About 973 needy school children in basic schools, in the Upper East and Northern Regions, have received donations from an NGO, the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC).
The needy children, who have lost both parents, were from the Bongo, Bawku and Garu-Tempane Districts, in the Upper East region and West Mamprusi Districts in the Northern Region.
Each of the beneficiaries were given either a bag of maize or millet, a number of exercise and text books, mathematical sets, school bags and pens, all valued at about GH¢ 103,000 .00.
In addition, the girls received sanitarily pads, donated by Proctor and Gambel, through ISODEC.
Presenting the items at different functions, the Regional Manager of ISODEC, Mr Jonathan Adabre, said the donation was part of the Ambassadors Girls Sponsorship Programme (AGSP), a United States Agency International Development (USAID) funded girls educational assistance programme.
He said the AGSP is managed by the World Education Incorporated and implemented by ISODEC and that his outfit started implementing the programme in the 2004/ 2005 academic year, in the Bongo, Bawku, Garu -Tempane and the West Mamprusi Districts.
Mr Adabre stated that the objective of the AGSP was aimed at addressing material barriers to girls' education and to help improve retention, transition and performance, from the basic to secondary level.
He noted that since the inception of the Programme, it had assisted a lot of girls, who otherwise, would have drop out of school.
He said many of the beneficiaries of the programme have progressed to the Senior High School.
The Regional Manager said ISODEC had also carried out Video outreach programmes in the beneficiary communities to sensitize school children and parents on the HIV/AIDS menace and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Mr Dominic Akanson, Science, Technical and Mathematics Education Coordinator, in charge of Bongo, commended ISODEC for the programme, saying that, it was helping a lot in education delivery.
He challenged the beneficiaries to work hard to enable them to pass the Basic Education Certificate Examination.
Mr Moses Akuntugubo, Bongo District Coordinator, in charge of Schools Health Education Programme, said the sanitary pads given to the girls would help solve the problem of absenteeism in school, which affects their academic performance.
He assured the girls that they would be provided with sanitary pads periodically.