School for unaccompanied minors & orphans at the Refugee settlement.
During the past years, armed conflict in Liberia and the western zones of Côte d’Ivoire has caused large numbers of Liberian refugees to flee to Ghana. The refugee population is now approaching 48,000, having risen from 3,000 when the camp was first formed in the 1970s. Voluntary repatriation movements are expected to take place throughout this year and next, with it crucial to help prepare refugees, particularly women and young people, to rebuild their lives in their home country.
Within the camp are 600 “unaccompanied minors” - children who are on their own, without parents. Some were orphaned by the war or AIDS, many were separated from their families as they were running, fleeing the conflict. Often a child will end up in a camp in one country, and the mother or father will end up in another – with neither knowing what became of the other.
150 of these children are so young they fall into a category officially known as "very vulnerable." None of these kids were in school as they did not have the money to pay for their school fees. That is, until this great school was built by a great man with help from a large number of international volunteers. The school offers free education to any child who needs it.
Just completing the school is not enough. It is now important to make sure the school runs, the kids are taught, the teachers paid, the supplies bought. Volunteers can help make this happen.
The school requires the following volunteers:
• A wide range of teachers are needed, from English teachers to I.T teachers. The volunteer must have previous teaching experience more...
Code: CMS01
• Orphan's Classroom Assistant: Large class sizes at the school mean that some students are getting left behind, as a result the classroom assistant position has been set up to help those children in need of more educational support.
Code: CMS02
• Orphans Assistant / Playtime Coordinator: The school requires a volunteer to help give the desperately needed one-on-one attention to the orphans at the school and to help set up extra curricular activities such as drama, dance, music and games.
Code: CMS03
• Healthcare project coordinator: Healthcare education is of utmost importance on the camp, where HIV/AIDS and other diseases are of growing concern. The school requires a volunteer to run educational workshops and seminars.
Code: CMS04
• Engineers are required to help with development projects in conjunction with the Board of Water and Sanitation.
Code: CMS05
• Eyecare specialists are required in the local eye clinic.
Code: CMS06
• HIV/AIDS counselors are needed to counsel the children orphaned as a result of HIV/AIDS.
Code: CMS07
• Project coordinators are required to help develop projects, draft proposals and research new funding opportunities.
Code: CMS08
• Business coordinators are needed to help the school develop new sources of income and to assist with its micro-credit loan scheme.
Code: CMS09
• Teacher trainers: It is important to start training teachers on the settlement and provide them with proper curriculums and teaching plans.
Code: CMS10
To apply for one of these placements please click here quoting the placement code.
If you have skills that are not listed above but you think would make a valuable contribution to the school please email us at info@ikando.org. We would be happy to try and accommodate you.
What kind of skills you need to go on this placement?
Volunteers must have a strong interest in refugee issues and commitment to children. You will need to be flexible and tolerant, show initiative and enthusiasm to face the many hurdles and challenges that you will encounter. You will have to be able to cope with basic living and working conditions.
In order to maintain the sustainability and high performance of this project all volunteers are required to complete a detailed hand-over document for successive volunteers.
Where is the placement based?
The placement is based at the Buduburam refugee settlement 30 kms outside the Ghanaian capital Accra.
Duration
Minimum length (weeks) 2
Maximum length (weeks) 52
Project Fees
| Currency |
2 weeks (incl deposit) |
Each additional week |
Deposit |
| British Pounds |
£ 481 |
£ 87 |
£ 150 |
| US Dollars |
$ 913 |
$ 163 |
$ 297 |
| Euros |
|
€ 127 |
€ 234 |
Click here for more information on our pricing.
What’s included in the project fees?
• Accommodation
• Welcome pack
• $100 donation to the host organisation.
• In-country introduction to life in Ghana.
• Airport pick-up & drop-off
• 24/7 Emergency support.
What’s not included?
• Flights & Visa
• Food
• Vaccinations (please speak to your local GP)
• Insurance (required)
Health and Safety
There are a number of health clinics on the settlement, with doctors on call 24/7. The refugee settlement has its own neighbourhood watch scheme, but volunteers should nevertheless show due care and diligence when walking around the settlement and with their belongings, especially after dark. The atmosphere in the refugee settlement is very community oriented, but the settlement,
like all of its kind, pose inherent risks and our volunteers are not
immune to such risks.
Other details
• Working hours will be flexible. The typical working day is from 08:30 to 16:30 Monday to Friday
• The nearest internet café and telephone communications centre are 5 minutes walk away.
• Should volunteers wish to use the internet connection at the school they will be charged $20 per month to do so. There are other internet cafes in the surrounding area should the volunteers not wish to use the schools. This fee is optional and seperate from that of Ikando's and goes directly to the school.
• Small stores are dotted all around the settlement.
• The UNHCR is expected to withdraw funding its funding of the camp in July 2007. This is expected to have little impact on the camp as 49,000 people have made a life there and as such are not expected to return home. The Ghana Refugee Board will continue to maintain a presence at the settlement.
• You will be staying in basic shared accommodation on the settlement. We have a generator and 1000 gallon water tank to supply the accommodation. The accommodation does not have running water.
IMPORTANT: Ikando’s main aim is to provide organizations on the settlement with hardworking, dedicated and happy volunteers. We are offering an authentic experience working and living alongside refugees. Please read the information we send you thoroughly and take your time to think about the environment in which you will be living and operating. It may be hot, it may be noisy, it may be smelly, you may not have electricity or water for a period of time…if any of these things bother you, you may want to reconsider volunteering on a refugee settlement. We have plenty of other volunteer opportunities available with similar organisations in Ghana and for a complete list of these please click here.
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