Ghana’s leading micro insurance provider, aYo Intermediaries Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of MTN Ghana, has built a GHS150,000 mechanized borehole for the people of Agona Nkum in the Agona West Municipality of the Central Region to help stem acute water shortage in that community.
The gesture comes after the February cholera outbreak in the Central Region, with Agona Nkum being one of the hardest hit communities, including some fatalities.
In response to the community’s cry for help, aYo deployed a team to the area to assess the situation, which revealed that water supply in the area is acutely irregular, and the only alternative source of potable water for the community - a stream - is also exposed to faecal matter and other contaminants from a nearby dumping site.
aYo therefore contracted vendors from Accra to go build the mechanized borehole to serve as an alternative source of potable water and prevent any more water-borne diseases in the community.
At the commissioning of the borehole, CEO of aYo Ghana, Francis Gota said aYo has always been committed to giving back to the communities they serve through their corporate social responsibility projects, which focus mainly on health, education and technology.
He noted that the GHS150,000 mechanized borehole project for Agona Nkum is specifically targeted at preventing water-borne diseases in the area and also save women and children in the community the hustle of having to travel long distances to fetch water.
Francis Gota therefore urged residents to own and take good care of the borehole so that it will last, saying "We urge you to see it as your own - maintain it - protect it and ensure that it serves both the current and future generations."
Touching on aYo's contribution to insurance coverage in Ghana, Francis Gota said so far, aYo covers over 8.5 million lives in Ghana under its various insurance packages, mainly life and hospitalization. The company, he said, has paid out over GHS36 million in thousands of insurance claims over the last seven years.
According to him, aYo remains committed to ensuring that people don't just buy insurance, but they actually use it and derive the benefits. To that end, aYo continues to churn out innovative insurance packages targeted the most vulnerable in society, to ensure that they are able to access very affordable and easily accessible packages.
He noted that the ease in accessing aYo products lies in the fact that by just dialing *296# on MTN, one can access the various packages on aYo, including the very popular Family Cover policy, which provides up to GHS15,000 cover for just GHS15 monthly premium.
After the commissioning of the borehole, the team from aYo paid a courtesy call on the MCE of Agona West, Eric Gyamfi Odoom, in whose municipality Agona Nkum is located.
The MCE was full of praise for aYo for making a significant contribution to solving the acute water shortage and its attendant sanitation challenges in Agona Nkum.
He noted that currently, there is water shortage in the entire municipality and so the mechanized borehole for Agona Nkum is very timely because that is a big burden lifted off his shoulder and that of the government, so they can commit their meagre resources to other areas.
Eric Gyamfi Odoom was particularly worried that now that there is water shortage in the area, the streams would have been alternative sources of water for the people, but illegal mining (galamsey) has badly contaminated the streams, and made matter worse.
He is therefore pleading with any and every one with a voice in mainstream and social media, churches and mosques to commit to the fight against galamsey because people in areas like Agona West are really feeling it even though they do not practice galamsey in that municipality.
The Agona West MCE also urged residents of the area to patronize aYo Ghana's insurance products, saying that not only are they designed for the vulnerable, but the company is also in the practice of giving back part of the proceeds to the communities they serve.
Omankrado of Agona Nkum, Nana Mprah Afful also thanked aYo for providing the borehole, saying that the gesture is very significant, particularly in these times of acute water shortage.
He however noted the community needs two more boreholes and a community library. He expressed that hope that aYo will return to the community soon and provide them with a community library.
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