Minister lauds NGO for impacting lives in northern Ghana

The Northern Regional Minister, Alhassan Shaibu, has lauded the Ghana Developing Communities Association (GDCA), one of the oldest non-governmental organisations in northern Ghana, for its unwavering commitment to improving lives and empowering communities over the past decades.

He said GDCA had been a pillar in the region, steadily transforming lives through education and advocacy.

Over the past four decades, he said, the organisation had initiated several programmes that had supported girls, vulnerable children and marginalised communities across the region, while making education available to every child irrespective of their backgrounds.

Alhaji Shaibu made the commendation in a speech read on his behalf by the Coordinating Director at the Northern Regional Coordinating Council, Damma Mumuni, at the 40th anniversary celebration of the GDCA at Dalun last Saturday.

The event, which brought together traditional leaders, stakeholders and partners from Denmark, also celebrated the longstanding partnership between the organisation and its partners in Denmark.

It was on the theme; "Inclusive Education for Sustainable Development".

Founded by the late Professor Abubakr Al-Hassan and his Danish partners, the organisation had over the years played a vital role in fostering progress in northern Ghana by addressing the root causes of poverty and promoting sustainable growth through education.

Collaboration

The regional minister acknowledged the nearly four-decade partnership between GDCA and Ghana Venskab, as an extraordinary example of international collaboration rooted in mutual respect, trust and a shared vision for sustainable development.

He pledged the government's commitment to deepening its collaboration with GDCA and other partners for equitable development.

The Chairman of the GDCA, Dr Osman Al-Hassan, indicated that the organisation had been able to reach out to more than 60,000 residents in deprived communities through education, livelihoods, social accountability, climate change and many other interventions.

"We have a duty to guard jealously against attempts to derail the process and marshal our efforts to do even more than before.

“Our members, management and staff, volunteers and many others have been working very hard with the support of our chiefs and state agencies to ensure that lives in communities are better off," he said.

The Paramount Chief of the Dalun Traditional Area, Dalun Lana Tapha Mahamudu III, added that over the years, the NGO had achieved a lot in bringing development to deprived communities, ranging from providing physical infrastructure such as classroom blocks, health and water facilities to social accountability.

He,therefore, appealed to them to scale up their interventions to reach out to many vulnerable people in the area.

Writer's email: mohammed.fugu@graphic.com.gh