The Association of Women Accountants of Ghana, (AWAG) has donated assorted consumables and non-food items to the Madamfo Ghana Children’s Shelter, a subsidiary of Madamfo Ghana Foundation, in Ho at a brief ceremony.
The items included bags of rice, gallons of oil, bales of clothing and shoes, drinkables, fish, detergents, sets of story books, boxes of milk, biscuits, soap, and tasty tom, all valued at GHS15,000.
The AWAG and their collaborator, the staff endowment fund of the National Petroleum Authority jointly donated an additional GHS20,000 to the Shelter.
Madam Mawushie Dzikunoo, President of AWAG said the gesture was their social responsibility aimed at helping to support the development and growth of these children and again bring some smiles to the faces of the underprivileged in society.
She said it was time to balance the equation and not only concentrate on the welfare of the girl-child but provide a level playing field for all genders to trudge along to the total development and human resource needs for nation-building.
She said AWAG career women were able to multi-task between work, home and social services on a strategic balancing act exemplifying their professionalism.
Madam Dzikunoo appealed to other public and private institutions including corporate Ghana to support the Shelter to bring life back to these inmates as the government could not do it alone.
Madam Happy Dzamesi, Home Director of the Shelter, thanking their benefactors said the Shelter was established by a German philanthropist, Bettina Landgrafe, some 20 years ago with the first batch of 50 inmates to provide a shoulder to rehabilitate victims of child trafficking and all forms of human and child abuses.
She disclosed that cumulatively, a total of 150 inmates were rehabilitated or provided with shelter in its two decades of existence with a few completing their tertiary education.
She said only victims covered with a court order, Department of Social Welfare document and Police extract were accepted into the Shelter.
Madam Dzamesi said most inmates of the Shelter were child slaves rescued from the Lakes, gutters and bushes and pledged to use the items for their purpose rigidly.
An inmate, only introduced as Daniel took the visitors on a journey of constant abuse, torture and slavery from stepmother, and aunt, while domiciled in Nigeria.
He said he finally landed in the fishing industry, without any form of experience, when he expressed interest in going to school, which nearly brought tears to the eyes of AWAG members but was eventually rescued after his colleague planned and run away.
Source: Ghana News Agency