Rainforest Alliance has donated Personal Protective Equipment to health officials in Sefwi Wiawso, Akontombra, Bodi, and Bibiani Ahwiaso-Bekwai Municipal areas to fight the new omicron variant pandemic.
The donation was part of an ongoing effort by Rainforest Alliance and its partners to curb the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana.
The donated PPE’s comprises liquid soaps, hand sanitizers, transparent face shields, infrared thermometer, headgear, gown boot, surgical gloves, face mask, response kits, and others.
The exercise provided an opportunity for over 1500 beneficiaries to be screened for various illnesses, including diabetes, hepatitis B, malaria, HIV, and also given COVID-19 vaccination.
Mr. Kwadwo Nti Baniako, Manager, Landscapes and Communities Rainforest Alliance, who presented the PPEs items to the health officials, said that it is in their interest to help boost the immune system of the farmers to maintain their wellbeing, especially as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to affect the lives of people across the globe.
Mr. Kwadwo Nti Baniako said the outreach is to provide the community and farmers access to free medical care and medication because the body has its threshold of weakness.
“As we eat and drink, we don’t know what we are introducing into our system, and if we don’t give the body good health maintenance, what it means is that the body will end up breaking down”, he said.
The Municipal Director of Health Service, Bibiani Ahwiaso-Bekwai in the Western North Region, Mr. Oppong-Darko Oheneba said COVID-19 vaccination is now mandatory for all including farmers.
“We are still in the battle against COVID-19, so these items are going a long way to support the fight against COVID-19.
We are grateful to Rainforest Alliance and their sponsors for this kind of gesture and I must reiterate that these items would go a long way to help fight against the COVID-19 in the Western North Region, we are so grateful to receive these items” he said.
Disease Control Officer, Sefwi Wiawso Municipal, Mr. Koyaara Abraham said the free health screenings included a comprehensive check-up performed by nurses and medical specialists.
“I wish that this initiative would be an annual affair to bring relief to the vulnerable about their healthcare,” he said.
Mr. Isaac Brafi, Chairman of Sefwi Wiawso Landscape Management Board, expressed gratitude to Rainforest Alliance for the gesture and urged them to repeat the gesture often.
The Landscape and Environmental Agility across the Nation (LEAN) project funded by the European Union-sponsored the exercise and was ably supported by Olam Ghana Limited.
Other project partners included in the implementation of the LEAN project in other parts of the country are Tropenbos Ghana, World Vision, and Ecocare Ghana.
