Gomoa Akroful project

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Gomoa Akroful project : Constructing a durable KG classroom and sanitary blocks

The construction is finished ! Have a look to the works, click here

A few words on the project...

Objective

Improve the living conditions of children of Gomoa Akroful and their families, through access to quality education by providing essential infrastructural needs.

Gomoa Akroful, 4000 inhabitants, a small town in the Central Region, of southern Ghana

A nursery school in poor condition, and no functional toilets for the schools

The kindergarten was built a few years ago, with the means at hand, just some wooden boards structure. This was supposed to be a provisional classroom block.
Despite the commitment and competence of teachers, it had become difficult to provide the children of Gomoa Akroful with quality education in such conditions. Parents were reluctant to let their children study in this makeshift shelter, and the nursery enrollment had declined from year to year : in September 2014, primary school had 362 pupils, and only 29 kindergarten pupils!

The town decided to react with a plan to build a real permanent building for the nursery and toilets for the entire schools - nursery and primary. Lack of financial resources has led the local councilor to contact SANKOFA to accompany them in the project design and assist in the mobilization of financial resources. Thus began the partnership between Gomoa Akroful and Sankofa.

The project : Construction of classrooms and toilet blocks, training and awareness activities

The project took a year, with the new nursery school block fully operational in September 2016. The actions :

Create a local Early Childhood Care and Development Committee, and training of its members on their mission, role and responsibilities;
Construction of two kindergarten classrooms, store room and a toilet block;
2 training workshops with representatives of civil society on the local development project cycle;
2 community awareness meetings on parenting;
An open day at the primary school : sensitization of parents and pupils on the needs of early childhood education.

The Unit Committee represented the town of Gomoa Akroful as initiator and main partner of the project. The local Assemblyman, Mr QUARM, actively participated in the development and definition of the project and brought in his expertise and field experience into the realization of the project.

The project was executed by a Steering Committee of 8 people including a representative of Sankofa. Both services (Education and Public Works) of the decentralized administration of the Gomoa East District (equivalent of a French department) supported in the design of the infrastructure, played a supervisory role, provided school equipment and allocation of teachers. The construction of the blocks was entrusted to a local building artisan. The inhabitants of Gomoa-Akroful also contributed to the construction by providing communal labour.

To ensure success in the long term, the project relies in part, on existing institutional structures, including the Parents and Teachers Association (PTA), the Town Planning Committee (TPC), and the Schools Management Committee (SMC). Creating a local Early Childhood Care and Development Committee will ensure the sustainability of the project by playing its role in the joint management of the nursery.

This project has received the financial support from the Regional Council of Ile-de-France, the District Council of Yvelines, and the Agency of Micro-Projects.