It has always been the wish of every good mother to properly cater for her children financially and spiritually. This is what Mrs Gifty Appiah is doing.

For 20 years, Mrs Appiah has been working to create a safe environment for children to thrive and achieve their dreams.

She began her career as a Programmes Officer of African Centre for Human Development. Today, she serves in her new role as the National Director of Compassion International Ghana, a Christian Child Advocacy Organisation at Madina, Accra.

Mama Gifty, as many call her, partners some government agencies and civil society organisations to reach out to deprived children, especially those in the rural communities.

She had previously performed similar functions at other non-governmental organisations and has been steering the affairs of Compassion International for the past three years.

Journey

Mrs Dansoah Appiah, speaking to The Spectator, admitted that it had not been easy in her pursuit to meet the needs of the less-privileged in the community she operates.

She said that notwithstanding the challenges, the non-governmental organisation was determined to extend support to hard-to-reach areas, as it had taken upon itself to reduce poverty, increase access to education and mitigate the impact of sexual violence against young girls.

Poverty, discrimination and other forms of inequalities, she noted, had denied thousands of children their right to education while thousands of children under five years still died from preventable diseases in this nation.

“This and many other factors are the reasons for my relentless efforts to embark on a mission to create a better future for these children.

“I wake up every day, I dream every night about what we are going to do to protect and support our young children in the country and the world as a whole. But in all this, we are able to get them by the grace of God,” she said.

Compassion International

Apart from its corporate social responsibility (CSR), Compassion International has partnered local churches to deliver holistic child development interventions to children and the youth, and to address the cognitive, spiritual, physical and socio-emotional needs of young people.

Operating with the tagline: ‘Releasing Children from Poverty in Jesus’ Name’ , Mrs Dansoah Appiah was impressed that their benevolent spirit was helping to transform the lives of children for the better.

“We want our children to grow up to become responsible Christian adults and serve as agents of transformation in communities they find themselves. We ensure that every child we serve is loved and protected. Children are precious gifts of God, and if we serve them we are, by extension, serving God,” she stressed.

Expressing delight in the positive and efficient role she continued to play at Compassion International, Mrs Appiah called on well-meaning individuals and other non-governmental organisations not to relent in their effort to lessen the plight of needy children.

Impact

Mrs Dansoah Appiah said that Compassion International had contributed a total amount of about GH₵200,000.00 to the COVID-19 Fund, Ghana Health Service and Noguchi Memorial Institute to help combat the spread of the disease.

“We have provided targeted food response to our beneficiary households to the tune of GH₵ 1.8 million. We have also provided face masks for all our beneficiaries amounting to GH₵ 1.2 million,” she noted.

This, she explained, was done through the benevolence of individuals, church and other foreign donors based in the United States of America (USA), United Kingdom (UK), Germany, and Switzerland.

Education

Mrs Dansoah Appiah holds Master of Science (MSc) Degree in Transportation Planning and Policy from the University of Newcastle, UK, and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Planning from the University of Ghana. She is a product of Aburi Girls’ Secondary School in the Eastern Region.

As the former Acting Country Director of World Vision Ghana between 2014 and 2015, she was recognised for her innovation and contribution to child well-being and poverty reduction due to her exemplary leadership. Early this year, she won the prestigious International Nobles Award for ‘Men and Women of Integrity’.

The mother of four said that being a leader was a privilege which she did not ” take lightly”, because it was not everybody who came from a rich home and that she would continue to be a role model for the youth.

“I like the opportunity Compassion International offers me to contribute to this noble cause. I must always be the voice for the voiceless and reflect the Christian values in me as a follower of Jesus Christ,” she added.

Advice

Mrs Dansoah Appiah advised the youth to remain patient in life and steadily work towards their goals “since with God, everything is possible”.

“Life is not a competition. We are all uniquely created by God and He has space for each of us in this life. Identify your life purpose, work towards it with integrity, sacrifice and discipline. Surround yourself with quality people who make positive contribution towards your goal,” she said.

Mrs Dansoah Appiah, who hails from Kwahu Asakraka in the Eastern Region, is married to Apostle Samuel Otu Appiah, Head of the Winneba Area Head of the Church of Pentecost. They have four children who are Dr Jedidiah, Joel Otu, Jaydrein and Janel.

By Geoffrey Buta