By Albert Futukpor
Tamale, Oct 28, GNA – Catholic Relief Services (CRS), an international NGO, has presented 15 motorbikes to its partners in two regions to support efforts at sustaining its Integrated Community Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (ICOWAS) project.
The beneficiaries were the West Mamprusi Municipality and Mamprugu-Moagduri District in the North East Region, and Talensi District in the Upper East Region and their respective Ghana Health Service and Ghana Education Service.
The ICOWAS, a six-year project, which will end this year, is being implemented in the regions by the CRS, and funded by the Helmsley Charitable Trust.
The project seeks to deliver Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services and improve the well-being of over 307,000 people in communities, schools and health facilities in the regions.
Mr Festus Fofie, WASH Programme Director at CRS, speaking during the handing over of the motorbikes to representatives of the beneficiary institutions in Tamale, said they were to help in continuous monitoring and technical support to project communities and institutions.
Mr Fofie said the project had facilitated the construction of 94 boreholes, 10 mechanised water systems, 275 institutional latrines, 38 bathrooms and 35 medical incinerators and bathrooms.
He added that it also ensured the verification and certification of 197 communities as open defecation free communities and 14 as sanitised communities, whilst 50 health care facilities and 175 schools were also verified and certified as WASH-friendly institutions.
Mr Fofie said “CRS and the donor are both happy and proud of the project’s success and lessons, which have been adopted and replicated by the government and other development partners like the Swiss Red Cross, Kom Yilma project in Burkina Faso, amongst other institutions.”
He appealed to the beneficiary institutions to ensure optimum use of the motorbikes for the intended purpose as well as regularly maintain them to serve them for a long time.
Mr Seidu Soalihu, Mamprugu-Moagduri District Coordinating Director, expressed gratitude to CRS and partners for the support and pledged to use the motorbikes for their intended purposes.
GNA