Ghana, Tetrefu

CONTEXT

According to a recent World Bank report, Ghana faces unemployment of 12% and underemployment of more than 50%, both higher than the overall unemployment rate of Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite large government and private sector investments, this challenge will worsen if unemployment remains limited. For young people, in particular, after-school vocational training is a key determinant for moving out of poverty.

Tetrefu is a community located 19 kilometers from Kumasi, the regional capital. The ICCES Center seeks to train some of the poorest and most disadvantaged youth in society. Teaching job-related skills are key to helping them lift themselves out of poverty. The center specifically trains youth with the goal of making them employable within and around their own communities.

Nearly 80 percent of Burkina Faso’s population works in agriculture, making the country’s economy extremely dependent on this industry. Unfortunately, over the past 50+ years, temperatures in the region have continued to rise, contributing to severe droughts, desertification, and degraded soils.

During construction

After construction

Project Type

Construction of a multi-purpose hospitality workshop

Construction Period:
December 2021 – July 2022

Budget

27.930 €

Children

155

Partner

Onechild Ghana

Donor

GERL. Dental

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION

Tetrefu ICCES Centre is a community-based vocational school located in Tetrefu, Bosomtwe District in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. The school currently has 155 students at secondary school age. Established in 1986, it is a technical and vocational education and training institution that aims to provide skills to the youth of the community and its catchment area and especially learners from the poorest families.

However, poor infrastructure prevents the school from growing and attracting new students. The school is keen to build a catering workshop that will provide a modern and safe environment in which students can learn. Girls, in particular, often do not continue their learning after primary school, forcing them into low-paid work. Tetrefu ICCES currently does not have a proper catering workshop, and many lessons for cooking education have to take place outside. Efforts have often been made in the past to get the project off the ground. For example, the school has already developed a clear plan, prepared the land, and built the building partly with funds from the community. However, they lack the financial resources to complete this project.