Women Empowerment Project
The project started in Besease, a village in the Ashanti region of Ghana, but has since grown and progressed to other communities. Started by Sumillion and Enliven Mama Africa, this project has been continued by To Live in H.O.P.E. due to its success and popularity. Now hundreds of young women apply, hoping to leverage this fantastic opportunity to gain skills and education necessary for small-scale entrepreneurship. Part of this projects also seeks to tackle the rise in teenage pregnancy issues in Ghana.
The Vulnerable Youth and Vocational Training Project provides entrepreneurial and vocational skills training for teenage and single mothers from poor backgrounds. By obtaining these skills and qualifications, they have a chance at finding work to improve the quality of their lives, that of their families, and their community.
Challenge
Ghana is facing serious social and economic challenges due to the global economic crisis, increasing poverty is villages and towns. The Ashanti region has many communities that operate with subsistence agriculture due to limited resources (see Farming Project) and face the common problem of being unable to afford the educational needs of their children, increasing the dropout rate.
Sumillion believe that education is key to creating professional opportunities. Only 22% of students in rural Ghanaian schools pass their primary education exams, halting them from progressing to secondary education. Only a fraction of that percentile is female. Without further education, young women are left with little choice in work and are cast into poverty and/or prostitution. The Women Empowerment Project is significant in creating opportunities for these women to build a career and sustained income.
Solution
Split into subcategories, the Women Empowerment Project provides skill, entrepreneurial and vocational training in dressmaking, soap-making and hairdressing. At the end of two years, young women will graduate with the experience and knowledge necessary to find, or build, work.
Long-term impact
As the project grows, we will be able to admit larger groups for these block of training, helping more women at one time. Having started the project with 10 women, we are excited to see that the next block will admit 30 – hopefully we can see a steady incline with more volunteers over the years.
Instead of a one-time donation to mitigate current issues, the Women Empowerment Project is designed to help these women create a self-sustained and secure economy, breaking the cycle of poverty for them and their families. These life-long skills can be shared and passed on, benefiting the greater community, as well as the local economy through more entrepreneurship endeavours.
Economic stability should not be taken for granted. These women will be able to access medical help, food, and education for themselves or their children so they are not perpetuated into poverty and can create their own opportunities.
THIS PROJECT SUPPORTS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
