The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has provided two weeks' worth of food for over 800 families in Tamale in the Northern Region.

The food was provided through donations from around the world to support the church's "Light of the World" initiative.

As part of the initiative, the Church of Jesus Christ also cut sod for the construction of a new boys' dormitory and kitchen for the Nyohini Children's Home in Tamale.

The construction of the two facilities is expected to ease congestion at the children's home. It also donated assorted food items including bags of rice, sugar, beans, and millet, and boxes of spaghetti, chicken, and tomato puree among others to support the home.

The Light of the World initiative of the church is an annual project aimed at celebrating the birth of Christ.

This year's celebration focuses on emphasizing the importance of loving one's neighbours. It is launched across West Africa with several inaugural events across the sub-region.

The Northern Regional capital, Tamale was selected in Ghana to benefit from the initiative. Speaking at the launch of the "Light the World" initiative in Tamale on Thursday, General Authority Seventy and President of the Africa West Area of the Church, Elder S. Gifford Nielsen said the initiative was aimed at showing love to the people of Tamale.

“We are here today to show our love for the Savior, Jesus Christ by showing our love for the people of Tamale. We encourage you to think about your neighbors as well and by doing so you will strengthen your community,” he noted.

"Our objective is to foster kindness and harmony within our communities and among our neighbors, echoing the sentiment of ‘Peace, goodwill toward men’ (Luke 2:14). This year, our focus is on emphasizing the importance of loving our neighbours", Elder Nielsen added.

Speaking on behalf of the Mayor of Tamale, Sule Salifu, Elijah Kombian Fant, Deputy Director of the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly emphasized the need for people to help each other.

He said that the church had won his admiration for choosing to help the people of Tamale.

“I have nothing but admiration for your Church and their willingness to help the people of Tamale and hope to continue to work together to make a better Ghana for everyone", Kombians Fant said.