Accra, Dec 17, GNA- Patrons, corporate entities, organisations and individuals on Tuesday night donated more than 100 million cedis to the Village of Hope Orphanage at the launch of a one billion-cedi Endowment Fund to support its operations at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel in Accra.

The Village, run by the Churches of Christ in Ghana from two campuses at Ayawaso, near Pokuase in the Ga District, and Fetteh in the Gomoa District of the Central Region, cares for orphans, abandoned children and destitute children from all the 10 regions of Ghana. In a message preceding the launch, Mr Fred Asare, Managing Director of the Orphanage, noted that there had been no period with greater economic wealth and affluence for so many of the earth's population.

"Yet in the midst of all these abundance, it is ironic that the challenges facing mankind are mind-bugling. There are more hungry and starving people, more people with virtually no access to medical care, more illiterate people and more problems on earth at this time than all the past generations put together."

Mr Asare said the reality facing mankind was that each passing day was that of people in desperate need of the basic necessities of life, adding: "Unfortunately, the majority of these people are children and if help does not get to them quickly, it will be too late."

He stated: "The hope-filled news is that even though we may not be able to help all the children in the world, we may be able to help some and that is what the Village of Hope is all about - giving life and hope to as many needy children as possible."

Mr Asare said the Home had been caring for children aged between two and 20 years since 1989 and was at the moment caring for children in three different programmes, namely the Residential, Non-Residential or foster care and Street Children.

He said the orphanage has three residential homes, which cater for 68 children in the residential programme, 32 children in the non-residential, and 102 street children, comprising 52 boys and 50 girls.

Children in the residential and non-residential programmes receive food, shelter, clothing, medical, care and education and are nurtured to become responsible citizens in the country.

Mr Asare said those in the Street Children programme are given food, clothing, medical care and counselling, saying that plans were far advanced towards establishing a vocational training centre on their Ayawaso campus.

He said the Village of Hope has a clinic at Gomoa-Fetteh that caters for people in the neighbouring communities and also runs a school - Hope Christian Academy with an enrolment of 232, that offers quality education to children from more than 10 communities.

Mrs Eva Lokko, guest speaker at the function bemoaned the lot of thousands of street children who require assistance to enable them to manage to survive, and commended the Management of the Village of Hope for their good work.

Mrs Lokko said she was impressed with the work of the Home and appealed to patrons of the night to donate generously to a worthy cause. "Who knows whether the future president of the Republic of Ghana could be among one of these children you see here?" she asked.

"We should not go out of these doors without making a firm commitment to contribute to a worthy cause. Each of us must contribute on a regular monthly basis to this fund," she added.

Mr Albert Essien, Managing Director of Ecobank, who chaired the function, noted the familiar scene on our streets of orphaned, destitute, and sometimes abandoned children who are in desperate need of assistance

"Whatever is the reason for their misery, our true worship of God can only be reflected in our readiness to defend the poor and the fatherless and do justice to the afflicted and the needy. Mr Essien told the patrons of the night that they had the potential to turn a life around, and therefore called on them to support a worthy cause.

He later pledged that, with effect from next year, Ecobank would be a yearly donor to the fund, saying: "I can assure you that the money will grow progressively. I also wish to assure management of the Village of Hope that my wife and I will be regular donors."

Osabarima Awuah Kotoko II, Benkumhene of Abuakwa Traditional Area and who is also Begorohene, who stood in for the Okyenhene, Osagyefo Amoatia, launched the fund, which target is one billion cedis. He said there was a real need to secure sufficient funds to support this noble cause and affirmed that Okyeman would assist Nananom to support this institution in its noble task.