During an initial visit to Ghana in 2012, Gerald Ostin Chinnery, a businessman based in the British Virgin Islands, felt at home after reconnecting with his ancestry having traced his roots to Ghana.
He would later visit Bongo where he felt accepted and helped renovate a basic school with his latest support to the Bongo District of the Upper East Region being the renovation of a space used as the traditional council.
Through his contributions to the development of the Bongo District, the Paramount Chief of the Bongo Traditional Area, Naba Lemyarum Baba Salifu, enskinned the ferry business mogul as a development chief with the skin name Naba Amaaletinga. A few years after his enskinment, Naba Amaaletinga returned to Bongo to get more involved in the developmental agenda of the district.
On Monday, May 7, 2024, the Naba Amaaletinga Foundation was officially launched, with the core mission of fostering sustainable development in rural areas by providing comprehensive support to women, youth, and communities.
The foundation will, therefore, pay attention to women’s empowerment by providing access to education, vocational training, entrepreneurship opportunities, and leadership development programs.
Efforts will equally be made to empower the youth of Bongo, improve access to quality education, and tackle Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). Naba Amaaletinga explained why attention will be given to Education, women empowerment, and sanitation in an interview with the media on the sidelines of the launch of the Foundation.
“The focus area is sanitation, proper health, proper hygiene, improved education and working with people to improve their livelihoods. If you look at the community is still in need and we expect to invite people from the diaspora like myself to come home, these are some of the challenges that do not go well with us at all. I will want the people of Bongo to take control of their community, take control of their environment and lives.” He stressed.
While providing a brief history of the first time they met, the Paramount Chief of the Bongo Traditional Area, Naba Lemyarum Baba Salifu, noted that his commitment to the development of Bongo earned him the chieftaincy title Naba Amaaletinga.
“My elders and I after his initial visit and the engagements we had, decided to give him a title by enskinning him as a development chief. Naba Amaaletinga subsequently, expressed interest in sanitation, education, tourism, and health. These were the things we talked about and we are glad that he has formed a foundation to help in our efforts to develop the community.” He stated.
In his part, the Upper East Regional Director of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Wisdom Ahadzi, called on the community members to prioritize keeping the environment clean since it is one thing many especially visitors pay attention to. He urged Naba Amaaletinga to encourage many in the diaspora to visit Ghana and the Upper East Region.
