USA-based Non-Governmental Organization called ‘Brooklyn Ghanaian Hotel Workers Association of New-York-INC (BGHWA)’ has assured to instituting a scholarship scheme for the visually impaired students in Ghana next year to enable them further their education abroad.
The Chairman of the association Mr. Jonathan Frimpong Agyekum said this when the association supported the Akropong School for the blind by donating a variety of food items such as bags of rice, bags of maize, bags of beans, bags of gari, bags of sugar as well as other pressing necessities in the school such as 70 pieces of plastic chairs and many boxes of first aid kits containing varieties of first aid medications.
He said “we are in the USA and we’ve seen how the government is assisting the disabled there, but in Ghana here, at times they look neglected regarding their transport, food, dressing and in their workplaces, so we have decided that by next year we will institute scholarship schemes for the visually impaired students so that students who will qualify are giving the needed support by the association so that they continue their education in Brooklyn School for the blind in the USA”
Mr. Jonathan Frimpong Agyekum during the donation of the items further explained the rationale behind the donation by saying that there is a lot of school for the blind in Ghana but Akropong School for the blind is the oldest and the biggest of all therefore the executives met and decided to donate to the school.
“We spoke with the Headmistress about our decision to come and help the school and in response, we were made to know that their most pressing needs, for now, are food, chairs, and medicines to be used in their first aid school clinic so the association met and decided to come down to Ghana and help them with what they requested for through this donation today”
“We were also motivated as an association to donate to the school for the blind because normally we neglect the disabled in our societies and they at times look dejected unlike how they are being treated abroad so it is important to also emulate what is going on in abroad and do same to our children who are disabled in Ghana” he explained.
He further urged individuals and cooperative societies who are well to do to extend their support to such individuals in our society to complement what the government is doing for the disabled in Ghana since government alone cannot do it unless we all support the government effort.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Veronica Dery who is the Headmistress of Akropong School the blind welcome and received the items on behalf of the school and further thanked the association for the kind gesture shown to the school.
She said “other cooperate bodies should emulate the shining example from the Brooklyn Ghanaian Hotel Workers Association of New-York-INC (BGHWA) because blindness is very expensive”.
According to her, the materials which are being used by the students are expensive since they are exported into the country, therefore, most of the students cannot afford them hence she urged individuals and other NGOs to come to the aid of the Akropong School for the blind to support them.
Brooklyn Ghanaian Hotel Workers Association of New York-INC (BGHWA) is an association of Ghanaian membership in the United States of America established in April 2016 and inaugurated this year 2022.
Source: Mybrytnewsroom.com/Obed Ansah
