RING supports 54 households with ruminants

The Resiliency in Northern Ghana (RING) project in collaboration with the Tolon District Assembly, has presented 165 small ruminants to 54 targeted vulnerable households in the Dimabi Community of the Tolon District in Northern Region.

The gesture, which falls under the livelihood and agriculture component of the RING project, is to ensure increased access and consumption of diverse food among the targeted households, especially women and children under five.

The RING intervention is being implemented through a collaborative approach with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the region and the Regional Coordinating Council (NRCC), to improve the livelihood and nutritional status of vulnerable households in targeted communities in the region.

Alhaji Seidu Abubakar, Tolon District Chief Executive, who presented the animals to the beneficiary households at Dimabi, said the District had earmarked 2,500 vulnerable households to benefit from the RING interventions and one of which was the distribution of 768 small ruminants to six communities this year.

He said beneficiary communities and households have been trained on disease recognition, prevention and control, farm sanitation and hygiene practices, improved housing and maintenance and supplementary feeding before giving out the animals.

Alhaji Abubakar urged the beneficiary households, who are women to take good care of the animals by feeding them regularly and observing good sanitary practices in their pens to make the investment of the development partners meaningful.

He also called on the traditional authorities to impress upon beneficiaries not to sell the animals within two years of the delivery to allow the animals to multiply.

Alhaji Abubakar commended the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for the continuous support for Ghanaians.

He said would continue to work with its development partners to reduce malnutrition and poverty in the region.

Mr Benedict Anamoh, Deputy Chief of Party of RING project, said all 17 implementing MMDAs under the RING project would be provided the requisite technical assistance to effectively implement the activities in their work plans to achieve the goals of the project.

He urged the beneficiary households to take good care of the animals to improve the nutritional and income status of their households.

Mr Habib Shahadu, a representative of the NRCC, lauded RING project for its intervention and urged beneficiary communities, especially men in beneficiary households to support the recipient women to take good care of the animals to alleviate their plight.

Aside, Agriculture Extension Agents, 12 Community Livestock Workers from six communities in the district have also been trained on medication and vaccinations to provide support for the beneficiary households.

RING is a USAID funded project currently being implemented in 17 MMDAs in the region.

GNA