By Godfred A. Polkuu
Gore (U/E), Jan 9, GNA – The Haven of Love Children Foundation, a non-governmental Christian organization, has organized a funfair for children at Gore, a community under Binaba in the Bawku West District of the Upper East Region.
The Foundation used the event to renew invalid National Health Insurance cards of 300 children and some 50 adults in the community.
They also served a total of 1500 residents with lunch packs as they danced to different genres of gospel music.
The children were also engaged in various educative and entertainment activities, including spelling and dancing competitions among other outdoor activities.
The Foundation, which mainly operates in rural communities in the Kusang area, particularly in the Bawku West District, annually renew invalid NHIS cards for children, conduct oral health screening and sensitize them on the importance of education through its programmes.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency at Gore, Mr Samuel Nana Bekai Djirackor, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Foundation, said management took advantage of the festive season to share and demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ to children in the rural area.
“Christ came to earth as a gift from God. And He is the greatest gift God has given to man. This is my own little way as the CEO of Haven of Love Children Foundation to try and give back to society for what God has done for me.
“So, among others, we have also partnered with the People’s Foundation to register 137 children onto the NHIS,” he said.
Mr Djirackor said apart from the funfair and card renewal, the Foundation engaged the Nutrition Unit of the Ghana Health Service and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) in the district to educate parents, guardians and the children on basic nutrition and child protection issues.
He said child abuse cases were mostly dominant in rural communities, and victims did not know where they could seek redress.
“So, we engaged CHRAJ to educate them. We are also rendering dental care services to them as well.”
The CEO thanked his family, friends and benevolent donors for their continuous support to the Foundation and appealed for more support to enable them to extend the Foundation’s activities to other parts of the district.
Mr Emmanuel Adongo, the District Nutrition Officer, who addressed the participants on the importance of nutrition in the human body, emphasized that “whatever goes into our body is very important.”
He said there was the need for good nutrition prior to birth, and all through a person’s life, and encouraged parents to feed children with local green leafy vegetables and stay away from junk foods.
He advocated exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months after birth and enumerated the importance of breastmilk to babies and nursing mothers, saying, it prevented diarrheal diseases and created a bond between mother and baby.
Mr Adongo advised the aged to be mindful of what they eat and noted that “Some elderly people feel that because they could not get certain foods at their young age, now that they can afford they want to eat anything.
“This is a trap for the aged. At this point, the aged need to eat only heathy foods in moderation. Fats and oils, sugar and salt intake are not needed. Meat must be taken in moderation,” the Nutrition Officer advised.
Mr John Akouba Atampure, an Investigator at the District CHRAJ office, spoke on the functions of CHRAJ, and advised parents to ensure that the rights of children were not violated.
A parent, Madam Elizabeth Akugri, expressed gratitude to Haven of Love Children Foundation for the gesture extended to them and their children.
GNA