Mr. Kofi Vinyo, a Sunyani-based timber merchant has sponsored the registration of 350 people under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) at Kwatire, near Odumase in Sunyani West District.
The beneficiaries are made up of the physically-handicapped, widows, orphans and other needy persons.
At a photo-taking exercise to facilitate the issuance of ID cards to the beneficiaries, on Monday, Miss Victoria Manu, Public Relations Officer of the Sunyani Municipal NHIS, announced that the scheme had registered 214,000 representing 95 percent of the population in the municipality.
The figure is based on the 2000 Population Census.
She appealed to non-governmental organisations, religious bodies and philanthropists to assist needy people to register with the scheme.
Ms. Manu said the scheme was currently operating with 38 pharmaceutical facilities in the region and explained that with the
introduction of the new national ID cards beneficiaries could access health care every where in the country.
She urged those who had not yet registered with the scheme to do so to access quick and quality health care delivery.
Mr. Vinyo, who is the Managing Director of Kofi Vinyo Company Limited, said the registration exercise formed part of the company's social responsibility programme.
Nana Akua Amankwaah I, queen mother of Kwatire, thanked Mr. Vinyo for helping to alleviate the plight of the beneficiaries.
She expressed concern about the alarming rate of teenage pregnancy and drug abuse, especially Indian hemp smoking among the youth, including school children, in the area, and
appealed to the police to intervene to bring the situation under control.
"As a result of this negative practice by the youth, cases of theft and pilfering have increased in our area," the queen mother noted.
Mr. Vinyo later presented a 21-inch coloured television set to the Kwatire health center.
In another development, the timber firm with assistance from ECObank is constructing a 700,000 dollar-cassava factory for the processing of starch at Kwatire.
The company has acquired acres of land at Banda-Ahenkro, Wenchi, Odumase and Kwatire, in Sunyani West, as well as Nkoranza in the Nkoranza South District of Brong-Ahafo for the cultivation of cassava in the next farming season.
It has also cultivated 200 acres of cassava plantation at Techire in the Tano North District to feed the factory.
Construction work on the project is expected to be completed by next year and would have the capacity to engage 700 youth to work in the factory.
Mr. Vinyo disclosed this when he conducted Mr. Kwadwo Osei Asibey, Sunyani West District Chief Executive and reporters round the project site on Wednesday.
He said processing equipment and logistics were worth 345,000 dollars and the company's management would send a delegation to China by the end of November this year to negotiate for the procurement of the machines.
Mr. Vinyo appealed to the government to assist the company in the procurement of the machines.
Mr. Asibey noted that the project would help generate employment for the youth and farmers in the area.
He commended Mr. Vinyo for the noble idea and pledged the Assembly's commitment and preparedness to enhance economic activities in the area.
Mr. Asibey entreated the people to embrace and support the project.
Mr. Haruna Alhassan, branch manager of ECOBank, Sunyani, said the bank was established to promote the economic integration of West Africa and recognized the efforts of groups
and individuals in enhancing economic activities.
He advised the youth who would be engaged in the factory to adopt the habit of savings and urged farmers in the area to organise themselves into groups to enable them to access loans
from financial institutions.