices” to fisherfolk, after their parents ‘sell’ them out for monies best described as ‘chicken change’.

WUZDA Ghana, a Nongovernmental Organization with high interests in the welfare of the child, makes consideration to the growth of children in all its projects planning and implementation.

Our projects in the rural communities have the objective to economically empower the rural farmer to be able to put their children through school and through training which prevents for the child to be involved in hard labour just to help the family to keep up.

Our interventions in schools where we provide some WASH facilities, are aimed at reducing the struggle the child goes through to access basic WASH amenities, so as to avoid them being exposed to danger while doing that.

The ‘After 24 Years Before Marriage A24Y’ Project aims at ensuring the girl child is put through school and allowed to be in school until after she is 24 years before any marriage discussions can begin.

We believe that by this time, the girl will be able to make decisions on her own regarding who she wants to get married to and how she wants the process to go.

She also would have grown physically and is better ready to go through the reproduction process without endangering her health and that of the unborn child.

Clearly, WUZDA Ghana has been rallying all its activities around the welfare and safety of the Child, but a drop of water in the ocean, is not enough, more needs to be done for the realization of a befitting future for the African Child.

Happy International Day of the African Child!!!

Signed

(Shaibu Awudu – Media and Communications)

We’re Hiring!

WUZDA Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organization based in Tamale, is looking to recruit a competent and highly disciplined individual as Programme Officer in charge of Agronomics.

WUZDA Ghana is dedicated to working to improve the lives and economic well-being of the rural farmer through drip irrigation technology and the management and preservation of water to enhance the farm value chain for market improvements.

The Programme Officer in charge of Agronomics must be able to prepare self-explanatory and activity – oriented work plan for project implementation.

Requirements of Applicants

Master’s degree holder in any Agriculture – related field, especially, in Agribusiness and Value Chain Technology.

Age range: 30 – 45 years.

Working Experience: Minimum of 3 years’ experience in same or similar position in either a public or private institution.

For a first degree or Diploma holder in the same filed, especially from an Agricultural College, must have a minimum of 5 years’ experience in practice.

Must be a team player and be able to work under pressure with limited or no supervision.

Must speak and write English accurately for reporting, in addition to Dagbani or Mampruli and Gonja or Hausa.

Must have skills to prepare participatory planning, reports, monitoring and evaluation frameworks, data gathering, analysis and processing tools and be able to implement same to meet deadlines.

Must be able to ride a motorbike to communities to execute assignments.

Must be familiar with MS word, Excel, power point and other basic office software to perform duties timely and effectively.

Knowledge in food security and agricultural technologies as well as familiarity with the climate change management approaches is essential to this portfolio.

How to apply:

Send CV, cover letter with academic certificate(s) and other relevant documentation addressed to ‘The Programme Manager’, submitted at the front desk of WUZDA Ghana Offices, Kakpagyili residential area, Adjacent chief (Guma-Naa) palace Tamale. Find our offices through digital address: NT 0147 – 8542.

For further information, call 0243669976/ 0507199923.

Deadline for submission of application is 17:00 GMT, 16th June, 2020.

Note: Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted for interview. Applications sent via email will not be considered. Make sure after submission of application at the front desk, you sign with front desk personnel and indicate the date of submission.

Press Statement: World Menstrual Hygiene Day – 2020

Many Girls around the world go through difficulties during their periods. An estimated 11% of the world’s population are female children, which is 825 million of the 7.9 billion people in the world, as of 2019.

Women who are in their menstrual ages are twice as prone to sexual infections as those that are not, if they fail to manage their menstrual hygiene properly.

During this era of COVID – 19 Pandemic and as schools are locked in most countries, girls will naturally go through some psychological trauma since they find themselves doing what they have not done for quite some time within a given period of time.

The theme for the World Menstrual Hygiene Day 2020 is “Periods in Pandemic”, where it is agreed by stakeholders that periods do not wait because of pandemics.

The idea behind choosing this theme is to highlight how the challenges faced by women during menstruation have worsened due to the ongoing pandemic.

Girls in the rural and remote areas are more vulnerable with the lack of menstrual pads and other hygiene materials and facilities, to take care of themselves during their periods.

WUZDA Ghana believes that every girl should still be able to go through her period with dignity and without any stigma.

Our After 24 Years Before Marriage or A24Y Project has over the last year been highlighting the need for girls to be allowed to freely go through their periods without any shame whatsoever.

We have also through the project, empowered and encouraged girls to remain confident and unshaken during their periods, as they must be able to still go to school and sit in class even when they menstruate.

The distribution of menstrual hygiene materials to girls at the Prisons School Complex in Tamale highlights our commitment to seeing the girl child fare well during her period.

As a girl, you are not less human just because you are having your period. Menstruation is not a problem, poor menstrual hygiene is.

As the world marks Hygiene Day today, WUZDA Ghana and our main partner in girl child empowerment, Mundo Cooperante, wish to remind girls around the world, especially in Ghana that ‘you can move mountains’ even as you have your period.

Happy World Menstrual Hygiene Day to all girls.

Signed

Shaibu Awudu – Media and Communications

WUZDA Ghana’s Direct Donation Activities To Helping Fight Covid – 19 – The Compilation

It may appear the fight against the dreaded coronavirus pandemic cannot be won without the availability of some basic logistics and PPEs to institutions and individuals, which in fact, is the reality.

The level of education on the preventive measures aimed at limiting the spread of COVID – 19 has gone wide across the world and around the country.

However, many institutions, communities and individuals have constraints in adhering to, and applying these safety measures to the latter, for some of them, not because they do not want to, but because they simply lack the basic resources it takes to make it happen.

HOSPITAL DONATION

WUZDA Ghana upon visits to various health facilities across the Tamale Metropolis, Sagnarigu and Savelugu Municipalities, realized a huge shortfall in the largely preached “Social distancing”, as a means to containing the spread of the virus.

The Out Patient Departments are mostly congested with including children, people sitting very close to each other for non-enough sitting space to allow for spacing while sitting, and many others.

It was by this worrying situation that WUZDA Ghana decided to intervene in the situation, one health facility at a time, to help reduce congestion and to identify some critical equipment that health facilities would need in dealing with cases of, or suspected to be COVID – 19.

It came out that the facilities even though have varied needs depending on the type and class of facility it is, all have needs for very basic equipment to help them take care of patients who show up at the OPD even with normal health conditions.

In this case, it would not take any great number of COVID – 19 cases to get the facilities overwhelmed in capacity.

In the interim, WUZDA Ghana identified one of the health facilities, the Tamale West Hospital, which is the most pressured at this COVID – 19 season apart from the Tamale Teaching Hospital, where we found out that their congestion at the OPD is more serious than the others, because of the numbers of general medical cases they have to attend to on a daily basis.

We decided to provide the hospital with a two-room canopy, plastic chairs and ‘Veronica” hand washing facilities and gallons of liquid soap, to help ease the congestion at the OPD and to allow for attendants to keep to the first basic safety protocol in these times, which is washing hands with soap under running water.

<img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/20200508_113524-480×360.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6513″ width=”480″ height=”360″> Tamale West Hospital; Two-room canopy erected in the background, with hand washing facilities being handed over to the hospital management by WUZDA Ghana

WUZDA Ghana also presented some surgical gloves to the Tamale West Hospital, to help medical officers safely attend to patients without having to endanger themselves by touching patients with their bare hands, which raises their risk of getting infected if the patient has contracted COVID – 19.

PRISONS SCHOOL COMPLEX – A24Y

WUZDA Ghana has over the last one year been running a project in the Prisons School Complex titled the “After 24 Years Before Marriage – A24Y”. Under this project, 100 girls are being targeted together with either of each of their parents, totaling 100 as well.

Several girl child empowerment activities have been undertaken with the girls especially on matters around child marriage within the period.

The students have been declared Child Marriage Ambassadors after series of engagements with them on how they can spot a likely threatening issue of child marriage, as well as how and where to seek help if it involves them or someone they know.

The COVID – 19 Pandemic has undoubtedly dealt a blow to the education of these girls due to the closure of schools in Ghana by the government to help manage the spread of the disease.

As part of the organization’s activities to help limit the spread of COVID – 19, WUZDA Ghana presented various safety items to the girls to help them stay safe.

The items include nose masks, hand sanitizers and liquid soap. These are part of the basic safety items people need to be able to stay safe and protect themselves from contracting the virus.

<img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/20200507_105633-480×360.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6514″ width=”480″ height=”360″> Presentation of items by Hajia Rumainsha on behalf of WUZDA Ghana, to the Prisons School Complex, received by the Headmistress

The girls were also reminded of the need to adhere to the safety etiquette being pushed by the government as a way to deal with the COVID – 19 spread.

TAMALE METROPOLITAN ASSEMBLY

<img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/20200511_114035-1-365×480.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6516″ width=”365″ height=”480″> Alhaji Saani Abdul-Razak, right, presenting the supportive preventive items on behalf of WUZDA Ghana to the Tamale Metro Assembly through the Coordinating Director

The Tamale Metropolitan Assembly is a close partner in the implementation of WUZDA Ghana’s Emergency activities on COVID – 19, to help in limiting the spread of the disease, which are being funded by Bread for the World and Mundo Cooperante.

From the discussion stage of the activities, the Assembly was roped in to help in crafting ideas on the key things that need to be done to help the people in the metropolis understand how serious the COVID – 19 disease is, as well as what they can do to help limit its spread.

WUZDA Ghana understands that the Assembly has a lot of responsibility to the people, but with huge constraints when it comes to the availability of resource.

It is in this light that the organization though it wise to present some safety items to the Assembly, to help its staff in the frontline management and monitoring of the implementation of the safety protocols of public gathering and others.

The items included nose masks, hand sanitizers and gallons of liquid soap. Northern Regional Director of the NCCE, Alhaji Saani Abdul Razak presenting the items to the Assembly on behalf of WUZDA Ghana, said the fight against COVID – 19 should be everybody’s business.

Receiving the items on behalf of the Assembly, the Tamale Metropolitan Coordinating Director, Mr. Abdul – Rahaman B. Ahmed Said the initiative by WUZDA Ghana is one of the many that organizations can embark on to help the government to deal with COVID – 19.

VERONICA HAND WASHING FACILITY DONATIONS

Other individuals and partner institutions including households were given ‘Veronica’ handwashing facilities to support them adhere to the basic preventive measures of hand washing with soap under running water.

The individuals and institutions that benefited from the hand washing facilities donations include Tears of Widows and Orphans, National Commission for Civic Education, CIAHT Ghana, Tamale West Hospital, Alhassan Auto electrical shop, Shizey Auto mechanic shop, Alhaji Issah Salifu, Alhaji Issah Abdulai and Mahama Abdulai Zakaria.

WUZDA Ghana’s project beneficiaries were also targeted directly to benefit from the hand washing facilities. They include the farming communities where the organization is implementing the ‘Farm – Promoting Urban Organic Waste for Food and Livelihood Security’ Project, which consist Dunyin, Libiga, Datoyili, Manguli, Wovogu and Wovoguma.

The Prisons school Complex was also targeted as a beneficiary of WUZDA Ghana’s A24Y Project, which seeks to empower 100 teenage girls on issues of Child Marriage and how it can be eliminated from the communities.

RADIO STATIONS

Radio stations in Tamale were not left out in WUZDA Ghana and partners’ emergency activities on COVID – 19. The washing of hands with soap under running water has been one of the key preventive etiquette which are being pushed to help limit the spread of the disease.

The radio stations that took deliveries of ‘Veronica’ hand washing facilities with gallons of liquid soap from WUZDA Ghana include Radio Tamale, Radio Justice, Bishara Radio, Tawasul Radio, Zaa Radio, Diamond FM and Might FM.

<img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Photo-2-360×480.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6275″ width=”360″ height=”480″> Radio Justice <img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/20200508_115306-480×360.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6518″ width=”480″ height=”360″> Zaa Radio

The radio station became key targets in the donation of hand washing facilities because of their role in the communities of informing and educating the public on what to do during these times.

It is also earmarked as a public place where individuals move in and out of, for programmes and other businesses.

<img src=”https://www.wuzda.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/20200508_112022-480×360.jpg” alt=”” class=”size-medium wp-image-6519″ width=”480″ height=”360″> Bishara Radio

WUZDA Ghana together with its partners are looking to do more in especially the rural communities where vulnerable groups are found, to help in the management of COVID – 19.