Garu (UE), June 3, GNA- The Garu-Tempane District in the Upper East Region is to receive an amount of GH¢50,000 from the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) to expand a Guinea Fowl and small ruminant rearing programme that started on a pilot basis last year. Mr Emmanuel Asigri, District Chief Executive (DCE), who announced this at the District People's Assembly in Garu at the weekend, explained that the Assembly was adjudged the best among others in Africa, where similar projects were currently being carried out. He said the good performance of the Assembly earned it the money, which was supposed to be shared with the Bawku Municipality. He said as part of efforts to improve the living standards of the people and also protect the banks of the White Volta River, communities near the river were provided with mango seedlings to plant along the basin.

Also, the Northern Savannah Biodiversity Conservation Project had provided grafted mango seedlings to the Shishie community to plant on a 30 hectare land, as part of measures to conserve the vegetation and Wildlife, he said.

The DCE said the Assembly in partnership with the Rural Enterprise Project had constructed a rural technology facility to train young people in employable skills, 20 of whom graduated and were given working tools to start their businesses with.

Mr Asigri, who touched on health issues, said the District had recorded a decline in malaria cases from 55.2 per cent in 2006 to 45.5 per cent in 2007, due to a vigorous programme undertaken by the health personnel to reduce the incidence of malaria in the area. Some of the actions taken included scheduled intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in infants and pregnant women, distributions and sales of insecticides treated bed nets to children under five years and pregnant women, and the implementation of the new anti-malaria drug policy using artesunate and Amodiaquine to replace chloroquine for the treatment of malaria.

On education, Mr Asigri said the Assembly had sponsored 45 teacher trainees and nurses, to help with the human resource development in the District. He said the Assembly had constructed Early Childhood Development Centres in three communities, built three-unit classroom blocks in eight communities as well as teachers quarters in seven communities. He said the District was fast recovering from the damage of the 2007 August /September floods and several of the broken down infrastructure, especially the roads and bridges were being repaired whilst farmers who lost their seeds would be given new ones as well as inputs for this farming season. Mr Alhassan Samari, Upper East Regional Minister, reiterated his call for peace in the area, saying the conflict was causing great loss to the Region and would never benefit anyone. He noted that the conflict was keeping away investors and talented workers from the area. Mr Samari said the Government had introduced some schemes to help the people and "they needed stability and peace of mind to make good use of it". He mentioned the micro credit Scheme, which he explained, was meant for all, who were prepared to work, the Capitation Grant and the School Feeding Programmes that relieve parents of paying school fees. The women appealed to the Assembly to renovate the market so that it could be used during this rainy season. 3 June 08