Nalerigu, Sept. 17, GNA – The North East Regional Coordinating Council has taken delivery of quantities of assorted food items for onward distribution to residents affected by the spillage of the Bagre Dam and weeks of torrential rainfall in the area.
The items, valued at GH¢ 200,000.00 included bags of rice, gallons of cooking oil, tins of milk and milo, to help ameliorate the plight of residents, who were heavily affected by the disaster.
The items were donated by the Volta River Authority (VRA), a state electricity generation company, as part of its corporate social responsibility to the people of the region given that it has been engaged to construct the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam, which is located in the North East and Upper East Regions.
Mr Osman Ayuba, Managing Director of Northern Electricity Distribution Company Limited, on behalf of the Managing Director of VRA, presented the items to the North East Regional Minister at Nalerigu.
About 50 communities in all the six assemblies in the North East Region have remained flooded following the opening of the Bagre Dam in Burkina Faso on August 10, coupled with weeks of torrential rainfall in the region.
Residents in the affected communities have been displaced whilst foodstuffs, livestock and farmlands have also been destroyed by the floods and a total of six people have died out of the incident.
The National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) in the region is still undertaking an assessment of the situation to come out of with the exact extent of the destruction.
Mr Ayuba said; “VRA is aware of the situation and it is only proper for us to show our concern and love for the people” hence, the donation.
He said; “the rains are natural and we cannot stop them”, advising people, who lived around river banks, to move away from those areas to ensure safety.
Mr Solomon Boar, North East Regional Minister, who received the items, expressed gratitude to VRA for the gesture saying the items had come at the right time to support the victims.
Mr Boar said the devastation brought about by the floods was huge, adding a number of development partners and NADMO officials were on the field assessing the extent of damage and how best to support the victims.
Meanwhile, VRA also presented similar items to people affected by the floods in the Upper East Region.
GNA