W/R: 2nd Cleanest Community Awards Held In Damang

Gold Fields Ghana Limited, in its effort to promote cleanliness in operational areas, has for the second time in two years held the community award programme dubbed “Cleanest Community Competition” awards, to honour the cleanest community in its host communities.

The programme which was instituted by Gold Fields Ghana Limited Damang Operations, under the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation, is aimed at inculcating cleanliness among the members of the communities, to protect their environment and prevent diseases which come with dirt.

With this, the nine host communities of the mining company are also encouraged to relive the spirit of communal labour to achieve a clean environment.

At a short ceremony to mark the day at Damang, a community in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality of the Western Region, Tuesday December 3 2019, the Head of Community Affairs for Gold Fields Damang Mine, Madam Maud Ofori stated, one’s health is important and must always protect it.

She expressed that, her outfit as a gold mining firm could just focus on their extractive business, however because good health is also important to the company, they always make sure members in the communities have a healthy living.

Madam Maud Ofori said, the competition is done to improve the sanitation issues in the various communities that will, in turn, improve their health.

“This is not just a competition but a competition that will improve the sanitation conditions in the communities”, she explained.

The Community Affairs Manager is of the hope that the communities involved in the competition will themselves spearhead the campaigns of clean environment and Ghana as a whole.

Delivering his speech, the Sustainable Development Manager for Gold Fields Ghana Benedict Addo, tasked the committee mandated to ensure proper sanitation in their various communities, Water and Sanitation (WatSan) Committees, to also ensure streams within the communities are protected.

Mr. Addo was very particular about climate change and how it is drying up the small water bodies in the host communities.

He rhetorically asked, "we could drink from streams some years ago, but can we do the same today?

He said Gold Fields Ghana Limited is always striving to provide sustainable development and leave legacies, both on ground and in members of the communities.

Assuring them of a requisite training for them to do the job, he also asked the WatSan Committees, to focus more on protecting the small water bodies.

The event on Tuesday December 3, 2019 brought chiefs, assembly members and those who have the environment at heart together to celebrate the occasion.

The WatSan "Cleanest Community Competition”, (3C's), seeks to award the cleanest community among Gold Fields Damang’s nine host communities.

For a community to top the other eight competitors, it must be seen to have improved in its waste management, toilet facility management, water management, revenue management from WatsSan facilities and general hygiene.

Nyamebekyere, Huni-Valley and Amoanda came 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively.

The winners received wheelbarrows, shovels, plastic brooms among others.