The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection has engaged residents of Chorkor and Mamprobi in a Community Dialogue Series on Social Protection and other Social Issues, as part of efforts to bring government’s social intervention programmes closer to the people.
The event, held on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at Saban Park, Chemunaa Last Stop, Accra, brought together officials of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, representatives of the Office of the Head of Local Government Service, the National Health Insurance Authority, the Ghana Health Service, traditional authorities, faith-based organisations, civil society groups and members of the media.
Delivering the keynote address, the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection and Member of Parliament for Krowor, Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, said the dialogue was designed to help community members better understand government’s social protection programmes, share their experiences and concerns, and contribute practical perspectives towards reducing poverty, vulnerability and social exclusion.
She said government considered social protection “an important instrument for reducing poverty and vulnerability, protecting human dignity, promoting social inclusion, and building the resilience of individuals, households, and communities,” and not merely a matter of helping people in need.
The minister cited the enactment of the Social Protection Act, 2025 (Act 1148) as a major milestone, describing it as a comprehensive legal framework for coordinating and delivering social protection interventions nationwide, with its formal launch still forthcoming.
She listed government’s flagship social protection programmes as the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme, the Ghana School Feeding Programme, the National Health Insurance Scheme, labour-intensive public works, productive inclusion initiatives and education capitation grants, adding that additional interventions had been introduced under the current administration’s resetting agenda, including a no-fees-stress policy for first-year tertiary students and free sanitary pads for girls.
Mrs Lartey said the Community Dialogue Series had already been held in the Tema Metropolitan Area, Adenta East District, Krowor Municipal Assembly, Nanton District, Sagnarigu North District and Bawku East District, and would continue to be extended to other parts of the country.
She noted that a key feature of the engagements had been collaboration with the National Health Insurance Authority to facilitate free registration and renewal for eligible, vulnerable and indigent persons under the National Health Insurance Scheme, an offer that was also extended to residents at the Chorkor event.
The minister acknowledged that despite progress, many households continued to face challenges such as gender-based violence, child labour, human trafficking, illicit drug use and inadequate access to essential services, and said government was working to strengthen public awareness, local coordination, referral systems and accountability to ensure such households benefit from existing interventions.
She announced that the LEAP programme was being expanded from 350,000 to 400,000 beneficiary households, with the onboarding of new households underway alongside the resumption of payments.
In a related development, the Member of Parliament for Ablekuma South, Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, thanked his constituents for voting massively for President John Dramani Mahama in the 2024 elections and used the occasion to update residents on road works in the constituency.
He said his office, in collaboration with the Ministry of Roads and Highways, had engaged two contractors who had begun work on the Hospital Road, the Mamprobi Tuesday Market Road to Whitehouse, the Korle Bu to Kaneshie Road, and the Ibadan-Bamboi Road, which included construction of adjoining gutters.
He added that gutter works from Ibadan to Presby, as well as from Akweteman Junction to Bamboi, had already been completed. “I am optimistic that all works being carried out on the inner roads within the Ablekuma South Constituency would be completed soon,” he stated.
The programme also featured presentations on child protection, the abuse of illicit drugs and its effects, the National Health Insurance Scheme, LEAP reassessment, and gender issues including domestic violence, child marriage, teenage pregnancy and human trafficking.
By Kingsley Asiedu
