Hello all.  Loud greetings from Accra!!

Trying to find the patience for the not-so -high speed internet has been a bit of a challenge. This explains why this is my first posting about my placement.I have been in Ghana for about a bit over a month. The stay has seen some highs and lows, naturally. But in all, I’m alive and well. My internship is with a small organization called PAAJAF Foundation. And when I say small, I mean small. Small as in the main operation of the organization is carried out by a single individual, Philip, who dedicates much of his time tirelessly trying to raise the profile of the organization in order to keep it functional. Alongside me,  the support cast are a group of kind-hearted community members who volunteer their time because they appreciate and believe in the work that PAAJAF does in the community. About 3 in total.

How small is PAAJAF again? So the organization has been lucky enough to have been granted the opportunity to work out of a local church’s office. Since the office does not get used much outside of the weekends, this well-wishing church allows PAAJAF access to the space. So there is a desk, and three chairs. There is a computer, which is strictly for word-processing and viewing documents. There is a printer with a temper, as it prints when it feels like it wants to. As you can obviously tell, the office, although is much appreciated, can only be used for meetings and brainstorming and such. The other works are performed on our cellphones, and at the internet cafes with their not-so-high speed internet.

Regardless of these setbacks, PAAJAF remains ambitious in its thinking and in its aims for the community in which its works. Philip, the director of the foundation, remains hardworking and dedicated, and the supporting cast believes.

I will get more into the activities of PAAJAF in the next post, which will be up very soon.

My view of development work so far? :Small people doing small things from small places albeit small things that make a big difference in communities. That’s a part of development too right?  I’d certainly say so.

Category: Ghana, On location // Add Comment »