Golden Star Wassa Limited (GSWL) has held a programme to create awareness on menstrual hygiene under the theme ‘Making menstruation a normal fact of life”. GSWL also donated sanitary towels to 1,162 females in 14 basic schools in the Wassa area. The programme forms part of GSWL’s 3-year pandemic preparedness programme in partnership with Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

To kick off the programme which was held on 22nd September 2022. GSWL organized a float for all basic schools in its host communities. In addition, GSWL organized a forum to discuss and promote access to science-based information about menstruation and hygiene. The forum also addressed issues of discrimination and stigma due to the natural process of menstruating. The climax of the programme was the education on menstrual hygiene management and distribution of sanitary pads for 14 basic schools in GSWL catchment communities. The yearlong distribution programme to be coordinated by the Wassa East District Health Directorate will see 1,162 pupils and students receive a set of sanitary pads every month for the period.

According to Mr. George Amankwah - Kumi, the Community and Health Coordinator of GSWL “we are happy that Golden Star under the new ownership of Chifeng Jilong Gold, continues to collaborate with strategic development partners like GIZ and Ghana Health Service to deliver projects with long lasting positive impacts for our host communities”

About Golden Star Wassa Limited and GIZ partnership

develoPPP health, a GIZ health programme, under a project dubbed ‘Pandemic Management in Catchment Communities in times of Covid-19 & Beyond’, is working in partnership with the extractive communities of Western and Ashanti Regions. The partnership is to build economic and health resilience for pandemics including and beyond Covid-19. It is in partnership with major mining firms including Asanko Gold, AngloGold Ashanti and Golden Star Wassa Limited. The project is expected to mitigate the negative social impact of Covid-19 and increase economic and health resilience of communities. 

Benefits that will accrue to staff and families within the partnering organisations include enrolment onto the NHIS, Covid-19 vaccination, medical screening and care, financial literacy and improved social protection. 

With combined funding from the partners and GIZ, the 13 million euro projects will run concurrently for 3 years.