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Moringa Association of Ghana
inaugurated
Accra, Jan. 30, GNA - Health Minister, Major Courage
Quashigah (rtd) on Tuesday said the Moringa plant held great
promise to transform the nutritional and health status of
the country's population.
He noted that Ghana's health burden could be reduced when
moringa was adopted as a nutritional supplement.
The Health Minister who was speaking at the inauguration of
the Moringa Association of Ghana (MAG), called for
appropriate modalities to be fashioned out into the
research, process and packaging of the plant for use as
alternative to imported vitamin and nutrient supplements
administered in health facilities.
The Moringa plant christened as the 'Miracle Tree' and
'Green Gold", according to health experts, contains seven
times vitamin c as compared to equivalent of weight of
oranges; four times vitamin A as in carrots; four times
calcium in cow's milk and three times the potassium in
bananas as well as twice the protein in cow's milk and
yoghurts.
Moringa is said to have all the food nutrients required for
the body and also prevents 300 diseases including
hypertension and diabetes.
The Methodist Church of Ghana has been involved in the
promotion of Moringa since 2000.
Major Quashigah said God in his wisdom asked man to use
plants and herbs but "we have failed to use this rich
knowledge given to us by God and due to modernisation have
discarded it and termed it satanic".
He said Moringa was the best gift to Ghana as the country
celebrated its 50th anniversary, adding that with the use of
the plant, Ghanaians could live healthy long life.
Major Quashigah commended the Methodist Church for being at
the forefront in promoting the plant.
Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa, Director General of Ghana
Health Service, also noted that if Ghanaians had good
drinking water; immunized their children under five with
Moringa taking care of the nutrition problems, the country's
health burden could be lessened.
He pledged his support for the MAG and denied that orthodox
practitioners did not want to have anything to do with
traditional medicine and called on Ghanaians to go for the
miracle tree for its benefits, which he described as
amazing.
The Reverend Dr Aboagye-Mensah, Presiding Bishop of
Methodist Church, Ghana, said the Church was promoting the
plant as a theological mandate in preserving God's creation.
He noted: "I consider the plant as God's own Jubilee gift to
us to heal our wounds which are bleeding with hunger,
disease and abject poverty."
The Presiding Bishop said the Church was working out
modalities on Moringa production to come out with a unique
and acceptable product on the Ghanaian market and urged the
Government to support the Association in its campaign on
'this good news of Moringa to all Ghanaians'.
Mr Mozart Adevu, Chairman of MAG, said the Association
sought to organise individuals, churches, institutions and
business concerns into an umbrella body that would include
producers, consumers, processors and researchers to speak on
a common platform on issues of Moringa in order to influence
policy on promotions, production, consumption and marketing
of the products.
GNA
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