Out Of AfriKids - July 2012
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Both here in the UK and over in Ghana, schools are about to break up for the long summer break. The summer holidays are a time that many of us will remember fondly as long sunny days spent playing with friends outdoors until September rolls around and then it’s back to school. In the Upper East Region of Ghana (UER) where AfriKids is based, it’s a different story. The summer months are Ghana’s wet season which means that for many people who rely on subsistence farming to support their families, it’s the busiest time of the year. Many students will spend their summer holidays helping out on their family’s land and harvesting as JULY 2012 AfriKids is a Child Rights Organisation working to improve life for Ghana’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged children in a holistic, inclusive and sustainable manner much as possible for the dry season. If the farming doesn’t go well, it could affect the family’s finances for the rest of the year. On top of this, the wet weather also brings out mosquitoes making summer the peak season for instances of malaria. Life is difficult in the UER and with these challenges to face, not all children who finish school this week will be in a position to return in September. Much of AfriKids’ work is focussed on ensuring access to education; making sure that families have all they need to send their children to school and live sustainable lives. Providing health insurance ensures malaria can be dealt with for free and providing school uniforms, books and bags lessens the burden on fragile family economics. This summer we’re looking to you, our friends and supporters, to help us fund our education work meaning that families can reach September ready to send their children back to school. Donate online, via text, or get in touch to run your own fundraising event – fundraising is a great way to spend the summer holidays. £5 could pay for stationery and books for a pupil £10 could buy a child a school uniform £50 could ensure a sustainable income for a family through microfinance £100 could pay for health insurance for 10 families SCHOOL’S OUT: AfriKids’ Summer Education Appeal Donate online here - http://www.afrikids.org/donate Text donate by texting “AFRI02 £5” to 70070 Get in touch via [email protected]
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As the school term draws to an end, both in the UK and in Ghana, the July edition of ‘Out of Afrikids’ appeals for your support to ensure that families in northern Ghana can afford to provide the necessary materials they need to send their children back to school come September. This issue also includes a report on AfriKids’ ICT Academy, detailing the Academy’s pioneering work to improve the prospects of young people living in northern Ghana, along with an introduction to the G.A.S partnership’s new website, and teaser for an exciting upcoming event in December…more to follow in the August edition!
Transcript of Out Of AfriKids - July 2012
Both here in the UK and over in Ghana, schools are about to break up for the long summer break.
The summer holidays are a time that many of us will remember fondly as long sunny days spent playing with friends outdoors until September rolls around and then it’s back to school. In the Upper East Region of Ghana (UER) where AfriKids is based, it’s a different story.
The summer months are Ghana’s wet season which means that for many people who rely on subsistence farming to support their families, it’s the busiest time of the year. Many students will spend their summer holidays helping out on their family’s land and harvesting as
JULY 2012
AfriKids is a Child Rights Organisation working to improve life for Ghana’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged children in a holistic, inclusive and sustainable manner
much as possible for the dry season.If the farming doesn’t go well, it could affect the family’s finances for the rest of the year. On top of this, the wet weather also brings out mosquitoes making summer the peak season for instances of malaria.
Life is difficult in the UER and with these challenges to face, not all children who finish school this week will be in a position to return in September. Much of AfriKids’ work is focussed on ensuring access to education; making sure that families have all they need to send their children to school and live sustainable lives. Providing health insurance ensures malaria can be dealt with for free and providing school uniforms, books and bags lessens the burden on fragile family economics.
This summer we’re looking to you, our friends and supporters, to help us fund our education work meaning that families can reach September ready to send their children back to school. Donate online, via text, or get in touch to run your own fundraising event – fundraising is a great way to spend the summer holidays.
£5 could pay for stationery and books for a pupil£10 could buy a child a school uniform£50 could ensure a sustainable income for a family through microfinance£100 could pay for health insurance for 10 families
SCHOOL’S OUT:AfriKids’ Summer Education Appeal
Donate online here - http://www.afrikids.org/donate Text donate by texting “AFRI02 £5” to 70070 Get in touch via [email protected]
As well as students and teachers, the Academy recently reported that they had taught 20 staff from the government’s education service, 12 police staff and over 170 midwives. They were also thrilled to say that five of their former pupils are now studying computer science at university!
PROJECT FOCUSAfriKids ICT Academcy
We have great plans to expand the Academy over the coming years and increase the number of young people and adults who are able to benefit from its work. By donating to AfriKids’ Education Fund, you are able to support this incredible work.
The AfriKids ICT Academy is just one of the innovative projects that AfriKids is working on to improve future prospects for young people in northern Ghana.
In this month’s project focus, read about the work of the Academy and hear some of the success stories from this amazing project.
While much of AfriKids’ work focuses on tackling complex ingrained local problems such as child trafficking and child labour, we strongly believe that there is little point in improving children’s lives if they have no prospects in their homeregion to look forward to. Improving the skills and employability of the young is one way in which we are doing this and IT is a big part of this.
AfriKids AcademyAfriKids Eco VillageAfriKids Ethical TradeAfriKids Medical CentreBolga Area ProgrammeEducational fundKassena Nankana Area ProgrammeMedical fundOperation BolgaOperation Mango TreeOperation SINGhOperation SmilesOperation ZuarunguStreet Mothers AssociationTalensi Nabdam Area ProgrammeYoung Entrepreneurs
IT literacy is a key part of Ghana’s national curriculum but in reality very few schools have the resources or funding to make teaching it a practical experience. Many of the schools in Ghana’s Upper East Region have sporadic or no electricity, let alone a computer laboratory! It’s hard to imagine having to learn, and be examined in, computer skills without having ever used a computer but this is the reality of life for thousands of pupils.
The AfriKids ICT Academy is a computer laboratory in Bolgatanga that provides access to computers to visiting school classes. Young people come and learn ICT skills on modern computers and turn their theoretical knowledge into practical exercises. Since 2009 over 3,000 pupils have benefitted from this.
For those schools too far away for pupils to visit, the Academy also provides lessons for teachers. This means that even schools with no computers can be kept up to date on the latest in computer technology with their teachers receiving direct training that they can then pass on. Over 120 teachers have been for classes at the Academy to pass on their learning to their pupils.
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01: Students studying hard during an ICT class at the Academy (2012)
02: A typical school in the rural village of Sirigu. Pupils are taught computer skills using diagrams drawn on a blackboards, with no opportunity for hands-on practice.
03: Students waiting patiently to begin their class at the Academy (2008)
04: A list of ICT courses on offer at the Academy (2011)
05: AfriKids ICT Academy.
06: Mary Akuta trained at AfriKids ICT Academy, and now works in administration there. A special thanks to Tim Shoesmith for supporting Mary.
AfriKidsThere are Xray and ultrasound machines, trollies and bed frames, all now arrived in Ghana to make their way up to the Upper East to benefit the GAS Partnership. http://tinyurl.com/http-afrikidsmedicalcentre
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Katharine TaylorReally looking forward to visiting AfriKids in action in Ghana with A&O, meeting the people who make it happen and the children who have benefited from your great work. Wonderful opportunity, thank you!
AFRIKIDSONLINE
Let’s tweet @AfriKids
National ConventionGood luck to @AfriKids, @mariecurieuk & @wwf_uk. Nominated for Best Business-Charity Partnership at IoF National Awards
25 June
AfriKidsAwesome! The training of healthcare workers in northern Ghana through GAS Partnership have been valued at over £83k! http://t.co/2jsAIRcU
22 June
AfriKidsWe’ve all gone blue crazy here @AfriKids for the @AllenOveryCSR ‘Wear Blue Day’!
15 June
THE G.A.S. PARTNERSHIP’S NEW WEBSITELast issue you read about the incredible ambulance rally, which saw two ambulances delivered to Bolgatanga, with funds raised going towards the G.A.S Partnership.
The G.A.S Partnership is an innovative tripartite linkage between a government agency (Ghana Health Service), AfriKids and Southampton University Hospitals Trust, working to improve healthcare provision in the Upper East Region (UER) of Ghana.
The G.A. S. Partnership has recently launched its exciting new website with information about the work of the Partnership and how you can get involved. If you would like to find out more about the G.A.S Partnership, why not take a look and let us know what you think.
Get Involved News and MediaHome
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www.facebook.com/afrikids
Nightrider
British 10k London Run 2012
We’d like to say a huge thank you to all our adventurous supporters who took part in Nightrider on the 9th-10th June, cycling 100K through the night on a spectacular tour of London, going past over fifty of London’s most famous landmarks.
Six brave AfriKids supporters –Ali Tovey, Graham Hodgkin, Catherine Ellis, Phillip Suetterlin, Karen Stevens and AfriKids’ very own Head of Businness and Finance Vieve Easton Poole – took part in this challenging event.
The supporters raised a whopping £5,347.55 for AfriKids’s projects in northern Ghana, and we would like to thank you all for your fantastic hard work.
RBS interns induction day
A SPECIAL THANK YOUAn extra special thank you to our dedicated supporters
Thank you to those volunteers who took part in the British 10k London Run on Sunday 8th July. Well done to Nguyet Tran. Tamara Del Rio, Alessandro Esposito, Anita Byers, Caroline Halder, and Jackie Ramsey for completing the challenging run , and thank you for supporting AfriKids.
On Friday 29th June 40 RBS interns took part in the AfriKids Apprentice Challenge, joining forces in small teams to fundraise for our child rights work in Ghana. Each team was also tasked with devising a business plan for a new fundraising venture or organisational development idea for AfriKids, presenting their work to a panel of judges at the end of the day.
The winning team made up of RBS interns James Turner, Matthew Mawdesley, Kareem Raslan, James Dowler and Christian Roberts impressed the panel with their innovative ‘Wheel of Misfortune’ fundraiser, which AfriKids hopes to replicate at upcoming events, together with their charity partnership idea which would see vulnerable young people from the UK pairing up and fundraising for AfriKids, before visiting Ghana to work with likeminded individuals supported by AfriKids. The interns raised a fantastic £1,588.10 on the day, which has been matched by Allen & Overy, AfriKids’ charity partner, doubling the total raised. The AfriKids Apprentice Challenge seeks to drive interest and excitement amongst employees around a company’s approach to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), whilst enabling them to network and develop a range of skills relevant to their careers, fundraising and raising awareness of AfriKids in the process. To find out more please contact [email protected].
FUNDRAISE FORAFRIKIDS
www.afrikids.org
We only have a few spaces left to take part in London’s only music half marathon!
The run starts and finishes at the O2 arena, with music stages, live performances and a variety of sounds along the route.
Contact: [email protected]
Does the thought of running a marathon make you tremble in your trainers?!
Then the Heroes Run is for you.The Heroes Run is a 5km or 10km fun run and all of the money raised will go to local heroes in northern Ghana. This event will be a great day out for all the family, and you can even dress up as your favourite superhero too
Contact: [email protected]
HEROES RUNSaturday 13th October 2012, Southampton. Sunday 14th October 2012, Poole
RUN TO THE BEAT powered by Nike +
Sunday 28th October 2012
LOOK OUT FOR...An exciting upcoming event: AfriKids’‘Big Smiles’ comedian photo exhibition at the Strand Gallery, 3rd-16th December 2012.
More information to follow...
