Onechild Ghana
Toilet construction at a secondary school
This charity supports vocational schools – called ICCES centres – throughout the Ashanti region, Ghana. ICCES stands for Integrated Community Centre for Employable Skills. There are 75 ICCES centres throughout Ghana and 14 that Onechild Ghana works with in the Ashanti region. ICCES centres were established by the Ghanaian Government to help combat youth unemployment, rural-urban drift and contribute to the development of micro and small-scale enterprise amongst young people. Unfortunately, the schools remain largely underfunded
Students at ICCES centres learn vocational skills such as masonry, electricals and dressmaking. They also study maths, English and health. Students study towards their NVTI (National Vocational and Technical Institute) qualification, which after three years will enable them to enter a polytechnic after graduating from ICCES, find employment, or start their own business.
ICCES centres are open to anyone, typically between the ages of 14 and 24 and often attract young people who have not been able to afford traditional academic education or those who prefer to develop a vocational trade. The centres play an essential role in helping young Ghanaians step up out of the cycle of poverty they find themselves in.
The goal of this project was to construct a secured and modern 8-cubicle toilet block at Baworo ICCES Centre, and mechanise the local community borehole to provide running water to the new toilets, hostel bathrooms, classrooms and staff accommodation and the wider campus. The existing latrines could no longer be used since they were unsanitary, dilapidated and unsuitable for disabled people; students had to walk to the community centre to use the public toilets, which was often impractical.
The centre was split into two sections, with separate accessible entrances for boys and girls, and the borehole included filtration to ensure the water was suitable for drinking. Students helped to build the toilet block, providing skilled and unskilled labour as part of their practical training. The local community were fully involved and provided materials and skilled and unskilled labour to the project. The project is daily having a huge impact on students and staff, especially disabled students, and their ability to receive a full education.
