Edu Afrique

image credit:http://infoceanhub.com/so-you-dropped-your-phone-down-the-toilet/phone-toilet/ ....."On the sanitation side, people will make do with what they have, if what they really want is out-of-reach. Or, they will choose to spend their money on a higher-priority product like a mobile phone, which is viewed as ‘better value’ and often seen as a status symbol.  In Bangladesh, 100 percent of poor families surveyed owned at least one mobile phone, an expenditure that costs twice the amount of a standard improved latrine/toilet ...... Just because consumers don’t have improved sanitation doesn’t mean they will invest in it – even if they have the money".

http://devpolicy.org/a-herculean-task-20131108/

Indonesia’s toilet Trojans - The Hindu

Globally, 40% of people lack access to sanitation . In Ghana, a low-middle income country, 80% of people lack access. In response,  EduAfrique is mobilizing support from Ghanaians living locally and in the diaspora to address the appallingly low sanitation coverage and to elicit behaviour change in relation to sanitation and environmental hygiene. Why is this important? Lack of access to improved sanitation and environmental hygiene has dire consequences for health and economic growth.

Video on innovating those mud stoves your grandma (and maybe even you) use for cooking them delicious jollofs:  http://bit.ly/1NGH8iE

Hello everyone, We have thankfully completed our 6 months project at Asamang and Drobong in Ghana and have had a very rewarding experience. This is what you helped us to achieve: what we did: we delivered numerous public education seminars on sanitation and hygiene as well as showing the public how to make an anti mosquito cream and an improved basic stove construction. we volunteered at a a creche where we taught the little kids to maintain hand hygiene we campaigned for an end to littering and public urination by publishing an article on ModernGhana website (http://www.modernghana.com/news/460212/1/so-you-think-you-love-ghana-.html) and printing t'shirts for some community members we donated a projector to Asamang SDA church (All Nations congregation) we donated story books and stationery to Jewish Joy Creche at Asenua, Kumasi What we achieved: School seminars (kids aged 10-15 years of age) At the end of the 6months, we eva

Those who regularly follow this blog would remember an entry where I wrote a letter to the leadership of the Seventh Day Adventist church, for help in communicating the importance of environmental cleanliness to the  700 000 strong members of the church in Ghana. While I never received any acknowledgement of my letter having reached the right department, EduAfrique was thrilled to read a weeks worth of lessons on protecting the environment in the church's daily study guides (lesson 10, March 2-8, 'Stewardship and the Environment') in this year's study guide. The discussions generated around these lessons included not littering and refraining from polluting the environment (including proper disposal of faecal matter). The small church that I attend at Asenua (Kumasi) also joined another church in the area for a cleanup day at a nearby hospital. EduAfrique provided a few t'shirts with messages reinforcing environmental cleanliness on the day.

Well..... not precisely, but the health messages that EduAfrique is taking to communities in Ghana is being aired on one of the nations main TV stations (GTV).The national campaign speaks against public urination, open defecation, littering (a HUGE problem) and other health diminishing practices. EduAfrique was overjoyed to see the ad on TV on the 20th of this month. EduAfrique will be printing T'shirts to speak against these polluting practices as well.

EduAfrique has another volunteer! My mum arrived in Ghana at the end of Jan to lend a hand.

EduAfrique volunteers for 3 hours a day at a local creche in Kumasi. We draw and paint with the kids and teach them the importance of hand hygiene.

EduAfrique conducted a week long public education event in a very rural village close to the northern part of Ghana. The village had no electricity (and no goats - due to some sort of supersitition) so our equipments were powered by a generator. The village folk who are commercial maize producers, were very busy during the day but came out in droves in the evenings for the workshops. The people in this village had very limited concepts of hygiene but the coverage of sanitation was one the highest we've seen in Ghana. Toilets were found in many parts of the village.

Edu Afrique was privilaged to be part of a 2 day workshop organised by another NGO to train over 200 volunteer health workers. The workshops provided information on how to manage three of the leading causes of sickness in children in this part of the world: acquired respiratory infection (ARI), malaria and diarrohoea.

Edu Afrique has obtained health data from the Ghana Health Service for the 2009 - 2011 time period. Along with data obainted at Valley View Hospital in the Nations capital, it looks like malaria (in general) and diarrohoea (in children) are major causes of poor health. Just around the corner from the Ghana health service offices in Accra, the streets were absolutely dirty and I wondered why this situation was allowed to be. I just don't understand: why do the health services spend so much money on treatment of these diseases when the reason's for the diseases are not attacked with any kind of desperation?

The open gutters, garbage and filth of the streets mean that cholera and other preventable diseases will plague Ghana for some time yet!

The health of a person is influenced by the environment, income, employment as well as social and political factors. While Ghanaians enjoy a relatively peaceful political existence and a vibrant social life, the environment, income and employment status of the people are quite appalling.

I want to share this game-changing lecture by Dr Dambisa Moyo with you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4a-FZjPreg Dr Moyo is an economist and the lecture is based on her book Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better way for Africa.

EduAfrique provides workshops that will improve the knowledge base in the community on ensuring food security,  preventing local diseases and a range of other topics. For farmers Preparation of pesticide from local neem plants: How to make compost:  For market women/men   Preventing black-eye bean/cowpea seed spoilage:   For households   Building more efficient stoves: Preserving tomatoes: Preparation of anti-mosquito cream: Making a solar cooker from used car tyres:   Refrigeration without electricity:   For sanitation and health Preventing diarrhoeal diseases: Preparing oral re-hydration solution in the event of vomiting and or diarrhoea: Making no-flush toilet: Teaching basic computer skills Image sources:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_LruzIC6vQ  (neem pesticide)