30 women trained in soap making in Wa
The lives of the rural youth, especially females, are being uplifted under the Rural Enterprises Programme (REP) with the objective of equipping them with vocational skills and capacity building in entrepreneurship to start business on their own in Wa in the Upper West Region.
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The REP programme, implemented by the Business Advisory Centre (BAC), was funded by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in partnership with the Government of Ghana.
As part of the programme this year, 190 young people, 121 females and 69 males, have completed a vocational training programme in soap making, bee-keeping, business advisory and counselling after which they were given start-up loans with the aim of reducing poverty, hunger and unemployment.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic during a 10-day capacity training workshop for 30 females in soap making, Mr Mohammed Abdul Moomin, the Head of BAC in the Wa Municipality, said the beneficiaries, who are mainly shea-nut extractors and unemployed youth, were taught how to produce eight different types of soap, including bar soap, cake soap and washing powder.
Mr Moomin expressed the hope that other youth would access the services of the BAC to improve their incomes and standards of life and that the beneficiaries would establish home industries which would provide cheaper soap to people and also serve as employment avenues for the youth.
Closing the ceremony, Mr Issahaku Nuhu-Putiaha, the Wa Municipal Chief Executive, said he was happy that the Wa Municipality had also benefitted from the REP.
He said his happiness stemmed from the fact that females who had benefitted from the programme would have the capacity to bring some benefits to their immediate families and society.
He, therefore, entreated the beneficiaries to put the skills acquired into practice to increase their lot.
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" The municipal assembly will continue to create the enabling environment for the promotion and improvement of the incomes of micro and small entrepreneurs", he added.
While commending the participants for their hard work and active participation during the programme, he advised them to utilise the numerous opportunities that may come their way to improve themselves.