"My name is Annelie and I spent ten weeks in Ghana from September to November 2014 teaching in a senior high school. At the end of my time in Accra I helped to found a preschool. Here now daily children at the age of approx. two to nine years of age. A school or Childcare was not previously available for these children. Since I built up the school alone with two adult Ghanaians and had to return to Germany shortly after the "opening", the school still stands on shaky legs. Before I left, I was able to organize tables, chairs, a blackboard and temporary "school accommodation" for the children. There is still a lack of further playing, teaching and learning materials.

In addition, there is a teacher who has also learned how to take care of young children at a university. However, as the age range is very large and the number of children is growing, there is definitely a need for more teachers in the long term. My interest is to ensure a permanent and secure support for this educational offer. ”

In April 2015, several smaller projects were implemented. On the one hand, an urgently needed latrine was built. Walls were also pulled in the school accommodation. In addition, textbooks are now available for the different subjects and age groups used in the classroom. Necessary kitchen utensils were also purchased. In numerous team meetings, the implementation of the project was discussed together. During the stay in Ghana, efforts were also made to establish further contacts on the ground. In addition to a very helpful contact person at the Goethe Institute in Accra, who was open to various questions, information and offers were also sought from local craftsmen, for example to be able to better assess necessary measures for building maintenance or to obtain prices for the production of higher quality tables & chairs.

It is planned that in the near future the necessary measures will be carried out on the building and further necessary purchases (furniture, first-aid kit, further teaching materials, etc. ) It is also important to ensure that school life is regulated piece by piece. In Ghana, solutions to the personnel issue are currently being sought and further donations are being collected in Germany. To this end, the arise e. V. association was founded in June 2015. Some sponsorships have already been established to enable individual children to attend school. By linking the school to a previous partner school near Hamburg, the exchange between German and Ghanaian children is to be facilitated and promoted. From mid-July to the end of August, a visit to Ghana is planned to continue supporting the implementation of the project and to work together to find a way to create a lasting, stable and supportive learning environment for these children.