World Vision Ghana (WVG) is implementing an initiative to empower farmers in the Sekyere East District to undertake additional economic activities to earn extra incomes to improve on their living conditions.

The Community Enterprise Group (CEG) programme, which is being funded by Mondelez International Cocoa, under its Cocoa Life Project, is to empower vulnerable families, who are mostly farmers, with additional livelihoods to lift them out of poverty and sustain them economically.

Mr Paul Akuamoah Boateng, Development Facilitator of the Sekyere East Cluster of WVG, made this known after visiting the Bomso Soap Enterprise (BSE), one of the beneficiary community groups, at Bomso.

He said the goal of the initiative was to empower the community members, particularly women and the youth economically and diversify their incomes and help to provide the basic needs of their children.

Mr Boateng pointed out that women empowerment was a cross-cutting theme in the Mondelez Cocoa Life project and that, the plan was to replicate the initiative in all the 24 project operational communities in the district.

He urged the leadership of the various CEGs in the communities to be committed and work hard to support their group members to sustain the projects and ensure success and mutual benefit for all.

Mr. Aaron Kusi Boateng, chairman for the BSE said the soap making project, which started about five months ago, was helping to alleviate group members from poverty and economic hardships.

He said, the group with a membership of 40, generates GH¢1,000.00 from the sale of 80 long bars of soap and 100 mini bottles of liquid soap every week.

Mr. Boateng said the group was currently producing in small quantities due to the limited market for their produce and appealed to the people in the district to patronize their product to sustain the business.

Madam Yaa Obour, a 61 year old farmer and member of the BSE group commended WVG for the innovative and strategic support, saying it was empowering her family economically to cater for their needs.

She called on government and development partners to support them to engage in other additional livelihood projects such as gari and oil processing, to help reduce poverty in the area.