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Ghana Rural Action Support Programme (GRASP) Works to the attainment of the
Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
The attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
by 2015 in Ghana is very crucial to many development organisation in
Ghana, Ghana Rural Action Support Programme, a children , women and
youth focused local organisation has come to the realization that, the
women and children stand to benefit greatly from the outcome of this
development agenda than any other generational group(s).
We as a women and child focused organisation believe that
the adoption of the 8 MDGs at the Millennium Summit in 2000 is the
greatest thing to happen to this generation, as it is an opportunity to
create and rebuild a safer, equitable poverty-free world. Ironically,
women and young people’s voices have been ignored over the years in
contriving national development policies and programmes.
There is the need for active involvement of women and
young people at all levels of national development. Women and young
people have great ideas; they have the energy and enthusiasm to lead and
to contribute to policy development and implementation, particularly
when it affects their lives.
It is against this backdrop that The Ghana Rural Action
Support Programme (GRASP) has decided to work and contribute effectively
to the attainment of the MDGs. Our interventions centered mainly on
Goals 1,4, 5, and 6.
We are actively working in over 40 rural communities in
the Eastern and Volta Regions of Ghana. We have trained over 700
Community Health Volunteers including Traditional Birth Attendants in
these regions in all the communities we work. Income generation projects
were designed for women.
 They
in are trained and advocacy skills, basic health including family
planning services. These volunteers are supported with logistics to
provide family planning non clinical services in their various
communities. This project is very sustainable as traditional leaders and
the various community structures are empowered through series of
capacity building and regular updates to manage the project.
GRASP being a youth organisation is also an active member
of the Ghana Millennium Development Goals Youth Network (GMDGsYN). The
GMDGsYN is a network of registered youth NGOs in Ghana already working
on programmes geared towards the achievement of the MDGs.
Member organizations in the network work on key
MDGs-related projects at the grassroots community level where the
countries larger population lives. The network is national in stature as
it has Coordinating Directors in all the 10 regions of Ghana.
The network’s primary focus is to advocate and network
with institutions and organizations that are directly or indirectly
connected to the attainment of the MDGs.
Care and Support for Orphans and vulnerable children mutual health
Insurance Project, DANIDA Supports HFFG
Hope for Future Generations (HFFG) for the past three
years has mobilized communities to establish the Community Health Fund
(CHF) that will support rural communities especially pregnant women and
children with small soft loans for hospital attendances and admissions.
 All
the HFFG assisted communities now have community health accounts which
they manage through their own initiative. The organisation with
financial support from Plan Ghana has organized series of capacity
building workshops on basic financial management and fund raising.
This was to enable communities to manage the health fund
which is now community health revolving fund. HFFG with funding from
DANIDA-Ghana is currently working with the Mfantsiman district health
insurance team to sensitize 34 rural communities in the district to
unroll into the nationwide Mutual Health Insurance Scheme and to demand
their rights for quality health care services so far as the District
Mutual Health Insurance Scheme is concerned.
The programme is intended to educate and inform people
in the rural communities to enrol in the nation wide health insurance,
access healthcare services and demand their rights for quality health
care services with minimal financial difficulty. It is also to
complement government’s efforts at making healthcare delivery accessible
and affordable to everybody.
Capacity Building for Mfantsiman Mutual Health Scheme Managers.
DANIDA in Partnership with HFFG –Mfantsiman Mutual
Scheme, has organized a two days capacity building workshop for managers and the board.
The aim of the training is to build the capacity of the
management and the board to effectively manage scheme.
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