UK's new aid programme in Ghana to focus on the North

Accra, May 5, GNA - Ms Sally Taylor, the new Country Director for the UK Government's Department for International Development (DFID), says Northern Ghana will be the key focus for the UK aid programme in the coming years.

In a statement issued after her first visit to the area, she said: 93I have seen for myself this week the challenges that people in Northern Ghana are dealing with in their daily lives. "As the Government of Ghana has made clear, it is unacceptable that 63 per cent of the people in Northern Ghana are below the national poverty line, especially given the success Ghana has had in reducing poverty elsewhere."

Northern Ghana comprises the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regio= ns. Ms Taylor said UK was committed to supporting the Government to reduce poverty in Ghana, and particularly in Northern Ghana, where poverty was the starkest.

The statement said the Country Director travelled by road from Accra to see more of the challenges facing Ghana. It said she met with port authorities in Buipe to discuss how flooding had effected livelihoods, and stopped in Fufulso to understand how UNICEF's work with local authorities was improving the health and nutrition of the local people.

The statement said upon arrival in Tamale, Ms Taylor visited UKaid- supported programmes and met with Regional Ministers from the North, chiefs, business and civil society organisations. It said Ms Taylor also took the opportunity during the visit to launch the UK's new Operational Plan for Ghana (2010-15). Mr Daniel Graymore, DFID's Deputy Country Director, provided more details on how the UK would work with the Government, Civil Society, business and other stakeholders to consolidate previous achievements and deliver results for poor people.

He outlined how job creation, health, education, climate change, governance and helping the most vulnerable would be the UK's focus areas in the coming years.

"The UK is committed to helping women have safer pregnancies and births in Ghana. UKaid will help Ghana increase the number of births attended by skilled medical staff every year from 380,000 today to 610,000 by 2015."