INITIAL SITUATION
Among many other deficiencies, such as inadequate electricity and drinking water supplies, the lack of educational opportunities is a major problem in the Taha community in Ghana’s Northern Region. Although some primary and junior high schools (JHS) exist, the young people there are unable to obtain a graduation that will allow them to a university or start a profession.
This in turn leads to children simply dropping out of school and instead working as cowherders or on their parents’ farms, which are usually only sufficient for subsistence farming. This means that underdevelopment continues in a vicious circle. This is where we want to take action with an improved educational program to give young people more prospects for their lives.
WHAT WE WANT TO ACHIEVE
Our big goal is to establish a secondary school in Taha, so that all children in the area can graduate there. According to our motto: “Quality education for all”. In a first step, we have to create the necessary infrastructure. We have already started this with by the construction of a first classroom. Furthermore, teaching at the school is elementary.
At the moment, this is organized by our partner association NEA and carried out by trained teachers. In the long run we want to hand over the school to the Ghanaian state in order to reduce running costs. We want to give the young people from the Taha region the opportunity to create a better future for themselves. They can achieve this with a higher school diploma that qualifies them for a profession or a course of study.
THE ASSOCIATION
Our association “Taha-Schul-Projekt e.V.” is a registered, non-profit association since 2014, which allows us to issue donation receipts. However the non-profit status is not only a bureaucratic element for us. All our members work on a voluntary basis and therefore we can use 100% of our donations for our association’s purpose. We can proudly say: “The money arrives.” In Ghana we can rely on our partner association “Northern Educational Alliance” (NEA).
Its members come from Taha or the surrounding area and also lead the work on the ground on a voluntary basis and with heart and soul. First and foremost is the chairman, Alhassan Salifu, who grew up in Taha and has learned it the hard way what it means to obtain a high school diploma in the region.
His idea was to build a secondary school in Taha, because he wants to give the next generations more perspectives for their lives with a better education.