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Out of AfriKids AfriKids is a Child Rights Organisa7on working to improve life for Ghana’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged children in a holis7c, inclusive and sustainable manner
“This place has been amazing, and what Afrikids do for Northern Ghana has blown me away.... I could write about so many other parts of our trip but I would tell everyone and anyone to go and see for yourselves.” Mairead Smith, Deutsche Bank
We are now at the end of our first quarter as one of the two Deutsche bank Chari7es of the Year for 2010 and we’ve loved every moment. We’ve packed in six events and we’re blown away by the number of employees who are raising money off their own backs. The highlight of this quarter has to have been taking four DB employees to northern Ghana on a whilstlestop tour of AfriKids and introducing them to the team and the projects. Mairead Smith, Paul Hill (two of the AfriKids DB ‘champions’) and Kate Cavelle and Amy Parker (Head of CSR and Charity of the Year respec7vely) met 150 AfriKids staff and saw 15 programmes in five days; this newsleWer focuses on that trip, through their eyes. Mairead kept a heartwarming blog and as we couldn’t have put it beWer ourselves, we won’t... the first four pages are hers. “Right so I'm ready, factor 50 check, DEET for Mozies check... Malerone tablet check... Water to wash teeth -‐ ooops...un-‐check... I had to use tonic water instead (which actually isn't so bad) and we're off. ....As we crossed the boarder into Ghana they asked who we were and as we menKoned Afrikids they were all smiles and started cheering -‐ quite amazing really that people on the boarder recognise the amazing work these guys do out here... now I've thought about this trip over the past couple of months but even more so in the week leading up to departure.... It was a mixture of excitement and dread, excitement as I've never been to Africa, and I jumped at the
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Contents Mairead’s blog p. 1, 2, 4 & 5 Deutsche Bank trip photos p. 3 AfriKids welcomes new staff & Sally shortlisted for Fundraiser of the Year
p. 6
AfriKids’ Events -‐ our biggest ever pub quiz and AfriKids Ethical Trade at UK AWARE p. 7
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chance for this incredible experience. I was first introduced to Afrikids via the ALMT. Nick Lawson introduced us and we worked together on our third Burns night in Jan 10...by doing this I have had some insight into what they do out here and how important it is, so when they were voted in for Deutsche Bank’s charity of the year I saw this as my opportunity to go and see for myself...once the excitement wears off, then come the quesKons and the dread.... Am I mad coming out here? What was I thinking? Its someone else’s problem not mine !!!!..... So just so you know -‐ it's nothing to be scared about. Yes it’s different, a huge culture shock, but I can honestly say since arriving in Ghana and meeKng the team I have not felt at any point even the slightest bit nervous... We then went and had a meeKng in AfriKids head office, we introduced ourselves and vice versa. For such a small team they cover so much. Each person is in charge of their own individual project and is very passionate about it: yet they are all fighKng for the same cause.
The Next Genera7on Home “Now I know I've spoken about so very young body. You catch him staring many children .... BUT I cannot miss out at you, checking you out, and though my last liTle man Charles. All the he rarely speaks he will grunt answers children are to quesKons.... Oh and he loves Haribo special but this sweets ... The sour ones in parKcular, liTle man (or which is very funny to watch him not so liTle) eat :o). He arrived with 24 others stole my heart kiddies from an illegal orphanage the on my first government shut-‐down around a day... We month ago. All of the other children visited the have either NGH briefly on been returned arriving in home or have Bolga and as we pulled into the been placed ... grounds there he was, this liTle man But my liTle marching outside the front door man they are wearing only an adults t-‐shirt down to sKll trying to his feet with the biggest belly you've get his details. ever seen. Though the reasons behind UnKl then he his belly are not good -‐ you can't help will remain in but smile when you see this bruiser. the NGH He is only 3 ish (they are not sure as bossing the they have no details for him) but he is others around and making anyone who as strong as an ox and controls all the comes in contact with him smile. (I miss older boys. He doesn't say much, but him already -‐ he is like a liTle Buddha)” he has one of those very old faces on a
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“AfriKids is like a spiders web reaching to every corner of the community, with each consKtuent part contribuKng tangenKally to the next.” Paul Hill, Deutsche Bank
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The School of Night Rabbits Afrikids started a project called 'The School of Night Rabbits' back in 2004. It's a school managed by two local teachers that leads street children through an academic syllabus at night aier working all day. They also train them on social issues like healthcare and hygiene. Most of these children (and they are children) aged between 8 to 18 sleep in a bus staKon all night, waiKng for a new truck to come in that needs unloading, work in the slaughter houses or wash-‐up to earn a liTle money. This money only really
We listened to a few stories of the children. Many of them the same... Mainly their father's died and their mother couldn't afford to feed them, or were too sick to work. They had siblings that needed feeding etc and they found themselves in an impossible posiKon. One liTle boy lost his school books and couldn't afford a new text book so couldn't go back to school, and this
Kny liTle dot of a boy turned away to cry when he told us that he had no choice, no opKons other than to work to survive. gives them a liTle food to eat if they are lucky. We came into the room which had one light at the front and around 26 children all sharing desks trying to learn from a very old black board basic English words like Boy or Cat .... We watched them for a while whilst their teacher asked them one by one to spell a word up on the board. He moved around the floor unKl he got to the liTle boy on my right. He didn't answer and the others were all poinKng and laughing at him... It was then that he whispered to us that he couldn’t spell and put his head down with embarrassment. I looked at his text book and this liTle boy is clearly bright. He could copy word for word everything on the board but he doesn't know what the words mean .... These kids come to be given the chance to learn, one that should be theirs by right... one we all take for granted.
The teachers learn about each children’s situaKon week by week and through talking and listening try to find viable opKons. If they want to
but this is not easy and many of the children might refuse this help at first, so the teachers and Afrikids have a long struggle to save each child. The school of night rabbits insists that following their lesson the children wash using the tap outside. They provide the soap and buckets for them as this is the only chance the children get to wash all week. They can't afford the money to pay for the water, and would rather use the money for a liTle food. We sat whilst the children played in the pitch black and two by two went off with their buckets to wash. You are probably picturing a sad quiet moment, but you couldn't be more wrong.... they are laughing and running around and engaging us in conversaKon -‐ asking about music and football, and posing for photos. Following their wash they lead us in convoy in the pitch black down to where they sleep at night. Luckily I had a torch as we crossed over ditches and through dirt onto the main road.... This is the walk they do twice a week to try and get some
educaKon. All the way they are
return to school they will try speaking to their families and arranging something so that the child can return to school and have a place to lay their heads at night and a meal a day....
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taking it in turns to sing for us, and all they wanted to do is hold your hand, and for you to tell them how good they are at singing or dancing. Every child has a dream about who/what they want to be... And even the younger ones of the night rabbits will laugh and tell you they would like to be a doctor or a
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teacher. The smallest amount of aTenKon from us to them, if that be holding their hand or listening to them takes nothing but to them makes such a big difference and makes them feel that there is someone somewhere who actually cares. Its hot and dark as they lead us up into the bus staKon to where they sleep at night. Here you find huge lorries with heavy imported cargo that the children will help to unload, and coaches of people where they carry passengers’ bags for a few pennies. Some of the boys’ liTle hands are so rigid from pulling straps with the heavy cargo that they can't move them properly and so they find it difficult to hold a pencil to write... They are given exercises by the team to help them but its painful and takes Kme.
Some of these coaches will go to Kumasi trafficking children... this is another project Afrikids is working on... It was distressing to see the kids wave at you like they are going on holiday while you know where they are going and there is nothing you could do for them right now. You feel empty and pray that maybe they will be lucky ones.... but tomorrow this will be the same fate for some others and so on and so on. The Night Rabbits lead us up past grown men sleeping on benches everywhere, I think its the first Kme since entering Ghana (apart from the boarder) that I have felt a liTle uneasy and I made sure I didn't wonder off (I have a tendency to do that). The boys showed us where they sleep every night. They pulled out rice sacks and laid them down on the floor to
sleep .... laughing all the way like it was a game. Others took me around the corner and pulled back a metal sheet to reveal a dark space maybe the size of under your work desk .... something you wouldn't even let your dog sleep in. We then took them all for something to eat -‐ and all they wanted was a bowl of rice ... For some this would be their first meal for days and where most kids would choose sweets or cola... they only wanted rice (I am told this is because it keeps you fuller for longer and want you don't eat they save for meals for the next few days). We lei as they were all eaKng .... and whilst they were shouKng thank you I know the rest of my group felt the same as me.... We traveled home in silence .... “
There’s much more of Mairead’s blog to read -‐ just get in touch if you’d like to hear more. Mairead’s final comment was:
“Isn’t it amazing that all over the world, the people who have the least smile the most.” Our Huge Thanks and Good Luck to those doing a sponsored event for AfriKids this year! Jane Howard is Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro Lissa, Alex Wilson, Kerry Ortuzar and Olivier Kouao are running the Brighton Marathon Craig Ramsay, Dan Salmons, Simon Reynolds, Edward Clode-‐Baker, Jackie Broomhead, Zoe WaW, Ka7e Delacombe, Ian Williams, Caroline Vassell, Paul Rezon, Giles Dunning, Kelly Marshall and 8 others are climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro Mary Ampah is running the Virgin London Marathon Bob Chaundy is running the Edinburgh Marathon Jeegar Kakkad is running the Brighton Marathon Joseph Reid is running 100km across the Kent North Downs Johnjo Hassan will be bungie jumping Gemma Newman has run the Has7ngs Half Maraton Ned Truman, Ben Grossman and Alex Baker are taking part in the Patrouille des Glaciers Alpine ski race Please visit www.justgiving.com/afrikids for more donors
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0 1 A p r i l 2 0 1 0 “Afrikids listens. What hits you as you tour their projects is how long it must have taken to penetrate the complexity of the issues faced down to simple, workable levels." Paul Hill, Deutsche Bank
AfriKids New Staff Introduc7ons We’re delighted to welcome four new staff to the team!
Charlie Hay -‐ Ethical Trade Officer Charlie has nearly 10 years of retail experience, the latest of which was with a major healthfood retailer, focusing on organic and ethical sourcing. It was in this posi7on that she learnt more about fair trade and the impact of the western market on interna7onal rela7ons and grassroots producers. Charlie pursued her growing interests in development and trade while volunteering with VSO, which included 3 months living in Bolga. This is where she discovered AfriKids (and became very familiar with the Medical Centre!). Immediately inspired by their work in the community, she approached AfriKids Ghana with a par7cular interest in their ethical trade income-‐genera7ng ini7a7ves. Charlie was delighted to join the UK team as an ethical trade intern in 2009 and is now the AfriKids Ethical Trade (UK) Officer, driving the development of AfriKids Ethical Trade in the UK. Gareth Brisbane -‐ Finance and Programmes Manager Aoer qualifica7on Gareth worked as a Financial Accountant in industries ranging from confec7onery to aluminium extrusion. He then swapped disciplines and worked for over 20 years as a Senior Management Accountant with an interna7onal telecommunica7ons company. He is the Execu7ve Financial Director of a firm of accountants, based in the Thames Valley. In 2010, towards the end of a long career, he joined AfriKids as their Finance & Programmes Manager and fulfilled his dream of working in the charitable sector. Gareth has been a regional treasurer of the Save the Children Fund, has completed numerous long-‐distance cycle rides under the umbrella of his charitable associa7on ‘3 men on a square’ and is an ardent Liverpool supporter. Ka7e Arnold -‐ Assistant to the Interna7onal Director Ka7e joined AfriKids at the beginning of March this year (2010) as Assistant to the Interna7onal Director and will be providing a comprehensive support service on a wide range of internal and external affairs. Ka7e has worked with families, children and young people on a voluntary basis for two years and has a year’s experience in fundraising. Prior to joining AfriKids, Ka7e worked for a communica7ons consultancy where she assisted with the management of a variety of public sector social marke7ng campaigns. Ama AWeen -‐ Fundraising and UK Opera7ons Assistant Ama joined the AfriKids team at the end of February 2010 as the UK Opera7ons Assistant. Before joining AfriKids, Ama worked in the Arts and Cultural sector for five years aoer gradua7ng with a degree in Performing Arts and Arts Management. She worked extensively with young people and marginalised communi7es to use the arts for social change. Aoer a change in career focus, she is currently studying human rights. Her work at AfriKids will revolve around suppor7ng the AfriKids team to ensure the smooth delivery of fundraising and administra7ve ac7vi7es.
Sally EastcoW shortlisted for Fundraiser of the Year Sally has been shortlisted for the pres7gious Fundraiser of the Year Award, run by the Ins7tute of Fundraising. The success of AfriKids’ fundraising has been based on Sally’s uniquely engaging fundraising approach that she has personally pioneered, and her incredible successes to date. If you want to read the nomina7on, we want to give it to you. Get in touch and watch this space!
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AfriKids’ Events Save the date... AfriKids’ Biggest Ever Pub Quiz Tuesday 15th June 2010 7pm -‐ 11 pm The Tabernacle, Powis Square Our biggest ever pub quiz will take place in June, when we hope to see 300 people engaged in a huge baWle of wits, all in aid of AfriKids. Having recently won an award for being the Best Large London Venue, we thought the Tabernacle would be the ideal seqng (www.tabernaclelive.co.uk). We hope to see you there! For further info and 7ckets, please contact Lissa (lissawallington@afrikids.org)
Don’t forget your DISCOUNT TICKETS to UK AWARE! Time is running out to save up to £9 on entry to the UK’s only green and ethical lifestyle exhibi7on -‐ over 200 exhibitors, 50 world class speakers, family areas and much more! Friday 16th and Saturday 17th April, Olympia 2, London
CLICK HERE to BOOK TICKETS FOR JUST £6* or follow the links at www.afrikids.org *£15 on the door. Half the value of all Kckets sold through us go directly to AfriKids, the other half is distributed to other UK AWARE-‐designated chariKes. Please note, only ,ckets bought through our links directly support AfriKids.
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