Project GROW

Post and pictures below, enjoy:)

Project GROW – To the villages


Sunday was a very special day, and will no doubt go down as one of the major highlights of this trip. For the first time, we went to meet the community of Nyobok-Nkunszei*, the twin villages where we established Project GROW 4 short years ago, and also to meet the participants of the new village where we will be establishing the next phase of the project. It was an exciting and emotional day, hard to put into words but I will do my best.

We began at the new village Sakote Rana where we will deliver the first of the goats, donkeys, carts, nets and other items next week. We pulled into the village, got out of the taxi to be greeted by the women singing and clapping their welcome to their home. The sense of excitement and anticipation was wonderful, and the women, although initially shy, opened up very quickly. While we waited for the chief to change into his ceremonial costume, we were invited to see the construction process of a new home that was being added to a nearby compound. Villagers were finishing the floor, using a combination dirt and cow manure, which is used as the cohesive material to bind the dirt. They then took a carved wooden mallet with a handle and as a group, pounded this material into a firm base that will form a floor. This was a very labour intensive process involving about 20 people, but to make it interesting, they sang and pounded with their feet as well. I watched for a while and then, unable to resist, asked to borrow a mallet. They were very happy to show me how it worked and the singing, smiling, clapping and pounding, accompanied by welcoming smiles made it an experience to remember. It was also very hot work so I didn’t last long.

We then made our way back to the main meeting area, escorted by pretty much the whole village. They surrounded us all the way, singing their welcome and sharing their excitement that the project was going to be established in their village. Needless to say, it was emotional. Once we were seated the songs and clapping continued, and with Cynthia’s translation, it became clear that we were bringing hope and joy with the new livestock, the carts, the ploughs, and most of all, the chance to participate. It was overwhelming and I was seriously worried that I would not be able to make my speech due to the lump in my throat and the tears that threatened throughout this wonderful welcome. We began the ceremony, first with prayer, then Josbert introducing me, inviting me to speak and translating my words to the community. We discussed Project GROW in detail, the expectations of the community, along with the future plans to develop a community centre that will be established between the two old and new participating villages so that they all benefit. Once the speeches were over, everyone who wished to say something was invited to speak; and many members told of their hopes for the village, for the children, and for a future. We finished the visit with our presentation of gifts to the chief and headed off down the road to the village where it all began.

If hope and excitement set the tone of the new participants, it was confidence that was the theme for the next visit. The welcome was again, very exciting, and as we walked into the meeting area we walked by the new grinding mill purchased last year with project GROW funds. Everywhere in this village there is evidence of this project and it is amazing how much of a difference it has made, especially in comparison the village we had just left. There has been much progress but these people are particularly excited about the possibility of an adult education program. They are hungry for it and as one woman pointed out, would be happy if it started TODAY! She let us know that of all of the adults who were gathered, only one could read, so it is much needed. A man who was a goatherd stood up to tell us that adult education would have made a big difference to him when he took his goats into town to sell. Others gave us equally sound reasons for wanting education. In my speech to this group, I pointed out that as in all aspects for Project GROW, (and indeed a premise for much of adult education in the developing world) we wanted them to identify their learning needs and we would work out a program together that would address those needs. I have no doubt there are many fierce conversations going on right now, and we will be meeting throughout the next 10 days to hear what challenges they face and how basic education will address those challenges.

There was another, surprising and wonderful aspect to this meeting. The University for Developmental Studies, based in Tamale, 2 hours south, has sent a team of 8 university students to work in this village as part of their practicum. The students joined us for the meeting and became fired with excitement when they realized the extent of Project GROW, the opportunity to make this adult education initiative part of their research project. They joined us after the community meeting, eager to hear more and we will set up a separate meeting with them to outline what we are hoping to do. The whole adult education initiative will depend on local educators and so to have this eager team of university students, who live in Ghana and are committed to bringing change, was serendipity indeed. It is especially wonderful that Vida will be in the area for much of their time in the village and collaboration, the exchange of ideas and opportunities and her ability to inspire and work with students will be a wonderful asset.
Once again, our Ghanian guides, Cynthia and Josbert, outdid themselves. Josbert’s poise in managing the meetings, translating for me, and leading the day was admirable and I know his mother, who was watching from the audience, would have been bursting with pride. And as always, Cynthia’s translations were thoughtful and articulate, and carried the essence of the speaker.

For those reading this blog who are familiar with Vida’s research, you will recall that her main goal throughout has been to give voice to the women; after 4 years of Project GROW, there is no doubt that she has accomplished this. The women speak with confidence, outline their successes, talk about their hopes and are proud of what has been done so far; it is especially noticeable when compared to the way the women handled themselves in the first village we visited. Vida also wanted to foster better gender relationships, this is also happening. The men of the village want to be active participants; they want to be part of the building of the community centre in the same way they built the hut for the grinding mill. They want to be part of the adult education program. They are excited and eager to be involved. So congratulations to Vida, who has worked to create this change, and to her family who have carried out the often difficult work in seeing the process are in place to make the project a reality.
For those who are involved in GROW at home, there are many links to explore; micro-finance remains one of the key desires for all participants and perhaps it is time to look into KIVA to see how we can make that happen. The new village (Sakote Rana) has water issues and is desperate for a bore hole so Emily (Engineers without Borders) here is your chance. Health issues are of course, constant, and the school of nursing has been working for a decade now to ensure that there is progress throughout the rural areas of Ghana. And of course, the education issue is always there, both the need and the desire, so there are many opportunities in this area too, especially if we are going to introduce the laptops.

Our meeting with the villagers ended rather abruptly as the heat that had built up all afternoon erupted into a wild electrical storm and everyone ran for cover. We got into the taxi and headed back to Bolga in torrential rain., exhausted, hot and sticky, and looking forward to a cool shower. Before heading out to the villages, we had moved into a different hotel, much nicer actually, air conditioned, very clean, with modern bathrooms. Excited to have this new luxury, we couldn’t wait to get home. However, nothing is straightforward here, and when we got back, the power was out, so the air conditioning was off, and fumbling in candlelight was not quite the return we hoped for. An hour later though, showered, power back on, and feeling a wonderful afterglow, life settled back Ghanian normal and dinner was great.


More to come, so stay tuned..