Education and Women’s Empowerment in Ghana

Mondo’s development cooperation activities are focused on one of the poorest regions of northern Ghana – Kongo village in Nabdam district in Upper East state. This is where all Mondo development cooperation projects in Africa began.

Child support programme and sister schools

• Since 2009, Mondo offers support to local children who face economic hardship in obtaining secondary and high school education, helps raise the education standards and improves quality of school environment in local schools. Child support programme works solely thanks to private donors in Estonia – every year, Mondo Brilliant Fund enables around 120-130 secondary students and 40 high school students to go to school. Mondo holds a database of children and donors and mediates the sister school relations between Estonian and Nabdam district schools.
• In 2015, we began working closely with Ghana Education Service in Nabdam district. The schools present Mondo with their urgent needs, varying from electricity supply, solar panels and computers to furniture, textbooks and school lunches. 14 district schools have received assistance that helps improve the quality of learning as well as teaching. Due to a  high rate of increase in students, there is a lack of Maths and English textbooks. With Mondo’s support, over 1000 books have already been distributed to 8 local schools. In 2019, we contributed to the establishment of a Computer Centre, where students from 13 of the district schools receive computer education.

Volunteers

• Estonians have become well-known in the Kongo village. Many Estonian expert volunteers over the years have contributed to the village development: designer and business consultants to promote women’s entrepreneurship; teachers to monitor the progress of local students under Mondo support programme and offer trainings to local colleagues; nurses and midwives to support the work of local clinics and organise hygiene and sexual health lectures.
• In 2018, Mondo began sending EU Aid Volunteers programme volunteers to the area. The volunteers continue work in education and community development, including women’s entrepreneurship and healthcare.  Thanks to European field specialist volunteers, the computer education centre is thriving and local health services improving.
  

  Community projects

  • 2015 was a significant year for Mondo’s activities in Kongo village. While up until 2015 our activities had been supported by private donors, in 2015-2018 Estonian development cooperation funds enabled us to establish official entrepreneurship associations for the local women as well as  offer professional skills training to hundreds of women. Since then, Kongo village is the home for Yen Pang Basket Weavers association employing 30 women and Nong Taaba Shea Processors production centre creating livelihood for 300 women. The production process has passed all controls and received a certificate that allows for the products to be sold on international markets.
  • The basket weavers association also have a building for co-working, straw storage and basket storage. On average, the association weaves 1000 baskets a year. Next to the shea butter production centre is a tree nursery that allows the women to raise environmental awareness of other locals through growing trees.