Nana Oye Lithur, Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection on Monday supervised payment of the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) stipends to beneficiaries in the Ada East District of the Greater Accra Region.

The monitoring and supervision took the minister to four new beneficiary communities Azizakpey, Alorkpem, Kpetsupanya and Aflive, where about 100 households and 130 beneficiaries in the Ada East District have been added to the LEAP programme.

LEAP is a social intervention that involves the provision of cash transfers and health insurance to the poorest households in Ghana and targets people who have no alternative means of meeting their subsistence needs and have limited productive capacity.

The payment is supervised by the Department of Social Welfare, which is under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection.

Addressing the beneficiaries, Nana Oye Lithur said the LEAP grants helped beneficiaries to meet their basic needs, get access to education, health, food and provide them with capital in starting small-scale business ventures for sustainable income.

She said through the LEAP programme government helps to improve the lives of the citizens and increase socio economic standards in the country.

Nana Oye Lithur said the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection was committed to ensure that the vulnerable, excluded, aged and persons with disability can also contribute their quota to national development.

She said as part of efforts to ensure efficiency and reduce cost, the cash payment are being migrated into electronic payment and are being piloted in nine districts with three companies namely MTN, Aya Technologies and Ghana Interbank Payment System Solutions.

Nana Oye Lithur thanked the development partners comprising Department for International Development, UNICEF and the World Bank for facilitating the programme.

Madam Korkor Dengbe, a beneficiary and a petty trader said the money she took would be used to promote her business, adding: “I have children and the money I take will be put into my business to yield some benefits that will be use to take care of my children.”

The LEAP programme was started in 2008 by former President John Agyekum Kufuor with 1,654 beneficiaries in 21 districts.

It has expanded to 90,785 beneficiaries in 144 districts.