Chief of Staff, Frema Opare
The Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, Akosua Frema Osei Opare, has stated that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is committed to the development of people with special needs such as those living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
According to Mrs Osei Opare, caring for such people is a part of the United Nations’ principle on good governance.
She added that this explains why the President has directed the Ministry of Gender, Children and Special Protection to give special attention to such people. She said the Akufo-Addo government would continue to pay special attention to such people, especially the young ones among them.
Support for IDDs
The Chief of Staff said this yesterday when she commissioned a newly renovated centre for the Klick Africa Foundation Early Intervention.
The centre, which was supported by the Chief of Staff and other private donors, supports children between zero and five years with Intellectual and Development Disability (IDD) to reach their full potential.
The Chief of Staff called on all Ghanaians to support the Foundation to enable it reshape such children.
She stated that raising children with ASD is a family, community and national issue, and urged all well-meaning Ghanaians to support them.
She used the opportunity to donate some Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), plastic chairs, boxes of Eku-Juice and an undisclosed amount of money to support the centre.
The Deputy Minister of Children, Gender and Social Protection, Freda Prempeh, assured the Foundation of the ministry’s support towards reshaping the children.
She asked the management of the Foundation to contact the ministry to be linked to one of its donor agencies to support the centre.
The founder of the Foundation, Mary Kuffuor, expressed her appreciation to the Chief of Staff for the support.
The mother of one of these children with special needs explained that she saw the need to help people who are facing challenges with raising their children with similar conditions hence the establishment of the centre.
She disclosed that the purpose of the centre is to strengthen families and influence communities by creating a good ambiance for the children.
