About 400 households in the Wa West District of the Upper West Region that were severely hit by drought and floods in the region last year, have been paid GH¢30 each under an emergency Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty programme. The programme which is being sponsored by the World Bank is providing relief to households distressed by the disaster that hit the Northern, Upper East and West Regions. Communities benefiting from the programme in the Wa West District include Wechiau, Kandeu, Meteu, Piisee and Baleufili. Briefing newsmen at Wechiau, Mr. Lawrence Azam, National Coordinator of the programme, said 20 districts in the three Northern regions and seven in Southern Ghana would benefit. During the programme, which would last from September this year to February next year, cash payments of GH¢30 would be paid to each affected household in two months interval. He said the amount being disbursed currently covered payments for September and October and that those for November and December would be paid next month. Mr. Azam, who is also Director of the Department of Social Welfare, said 3,150 households in three districts of the region namely, Wa West, Wa East and Sissala West were benefiting from the exercise. He said Ghana Post had been contracted to carry out the payments under the supervision of his outfit and the World Food Programme. Asked as to how the beneficiaries were chosen, he explained that community leaders and assembly members were used to identify those who had their farms destroyed and therefore needed help and the data collected was used to process identity cards for the beneficiaries. Some of the beneficiaries interviewed by the Ghana News Agency described the payments as unbelievable, saying it was a wonderful gesture, which they were not expecting. Source: GNA