By Philip Tengzu, GNA
Wa (UW/R), Jan. 29, GNA – WaterAid Ghana has donated a foot-operated handwashing facility and 300 boxes, comprising 12 pieces each of hand sanitisers to the Wa Municipal Assembly (WMA) to help authorities to fight the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).
The donation formed part of the implementation of the “Hygiene Behaviour Change for COVID-19 Control” project being implemented by WaterAid in collaboration with the Assemblies with funding support from the UKAID and Uniliver.
Mr Felix Gbevillah, Programmes Officer for WaterAid Ghana, who handed over the items at a ceremony on Thursday, said WaterAid had been partnering government-led initiatives at the national and district levels to fight COVID-19 since its outbreak in the country.
He said WaterAid Ghana had installed about eleven foot-operated handwashing facilities at various places within the municipality, including the Wa Municipal Assembly and the Upper West Regional Hospital, market centres and schools to enhance hand washing.
“Of course COVID-19 is here, but before covid-19 we were already promoting handwashing under running water, so COVID-19 has come to reinforce the things that we were doing and to drum home the fact that handwashing with soap is necessary for healthy living,” he added.
Mr Gbevillah was confident that though COVID-19 had no known cure, proper handwashing with soap under running water could serve as “a weapon against the virus.”
He encouraged the people to regularly wash their hands and observe other safety protocols such as wearing of nose masks.
He also entreated the Wa Municipal Assembly to continue to cooperate in the management and operation of those facilities and to put them into maximum use to enhance the fight against the COVID-19.
Mr Gbevillah also encouraged beneficiaries of the hand sanitisers, who included barbers and hairdressers, to ensure their clients used the sanitisers anytime they visited their shops for service delivery.
While commending WaterAid for the donation, Mr Amadu Haruna Zure, the Wa Municipal Coordinating Director urged the people to safeguard themselves against the deadly virus throughout their daily routine.
“We need to all be ambassadors, advocates for the very protocols that we think will prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Dr Pascal Kingsly Mwin, the Wa Municipal Health Director, said.
He commended WaterAid for the support and appealed to other Non-governmental Organisations to emulate the gesture example and to come to their aid, especially the health directorate to help meet some of their needs.
Some beneficiary barbers and hairdressers, who spoke to the Ghana News Agency, commended WaterAid and its partners for the gesture.
They gave the assurance that they would put the items to judicious use to derive the maximum benefit from them.
