REACT on Saturday 5th September presented bags of food items and hygiene product as part of our ongoing Covid-19 Emergency Response project in support of families of our beneficiaries. The presentation was funded by SAGE Publishing (https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/home) who has been REACT’s major donor over the years. In all, thirty households benefited with each household bag containing 5KG bag of rice, cooking oil, 3 pairs of face masks, cans of sardines, washing powder, washing up liquid, cups of sugar, toilet rolls and tomato sachets.
Beneficiaries came from the Greater Accra, central and Ashanti regions of Ghana representing the first phase of the project with the second phase hoping to capture other regions. Three REACT local executives from Greater Accra and Ashanti Ms. Deborah Awuku, Mr. Duke Banson and Stephen K. Yeboah respectively helped coordinate the project.
Ms. Deborah Awuku who has over the years spearheaded most of our support programmes said the gesture represents REACT’s act of humanity to our most vulnerable beneficiaries which she believes will ensure their survival during this COVID-19 pandemic times. Ms. Awuku said the parcels came at a time when most of the beneficiaries and their families were struggling to make ends meet and therefore expressed REACT’s profound gratitude to SAGE Publishing on behalf of the families for their continued assistance.
Duke Banson presenting the items also reflected on the excitement and relief on the faces of the beneficiaries and assured them that REACT will continue to be part of their life and hope to witness greater success stories as a result of our unflinching assistance.
The Ashanti region presentation was done by Stephen K. Yeboah who is also REACT’s IT and digital Consultant.
Reflecting on the project, REACT’s CEO Prince Osei Akowuah, said REACT is most grateful to SAGE Publishing over the years for the funding which has enabled us to provide vital support to our beneficiaries. Prince said the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is devastating globally but is hugely felt particularly in most vulnerable communities such as those we’ve reached out to in Ghana and thanked SAGE Publishing for making such response possible during these unprecedented times.
Prince noted that the intervention will help build stronger children today than to repair broken men in future and hope it will sustain the investment gains REACT has made over the years in our beneficiaries as we prepare them for the challenges ahead whenever school reopens.
Project Background
On a routine checks on beneficiaries during the lockdown, it became clear to us that all of our beneficiaries were struggling with basic household needs which required a swift response if we were to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, particular, the mental wellbeing of our beneficiaries due to school closures.
For most children REACT supports, school was not only providing education but also food through our free school meals, platform to socialize in societies where they are ostracized, helped developed their mental well-being and above all, served as a platform to belong and feel appreciated. The temporarily school shutdown and the disappearance of any residual support made a bad situation worse for those disabled children.
Within the developed world the vocabulary during lockdown was “Home learning” and “Food vouchers” because their systems provided support. However, in the less privileged settings like Ghana, it became a case of home “abandonment” which led to hopelessness with the pandemic taking a heavy toll on communities with children with special needs .
In order not to lose the achievements already gained through our investment over the years, REACT decided to act to sustain the gains over the years and help build resilience which will not only prepare our beneficiaries for whenever school resumes but also to mitigate the severe impact of the pandemic on these vulnerable households. The response we believed will demonstrate a unique act of charitable giving and imply an affirmation to these vulnerable children that REACT will be there for them regardless of the times. With support from SAGE Publishing last year we were able to mobilize a swift and targeted response in phases across the country.
Presentation in video and pictures by Stephen K. Yeboah
