Gender Ministry presents electronic devices to welfare officers
Some selected district social welfare officers across the country have been presented with Samsung tablets to facilitate their work.
The 61 tablets, which cost about GH¢175,000, will also enable them to effectively implement the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme aimed at reducing poverty in the country.
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The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), with support from the World Food Programmes (WFP), made the presentation in Accra.
The Minister of the MoGCSP, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, said the tablets had come in handy since the LEAP programme had undergone some technological reforms.
She said key among the reforms were the digitisation of the reporting systems and decentralisation of the programme’s management information systems (MIS) and sub-national implementation structures.
“Through the digitisation, the ministry is assured of real-time electronic reporting and feedback on the implementation of field activities of the programme.
“The field activities include cash out of grants by beneficiary households and other activities at the community and district levels,” the minister added.
Significance
According to Ms Abudu, since the start of the e-reporting system in 2019, the ministry had received reports from some officers that their electronic devices were not in good shape.
As a result, they had to resort to the use of their mobile phones to access the e-reporting applications, thus affecting their output.
The minister said her outfit procured the tablets for distribution to the officers after receiving support from the WFP.
She, therefore, urged the officers to use the devices for its intended purpose to enhance programme delivery.
The minister also expressed appreciation to the WFP for its support, and said the tablets would go a long way to improve the work of staff, while pledging to deepen collaboration with the programme.
The Deputy Director of the LEAP Management Secretariat, Myles Ongoh, said the secretariat was working to improve the livelihood of the vulnerable while ensuring that their workers also had the necessary logistics.
Rationale
The Country Director and Representative of the WFP, Barbara Clemens, said the devices were meant to support the collection of accurate data on the field.
“Evidence creation is key for us and these tablets are to support the ministry to make sure that the right persons received the right benefit at the right time,” she said.
Ms Clemens said her outfit would continue to liaise with the ministry to identify gaps in the LEAP programme and help fix them.
She commended the ministry for the initiative to support the vulnerable while pledging WFP support for the former to deliver on its mandate.
Appreciation
The social welfare officer for the Krowor Municipal Assembly, Evelyn Nanbigne, on behalf of his colleagues, expressed appreciation for the support.
She said the devices would not only facilitate their work, but would also make them gather accurate data.
