Federated Commodities Ltd (FEDCO) and partners, Storck and Walter Matter, have inaugurated a six-unit classroom block for Domeabra Primary School, near Asankragwa, in the Wassa Amenfi West Municipality of the Western Region.
The facility, which has a head teacher’s office, a staff common room, a library, a computer laboratory, toilet facilities, a mechanised borehole, and an astroturf, is to expand access to basic education in the cocoa-growing community.
The Managing Director of FEDCO, Maria Adamu-Zibo, said that the ceremony marked the completion of two schools including a three-classroom kindergarten block at Kwamang.
She believed FEDCO through its partners had fulfilled the promise they made to Domeabra chief three years ago.
“This brings the total number of schools sponsored by Storck in Asankragwa to three, together with that of Yirase which was completed in 2019,” Adamu-Zibo said.
Other projects carried out by our partners in the municipality included a 10-seater toilet facility and mechanised borehole at Supanso, a mechanised borehole at Odumasi and two hand pump boreholes at Domeabra.
Adamu-Zibo continued “To date, Storck has invested close to $2.8 million in projects and premium (about GH¢32.0 million) and we would like to express our utmost gratitude to the management and staff of Storck for their commitment to the wellbeing of our farmers and their children.”
She advised the school authorities, the education directorate and the chief to take good care of the facility so that Domeabra would be an example for others to emulate.
This, she suggested, would encourage FEDCO partners to be happy with their investment and “be willing to do more for other communities.”
A cocoa trader from Walter Matter, Simon Bourqui, described the event as remarkable, saying that, the celebration of knowledge and sustainability did not come by chance but through dedication and shared vision.
Farmers, he noted, were the backbone of the cocoa industry and the economy of the community, adding “You are planting the trees of knowledge and opportunities for the generation to come.”
Sourcing Manager of Storck, Markus Bonemeier, also noted that the efforts of Domeabra cocoa farmers had bore fruits which would promote and improve education in the area.
“Children are our future and I can see the future of the children here. Education is key to development,” he stressed.
The Director of Special Duties at Ghana Cocoa Board, Charles Amenyaglo, recalled that the dilapidated Domeabra old classroom block was a death trap, adding that “real disaster was lurking and called FEDCO and partner for timely intervention to avoid the imminent calamity.”
The Assistant Director of Supervision and Monitoring at Ghana Education Service, Isaac Kwesi Ampong, expressed the hope that the new Domeabra school would enhance teaching and learning.
He added “Domeabra must begin to rethink and value education and not material things like new funeral cloth. Be responsible for the extra fees and books you need to provide for your children. Education is an investment.”
Chief of Domeabra, Nana Kwaku Appiah, thanked the companies for fulfilling their pledge and attested that the community’s relations with FEDCO had been very fruitful.
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