2007 Summer Opportunities with the Ghana Health and Education Initiative

I usually don't post volunteer opportunities that require the volunteer to pay, but this opportunity in Ghana looks interesting and the payment is only $1000, which covers food and housing for the duration of the stay.
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GHEI (http://www.ghei.org) is a grassroots, community based non-government organization which trains community leaders in the village of Humjibre , Ghana so that they may be qualified to successfully manage the health and education needs of their village and shape their own future.


Session I: June 1- June 18
Girls Empowerment: Volunteers in this session will create a Girls’ Empowerment Program for middle and elementary school girls in the village. The program will run according to schedules allowed for by school and family commitments. Topics for the program can include health, education, and career opportunities. Possible events can include motivational speakers, health activities, etc. The program can be run in camp or workshop format, depending on the preferences of volunteers and availability of girls.

Session II: July 1- July 18
Malaria Prevention: Volunteers will develop and coordinate health activities focused on malaria for the village. A cross section of the community will be targeted including women's groups, teenagers, school children, and the general public. In addition to teaching about the disease and the prevention techniques currently available volunteers will be responsible for distributing treated mosquito nets. They will need to ensure that all villagers receiving a treated mosquito net know how to correctly use it.

Session III: August 1 - August 18
De-worming and Hygiene: Volunteers will help coordinate and de-worm children in the village as part of GHEI's twice yearly de-worming campaign. This will involve helping to determine the most appropriate population and helping to create a sustainable and locally run program to tackle this health issue. Volunteers will also create and coordinate a short supplemental curriculum for health and hygiene for nursery and primary school students to augment the effects of this intervention. In addition to distributing medication, volunteers will be helping to distribute shoes to those children who have none.

How Do I Apply? The application as well as complete details about Ghana Health and Education Initiative’s opportunities are available at http://www.ghei.org/index_files/Short_term_opportunities.htm.

Who do I contact if I have questions? The Volunteer Coordinator, Janell Alden, will be happy to answer any question you may have. Contact her at jalde001@umaryland.edu or volunteer@ghei.org.