Bolgatanga, Feb. 16, GNA- The Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which have provided much-needed relief and development assistance, especially in the fields of education and health, to deprived communities in Ghana since 1958, would pull out by September 2008.

Mr. Daniel Ayugane, Head of CRS Programmes in Ghana, announced at this at a dialogue meeting held with stakeholders in Bolgatanga on Thursday.

He explained that "This decision is in response to the fact that Ghana is no longer among the priority countries earmarked for that category of development assistance."

Mr. Ayugane observed that conflicts and natural disasters ranging from Dafur, Afghanistan and the Middle East to the Tsunami, Katrina and Rita continued to exert competing demands on scarce resources. He said, consequently, donors and implementing agencies like CRS were now considering how they could extricate themselves from projects regarded as long-standing and consolidated.

Mr. Ayugane gave the assurance that even though USAID was phasing out its programme in Ghana, CRS-Ghana was by no means closing down its offices in the country.

He said "We would like to use this forum to communicate our commitment to support the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) in anyway our institutional expertise is deemed relevant, convinced that the child remains the central focus of these interventions." Mr. Ayugane noted that the CRS/Ghana Education Service (GES) School Feeding Programme had resulted in increased enrolment and improved attendance.

He said that the outstanding challenge was to identify appropriate strategies that would minimize any negative impact the withdrawal of donor support might have on the gains made so far.

Mr. Alfred Osei, Food Aid Specialist for USAID-Ghana, said the organization had been assisting communities in Ghana for the past 50 years through programmes in private sector development, basic education, maternal/child healthcare, food security and support for people living with HIV/AIDS.

He said "The take home food rations have increased female enrolment in primary schools."

Mr. Ayugane expressed the optimism that with committed collaboration on the part of all stakeholders, the Ghana School Feeding Programme) GSFP) initiated by government would effectively fill the gap that would be created when CRS/USAID/World Food Programme (WFP) left the scene.

The Upper East Regional Co-ordinator of the GSFP, Mr. Latif Solomon, announced that the national school feeding programme was introduced by the Government in October 2005, with the aim of increasing enrolment, attendance and retention, reducing hunger and malnutrition and boosting domestic food production.

From an initial 1,900 pupils from 10 pilot schools nationwide, the programme had expanded to cover 69,000 pupils from 200 schools in all 138 districts in the country by August 2006, the Regional Co-ordinator said.

The Regional Director of Education, Mrs. Elizabeth Mwinkaar, urged participants at the forum not to be emotional about the USAID/CRS phase-out but to view the situation with maturity and to come out with viable alternatives that would ensure the sustainability of the GSFP. "It is important to continue to record high enrolment, attendance and retention in our schools even after the exit of CRS, USAID and the other donor partners," she emphasized.

The dialogue was held in anticipation of the impact the CRS withdrawal would have on the GSFP, and hence the need for stakeholders to brainstorm on measures to sustain the achievements made, particularly in improved school enrolment and girl-child education in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions.

In attendance were District Chief Executives, District Directors of Education, representatives from GSFP, regional and district offices of Ghana Education Service/CRS partner supervisors, Ghana Health Service, and officials from USAID which was the main food aid donor to CRS.