By Nii Martey M. Botchway
Accra, Sept. 21, GNA – Madam Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, Member of Parliament (MP) for La Dade-Kotopon, has supported 100 small-scale food vendors in the constituency with 50-kilogramme bags of maize and GH¢200 cash each to strengthen their businesses.
The beneficiaries, mainly women cook and sell kenkey, banku and other local foods, received the items as part of an initiative by the MP to provide practical support to small-scale food businesses.
Speaking during the presentation, Madam Sowah said the initiative was aimed at supporting people whose livelihoods depended on small-scale food businesses by helping them reduce some of their operational costs.
She said the initiative would be extended to other food vendors, including those selling waakye, rice, porridge and bread.
“I always think of ways to support the people in the constituency. So, in my second term in Parliament, I decided that I would help women or people who engage in small-scale food businesses,” she said.
Madam Sowah said although she might not always be able to provide large sums of money, providing basic inputs used in the businesses could help beneficiaries sustain and grow their operations.
She explained that the maize was particularly intended to support women who prepared and sold kenkey and banku, while similar assistance would be provided to other categories of food vendors.
She said the support formed part of a continuing initiative, rather than a one-off intervention, adding that more vendors would be considered in subsequent phases.
“Today, we have supported 100 people. In the coming months, I am looking at supporting many more people,” she said.
Madam Sowah said the intervention was also intended to help the beneficiaries take advantage of increased demand for food during the festive season and reinvest in their businesses.
Some of the beneficiaries expressed appreciation to Madam Sowah for the gesture, saying the support would help reduce the cost of procuring ingredients and enable them to sustain their businesses.
Madam Dosia Kai Torgbor, one of the beneficiaries, thanked the MP for identifying the needs of small-scale food vendors and providing them with practical assistance.
Another beneficiary, Madam Gifty Tetteh, also expressed gratitude for the support, saying the maize and cash would contribute to keeping her business running.
The initiative builds on Madam Sowah’s previous support for small-scale food vendors in the constituency, including the provision of food items to vendors as part of efforts to strengthen their livelihoods.
GNA
Nii Martey M. Botchway
[email protected]
Edited by Samuel Osei-Frempong