Our programmes are designed from the results of community participatory action research and baseline studies and are shaped in response to the needs of partner communities so that the programmes address the crucial problems.

Here are some examples of our strategic programmes that work to eliminate poverty and to mitigate the sufferings of the vulnerable:

1) Women Empowerment Programme: Income generating activity.

This programme is designed to empower women economically and to enable them to improve their standards of living. A micro-credit is advanced to women groups (with little or no interest) and is used to generate income through supported commercial activity.

Current Project: Tampio-Kukuo Women Economic Empowerment Project (TAWEEP). To date, 47 women have received training on micro-credit management, business management, marketing strategies and business planning. With grant support from the Trull Foundation, USA.

2) Community-driven Initiatives Research and Advocacy Programme (CIRAP).

This process is a key stage needed to initiate all our programmes. Communities are engaged via focus group discussions, interviews, interface meetings and open forums as to the issues and problems that confront them and maintain poverty. Participatory action research, baseline studies and community score cards are employed to collate and analyse this information.

3) Community Health Advocacy Programme (CHAP)

This programme addresses the health related issues found in the Northern regions and considers malaria, HIV/AIDS and TB as well as other diseases and health problems. An intern is currently working on a project considering Guinea Worm eradication in Northern rural communities (David Bush, UK).

4) Rural Aid Programme (RAP)

The RAP programme seeks to reduce and mitigate the suffering of rural communities living in poverty. Rural communities in Northern Ghana are characterised by deprivation, lack of portable water, poor sanitation, poor nutritional intake, high levels of illiteracy, abject poverty, lack of social amenities and other indicators of a poor standard of living. An intern has worked on this programme however further funds are needed to continue and implement the project (Alhassan Abukari, Algeria; MSc Rural Economy).

5) Sustainable Children Support Programme (SCSP)

This programme is currently under study and fundraising is underway. A survey conducted on child welfare and childcare indicates that, in the communities under study, seven in ten children are engaged in one or more of the following activities:

• Child labour
• Sex workers
• Living on the street
• School dropouts
• Cyber or internet fraud
• Child beggars

The findings revealed that the future is very bleak for our children and hence there is little hope for the development of the next generation. We call on donors and stakeholders of children’s issues to support us in implementing this programme to challenge the current conditions. The first phase of this intervention will be child rescue missions for street children.