Sophia-remarkable individuals-2

Sophia particularly wants to train and employ groups who are the lowest earners:- women, especially those who have not completed their education, people with disabilities, and young adults. Older school pupils are encouraged, as they can collect and recycle plastics which would otherwise be dumped as litter.

A guest at the launch- continues to weave throughout the afternoon.

One production group- who are all deaf/hard of hearing, pose with their Signer, teacher Emanuel from Gbeogo school for the deaf.

Sophia is interviewed for Joy TV

At the impressive launch of her new NGO, she was publically supported by the Deputy Regional Minister, the Regional Environmental Protection Minister, other public dignitaries….. and me, being invited to join the platform guests. Therefore I was able to make a statement about the rights of people with disability, the right to life, to education, to health care, to participation and the right to employment.

Dr Roger Kanton, agricultural research scientist, speaks to the meeting. The value of Sophia's business in terms of environmental protection is well understood.

Sophia-remarkable individuals-an occasional series

Sometimes, when a story seems too good to be true- it is true!

Sophia’s newly hatched NGO- Innovative Creative Foundation-was born out of necessity and a desire to counter a serious problem. The necessity was for employment; the problem, environmental threats posed by throwing away “rubbish.”

The raw materials for Sophia's products- rubbish.

Clearly gifted as a craftswoman and artist, Sophia took one of the major rubbish problems in Ghana- plastic bags-turning them into a raw material for creating beautiful and useful crafted products. Transferring weaving techniques for making straw baskets and the like, but instead, washing, shredding then weaving plastic, Sophia has devised methods for multiple production of a range of useful and decorative goods. Individuals, but more often collectives or extended family groups, are trained by Sophia, with no charge, to follow the production stages, and earn a piece work rate. An embryonic marketing team is establishing regular trade locally, in Accra and, importantly for growth and income, abroad.

Some of the products -all created from discarded "rubbish."

James- remarkable individuals-an occasional series

I first met head teacher James in a Spot bar, while enjoying a slow Saturday drink and playing Scrabble under the mango trees.

When the conversation turned to work, and VSO, I asked James,

“Where are all the children with disabilities, because I haven’t seen any in the schools we have visited?”

“Come to my school,” said James. And a few months later, Haruna and I did.

Head teacher James- at his desk.

We were invited into the head teacher’s office. James called several children, one by one, to come in, giving a brief explanation of each child’s particular problems. One child was withdrawn, shy of “the white lady” or anybody else. A young woman crawled into the office, and squatted on the floor. A few patently had learning difficulties. The ethos of inclusion, of respect, of the right to education, was clear throughout. James talked with his pupils, not at them.

I thought, what a basic and simple way to telegraph the message to all your teachers and pupils: - set the example; treat all your pupils with disabilities as pupils first and foremost.

The Primary 4 class- including two pupils with disabilities.

James’ support goes far beyond benign and passive acceptance of disability- beyond the call of duty. He has been active in pursuing Social Welfare, making contacts with the Ghana Health Service clinic near to his school, and with the local branch of a major charity, World Vision, to meet the needs of his pupils. He discusses their education with his Circuit Supervisor (the local inspector and advisor).  He will take a child on his moto (motorbike) for health checkups or to go home. His teachers, similarly interested, asked about training and teaching materials.

James and Haruna meet with a parent

Haruna and I took up James’ challenges, securing additional funds for some pupils, necessary hospital treatment for one, and arranging teacher training for his staff. At the end of the school year, James was invited to my Farewell Get together, where I could publicly thank him for being a model head teacher in supporting disability rights.

Teacher Barikisu, with her child-and one of her pupils with SEN. (Mothers bring their babies to work until they reach school age.)

Ghana Must Go

Ghana Must Go!

(Which sounds like a play on this blog’s title)

In 1983, the familiar blue and red checked zipped bags, made in China, and sold widely across Europe, were branded by Nigerians, “Ghana Must Go,” bags.

The Nigerian government, as part of an economic ping ponging of migrants between the two countries, ordered the expulsion “en masse” of all Ghanaians.

So hurried was the process, that the outward bound had to cram their worldly goods into the cheap, strong, easily available, woven plastic bags.

Guileless, the moniker continues today in Ghana.

"Backing a baby" 2

Baby nicely tucked in- ready to go.

I have a go- not from any necessity!

I don't think the baby is too impressed. At first it is difficult to stand up straight, but then I became confident that the baby was secure.

"Backing a baby"

How to stylishly carry a baby on your back, get on with daily tasks and avoid spending a fortune at a baby-care store.

Working mothers take their babies with them until the child is of kindergarten age (4 years). Here, a school teacher leaves the classroom for break, with her child.

This is the African solution to the age-old problem of preparing the meal while looking after baby.  It requires nothing more than a good length of decent cloth and a little practice in tying.

African children are “backed” from birth. As they become bigger and more active they learn to adapt their position and mould themselves into a comfortable shape. All babies appear to find being "backed" extremely comforting.

So- here's how!

Lay baby across upper back, around shoulder blade height. Lay folded cloth across baby.



 

The cloth is double tied, extremely tightly, above the breasts. Ideally baby's arms tucked in unless an older child.

Baby's legs and bottom supported by lower side of fabric. Firmly tied  in two knots around the waist. (some adjusting by friends, to allow for lack of practice)

Remarkable individuals:-an occasional series

31^st December Women’s Movement- and women in Ghana.

Established on the 15^th May 1982, after military coup Leader Jerry Rawlins had begun his second period of ruling Ghana, the 31st December Women’s Movement, set about educating and training women across Ghana, but particularly in the poorer remote and rural districts.

 Its aims were- and still are-“ to harness the 51% of the adult population who are women, so that women could actively play an integral part of decision-making at every level.” The organisation adopted the United Nations Declaration on the Status of Women as part of its constitution.

A collective sorting palm nuts ready for sale. photo-internet-from 31st December website.

Elizabeth, now enjoying retirement from her work in Ghana Education Service (GES) as the Officer for Early Childhood  and Kindergarten Education, was a District Organiser for the 31^st December Women’s Movement.  

Haruna and I met her by accident early one afternoon when we stopped at a “Spot” bar for a well earned cold drink, after hours of motor bike riding to visiting remote rural farms.  Elizabeth was enjoying a cold beer: nothing remarkable in some countries, but in Ghana, the women I see in bars are typically the white/ non Ghanaian volunteers, the serving  staff,  or passing food vendors with trays and baskets of snacks and fruits balanced on their heads.

Elizabeth spoke proudly of travelling far and wide, setting up training groups in villages across the Upper East region to gather and teach women crafts such as carpentry, functional literacy and agricultural skills and to establish business collectives. Hundreds of thousands joined and lives were changed for the better. The 31^st December Women’s Movement, still 1 million strong, still closely associated with Rawlins and his wife, is credited with bringing forward universal kindergarten education for all Ghanaian children- and Elizabeth’s own role within GES grew out of her pioneering work. It also spearheaded the drive for more recent Parliamentary Acts on family law, child support law, marriage law and a domestic violence law.

I pose with Elizabeth and her daughter in law.

Yesterday, in a primary school classroom, I asked the pupils who could ride a donkey. All the boys put up their hands, none of the girls. Why?

Image-Ghana Business News-article headline-"Boy rides to school on donkey"-17.12.2008

Sobering, but given the continuing lower status of women here, as evidenced by their observed daily work routines and characteristically subservient conduct, in addition to the global occurrences of violence against women, under-representation in senior decision making roles, much remains to be done and questions asked as to why?- and why not?