Livelihood Empowerment
Heard Everywhere and Represented Daily (HEARD) Project
The Heard Everywhere and Represented Daily (HEARD) Project is designed based on the systemic challenges from the neglect of the voice, participation, and representation of rural populations, particularly youth and women, in the governance of Ghana. The project will therefore change the narrative of conversation and advocacy on women and youth inclusion in Ghana governance beyond just elected or appointed members, to include women and youth representation as technocrats in key technical leadership in Ghana’s governance structures. The project intends to enhance the agency of rural vulnerable youth and women membership organizations through promoting their active leadership in advocacy, campaigns, and solidarity actions to achieve the project’s goal.
Norsaac secured funding to implement the HEARD Project aimed at promoting the voice, participation, and inclusion of rural vulnerable youth and women in Ghana’s governance processes and structures. The project focuses in three regions of the north (Northern, Upper West and Upper East regions).
The HEARD-Project believes that if Rural Vulnerable Youth and women membership-based organizations in Northern Ghana have increased funding, capacity, diversity in membership, and supportive alliances/coalitions to mobilize and influence actions of state actors for inclusive governance AND SECURE AN enhanced access, collaboration with media and impactful use of government information THEN rural vulnerable youth and women in Northern Ghana will have increased representation and influence to promote their voice, participation, and inclusion in Ghana’s governance processes and structures.
The outcome of the project include:
- Rural Vulnerable Youth and women membership-based organizations in Northern Ghana have increased funding, capacity, diversity in membership, and supportive alliances/coalitions to mobilize and influence actions of state actors for inclusive governance.
- Enhanced access, collaboration with media and impactful use of government information by rural vulnerable youth and women in Northern Ghana for inclusive governance.
- Rural vulnerable youth and women in Northern Ghana have increased representation and influence in local governance processes and structures in Ghana.
“Heard Everywhere; Represented Daily (HEARD) Project” is a one-year project being implemented in the Savelugu Municipality.
PROFESSIONAL FEMALE TRICYCLE DRIVING (PFTD) PROJECT
NOYED-Ghana has secured a grant from its partner, EMpower based in UK to implement a project called Professional Female Tricycle Driving (PFTD-Project) which seeks to create employable skills for young girls. The project started January this year and it is a one year project. The Professional Female Tricycle Driving(PFTD) project is an initiative under the livelihood empowerment program of NOYED-Ghana at the Youth Center for Entrepreneurial Empowerment (Y-CEE). The project is supported by EMpower. The project seeks to empower about 40 young females in tricycle driving and in business training as well as gender issues. As a requirement, NOYED-Ghana directly involved young girls in the proposal development process, to propose and creatively design the strategies that will support the young girls to overcome the barriers they face when trying to compete in the job market where their male counterparts dominate.
The project seeks to achieve the following goals
- To directly economically empower 40 female youth as tricycle operators in northern region of Ghana. (Tamale metropolis & Sagnarigu).
- To build the capacity of 40 female youth in employable skills, job access, assertive life and active participation in decision making.
- To educate the project beneficiaries on sexuality and safe family planning.
- To educate the general public towards an improved gender relation.
The trainees will receive basic maintenance tips of the motorcycles/Tricycles through various mechanics to help them solve basic mechanical problems during the use of the motorbikes/tricycles in the line of business operations.
It is the expectation of NOYED-Ghana & partners that by the end of the project, the following results would have been achieved.
- Economically empowered young girls in tricycle driving
- Taking part in the decision making process in their communities and household levels
- Income levels of about 40 mothers improved
- Secured and reliable jobs for 40 females in tricycle driving.
- Girls generate incomes and make savings for improved life
Pig rearing Jirapa (Duori-Guo)
A monitoring visit was made to the women participating in the pig-rearing project in Jirapa. The following observations were made during the visit.
- The women groups were still intact in their numbers and the vision was still alive.
- The women had succeeded in putting up a pen as agreed and supported.
- The four pigs they were assisted to buy had littered, increasing their number to 11.
- A representative from NBSSI had also visited them to find out how they were fairing and advised them on some technical issues upon their invitation.
- Guided by the fact that the pen was small, the group had begun planning expansion of the pen to accommodate the increasing numbers of the pigs as they litter.
In a discussion with the group, they mentioned a few challenges and requested for further assistance to address these. Fundamentally, they mentioned feeding of the pigs as their major challenge. They noted that because the pigs are kept in an enclosed place without being allowed to roam in the community as others do, it is too demanding on them to feed the pigs and that comes with cost. In addition as the pigs had littered, their savings have gone into feeding them. Therefore, the women used that platform to appeal for additional assistance to support them in feeding the pigs. From the observation of the visiting team, it was realised that the feeding was actually a challenge because the pigs appeared malnourished and weak suggesting the need for an immediate intervention. Please see monitoring report for details.
Women in business management and marketing
NOYED-Ghana organised a capacity building workshop for sheabutter processors and the rice processors, based on needs of the women’s groups NOYED-Ghana was supporting in the West Mamprusi District. The aim was to increase their effectiveness in managing their groups and businesses, consequently increasing productivity and profits.
Twenty-five women were trained from the two groups by a resource person from the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) and were expected to share the skills with their members totaling 142.
As part of plans to increase the effectiveness of these groups, NOYED-Ghana made a donation of items to them based on their priorities. The sheabutter processors were given a signpost, which is to help increasing their visibility to result in increased demand for their produce. The rice processors were assisted with 25 bags of cements to help them put up structure to house their rice processing machine which they are saving money to buy.
Youth Empowerment
The Youth Center for Entrepreneurial Empowerment(Y-CEE) Project is a youth focused intervention designed to provide employable skills to at risk youth in the northern part of Ghana, specifically, Tamale Metropolitan Assembly and the Sagnarigu Municipality. The project was conceived in 2016 as an initiative of the Net Organisation for Youth Empowerment and Development (NOYED-Ghana) and supported by the traditional leadership, the local assemblies, and Empower: The Emerging Market Foundation Ltd. It is built to provide youth with training in welding and fabrication, Leadership, Literacy and numeracy, gender empowerment, entrepreneurial skills and business management. This, was seen a comprehensive pack that will make them complete and ready for the job market at graduation.
Following the successful implementation of Y-CEE Project by the NOYED-Ghana which ended around November, 2017, and witnessed the graduation of 13 youth, EMpower (the Donor) provided an additional support for the training of 15 more “At risk Youth”