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RALEIGH INTERNATIONAL GHANA EXPEDITION UPDATE
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Introduction
Welcome to the first of four expedition updates from
Raleigh International in Ghana. These updates are designed to
keep you informed of what's happening on this sixth expedition
in Ghana, and will complement any letters and emails you receive
too.
Raleigh International has been in Ghana for three
years, running two expeditions each year. Our reputation as a
leading UK youth development charity has had a strong impact,
as a result of the community and environmental work we do here.
All project work we do is in partnership with non-government organisations
(NGO's) based in Ghana permanently. They include: World Vision,
Action Aid, Sight Savers International, Planned Parenthood Association
of Ghana and the Wildlife Division of the Forestry Division.
There are 34 voluntary staff on expedition coming
from the UK, the Czech Republic, Italy and Australia. They arrived
earlier on 16 September 2001 to prepare for the Venturers arrival.
The two-week induction programme was a steep learning curve for
most, as well as a great opportunity for staff to get to know
each other. The main focus was re-emphasising the personal development
of the Venturers, and how staff will manage their project sites.
Every project manager and assistant project manager
will prioritise teambuilding skills, motivation, adaptability,
leadership and cultural awareness within their group. All staff
members have been trained in first aid by the seven medics here,
as well as medical evacuations, helicopter landings, river crossings,
radio communications, and map-reading using Global Positioning
System (GPS) software. The health and safety of the Venturers
and staff is of paramount importance to Raleigh International.
The project staff visited each of their nine project
sites, meeting with the project partners and local village communities.
These preparatory planning visits are essential for the smooth
running and organisation of their work
here in Ghana.
Staff have also discussed the wider issues of environmental
and social impact their project sites might have on local communities.
Adelaide Fening from Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) came to
give the group a talk about the work VSO does in Ghana, including
an HIV AIDS awareness programme.
Staff met the young Ghanaians (Host Country Venturers)
on 22 September for a preliminary briefing. The 27 young men were
incredibly enthusiastic and motivated about the expedition, having
been successfully selected from 126 young Ghanaians who had applied
for this expedition. They were looking forward to welcoming UK/International
Venturers to Ghana.
On 3 October at Accra airport - a little delayed
- 90 UK and International Venturers arrived and were given an
exuberant welcome in the car park by the Ghanaian Venturers' excellent
drumming and singing. The new arrivals had big grins on their
faces for so many reasons: for being in a new country, for having
flown for the first time, for being greeted by such a riot of
noise and colour in the heat of the evening - or maybe simply
realising the dream of coming on expedition was finally a reality.
With remarkably little confusion considering the
logistics, 90 people and their backpacks were loaded onto 9 buses
along with the 27 young Ghanaians and 34 staff. The destination
was 'Voluntary Camp' in Kordiabe near Shai Hills, 20 kms outside
of Accra. This static site has been the Venturers' home for the
last week, where they've been learning essential techniques needed
for the next three months. In addition, the expedition Artist
gave a talk on how to compile a visual diary. There was another
talk about cultural awareness given by the support group of Ghanaian
ex-Venturers, whose experiences on previous expeditions were invaluable.
The support group also showed how the local food, FuFu, was made
by pounding cassava fruit into submission, and the Venturers literally
had their first taste of Ghana!
Everyone went trekking in Shai Hills National park,
learning to cook over a camp fire, put up tents and bashers (hammocks
made out of wood and small trees), getting used to the weight
of their packs, and sleeping under the stars (- or, more accurately,
under a mosquito net). With baboons up in the hills and beautiful
birds and butterflies flying all around, it was an excellent introduction
to bush life. All Venturers were given practical lessons in first
aid, risk assessment and radio communication plus a strong
emphasis on health and hygiene.
It wasn't all hard work, though. Time was made to
play the local village school at football. How did we do? Well,
The Raleigh Rovers lost 2-1 in the first match, although special
commendation goes to William Wonderful as team coach shouting
encouragement from the sidelines. On the rematch two days later,
we lost again 5-4! But a special commendation goes to Adrian Weaver
for pulling Raleigh back from the brink during the second half
- (Sven's phone number, anyone?) The girls, meanwhile, attempted
to even the score when playing the local schoolgirls at netball.
All Venturers have now been split into one of nine
groups. Over the next nine weeks, each Venturer will work on one
community project, one environmental project and one adventure
project. Each project phase lasts three weeks. In-between each
phase, all Venturers and staff will meet up for two nights in
the town, Sunyani. Each Venturer will then be allocated into a
new group, with a new set of friends to get to know, and then
deploy on to their next project. An expedition update will be
sent to you after each
changeover period.
On 9 October, the expedition was official launched
at Independence Arch in Accra. Rupert Miller, Raleigh International's
Country Director, welcomed the Venturers to Ghana and highlighted
that this expedition has the greatest number of young Ghanaians
participating. Dr. Rod Pullen, the British High Commissioner,
praised the work Raleigh International has done in Ghana to date
as well as extending his welcome. The Minister for Youth &
Sport, the Hon. Paapa Owusu Ankomah, congratulated Raleigh International
for promoting the culture of volunteerism in Ghana, and promised
he would do his best to
get the new President - President Kuffuor - to see the work the
Venturers will be doing during the next three months.
On 10 October starting at 5 a.m., nine buses arrived
to take each group off to their project sites around Ghana. Let
the fun begin!
THE PROJECTS:
· COMMUNITY
1. Construction of three KVIP latrine blocks with
ActionAid
ActionAid is an UK NGO with a health and education
remit. Over the last twelve months they have devolved a lot of
the responsibility for project planning and implementation to
the various regions. This has worked very well and the regions
are starting to realise some of the benefits and challenges the
new strategy presents to them.
On this expedition the group will undertake the construction
of three KVIP's (Kumasi Ventilated Improved Pit latrines) of five
cubicles each. KVIP's are an essential resource in improving health
and hygiene conditions in the area. The group will build one block
each phase. The first phase is taking place in Peing in the Upper
West region.
2. Eye Camps with Sight Savers International in
the Volta Region
To prevent an additional 100 million people from
going blind by the year 2020 is the driving force behind the Vision
2020 - the right to sight initiative that the World Health Organisation
is leading. Sight Savers International is one of the founder members
of the initiative. It's estimated 80% of the world's blindness
is avoidable, with approximately 7 million people becoming blind
every year, 90% of them in developing
countries. The three major causes of blindness are cataracts,
trachoma and
onchocerciasis. These three major causes of blindness can normally
be cured by an element of the 'SAFE' process: Surgery, Environment,
Antibiotics or Face Washing.
Sight Savers International is an UK based NGO, founded
in 1949 as the Royal Commonwealth Society for the blind. They
work throughout Africa and the West Africa Regional Director is
based here in Accra.
The Venturers will be at eye camps in the Volta Region
during phase one. They will work alongside a team of ophthalmic
nurses to screen approximately 5,000 people per camp. Once the
screening is complete, the group will assist in the planned 200-250
cataract operations. They'll help with logistics of the movement
of the patients as well as the after care. This type of project
carried out on previous Raleigh expeditions was very
successful.
3. Construction of a nursery school with World
Vision in the Northern Region
World Vision is an American NGO who have a Christian
background. They mainly have a health remit in Ghana, but are
currently investing resources into education. We have worked with
World Vision on all of our last five expeditions. They are very
reliable and highly value the relationship between themselves
and Raleigh International.
The project for this expedition involves the construction
of a nursery school at Gbumbum village, which is near Savelugu,
30 minutes north of Tamale. The school is the first part of a
three-year education facility, which is being funded by the Temple
Baptist Church in the US. The school will be of block construction,
with zinc tin roof and will accommodate 80 children.
This group is also working on plans with the co-ordinator
from World Vision and the PPAG (Planned Parenthood of Association
of Ghana) to devise a project promoting HIV Aids awareness. PPAG
have a programme manager working in the community of Savelugu.
This will be the first time that we have undertaken a project
like this. It is an excellent opportunity to test the suitability
of this type of project for Raleigh International in Ghana.
· ENVIRONMENTAL
1. Construction of a tourist accommodation block
at Bia National Park in the
Western Region
This group will be working with the Wildlife Division
of the Forestry Division (WD) and the Protected Areas Development
Programme (PADP). We have worked with the WD throughout our time
in Ghana. They manage almost all the protected areas in Ghana.
They are a government organisation and report to the Minister
of Lands and Forestry. The WD is hugely under-resourced and welcomes
any assistance we can give them. Each Park and Reserve has a Senior
Wildlife Officer. They then have a group of rangers who despite
being poorly trained and under paid, try and effectively manage
the areas.
The PADP is a five-year scheme funded by the EU,
with the aim to develop some of the country's protected areas,
making them more accessible to tourists. The group will work at
Ankasa and Bia during the first phase. Having now completed the
Research station in the park during the last expedition, we have
one more task to complete. The current guesthouse at Kumkumso
needs to be extended. The plan is to build a wooden structure
just inside the Park. This will be a very fitting end to Raleigh
International's
relationship with PADP.
2. Construction of three Rangers camps at Polzen Falls in Mole
National Park in the Northern Region
This expedition will see us working at Mole National
Park, Mole is the biggest National Park in Ghana and is managed
by the Wildlife Division. We have worked with the WD throughout
Raleigh International's time in Ghana. They manage almost all
the protected areas in Ghana. They are a government organisation
and report to the Minister of Lands and Forestry. The WD is hugely
under-resourced and welcomes any assistance we can give them.
All of the Parks and Reserves have a Senior Wildlife Officer,
they then have a
group of rangers who despite being poorly trained and under paid,
try and effectively manage the areas.
This group will work at the Polzen Falls area in
the northern part of Mole National Park. Polzen is very remote
location and will make a unique site for the project. The area
has no accommodation that the Rangers need to patrol the area.
The plan is to construct one of the accommodation blocks per phase.
The buildings are constructed from mud and have thatch roofs.
The site is four miles from the Polzen Falls. As very little is
known about the area, the plan is to undertake some base line
wildlife surveys for the Park to use within their continual recording
of various different habitats.
3. Trail planning, cutting and mapping at Owabi
Wildlife Sanctuary in the Ashanti Region
This will be the first time that Raleigh International
has worked at Owabi Wildlife Sanctuary, which is located one hour
north of Kumasi and is managed by the Wildlife Division. We have
worked with the WD throughout Raleigh International's time in
Ghana. They manage almost all the protected areas in Ghana. They
are a government organisation and report to the Minister of Lands
and Forestry. The WD is hugely under-resourced and welcomes any
assistance we can give them. All of the Parks and Reserves have
a Senior Wildlife Officer, they then have a group of rangers who
despite being poorly trained and under paid, try and effectively
manage the areas.
Owabi is a relatively small area of 13 sq. km. It
is owned by the Ghana Water Company, but the management of it
is the responsibility of the Wildlife Division. The vision is
to attract visitors out of the nearby town of Kumasi. The site
is close to Kumasi, yet still feels remote.
The plan is to completely review the trail system
in the sanctuary. The group will determine appropriate routes
for new trails, cutting and marking them, then producing trail
maps and a map of the entire sanctuary. At the beginning of phase
one, the group will spend two nights on the beach at Old Ningo,
two hours west of Accra, helping the Ghana Wildlife Society (GWS)
with their night time turtle watch. The group will be involved
in recording numbers of turtles coming up onto the beach to lay
their eggs.
This project is a pilot scheme for potential long-term plans.
· ADVENTURE
1. Trekking on the Mampongtin Range in the Eastern
Region
One group will trek throguh the forest and jungle
on the northern escarpment and one on the southern, both in the
Mampongtin Range. The views overlooking Ghana from the top of
the escarpment are breathtaking, and the wildlife is in abundance
including bush babies. The groups will be cooking on trangias
(camping stoves), clearing paths from long grass with machetes
and camping out under the stars.
Part of the adventure phase includes canoeing on
Lake Volta, the world's biggest man made lake. The groups will
paddle on Lake Volta for six days, camping on the shore each night.
Within this part of their pahse, they will have the opportunity
to do some climbing and abseiling. The Ghanaian people don't climb
or canoe in their country - so the two groups can expect to meet
with a lot of curiosity from the local communities!
2. Trekking in the Avatime Hills in the Volta
Region
The third adventure group will begin the phase paddling
and climbing on Lake Volta. They will then spend a week in the
area of Amedzofe, moving up to the village of Gbledi. Here they
will spend two or three days undertaking small infrastructure
projects with Ghana Wildlife Society (GWS). The phase will finish
with the group walking to Wli Falls where they will spend the
last nights of phase one.
· FIELD BASE
Field Base is situated in Accra, capital of Ghana.
Field Base staff includes the Country Director and Deputy Expedition
Leader, the Logistics Manager, Administration team and an Accountant,
Photographer and Press Officer and the Medics.
While the project staff work hard to ensure the smooth
running of their individual project sites, Field Base co-ordinates
all the logistics of how and when the projects will happen in
each phase. The Country Director lives in Ghana full time. He
prepares the projects and deals with everyone from project partners
to potential sponsors of the expedition.
The Deputy Expedition Leader organised both staff
and Venturer induction weeks, and now is travelling around the
country visiting the project sites. The Logistics Manager ensures
every project has all the equipment and food needed for each phase.
In the lead up to phase one, she calculated everything from how
many calories the trekkers needed to burn up, to how much rice
a group of thirteen people will eat in three weeks.
Our Accountant is in charge of everyone's money.
With 10,000 Cedis to £1 that's a lot of notes to count and
has resulted in bulging wallets. The Admin team have been hard
at work organising everybody's visas and valuables, plus registering
people with the British High Commission.
The Public Relations Officer, Michelle Hawkins, deals
with the local journalists to ensure Raleigh International and
the projects receive as much press coverage as possible. For example,
a record number of eight newspapers turn up for the official launch
at Independence Arch. We'll be inviting the press to the project
sites to attend openings and visits from local dignitaries. This
publicity helps the Fund Raising Officer, Roger Widdecombe, to
raise much-needed funds enabling the young Ghanaians to
participate on expedition. Roger is also the official Photographer,
so he has been catching those magic moments on film for all to
see at the end of the three months. He also works with Michelle
taking photographs of Venturers who have agreed to do case studies.
These case studies entail Michelle interviewing selected Venturers,
whose stories will be used by Raleigh International's Head Office
on their UK based web site, and potentially in magazines and press
in the UK.
We're lucky enough to have seven Medics on this expedition.
Their collective experience comes from being surgeons, doctors,
nurses, GP's and paramedics. There is always a Medic at Field
Base on call for consultation when daily radio reports from project
sites come in. Another Medic will always travel on the 'loop vehicle'
which roves around the country during each phase. The Medics rotate
around Ghana for each phase. The 'loop vehicle' is one of our
three trusty land rovers, and it visits all the projects sites
- enabling Field Base staff to get out and see what's happening
as well as delivering
that all important post!
That's it for this first update. We'll send you another
one after the first changeover which takes place in-between 30
October to 1 November. Hope this helps you to visualise what an
incredible time is in store for everyone.
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