TOPP Stuffs PLWHAs With Bakery Project

The Management of Twifo Oil Palm Plantations (TOPP) has donated GH¢1,000 to Ebenezer Foundation, a charitable organisation which caters for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs) in the Twifo-Heman-Lower Denkyira District.

The money is a seed money for a bakery to generate income to support HIV victims.  It is the second time workers and management of TOPP had raised funds to support the foundation.

Mr Harris Adu-Agyei, Human Resource Business Partner/Plantations Manager of TOPP, who made the presentation on behalf of the company, expressed the hope that the bakery project would soon begin to generate income to assist people living with the virus.

 He said last year, under the company's Compassion Project funded by the Ghana AIDS Commission, 138 follow-up visits were made by HIV counsellors to persons living with HIV/AIDS in 32 communities in the district and offered support.

In addition, TOPP refunded all transportation expenses made last year by the PLWHAs who visited the TOPP clinic on monthly basis to collect drugs.

Mr Adu-Agyei commended the foundation for supporting the company's campaign against HIV/AIDS stigmatisation and discrimination, adding that the company's clinic is not only committed to the prevention of HIV infection among its workforce, but also residents of the district.

He said the clinic encouraged people with the virus to access treatment and care to help prolong their lifespan and remain productive.

He said the TOPP clinic had since 1990, recorded 184 HIV cases, and  gave the breakdown of detected cases since the establishment of a VCT centre in 2005 as 14 in that year, 30 in 2006, 36 in 2007 and 55 in 2008.

Dr Cyril Kwame Krah, resident medical advisor, urged people in the area to go for voluntary counselling and testing to help stem the spread of the virus.

Ms Adelaide Dapaah, president of the foundation, who received the cheque, thanked the workers and management of TOPP for the money.