PROJECT: Here We Are

Busua is an idyllic fishing village with around 3000 inhabitants. It lies in the western region of Ghana (specifically in the region of Ahtana West), it is about 300 kilometers from the capital city of Accra. It is area rich in natural beauty and resources, however the entire region of Ahtana West suffers from high illiteracy - 7 out of 10 children in the higher grades of primary school do not read or write well. This led Ebenezer Pardity, the founder of the nongovermental organization Embracing Hidden Talents Network, to begin a project: Community Development through the Activities of Volunteers. The specific aim of the project is to raise the educational level of the children in Busua and the surrounding villages in Ahtana West through after-school programs run by volunteers.

The wider aim of the project is to develop the children into individuals who can think critically, act independently and thus make a difference in raising the level of development in their communities.
The Hidden Talents Network has been leading this project for a few years in partnership with the Slovene organizations Humanitas and Voluntariat. These Slovenian organizations have helped to build a community library in Busua, which helps not only Busua but the surrounding regions. It also hosts the volunteers. Quite a few Slovenian volunteers have already been to Ghana as part of this project.

And now its our turn :) For the next three months we will put our efforts towards the realization of the vision of this project.

Busua je idilična ribiška vasica s približno 3000 prebivalci. Leži v zahodni ganski regiji (natančneje na območju Ahanta West), od glavnega mesta Accra pa je oddaljena približno 300 kilometrov. Kljub številnim naravnim danostim je izobrazbena raven celotnega Ahanta West zelo nizka - kar 7 od 10 otrok v višjih razredih osnovne šole ne zna dobro brati in pisati. To je vzpodbudilo Ebenezerja Parditey, ustanovitelja nevladne organizacije Embracing Hidden Talents Network, da je začel s projektom  Razvoj skupnosti s pomočjo aktivnosti prostovoljcev. Osnovni namen projekta je izboljšanje znanja ter stopnje izobrazbe otrok z manj možnostmi v Busui, okoliških mestih ter vaseh v regiji Ahanta West, preko pošolskih učih ur, ki jih vodijo prostovoljci. 
Globlji cilj projekta so aktivni posamezniki, z razvito sposobnostjo kritičnega mišljenja ter drugih osebnostnih ter družbenih veščin. Tako izobraženi in usposobljeni aktivni državljani lahko z lastnim delovanjem in delovanjem v okviru raznih organizacij prispevajo k bolj pravičnim in trajnostnim ekonomskim, socialnim, okoljskim in na človekovih pravicah temelječih državnim in mednarodnim politikam.

Gostujoča ganska nevladna organizacija, prek katere projekt poteka, že več let tesno sodeluje s slovenskima zavodoma Humanitas in Voluntariat. Slovenci se lahko pohvalimo, da smo v kraju Busua, pomagali postaviti knjižnico, ki je na voljo prebivalcem širšega območja in služi tudi za nastanitev prostovoljcev. In tudi sicer imamo že kar zgodovino prostovoljstva v Afriki, saj se je tam zvrstilo že kar nekaj naših sonarodnjakov.

In zdaj je vrsta na naju:), da v svojem trimesečnem poslanstvu pridava svoj delček k uresničitvi vizije tega  projekta.