The Hunger Project has made major strides in its most ambitious program to date: mobilizing women and men across the Eastern Region of Ghana to create epicenters within walking distance of every villager. In just the first 18 months, we’ve expanded the number of clusters of villages mobilized to form epicenters in the Eastern Region from seven to 30.

The Epicenter Strategy is a bottom-up, gender-focused approach that empowers clusters of villages to meet all their basic needs on a sustainable basis. It takes people from abject poverty to self-reliance in five years for just US$8 per person per year. The strategy has proven to be effective, affordable and replicable. Today, there are more than 100 epicenters across eight countries of West, East and Southern Africa. Sixteen of these epicenters are now self-reliant, requiring no additional financial input from The Hunger Project.

The next big challenge for ending hunger and poverty in Africa is not to pioneer new approaches, but to expand successful strategies to full national scale. Never before has a multisector rural development strategy been scaled up to this extent. Taking the Epicenter Strategy to national scale will require a dramatic change in the policies of governments and international agencies.

Timeline

September 2005: At the Clinton Global Initiative, we commit to launch a demonstration of scale-up in at least one African country.

July 2006 — Year One: Four mobilized epicenters begin construction; mobilization begins in five of the Eastern Region’s 16 rural districts.

July 2007 — Year Two: Eight more epicenters begin construction; mobilization begins in six more districts.

July 2008 — Year Three: Eight more epicenters to begin construction; mobilization begins in the final three districts.

July 2011 — End of Year Five: Total of 36 new epicenters complete construction

Note from Jill Lester

As you receive this newsletter, I will be in Ghana — where scale-up is our highest global priority for 2008. During my first 100 days as president of The Hunger Project, I am also visiting India and Bangladesh, as well as gatherings of investors, staff and activists in Europe, Australia and the U.S. It is deeply inspiring to directly experience the difference that your investment is making when combined with the leadership, initiative and hard work of millions of women and men working to end their own hunger. I greatly appreciate the privilege of being your partner, and I look forward to our work together as The Hunger Project enters this next phase in its history.

Elements of the Epicenter Strategy

The Epicenter Strategy is a step-by-step methodology to overcome enormous social, economic and political challenges. Consistent with our programs on each continent, the Epicenter Strategy tackles the three “make or break” issues that are key to achieving all eight Millennium Development Goals at the local level:

• Social mobilization for self-reliant action, building people’s own capacities, leadership and confidence.
• Interventions for gender equality, including equal representation in all leadership bodies, economic empowerment of women through the African Woman Food Farmer Initiative, and transforming harmful gender-based practices that fuel the spread of HIV/AIDS.
• Making local government work by fostering partnership with local officials at every step of the process, to provide teachers, health workers, literacy instructors and other resources to the epicenters.

The Epicenter Strategy Unfolds through Four Clear Phases

Phase One: Mobilization. Through participation in a series of Vision, Commitment and Action Workshops (VCAWs), the people in a cluster of villages overcome resignation and dependency, develop local leadership, launch village-level development projects, and allocate land and materials to create their own epicenter building. This phase takes at least one year.

Phase Two: Construction. The people build and begin to operate their own L-shaped epicenter building, nurses’ quarters, and a multiseat improved latrine, providing facilities necessary for meeting all basic needs. This phase takes approximately one year.

Phase Three: Progress on All Fronts. Epicenter leaders learn to run all epicenter programs including the health center, preschools, adult literacy and microfinance. Farms are improved, the food bank is stocked, and the epicenter’s own income programs reach the point at which the epicenter can fund itself. This takes roughly three years.

Phase Four: Self-reliance. The epicenter continues to make social and economic progress through its own finances and leadership. The oldest epicenters have been entirely self-funding for more than a decade.

Progress in Phase One

At the start of Year One, a top priority was to launch Phase One (mobilization) in many areas of the Eastern Region, so that at least eight epicenters would be ready to move into Phase Two in Year Two. As shown on the map, during Year One we began the process in five districts, which resulted in 18 new epicenters.

This process begins as staff meet with district officials, who invite village representatives — with equal numbers of women and men — to participate in a district-level VCAW. The representatives return home and begin mobilizing their fellow villagers, who then invite The Hunger Project to conduct village-level VCAWs.

During Year One, this mobilization led to more than 50 village-level action projects, ranging from building new classrooms to installing grain mills and improving farms.

Of the 18 epicenters that emerged from the Year One mobilization, eight appear to be on target to implement Phase Two (construction) during Year Two.

The expansion of Phase One has continued in Year Two, during which The Hunger Project expanded into six more districts, which have held district- and village-level VCAWs. At least one epicenter — and most likely three — will emerge in each of these districts from this mobilization.

Also during Phase One, the Robertson Foundation has made a grant to Yale University, in partnership with the University of Ghana and the University of California, Berkeley, to conduct an independent, 10-year impact evaluation of the epicenter model. The research team is applying state-of-the-art evaluation methodologies, including surveys of randomly selected households in both the areas of mobilization and areas not being mobilized.

The Epicenter Strategy transforms the culture of dependency, resignation and gender discrimination into a culture of responsibility, self-reliance and gender equality.

Progress in Phases Two and Four

One reason we chose the Eastern Region of Ghana was that in two of its 16 rural districts there were already two epicenters in Phase Four, and five epicenters in Phase One.

The journey from Phase One to Phase Two is very challenging. Communities must allocate five acres of land (two for the epicenter building and three for a community farm); transfer clear title on the land to The Hunger Project (a big challenge in Ghana, where traditional chiefs control land ownership); mobilize building materials such as sand, gravel and roof beams; mold blocks; and contribute the labor required to construct their epicenter building.

On a target of building four epicenter buildings in Year One, the first, Dwerebease, was inaugurated in August 2007. Two more, Odumase and Ankoma, had difficulty finding sufficient wood to finish their roofs as a consequence of changes in government forest policies, and completed construction in March 2008. The fourth epicenter, Nkawanda, ran into serious land title and site challenges, which were overcome only in January, and construction is now under way. These challenges have been compounded by global economic factors, such as a weak U.S. dollar and skyrocketing fuel costs.

We knew scale-up would present challenges — we just did not know what they would be! Our Africa Department is providing additional training to support the regional staff in meeting these challenges, and we’ve increased our rate of mobilizing new epicenters in Phase One, recognizing that reaching Phase Two will likely take longer than projected. This strategy seems to be working.

Work continues even after an epicenter reaches Phase Four. One lesson we learned from epicenters in this phase has been that we can sustain trained nurses at our epicenters only if the community provides housing for them. One Phase Four epicenter already had nurses’ quarters; in the early part of Year Two, the other Phase Four epicenter also constructed housing, completing all the requirements for long-term self-reliance.

Expansion in the Eastern Region of Ghana

Where we have been working since 2001, with two epicenters in Phase Four, and now four more having entered Phase Two

Launched in Year One: 18 new epicenters in five districts, now nearing completion of Phase One.

Launched in Year Two: six new districts have completed district-level Vision, Commitment and Action Workshops (step two in Phase One).

Will be launched in Year Three.

Primarily urban district where we will not be working.

Underwriting Scale-up

In July 2006, the Robertson Foundation agreed to provide US$5 million over five years to launch scale-up in Ghana.

Years two to five are a challenge match. The Hunger Project receives funds only if it secures an equal amount from new sources (that is, from entirely new investors, or from increases beyond people’s mid-2006 investment levels). To meet the Robertson Challenge, we invite investors to commit at least US$25,000 per year for at least the duration of the grant. At the level of US$80,000 per year for five years, investors can underwrite an entire epicenter.

We met the challenge in 2007, with 18 investors ranging from individual Dutch entrepreneurs to the Leavey Foundation to the city of Zurich. At this point, there is still an opportunity for a few investors to join the challenge beginning in 2008!

Hannah’s Lunchbox

One of the newest participants in the Robertson Challenge is the Salwen family from Atlanta. At age 15, Hannah Salwen awakened to the profound injustice of extreme poverty. She convinced her family that they should sell their home, move into a more modest house, and contribute the proceeds to ending hunger in Africa. Her younger brother, Joseph, made a video of this commitment titled “Hannah’s Lunchbox,” which you can see on YouTube.com. After extensive research and consultations, the family concluded that the best investment of their money would be through The Hunger Project. They are underwriting one epicenter beginning in 2008, and a second epicenter beginning in 2009.

Comfort Kissiwaa is 49 years old and a native of Nsuta in the Nsuta-Aweregya Epicenter in the Eastern Region. She is married with five children (four girls and a boy). She is educated up to the secondary school level. Prior to joining The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana, she was working as a kindergarten teacher at Nsuta with an average annual income of GHC 140 (US$110) and was also engaged in farming to supplement her income and for subsistence.

Comfort joined THP-Ghana in 2000 after a mass Vision, Commitment and Action Workshop (VCAW) at Nsuta, which, according to her, had a remarkable impact on her and how she perceived life, generally. Her entry point into THP was the Women Empowerment Project (WEP), through which she began to gain prominence in the community as a result of the opportunity she had to educate people on their civic, legal and health rights.

Subsequently, following her participation in several AWFFI VCAWs, she joined an AWFFI credit group in her community through which she received loans five times for the expansion of her farming activities. Comfort was later elected as the Secretary of the Nsuta-Aweregya Epicenter Executive Committee. In 2004, she was appointed Manager of the Epicenter Community Bank, after passing a competitive interview that was conducted for the position.

Reflecting on her past and the positive transformation that has taken place in her life, Comfort now believes that almost everybody has unlimited innate potential and abilities that can be realized with the right mindset and the necessary support. She said her association with THP has helped to change her from a timid and shy person to an outspoken person, full of confidence and drive.

Apart from the positive changes that have taken place in Comfort's personal life, her involvement with THP has had significant impact on her family as well. The loans that she has received from THP have enabled her to expand her farming activities which have resulted in increased food production and income. Her annual income, which used to be about GHC 140 (US$110) only, has increased to approximately GHC 1,000 (US$787), including what she earns as the Manager of the community bank. With the increase in her income she provides support to her husband to feed, clothe and educate their children. She has also gained respect in the family and now participates in family meetings.

As the Manager of the community bank, Secretary to the Epicenter Executive Committee and a WEP animator, Comfort plays a key leadership role in her community and has even become a role model for most people, especially young girls. Through WEP educational activities, she has encouraged several parents to send their children to school, particularly the girl children, which has resulted in an increase in the number of girls enrolled in basic schools in her community. She has also contributed to either resolving or referring many marital disputes to the state agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ).

Comfort is truly an example of how THP's work is empowering women and causing a positive change in their own lives as well as those of their family and community.

Support other women like Comfort - invest now!

Learn more!

• Our work in Ghana.
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Update to the Global Board
(April 2009)

Overview

In line with The Hunger Project's (THP's) objective to increase food production and security, farmers have been supplied with 3,884 kg of maize seeds and 834 bags of NPK (Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potassium) and ammonia fertilizers to cultivate 485.5 acres of maize farms, which are expected to yield approximately 252,460 kg.

A total of 976 women received GHC 76,360 (US$60,126) in loans for the expansion of income-generating activities, particularly farming as compared to 595 women receiving GHC 46,800 (US$36,850) in the previous six months under the African Woman Food Farmer Initiative (AWFFI) microfinance program. The extension of the credit scheme to new epicenters in the Eastern Region largely accounts for the increase in the amount disbursed and the number of recipients.

Construction of the eight "year three" epicenter buildings (i.e. epicenter buildings to be completed during the third year of our grant from the Robertson Foundation) is progressing satisfactorily and is expected to be completed by June 2009. Some of the buildings have reached window level while others are even at the lintel level.

The expansion of THP-Ghana's activities under the scale-up program has resulted in the training of many more animators who are themselves reaching out to an increased number of people in the communities. For example, the number of people who participated in Vision, Commitment and Action Workshops (VCAW) increased from 8,916 in the previous period to 22,835 in the current reporting period. The Women Empowerment Project (WEP) animators also reached 12,400 people as compared to 9,568 in the previous period while the HIV/AIDS animators sensitized 12,837 people compared with the 11,387 previously reached.

The number of children attending child welfare clinics for weighing and immunization increased from 3,806 in the previous period to 4,616 as a result of the increasing number of epicenter clinics, especially in the Eastern Region where the scale up program is being implemented. A total of 98 babies were safely delivered compared with the 60 in the previous six months. The 12 epicenter clinics recorded 3,865 out-patients as compared to 2,828 in the previous period.

One of the key challenges has been the limited capacity of the District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) to provide health personnel, drugs and equipment to all the new epicenters that have been completed. Therefore, they can not ensure efficient delivery of health care services at the epicenter clinics. However, efforts are being made to overcome this problem through strengthening of THP's collaboration with the Ghana Health Service at the national level.

Details on Progress

Food Production and Security Improved

As the next major farming season approaches, the Agricultural trainers of trainers (TOTs) have educated 5,944 farmers (2,963 males and 2,971 females) in 142 partner communities. The farmers were educated on pest control, application of fertilizers and weedicides, as well as effective maize storage techniques with the aim to promote increased food production and security.

A total of 2,435.5 bags of 100 kg each (243,550 kg in total) of maize was harvested from 480 acres of farm cultivated by the partners with input support from THP during the farming season in 2008. Maize production per acre increased from 4.02 bags (402 kg) in 2007 to 5.2 bags (520 kg) as a result of the improved methods of farming being adopted by the farmers. A total of 3,884 kg of maize seeds and 834 bags of NPK and ammonia fertilizers have been supplied to partner farmers for the cultivation of 485.5 acres of new maize farms this year, which are expected to yield approximately 252,460 kg.

The existing 18 epicenter food banks were stocked with a total of 221.5 bags (22,150 kg) of maize.

Epicenter Buildings Constructed

The eight epicenter buildings earmarked for construction in the third year of the scale up program are ongoing at different stages of construction and are expected to be completed by June 2009. The buildings are being constructed at the following epicenters: Osonson, Dorminase, Otuater, Anyansu, Asenema, Abehenase/Atobriso, Darmang and Kokobeng.

The mobilization of eight communities for the construction of epicenter buildings in the fourth year is in progress.

Awareness increased through VCAWs

Community-level VCAWs were organized in 378 communities, which covered 22,835 people comprising 11,289 males and 11,546 females.

District-level VCAWs were organized in the three remaining new districts in the Eastern Region (Akwapim South, Yilo Krobo and Kwahu North), which covered 400 people from 112 communities.

VCAW animator-initiated projects supported

During the reporting period, the following communities were supported to complete kindergarten school buildings that they had initiated: Afabeng, Akotekrom, Otaipro, Zevor, Dademantse, Besease and Ofoasekuma, all in the Eastern Region.

HIV/AIDS awareness increased

Thirty-one new HIV/AIDS animators were trained, bringing the total number of animators trained so far to 162. The trained animators reached 12,837 people, including 7,181 females (54%) in 146 communities, educating them on the causes and prevention of the disease and highlighting the role of gender inequality in its spread. The number of people targeted to be reached was exceeded by 8%.

Gender awareness increased (WEP)

The WEP Animators carried out education on the civic, legal and reproductive health rights of women. They also organized education programs to enhance voter knowledge on the nuances of elections under the "We Know Politics Project," which was implemented in partnership with Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF). The animators reached 12,400 people (5,076 males and 7,324 females) in 257 communities. The animators exceeded their target by 71%, mainly due to the voter education programs that were organized. Forty-four new WEP Animators, as compared to 40 that were targeted, have just completed the second in the series of three training workshops.

Partner communities assisted to improve their incomes through microfinance

A total loan of GHC 76,350 (US$60,118) was disbursed to 976 women as compared to GHC 21,389 (US$16,842) that was disbursed to 397 men to support increased income generation under the microfinance program. About 90% of the loans were disbursed to farmers to enable them to expand and intensify their farming activities.

Maternal and child mortality reduced

Child Welfare Clinic attendance recorded at 12 epicenter clinics was 4,527 comprising 2,393 females and 2,134 males. The children were weighed and immunized against the childhood killer diseases (i.e. polio, measles, TB, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, hepatitis ‘B' haemophilus, influenza type ‘B' and yellow fever). Ninety-eight babies (51 females and 47 males) were safely delivered at the clinics. The epicenter clinics recorded 687 ante-natal patients during the reporting period.

Malaria and other diseases reduced

The epicenter clinics recorded 3,865 out-patients, of which 45% were malaria cases. This represents a 5% drop in reported malaria cases at the clinics as compared to the previous reporting period.

Partnerships

• In an effort to strengthen THP's partnership with local government and to advocate national recognition of the Epicenter Strategy as an effective approach to rural development, the Country Director (CD) met with the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development. The CD briefed the Minister on THP's activities and how they are impacting the lives of people in the rural areas. The Minister expressed interest in collaborating with THP, which would the leverage required to take forward the partnership agenda.
• In accordance with the existing partnership with the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Health Personnel, some equipment and drugs were supplied to the new epicenters in the Eastern Region including Supreso, Nkawanda, Ankoma, Wawase, Akotekrom and Kyeremase. As part of THP's effort to strengthen partnership with the GHS, the CD met with the Director General of the GHS to brief him on our development activities generally and the Community Health Improvement Program in particular. They also discussed priority areas of collaboration based on the challenges facing the Health Program which include the limitations in the supply of Health Personnel, equipment and drugs to the new epicenters that are being constructed.
  
• During the period under review, THP collaborated with the following government departments and NGOs to train new animators, especially in the Eastern Region where the scale up program is being implemented:
  
  • Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana (PPAG) - for the training of 31 HIV/AIDS animators;
  • Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF) - for the training of 44 WEP animators; and
  • Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) - for the training of 40 Agricultural TOTs.

Broader Awareness and Advocacy

• A feature article was published in the Daily Graphic, Ghana's most read newspaper (October 16, 2008) on the "We Know Politics Projects" which was implemented in partnership with WILDAF, Gender Center, CoWIG and FIDA-Ghana. The article covered an interview with the CD on the objectives of the project. The project aimed at increasing the participation of women in Ghana's 2008 general elections and to ensure that the concerns of women were taken on board by the Presidential and Parliamentary aspirants.
• A campaign that was organized in Matsekope Epicenter on "Violence Against Women" was given coverage by a local FM station (Radio Ada) on December 11, 2008, highlighting the various types of violence against women and their effects. The campaign was organized as part of the worldwide celebration of "16 Days of Activism on Violence Against Women" by women and gender activists.
• A delegation of the Ghana Chapter of Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF), which included the CD of THP, met with Ghana's newly elected President to congratulate him on winning the election and to discuss critical issues affecting women. The President assured the delegation that he would empower the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General's Department to review laws and practices that are inhumane and discriminate against women. He also reaffirmed his government's commitment to appointing 40% of women in his administration. The meeting with the President was reported by the print and electronic media including GTV and the Daily Graphic on February 5, 2009.
• The Daily Graphic, published a feature article entitled "Combating Violence Against Women - The Role of The Hunger Project" in the March 10, 2009 edition. This article highlighted the campaigns organized by THP in the Matsekope and Kyempo Epicenters to mark the worldwide celebration of "16 Days of Activism on Violence Against Women" in December 2008.
• On March 16, 2009 the Daily Graphic reported on a durbar organized by THP in the Kwaboadi Epicenter to mark the celebration of International Women's Day. At this durbar, the CD, Dr. Naana Agyemang-Mensah called for behavioral change, particularly among men, to end the culture of violence against women.
• The CD held two important meetings with key government officials during the reporting period. The first one was with the Director General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) on March 17, 2009. The objective was to brief the Director General on THP's Community Health Improvement Program. The second meeting was with the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development on March 24, 2009. The CD briefed the Minister on THP-Ghana's activities and their impact on people living in rural communities in Ghana. She highlighted partnership with local government as one of the key pillars of THP's work. The two government officials were impressed with THP's work and achievements in Ghana.

Recent Innovations

The fast growing number of epicenter buildings, especially in the Eastern Region, has resulted in an increased demand for health personnel, drugs and equipment, which has strained the local authority's capacity. Having realized the difficulty in getting the DHMTs to respond adequately to our needs, we have decided to extend our partnership with the GHS beyond the district level to the national level. It is in light of this that the CD met with the Director General of the GHS to brief him on THP's programs generally and the Health Improvement Program in particular with the view to seeking his assistance in staffing and equipping the epicenter clinics.

Impact Assessment

The main focus of the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) process during the period was to analyze the data generated by our trained village-based M&E animators. These trained animators had, in the earlier reporting period, collected a wide range of data through household surveys; conducted focus group discussions; held key informant interviews; and collected data from institutions like schools, clinics and the village-based TBAs. This generated a lot of data, and we began a manual process of analyzing the data. A simple software program was designed to facilitate data entry with the help of volunteers at the head office. The data entry process has been completed and the analysis has begun in order to arrive at conclusions that will be fed into the global M&E system/website.

The M&E officer plans to organize further training for the project officers, their assistants and secretaries to enter all data from the field in the data entry software so that the work at the M&E department at the head office will be expedited in the process of data entry, analysis and reporting. Data collection instruments have been revised and, in the coming quarter, arrangements will be made to give refresher training to all the animators to begin another round of major data collection.

In terms of building partnerships, the project officers are collaborating with personnel at the health institutions to regularly provide relevant health data as part of the data collection process. Reporting formats have been designed to enable the health personnel to provide relevant data.

Future Plans

The following objectives will be pursued in the next six months (April-September 2009):

• The construction of eight "year three" epicenter buildings completed;
• The construction of eight "year four" epicenter buildings initiated;
• 14 epicenter clinics provided with health personnel, drugs and equipment;
• Review workshops organized for TBAs (68), Agric TOTs (135), WEP animators (80) and HIV/AIDS animators (90);
  
• VCAWs organized to train 23,000 people;
• 9,500 people reached with HIV/AIDS education;
• 10,300 people reached with WEP education; and
• Refresher training organized for M&E animators and program staff on the M&E processes.
  

Theresa Sekyere is a farmer from the Obenyemi Epicenter in Ghana and has two children. For several years she has cultivated approximately one acre of maize each year and obtained less than two bags of harvest (6 kg). Unable to expand her resources, she derived very low output and income from her farm. Working with The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana, Theresa was able to access microfinance services, which allowed her to purchase the materials and land necessary to cultivate a larger farm.

Since aquiring new land, Theresa has participated in a number of sensitization sessions organized by the Agricultural Trainers of Trainers (TOTs). They aim to raise awareness about the need to adopt improved agricultural practices for higher yields and increased income. As a result she adopted many of the recommended practices, such as row planting, fertilizer application and timely weed control.

This year, THP-Ghana supplied her with inputs and, together with the credit she received from the Microfinance Program, she was able to increase the size of her maize farm from one to five acres with an anticipated yield of 30 bags (3,000 kg). With the additional income, Theresa will be able to pay her children's school fees and maintain a self-sufficient farm.

Theresa had this to say: "Farming is my life and I am happy to be able to expand my farm size with the microfinance, inputs and agricultural education I obtained from THP-Ghana. This will surely increase my yield per acre this year and enable me to take care of my children in school. I see this change as a miracle coming my way since this year's yield is going to compensate for all the lost years."

Learn more!

• Our work in Ghana.
• The Microfinance Program in Africa.
• Meet other THP partners around the world.

October 17, 2011 was honored worldwide as International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The theme for this year’s celebration was “Working Together Out of Poverty.”

In partnership with rural communities and the Eastern Regional Coordinating Council, The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana marked the day with a procession through the streets of Koforidua, the capital of Ghana’s Eastern Region, to draw the attention of the general public and emphasize the eradication of poverty as every individual’s responsibility.

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been observed every year since 1993, when the United Nations (UN) General Assembly designated the day to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution, particularly in developing countries – a need that has become a development priority with the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals.

Speaking at a formal assembly organized in the courtyard of the Eastern Regional Administration building, Dr. Naana Agyemang-Mensah, Country Director of THP-Ghana, called on the government of Ghana and all similar-minded, multilateral development partners, corporate bodies, development agencies and individuals to work with THP to eradicate poverty in rural Ghana.

Dr. Naana told the audience that THP underscores the empowerment of women and girls as the foundation for the eradication of poverty and therefore focuses programs on building the capacity of women in all aspects of their lives. She discussed THP’s mission to overcome the root causes of poverty through the Epicenter Strategy, the basis of which is the belief in the potential of all people to change their own destinies given the requisite enabling environment. Dr. Naana added that principal within the Epicenter Strategy environment is the need to change one’s mindset from that of dependency to that of self-reliance. She insisted that changing a mindset and fatalistic views about poverty is half the work done.

A community partner, Ms. Georgina Dushie, spoke on behalf of the community members in THP’s operational areas about how THP has empowered them through legal awareness; access to agricultural information and technology to improve yields and farm incomes; improved access to credit to expand businesses; skills development training; and community initiated projects towards self reliance.

Deputy Eastern Regional Minister, Hon. Ebenezer Okletey Teye Larbi, also spoke and enumerated the manifestations of poverty at both family and community levels, including the inability of the family to meet its basic needs like food, shelter and clothing as well as the lack of social amenities like health, education, good drinking water and poor sanitation. He said the government’s social contract with Ghanaians is to build on the firm belief that the people of Ghana have the right to decent living and well-paid jobs. He recounted some of the policies put in place by the government to improve the living conditions of the people.

The Deputy Minister then highlighted specific programs in Ghana that currently demonstrate the government’s commitment to improving the standard of living, including expansion of the National Youth Employment Programme, the Local Enterprises and Skills Development Programme (LESDEP), the establishment of the Disability Council and Law, expansion of the Ghana School Feeding Programme, improved service delivery under the National Health Insurance Scheme, and the provision of free school uniforms and exercise books to pupils in basic schools. He urged all stakeholders to join hands to break the cycle of poverty and forge ahead for peace and prosperity.

THP-Ghana presented a banner of over 600 signatures collected from some regional operational areas to the Government of Ghana (through the Eastern Regional Coordinating Council) to demonstrate THP’s commitment to the fight against poverty.

Learn More

• Photos from the celebration
• Our work in Ghana
• Blog post: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

Isaac Lartey, 46, is a farmer from Banso-Asuboi and a member of The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana's Kyempo Epicenter Committee. He was nominated by his community to be trained as an Agricultural Trainer of Trainers (TOTs) in 2007. Since his training, he has played a major role in educating farmers on improved agricultural practices; as a result, most of these farmers have adopted improved farming methods, including the use of high-yield planting materials, row planting, and the application of fertilizers, weedicides, pesticides and storage chemicals. Hitherto, the farmers relied on traditional farming practices and beliefs which were associated with low productivity. For example, most people believed that high-yield varieties of maize could not be stored over a long period of time; with the increased awareness-raising and field demonstrations carried out by Isaac and his colleagues, the farmers have come to realize that this was a myth. According to Isaac himself, before he was trained by THP-Ghana as an Agricultural TOT, he used to plant only the local maize.

Through Isaac’s work as an Agricultural TOT, farming is gradually being transformed and farmers are producing more and also getting an increased income from their farming activities. In narrating how he has himself benefited from the new knowledge acquired, Isaac said, “I have been able to expand my farm from two to five acres, and also remarkably increase my yield per acre. My income has also increased, which enabled me to help my wife with start-up capital to trade and we are now better able to take care of our needs and that of our children, including their education.”

Learn More

• THP-Ghana
• Meet other partners in Africa, South Asia and Latin America

Over the course of the reporting period, THP-Ghana completed the construction of several projects such as 3-unit nurses’ quarters at Taido Epicenter. Furthermore, in an effort to push for ownership of the epicenter by its population, THP-Ghana officially inaugurated these infrastructural elements of the epicenter and handed them over to the community during the inauguration. Following the completion of the nursery school at Dogo in Toku Epicenter (a community-led project), a “handing-off” ceremony took place with several high status dignitaries. Partnership arrangements embarked upon by the epicenter leadership resulted in the Fesi-Bame Epicenter acquiring 450 bags of fertilizer to improve farmers’ activities as well as hospital equipment for the epicenter clinic to improve healthcare delivery. In addition to THP-Ghana’s accomplishments in construction, the Health & Nutrition programs, WEP programs and Income Generating Activities conducted proved to be fruitful.

Accomplishments

• Dogo Nursery School “Hand-Off.” In Toku Epicenter, a new nursery school, which was a community-initiated project supported by Bayport Financial Services (BFS), was inaugurated and handed off to the proper authorities. The event included the attendance of the District Chief Executive of the Ada East District Assembly, the National Program Officer of THP-Ghana, the Deputy Managing Director of BFS, the District Director of Education and local chiefs. This event was reported on by the local radio and in Ghana’s most circulated newspaper.
• Income Generation. The oil-palm and cocoa seedlings undertaken by the Adomfe Epicenter have started to generate income for the epicenter as these seedlings have grown enough to be transplanted to the field. The price for an oil-palm seedling is $1 and that of cocoa is $0.13 per seedling. As of June 2013, a total of 2,902 seedlings of cocoa and 220 oil-palm seedlings were sold to farmers generating an income of $2,930.60.
• Partnership with MOFA. The partnership initiated by the Fesi-Bame Epicenter executives with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has resulted in the acquisition of 450 bags of government subsidized fertilizers (NPK, Sulphate of Ammonia, and Urea) from MOFA for sale to partner farmers in the epicenter to boost production.

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Progress Report for July 1-December 31, 2007

David Tetteh, 45, is a farmer and resident of Abourso in the Dorminase Epicenter in Ghana. He became involved with The Hunger Project (THP) in February 2008 after a Community Animator, Felix Narh, organized a Vision, Commitment and Action Workshop (VCAW) in the community. Through the VCAW, his perception of life was transformed completely and he became more committed to his own development and that of his community.

Mr. Tetteh was nominated by his chiefs and people, having noticed these changes in him, to represent Abourso on the Epicenter Committee. Due to his dedication and commitment to the epicenter work, he was elected as Vice Chairman to the Epicenter Committee. He was also identified and trained by THP as an Agricultural TOT (trainer of trainers). Until his involvement with THP, Mr. Tetteh did not think that he had any chance of making it in life, and this was reflected in his attitude toward work generally. Since his contact with THP, he gained a lot of confidence and now believes very much in himself and his community as a result of his participation in a series of VCAWs, epicenter meetings and training programs.

Mr. Tetteh traveled to other communities within the epicenter to carry out educational sessions and visited their farms to demonstrate good practices such as row planting, weed control and fertilizer application. He encouraged his community to cultivate a group farm, which served as a demonstration farm for other farmers. With support from THP, he helped put up a maize storage crib in the community.

This year, Mr. Tetteh cultivated nine acres of maize during the major farming season, compared to the two acres he planted previously. His income level has increased remarkably through the sale of his farm produce, and his household now has adequate food. He has expressed a desire to educate his children to the highest levels possible. The fact that Mr. Tetteh became involved with THP barely two years ago makes his story very impressive.

Photo: David Tetteh drying cobs of maize from his farm

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Learn more about our Epicenter Strategy in Africa

In commemoration of International Women's Day 2010, The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana organized a National Rural Forum under the theme "Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities: Progress for All," which was held on March 5, 2010 at the Odumase-Wawase Epicenter in Kwahu West Municipality.

The forum gathered program animators, epicenter representatives, program partners, members of the press and THP-Ghana staff to deliberate on their grassroots efforts and identify the emerging evidence of women's and girls' access to equal rights and opportunities.

Participants' discussions revealed some positive gains in their communities, including:

• Women's emerging capacity to participate in sexual decision-making, especially in the use of condoms, even by married couples.
• The emerging opportunities being offered women at the community level to participate in local decision-making bodies, as well as in the Chiefs' Courts.
• The acceptance of parents to assign domestic chores to both their male and female children.
• A small but impressive increasing in the number of girls advancing into Senior High School beyond the previous zero in many communities.

Participants also, however, noted several economic, educational, health, political and socio-cultural challenges, for which they identified areas for urgent action.

Read the full communique from the forum (PDF 143.57 KB).

Read THP's Statement on International Women's Day 2010

Comfort Nyame (on the left speaking with women from her epicenter community), 52, is a widow with four children from the Oboadze community near Taido Epicenter. She was initially trained by The Hunger Project (THP)-Ghana as a Women's Empowerment Program (WEP) animator in 2002 and later as a Daycare Attendant. After her training, Comfort worked for the Daycare Center in her community on a voluntary basis until 2009, when the Ghana Education Service recruited her as a paid staff member and put her in charge of the Center.

Thanks to her efforts, the Center was awarded assistance as a beneficiary school under the Ghana National School Feeding program, greatly enhancing the consistency and nutritional value of the meals provided to children at the Center. As a result of her devotion to community work, Comfort has been appointed Secretary of the Taido Epicenter Credit Committee and Deaconess of the Oboadze Pentecost Church, a position through which she will have to the power to reach hundreds of women with WEP awareness activities within and beyond her district.

Besides her work as a community leader and Daycare Attendant, Comfort makes soap and batik tie-dye. She acquired these craft skills after participating in a training workshop organized by THP-Ghana for WEP animators after the completion of their WEP training. Selling these products within her community, Comfort has used the additional income to wire her home with electricity. Recently, she told an audience: “THP has made me what I am today.”

Learn More

• THP-Ghana
• The Epicenter Strategy in Africa
• Meet other partners in Africa, South Asia and Latin America

Beginning in January of this year, The Hunger Project-Ghana has entered into a partnership with two leading agencies: SNV Netherlands Development Organization and Agro Eco-Louis Bolk Institute. This joint project aims to positively impact the productivity, incomes and livelihoods for about 80 percent of the farmers working in three epicenters (Fesi-Bame, Tokome and Matsekope).

As The Hunger Project’s central focus of activity, epicenters are clusters of rural villages (comprising 5 to 15 communities) that are mobilized to pursue development objectives together. Through the Epicenter Strategy’s food security programs, farmers have achieved higher yields. However, this production needs to be complemented by other activities, especially market access, in order to have the most impact on income from farming and to generate employment. This is where the new partnership comes in.

Over a period of one year, through this project we will analyze the value chain of select agricultural commodities (such as vegetables like okra or sweet potatoes, fruits, food crops like maize and cassava, and cash crops like cocoa).  Multi-stakeholder groups will then prioritize next steps in order to develop the value chain and enable small-holder farmers to participate more effectively in local and regional markets. The project also includes business development and resource mobilization support; technical assistance for implementation; and knowledge development and dissemination.

At the root of this partnership is a strategy for capacity development that assures sustainability. Through the project, smallholder farmers (both women and men) will enhance their agricultural, organizational and business capacities, which will make them reliable partners in attractive markets. They will own and lead the innovations as the drivers of the action plans. Moreover, THP-Ghana will use the experiences and lessons learned through this project as a model for all of THP-Ghana’s epicenters, potentially benefitting 30,000 farmers and their families.

Find out more about the Epicenter Strategy in Ghana.

About Our Partners

SNV Netherlands Development Organization supports small farmers and their organizations with the objective of enhancing their role as key actors in rural development, specifically to increase income and employment, to improve livelihoods and food security, and to strengthen the environmental sustainability of agricultural production.

The Agro Eco-Louis Bolk Institute advises the private sector, NGOs, governments and international organizations in the development of markets for quality products and thousands of small-holder farmers are profiting from access achieved to markets with the institute’s sustainable agriculture development projects.

Matilda Aba Tibuah was born in 1975 at Ekurobadze community in Taido Epicenter in the Mfantseman Municipality. She completed Junior High School at Ekurobadze Roman Catholic School. Matilda is now married with four children.

Matilda was a peasant farmer and was involved in the cultivation of maize and cassava before her encounter with The Hunger Project. According to her, she was not able to generate enough income from her farming work to support her household due to poor yields. Her husband was the only one providing money to sustain the home and as a result he was always complaining of the burden on him. She did not have complete happiness since she felt incapable of supporting the running of the home. Her husband made most of the decisions concerning her home since he felt he was the one providing for the family.

As stated by Matilda, "I began seeing and understanding things differently when I encountered The Hunger Project. The Hunger Project brought some confidence into my life that I can do better than I am doing now."

After participating in Vision, Commitment and Action (VCA) and food security workshops, Matilda was inspired to work hard to generate some income to support her family. She applied the principles she learned from the workshops to her farming business. She also benefitted from the microfinance loans from The Hunger Project-Ghana. As a result of all the opportunities she had, she currently has two acres of maize and cassava farms. She also started a provisions shop as another way to generate income.

According to Matilda, her life has changed and she can now support her household expenditures after receiving loans and educational sessions from The Hunger Project. She now earns the respect from her husband and her family.

Learn More

• THP-Ghana
• Microfinance Program in Africa
• Meet other partners in Africa, South Asia and Latin America

Linda Asantewa is a living example of how The Hunger Project's work is impacting the lives of village women, especially, and empowering them to play key leadership roles in their communities. Linda is 52 years old and a single mother of three daughters. She is a secondary school graduate and currently an animator for the Women's Empowerment Program (WEP) and in HIV/AIDS as well as an Adult Literacy Facilitator in the Nkawanda Epicenter in Ghana.

According to Linda, before her training as a WEP animator in 2004 she was very shy and could hardly speak in public. However, as a result of her participation The Hunger Project's training programs in WEP, HIV/AIDS and Adult Literacy Facilitation, Linda is now able to go around to communities in her epicenter to educate them on issues relating to gender and HIV/AIDS. While working as an animator to change people's lives, Linda's own life has been transformed tremendously through her association with The Hunger Project-Ghana. Linda presently holds many leadership positions, including: Chairperson of the Epicenter Loan Committee; Secretary of the Village Unit Committee; Secretary of the Community Water and Sanitation Committee and the Women Organizer of the ruling National Patriotic Party in her community.

Linda was supported by The Hunger Project to undertake skills training in soap and cosmetics production after which she helped to train women groups in other regions. She supplements her income from the sale of secondhand clothes with that from soap making. She said, educating her children was not previously her priority and as a result her first two daughters dropped out of school "but now I have learnt a lot from The Hunger Project, especially through the Vision, Commitment and Action Workshop and I will do everything possible to give good education to my last daughter." Linda said she used to live in a rented house but has been able to put up a two-bedroom house from her own resources.

Learn more about our work in Ghana.

Support The Hunger Project in training thousands of other women like Linda.