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  • Press Release – Zircon Mining on the Abéné and Niafrang Dune

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    On February 20, 2023, the company G-SAND SARL obtained a small-scale mining permit for zircon in the Abéné area, covering part of the village of Niafrang. This mining permit was issued under conditions that are clearly contrary to applicable legislation, particularly regarding environmental protection and the participation of affected populations.

    Indeed, the permit was granted even though no environmental impact study had been submitted, in violation of regulations that expressly require such a study for any project likely to have an impact on the environment. Furthermore, the population of the village of Niafrang was denied the opportunity to participate in the public hearing scheduled for the presentation of the environmental and social impact study, even though the law guarantees public participation at all stages of decisions impacting their environment.

    With the mining of the Abéné dune proceeding without any certificate of compliance being issued, we are witnessing a decrease in the water quantity in our village’s well and its potential pollution.

    Faced with this situation, the people of Niafrang, through their lawyer, have formally submitted a request to establish a mining protection zone on the Niafrang dune and have filed an appeal for the cancellation of the small-scale mining permit. This dune is a vital natural barrier against rising water levels, and its preservation is essential for the safety and survival of the village and its adaptation to climate change. The creation of such a mining protection zone is in line with the principles of sustainable natural resource management, risk prevention, and the effective participation of populations in decision-making.

    We therefore call on the competent authorities to recognize the urgency of the situation, to suspend the mining permit, to enforce the legislation regarding impact studies and public participation, and to grant the request to establish a mining protection zone on the Niafrang dune, in the interest of the inhabitants and the preservation of the local environment.

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  • Enduring multiple hazards due to railway construction: The sad story of the Sekosuria Community

    The Sekosuria community, located in the Forécariah Prefecture within Guinea’s Kindia Region, continues to suffer the consequences of an ongoing railway and port construction project near the Morebayah estuary, just a few kilometers away. What was once a quiet rural area is now plagued by environmental disruptions that threaten livelihoods, safety, and health.

    Tunnel construction causing alarm

    A tunnel currently being excavated as part of the Simandou iron ore railway project — around 11.8 kilometers from the Kuru Mountains, south of the Fouta Djallon Highlands — is a major source of concern. Residents report persistent blast noise and ground vibrations from the railway work, which they say are damaging their homes.

    Cracks in buildings and a collapsing Health Post

    Community members shared that the constant blasting has caused cracks in both old and newly built structures, weakening them significantly and turning them into potential death traps. During a recent visit, residents pointed out multiple affected buildings, including one that reportedly collapsed due to vibrations.

    Even a newly constructed health post — a critical resource donated to the community — has developed widespread cracks, raising serious safety concerns.

    Noise and water pollution add to woes

    Beyond the structural damage, noise pollution is a daily challenge. The community also reported pollution of their main river, allegedly due to sewage discharge from the construction camp. This issue is particularly noticeable during the rainy season, when runoff becomes more intense.

    Dust pollution is another pressing concern. Construction-related vehicles, often moving in convoys, generate thick clouds of dust on the access roads. According to residents, “You must park off the road for them to pass.” They also noted that mud from bridge construction sites is washing into fertile farmland, threatening the stream that supports their vegetable cultivation.

    About the project

    The construction work is part of the Simandou iron ore project, one of the world’s largest undeveloped iron ore reserves. The project, spearheaded by the Winning Consortium Simandou (WCS), involves building a 650-kilometer railway from the Simandou mountain range to a new port near the coast. While the project promises significant economic benefits to Guinea, its environmental and social costs are becoming evident in communities like Sekosuria.

    Despite repeated complaints, residents say their grievances have been ignored by both the project authorities and government officials. As of the time of reporting, attempts to obtain comments from the Winning Consortium Simandou and relevant government representatives have not been successful.

    What can be done?

    Community members are calling for urgent attention and action. Potential steps that stakeholders can take include:

    • Conducting independent environmental and structural impact assessments in affected communities.
    • Providing compensation to families whose homes or farmland have been damaged.
    • Establishing a formal grievance mechanism that allows community members to report issues and receive responses.
    • Implementing dust and wastewater control measures to mitigate environmental damage.
    • Improving communication and transparency between the community, construction teams, and government officials.

    As development projects like Simandou progress, the voices of local communities must not be drowned out by the noise of construction. Without mitigation and inclusion, infrastructure meant to drive national progress could leave some communities behind — or buried beneath it.

  • So Abapa Boateng: My community development practice experiences with ACA

    Today, one of our newly recruited Trainers with the Community-Driven Development Department, So Abapa Boateng, shares her experiences since she joined ACA in February 2024. She says the experiences she gathered in her previous workplace are being sharpened and appreciated in multiple folds in ACA.

    The email read “You are hired”, my joy was out of this world. I screamed, I jumped, I danced to no song; the excitement was indescribable. “Wow”, I was lost for words. “Finally, Finally,” those were my words when I could speak.

    My time with Advocates for Community Alternatives has been very fulfilling and I dare say, it has been worthwhile joining this exciting team of development practitioners.

    “Welcome to our new team members, Geoffrey Fummey Horkpe, Bommie Adamu, Joseph Obeng, Ingrid Frempong and So Abapa Boateng” a beautifully written note placed on the wall in the Osino office welcomed the new staff members. It was heartwarming because I was not quite certain on what to expect on my first day in the office, but the team made it so welcoming, it was as though we knew each other for a very long time before we got to the office.

    The Director of Community-Driven Development, Nana Ama Nketsia-Quaidoo (Mrs), was so welcoming as she clearly outlined what was expected of us as new staff members.

    Osei Nimako, the Project Manager was so excited and did not spare us a minute of laughter and jokes. Francis Manu and George Mpoah were so knowledgeable in their fields, and it made it super easy to understand what ACA does within the various partner communities.

    And oh, the time with the Executive Director, Jonathan Kaufman – I loved the chocolates he got for us. We could make our choices; he was ever ready to answer all the questions on our newly recruited minds.

    It has been smooth sail for the months I have worked with ACA. I am even more enthused that the organization gives room for innovation and creativity because working with the communities is not cast in stone.

    The decision to move out from the Northern region of Ghana where I had practiced community development work since 2008 to Nkoranza in the Bono East region has been very fulfilling. My experiences gathered in Education, Food Security and Livelihood, Entrepreneurship, and Gender, are being sharpened and appreciated in multiple folds in the organization.

    The journey with Advocates for Community Alternatives has just begun and I am looking forward to working with communities to attain their development vision one community at a time.

    I believe that I can be creative in facilitating communities to attain their development vision and I’m always encouraged by the fun and excitement that go with my community-based work.  This spurs me on to do more and always put on my creativity cap. My level of confidence is soaring up higher because the team is always on hand to sharpen the rough the edges, so we get the desired results in the development journey. There are well tailored training tools and manuals to make facilitating trainings, monitoring and evaluating results very detailed and easy.

    Even more fulfilling most of the time is the positive feedback from the community meeting I facilitate. “Madam, not only have we learned how to develop a vision for our community, but I have also learned to use that knowledge for myself. I know I must have a vision I am working towards for my life and family, thank you.” A community member expressed his appreciation after a community meeting.

    I have no doubt that I am going to make a positive impact on ACA and the communities assigned to me while broadening my horizon further by learning from my colleagues and most of the people I encounter through the performance of my duties.

  • ACA team meets Similimi community over ECOWAS Court ruling amidst rich cultural display

    Similimi Community welcomed Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA) staff for a combination of jubilation and serious discussions on the outcome of a recent ruling by the ECOWAS Court of Justice, which condemned the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire for failing to halt the negative impacts of manganese mining in the area.

    African culture was at its best.  Jonathan G. Kaufman, the Executive Director of ACA, and Lalla Toure, ACA’s Legal Coordinator, were treated to a rich cultural display and mouth-watering local dishes as the community celebrated the Court’s decision of November 30, 2023 in Adou Kouame and 14 others v. Côte d’Ivoire, which validated the claims of 14 representative inhabitants of Similimi, along with a communal self-help organization.  Festivities included dancing, drumming, and a todjo, a traditional meal prepared by men in the bush.

    The court found the Ivorian government culpable of human rights violations in connection with destructive mineral extraction on their traditional lands by Bondoukou Manganese Ltd, an Indian-owned mining company. The government was ordered to pay 20 million CFA Francs to eleven individual plaintiffs, repair environmental damage, resettle the community, and prosecute the authors of the environmental destruction at Similimi.

    The ACA team was joined by representatives of Groupe de Recherche et de Plaidoyer sur les Industries extractives (GRPIE), a non-profit organization that advocates for democratic, transparent, and responsible management of natural resources for sustainable socio-economic development in Côte d’Ivoire and globally.  GRPIE has been working on behalf of Similimi and other communities affected by the operations of Bondoukou Manganese for over a decade.

    The Hopeful Path Ahead

    Celebration aside, ACA’s visit to Similimi was an opportunity to explain the decision of the Court to Adou Kouamé, a key figure in the matter and his people, and to discuss the way forward in the matter.

    The team commended the entire community of Similimi for their tireless efforts at pursuing the case to its conclusion and encouraged them to remain united towards their common good.  Given the constant delays that many successful claimants face in executing ECOWAS Court decisions, however, they should not anticipate that the 20 million CFA Francs awarded by the court to each of the eleven individual plaintiffs and the order to repair the environmental damage caused by the mining project will be honored immediately.

    ACA, GRPIE, and community members all agreed that the Court’s award to the eleven claimants should be managed in a way that benefits the entire community.

    The Fight for Justice

    14 representative inhabitants of Similimi, along with a communal self-help organization, filed a complaint in the ECOWAS Court of Justice in April 2020. The communities were supported by ACA and GRPIE in their capacity as members of the Public Interest Lawyering Initiative for West Africa (PILIWA). The plaintiffs accused the Côte d’Ivoire of illegal expropriation, non-compliance with the rules of due diligence, and complicity in environmental, economic, and cultural damage.

    The Court’s November 30 ruling determined that the State was responsible for violations of Similimi residents’ rights to a healthy environment, to health, to an adequate standard of living, to private and family life, and to freedom of worship and religion. The Court dismissed the Applicants’ claim that their right to property was violated, for lack of sufficient evidence of ownership.  “Even if the Court did not recognize our proprietary right to our ancestral lands, we are indeed happy that our voices were heard by a regional tribunal and that the suffering that we have endured over the years has not been in vain,” said Adou Kouamé, one of the complainants.

  • Njala University in Sierra Leone benefits from ACA’s Community Science training

    About 50 students and faculty members of Njala University in Sierra Leone have benefitted from a day’s training on Community Science facilitated by Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA), Ghana-based NGO which supports West African communities facing threats to their human rights at the hands of multinational corporations.

    The primary goal of the training was to introduce the participants to the concept of community science so they could practice it in communities they find themselves.

    ACA’s Science Lead, Dr Kwabina Ibrahim, introduced the concept of community science to the participants during which he explained the various relevant aspects of the concept, especially with regards to the involvement community members in the design of sampling protocols, the need to discuss and present technical data to communities, and the importance of validating results with local communities to ensure accuracy and uptake.

    He expressed his organization’s commitment to collaborating with scientists to assist communities with scientific knowledge.

    “Community participation in the production of scientific knowledge about their land, soil, and water is key to ensuring that they are in control of their own future, especially when they come under threat from extractive activities,” said Dr. Ibrahim.  “ACA is thankful to the students and staff of the Njala University for helping to ensure that young scientists are prepared to involve communities in their fieldwork.”

    In his remarks, the Head of the Chemistry Department, Dr. Yahaya Kudush Kawa, expressed his appreciation to ACA for the training which, according to him, has enhanced the capacity of the participants as scientists, adding that it will go a long way to enable them to initiate their own community science projects in future.

    Dr Kawa was of the view that the training would greatly enrich research activities of the university, going forward, and appealed to ACA to routinely hold such sessions in the university owing to its enormous benefits to the students.

    Professor Juana Paul Moiwo, the Director of Research of Njala University, who assisted in moderating the training session, described ACA’s Community Science concept as “science for everybody” saying: “it allows both professional scientists and community members to work together for the good of the community.”

    He was also of the view that this concept is an opportunity for scientists to collaborate with communities to enhance their research works, especially with regards to making their research findings acceptable to community.

    Some participants, who shared their views about the training were very excited about content and acknowledged that it had greatly enhanced their knowledge in community science.

  • Sierra Leone Court of Appeal to hear Koidu Community’s human rights claims

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    Sierra Leone Court of Appeal to hear Koidu Community’s human rights claims

    Freetown, Sierra Leone

    Thursday, February 29, 2024

    Koidu Community’s human rights claims will be heard by the Sierra Leone Court of Appeal, thanks to a ruling today that struck out preliminary objections filed by the defendant mining company, Koidu Limited, and scheduled the case for hearing on 16th April 2024.  This appeal will determine whether the community plaintiffs can legally take on a multinational diamond mining company for harm to their livelihoods, their health, and their traditional lands.

    While today’s ruling is technical, it breathes new life into the Koidu plaintiffs’ case, which was dismissed by the High Court in Makeni on 27th October 2022, on the basis that the plaintiffs were not qualified to press their claims in court.  The dismissal order also ruled that the plaintiffs should have used a non-judicial grievance mechanism before going to court, despite also recognizing that the grievance mechanism did not actually exist.

    “The ruling today is a sign of hope, and it has occasioned an opportunity for our clients’ grievances to be heard on the merits,” said Dr. Chernor Mamoud Benedict Jalloh, Esq., the Lead Counsel for the plaintiffs.

    “The outcome of this matter sets important precedent on issues like whether rural people in traditional villages are even allowed to go to court to protect their land rights, and whether companies can stop communities from going to court to protect their rights by signing community development agreements that set up a kind of private arbitration system.”

    Brief background

    Koidu Limited is a diamond mining company that operates in Sierra Leone and is privately owned by BSG Resources Limited (BSGR) through its subsidiary, Octéa Limited. The company is accused of degrading the living conditions of people living near its mining operations and failing to properly relocate them or compensate them for their losses.

    Residents who have not been relocated find it increasingly difficult to farm because waste rock and rubble from Koidu Ltd.’s operations have covered much of their farmland. “Koidu Limited has destroyed our lives,” said Mr. Prince Boima, Chairman of the Marginalized Affected Property Owners Association. “We used to farm and live in peace, but now our lands and water sources are poisoned and covered in rubble. Our homes are shaken by explosives every day.”

    Residents also report that their health has suffered. Dust from the mining operations often covers the community and causes headaches, difficulty breathing, and a burning sensation in the residents’ eyes. The operations have also contaminated the water, and many residents develop skin rashes and digestive problems they did not previously experience. High stress from living with frequent blasting further causes headaches, high blood pressure, heart palpitations, and respiratory problems in the community.

    Despite promising to properly relocate affected community members in advance of expanding its mining operations, Koidu Ltd. has left the people to suffer.  Many community members have neither been relocated, nor compensated for the damage to their properties, health, and livelihoods.  Others have been relocated to a new area, but the conditions of relocation have been incommensurate with what they lost.

    The community is supported in its fight for justice by Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA), a Ghana-based human rights organization, and Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD), a Sierra Leonean civil society organization that organizes communities for a more just society in the face of natural resource extraction.

    The legal journey thus far

    • In April 2019, Koidu resident Aiah Fengai and 73 others filed a class-action lawsuit against Koidu Ltd., five of its parent companies and affiliates, and their Managing Directors, alleging property damage, environmental and health impacts, land and livelihoods loss, and breach of the company’s Community Development Agreement. Before filing, they sought and received permission to serve the parent companies and affiliates in Sierra Leone, even though those entities were formally registered in the British Virgin Islands.
    • In August 2019, an association composed of Koidu residents affected by the diamond mine’s operations filed a lawsuit in the ECOWAS Court of Justice against the Republic of Sierra Leone, accusing the state of violating their human rights by violently repressing the 2007 and 2012 protests and allowing the mining company to destroy their livelihoods, health, and natural environment. The Republic of Sierra Leone never responded to the ECOWAS lawsuit.
    • In February 2020, Koidu resident Morie Momoh and several others filed a second class-action lawsuit, this time in the High Court in Koidu itself. In August 2020, having learned that Octea’s parent company was undergoing a bankruptcy process that had revealed widespread efforts to conceal and dissipate the Group’s assets, the plaintiffs petitioned for orders freezing the defendants’ assets. This order was granted on an interim basis but was vacated when the court dismissed the class-action suit entirely on the basis that the Kono High Court was not a proper venue to launch a civil suit.
    • The plaintiffs refiled their class-action suit in the Makeni High Court in October 2020 and again requested freezing orders. The request was briefly granted but then lifted when the defendants claimed that the previous freezing order had cost them over $6 million and threatened to go to court to enforce their right to collect that sum from the indigent plaintiffs.
    • In June 2021, the class-action lawsuits and individual lawsuits were consolidated before the High Court in Makeni.  After a series of administrative delays, the first arguments were heard in Makeni in March 2022.
    • In October 2022, the High Court upheld the defendants’ jurisdictional objections and dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims, ruling that plaintiffs did not have the legal capacity to file claims relating to customary land rights, to uphold the terms of a Community Benefit Agreement, or to enforce clauses of national legislation that are meant to provide benefits to mining-affected communities.  The Court also ruled that the plaintiffs should have taken their case to a non-judicial grievance committee before coming to court, despite also ruling that the grievance committee had never actually been created.
    • In November 2022, the plaintiffs sought leave of the High Court to appeal the dismissal of their claims.  Leave was eventually granted in November 2023.
    • On Monday June 19, 2023, in Abuja, Nigeria, the ECOWAS Court of Justice ruled that the community members had not adequately proven their case, despite the extensive testimony and documentation of violence and economic and environmental devastation that they submitted, and the fact that the Sierra Leone government neglected even to mount a defense or to deny the claims.

    END

    Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA) – ACA helps West African communities that are threatened by the destructive impacts of extractives-led development to take control of their own futures. ACA works directly with communities to design their own sustainable development plans and advocate to achieve those plans, and it builds and supports networks of lawyers and other professionals that will serve communities in need. ACA is providing strategic legal support to NMJD as part of their participation in the Public Interest Lawyering Network for West Africa (PILIWA), which ACA coordinates.

    The Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD) is a Sierra Leonean civil society organization that engages in advocacy and strengthens the capacity of civil society organizations to effectively engage women, men, children, communities, government and other actors for the transformation of society. NMJD’s vision is of a just and self-reliant society (Sierra Leone) where women, men, children and communities are conscientized and live in dignity without fear and discrimination, especially on ground of sex, race, faith, socio-economic and political status.

    Media Contacts

    1. Abu A. Brima, Executive Director, NMDJ – abu.brima@nmjd.org, +232 88 645314
    2. Dr. Chernor Mamoud Benedict Jalloh – benedictcmj@gmail.com,  +232 76 901637
    3. Daniel Fofanah – danielgfofanah001@gmail.com, +232 76 724066 ACA
    4. Jonathan G. Kaufman, Executive Director, ACA – jonathan@advocatesforalternatives.org, +1(617) 645-4069
    5. Lalla Touré – lalla@advocatesforalternatives.org, +233 50 985 0018

  • Newly trained Community-Based Facilitators poised for action

    In line with its resolve to continue impacting positively on communities, Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA) has trained 66 Community-Based Facilitators (CBFs) drawn from 19 communities in Atiwa West and Abuakwa South districts of the Eastern region of Ghana on the effective implementation of the Facilitated Collective Action Process (FCAP).

    Also called Oman yie die, FCAP is a partnership between ACA and partner the district assemblies as part of measures to strengthen local participation in the implementation of the Assemblies’ medium term development plans.

    The training program, which took place at Asiakwa, was also attended by 16 officials of the two district assemblies.

    The participants, which included 16 staff of the two partner district assemblies, were equipped with knowledge on participatory approach to development, conflict resolution and the need to accord maximum respect to their communities’ voices on pertinent issues affecting their welfare.

    ACA’s Director of Community-Driven Development (CDD), Nana Ama Nketia-Quaidoo led her team to take the participants through a number of presentations, role-plays and group discussions, among others.

    The CBFs were drawn from Ehiamankyene, Dadetsunya, Ahenkwa, Ahinkwa Sisi, Bepoase, Asedja, Nsuta, Nkankama, Subrima, Gyampomani, Awenare, Akropong, Pameng, Banso, Asunafo, Amonom, Akrofufu, Muoso, Akukuso, Akwaboaso and Asiakwa.

    The rest of the communities represented at the eight-day training programme were Adadientem, Apapam, Akwadum, Apedwa, Adortowa, Bonposo No. 1, Addonkwanta, Operko, Latemu, Agyapomaa, Amanfrom, Maase Payaase, Oboperkunya and Asafo.

  • Bosuso soap-making factory project on course

    Residents of Bosuso, a farming community in the Fanteakwa South district, are anxiously waiting for the successful completion of a soap-making factory in the town to turn their economic fortunes around.

    They have no doubt that the project, when completed, will offer both direct and indirect jobs to several thousands of people in the area, especially women and the youth.

    The people of Bosuso, led by their chief, Nana Atta Krofa, are taking advantage of an existing palm-oil factory in the area, to put up a soap-making factory to make full use of the residue of the palm-oil factory.

    The residues of the palm-oil factory, especially the palm-kernel, which currently go waste will soon become the major raw material to produce a variety of soap, hence the resolve by the community members to vigorously pursue this laudable project to a successful end.

    The Bosuso community has so far spent $5,250 (Gh.c 62,995) on this project out of its $9,000 microgrant advanced jointly by the Fanteakwa South District Assembly and Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA), a non-profit-making organisation, which helps West African communities that are threatened by the destructive impacts of extractive projects to take control of their futures.

    The soap-making factory, which is expected to turn around the economic fortunes of the local community, is being executed under the Facilitated Collective Action Process (FCAP), a partnership between the district assembly and ACA as part of measures to strengthen local participation in the implementation of the Assembly’s medium term development plan.

    “We’ve really gone far with the project and currently it’s at the lintel level. We’re going to put additional two blocks on the beam and continue from there. We’re also waiting for the DCE to support us with the specified wood required for the project”, Nana Atta Krofa, said.

    “This livelihood enhancement project will go a long way to boost our local economy and I will everything within my power to ensure its successful completion and I must thank ACA partnering with our district assembly to bring this project to our doorstep.”

  • Abompe embarks on economic transformation journey through poultry business

    More jobs are expected to be created soon in Abompe and its environs through the poultry business value-chain and turn around the socio-economic fortunes of residents, especially the youth.

    To this end, the entire community of Abompe led by Barima Kwabena Addo, the chief of the area, has commenced construction works on key structures that will house the poultry and other auxiliary structures.

    The project has just commenced with concrete works being done on the sub-structure, after which construction works on the main building (the super structure) will continue.

    This local economic transformation journey by the chief and people of Abompe in the Fanteakwa South district of the Eastern region of Ghana is anchored through the Facilitated Collective Action Process (FCAP), which aims at strengthening local participation in the implementation of the Assembly’s medium term development plan.

    Also called Oman yie die, the project is a partnership between Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA), a non-profit-making organisation, which helps West African communities that are threatened by the destructive impacts of extractive projects to take control of their futures, and the Fanteakwa South District Assembly.

    ACA is supporting the Abompe Poultry Business with a $9,000 micro-grant.

    “As a community, we resolved to also contribute towards this laudable project by mobilizing ourselves to provide the basic structures to be used as the poultry farm so that the funds expected from ACA can be channeled mainly into the poultry business, we have envisioned for ourselves”, Barima Kwabena Addo said in an interview.

    “As the chief of Abompe, I’m leaving no stone unturned to ensure the successful completion of this project owing to the invaluable benefits it holds for both the present and the future generations of the town.”

  • ACA supports Saamang community to renovate local R/C school block

    Renovation works on eight classrooms and an office for the local Roman Catholic basic school at Saamang in the Fanteakwa South District of the Eastern region of Ghana are progressing steadily under the Facilitated Collective Action Process (FCAP), a partnership between the district assembly and Advocates for Community Alternatives (ACA), a non-profit-making organisation, which helps West African communities that are threatened by the destructive impacts of extractive projects to take control of their futures.

    When completed, the renovated block will provide a more convenient teaching and learning environment for the kindergarten and the primary sections of the school and ultimately contribute to the overall improvement in educational standards in the district.

    Moreover, the enrolment is expected to increase by 10% one year after it has been completed and put to use, reduce dropout rate by 5% as well as reduced the cost of education for pupils in Saamang by 15%.

    So far, the entire roof of the school has been demolished while new beams with iron rods are being fixed. Also, the pillars are being replaced with stronger ones before the building is re-roofed.

    Out of its $9,000 (approximately Gh.c 108,000) microgrant earmarked for the project under FCAP, the community has so far spent Gh.c 60,000 (approximately $4,500).

    Also called Oman yie die, FCAP is a partnership between ACA) and the Fanteakwa South District Assembly as part of measures to strengthen local participation in the implementation of the Assembly’s medium term development plan.

    In an interview, the Assembly member for the Saamang Electoral Area, Desmond Ofori Abrokwa, said the state of the school block prior to the start of the renovation works was deplorable and adversely affected enrolment as well as effective teaching and learning.

    “It is our hope that when the renovation works are completed, our kids will have a much better conducive environment to go about their studies. Also, teachers will be happy to give of their best when they have good classrooms to teach and an office to hold meetings and mark assignments”, he said.

    According to him, every effort is being made to ensure that all the remaining renovation works are completed before the beginning of next term so that the pupils can use the facility as early as possible.