The government has received 88.6 million dollars from the World Bank towards the implementation of Ghana Social Opportunities Project (G-SOP).

The overall goal of the project is to support Ghana’s Social Protection Strategy by reducing rural poverty in accordance with the Millennium Development Goals.

Cezar Kale, Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, disclosed these during the celebration of the “Mifele” (new grain) festival of the chiefs and people of Lambussie in the Lambussie-Karni District of the Upper West Region.

He explained that under G-SOP, labour at the local level would be employed to build the capacity of beneficiary communities and put money into their pockets.

Mr. Kale said already under the programme, a three-unit classroom block with ancillary facilities, had been constructed at Kanguol and the Sentu-Tabire road awarded on contract at the cost of GH¢256,966.00.

He said government, through the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority, would construct dams and dugouts to promote irrigation farming and animal husbandry to curb the migration of the youth from the northern part of Ghana to the southern part in search of menial jobs.

Mr. Kale appealed to the youth to take advantage of government social interventions and go into all-year round farming and animal rearing to enable them to earn income to support themselves and their families.

Mr. Kale thanked the people for conducting themselves well during Election 2012, and asked them to abolish outmoded cultural practices such as female genital mutilation, indiscriminate bush burning, child labour and denial of the girl child to formal education.

Kuoro Salifu, Issaka Dy-yakah, Chief of Lambussie, said the “Mifele” festival was an amalgamation of all the family and village level festivals celebrated by the people.

He said the celebration of Mifele was to thank God and the ancestors for a bumper harvest and to serve as a homecoming for citizens living outside the area.

According to Kuoro Dy-yakah, it was also to foster unity among the people and to promote their cultural heritage to attract tourists and investors to the area.

Kuoro Dy-yakah, who is also the president of the Lambussie Traditional Council, appealed to government to establish an Agriculture /Technical Senior High School in the district.