Thank you for sharing your program. Might you be able to clarify the title of your project. Does your program aim to reduce or rehabilitate crime in Ghana? Are you looking to reduce over-population in prisons? I do hope you might be able to clarify the title of your project.
Thank you very much, and I look forward to your reply.
All the very best,
Eli
Eli A. Wolff
Manager, Research & Advocacy
Center for the Study of Sport in Society
Northeastern University e.wolff@neu.edu
Hi Eli,
thank you much for your interest and your enquiry to the project title. As I mentioned in the submission about prison numbers, the government is doing very little to actually rehabilitate convicts. I read from government ministers and the general population about better policing. By that, is incresing police numbers and equipment. Much as ACRO Ghana agree to this assertion, we believe the source of the problem needs to be looked into as well. Imagine some one stealing a tuber of yam or so going into jail for at least 6 months in the same facility meant for hardend criminals and suffering the same fate. They rather come out with more knowledge of committing serious crimes because there are not enough facilities to rehabilitate them, they rather have enough time to share experiences. Notwithstanding, the prisons are already over populated, some times with remind prisoners. So what ACRO Ghana is advocating is, conditions must to set to prevent crimes particularly amongst the youth whom are mostly unwaged. Added to that, we sought with stakeholders that those who offend are not left on their own after serving their prison terms and minor offenders should be made to pay back by doing community work. Some countries including South Africa is doing that and is paying off.
This project is sending the message across that, we should not use our scanty resources to cater for minor offenders in prisons whilst we engage particularly the youth to prevent crime and re-cycling in the Prisons.
Do not hesitate to write back for more information if the need be.
Dear Mr. Wolff we are grateful to you for you thought concerning the title of this project. Apart from the many health advantages accruing from sports activities, our target is use this platform to improve standards and quality of living. As I stated in my earlier submissions, ACRO Ghana finds it not too convincing for governments which depend on foreign aid to supplement annual budgets to cater for young, energic minor offenders in the prisons.
Ghana is finding it very difficult to manage her prisons. Overpopulated penal establishments can often only provide inadequate conditions for inmates, both physically and psychologically. Prisoners have to be detained for long periods on remand and prisons are frequently unable to carry out the tasks of training and rehabilitation, despite there being stated aims in the national statutory texts which govern them. At the same time, rising crime rates, especially in large conurbation’s, make these inadequacies all the more worrying, Minor offenders are brought into close proximity with more hardened criminals without their being any real possibility for their rehabilitation into society and employment. The suspended sentence whereby court convicts an offender while adjourning the sentencing process for a period during which he is placed under supervision in its form is therefore the basic alternative to custody.
In Ghana it would be possible with time for a supervising court to delegate the probation officer’s function to a social worker, a relative of the offender or ACRO Ghana’s sporting clubs which help them to reintegrate into society. In Zimbabwe and Namibia, one of the conditions of probation can be to carry out a service to the victim of the offence. ACRO Ghana with the support of the Authorities could adopt this to compensate the victim to bring harmony. ACRO Ghana and the government departments responsible of promoting penal reform would run a campaign to inform the public about the problems surrounding the prison system and the advantages to be expected from the new policy, which aims to protect the interests of the society in which the offender has grown up and to which he must continue to belong.
The AgriCare programme of ACRO Ghana is to move from subsistence to commercial to provide employment for the youth and ex-offenders. The effect is poverty reduction, increased quality of standard of living and harmonization of Society.
Your project sounds very interesting and ambitious! I would agree with Eli's comment - I too need some clarification regarding the title of the project.
Another aspect of the project I find very interesting is the aim to be wholistic in your approach. Can you provide more details as to why this is important?
Thank you Usha! For the first concern I have tried to explain in Eli's reply and hope you will bear with me to have a look, thank you!
The second issue is the way we involve ACRO Ghana in the communities we operate. The emphasis of ACRO Ghana’s football projects is on participation, personal and social development and fun. Although football is a competitive sport, our projects work to engage young as well as the aged people regardless of individual skill, ability and sex. Through outreach work in the local community, projects target hard-to-reach young people from school who are not in any form of education, training or employment or not involved in any kind of youth provision. Once young people are taking part in activities, project staff and volunteers support them in identifying and addressing any other issues they may be facing, such as problems with drugs, alcohol and general health and fitness.
ACRO Ghana establishes an effective model of working, on which all our football projects are based:
1. Meetings held with local residents’ associations and community groups in order to identify local needs
2. and to recruit adult volunteers to set up and run the clubs. Volunteers are given training and support,
3. including help with establishing a club structure, the provision of equipment and accessing training
4. venues, and the opportunity to participate in an accredited training programme.
With the problems of a particular community established, the root causes are also identified, ie approaching the issue wholistically. In most communities, the problems of poverty, umemployment, lack of entertainment and recreation, health related issues such as HIV/Aids, Malaria, other communicable diseases cut accross the board.
Therefore, we work with the District Health Care Unit to support participants with Health education, including Enviromental Hygiene and Sanitation.
The AgriCare programme help solve to some extent, the problem of unemployment.
The toddlers and the kids are not left out in our wholistic approach. They have the playgrounds which are led by ACRO Ghana and are community owned.
Entertainment for the youth is very important and in this regard we have the Cultural Music and Dance which does very well even without electricity.
The problem of the huge remand population in Ghanaian prisons has been an area of concern. The problem of HIV/AIDS in prisons is another area of intervention. Advocacy, therefore, involves first gathering and presenting enough evidence in a world in which multiple crises and innumerable just causes are fiercely competing for attention, legitimacy and urgency. If and when ACRO Ghana succeeds in its pleading, when the issue gains enough political salience to become “an issue”, then the task becomes one of sustaining concern; i.e., keeping it on the political agenda.
To find out whether reforms are feasible (alternative penalties, the appointment of judges to execute and review sentences) it is essential to gain more comparative knowledge of existing statutes and practices in Ghana. All too often, the argument that there are “insufficient resources” is put forward by those who prefer the status quo and who avoid thoughts and actions which require commitment, conviction and energy. It is our humble desire to work with Judges, prison staff members and voluntary workers to look out the way forward despite the harsh socio-economic conditions with which we may have to cope.
I think this has the potential to be a very good program. A recidivism rate at 60% in Ghana is alarming and programs like this will go far in curbing this rate. In what ways does the Agricare program help educate ex-cons and the unemployed?
Charles Rush
Center for the Study of Sport in Society
Northeastern University
Thank you Charles for your interest and comment. Ghana`s economy basically revolves around Agriculture, contributing at least 36% of GDP and employing about 60% of the total population. Literacy is low with unemployment high amongst the youth.
Consequently, what ACRO Ghana does is to use sports as platform to attact the unemployed youth in the communities, encourages and supports them to go into farming which requires less start up capital. Arable lands abound every where in the country with farm produce also having huge market potential in and outside the country. The only risk here is to prevent post harvest loses and low pricing during bumper harvest. There are also poverty related offences everywhere and we believe once we make use of available productive resources to improve living, poverty related crimes amongst the youth is catered for.
Secondly, Our main target is to teach to create awareness of peoples civic responsibilities which in many cases is lacking, to prevent crime and other social vices which turn to increase the prison numbers. The withdrawal and absence of family support, along with guilt imposed by society and neighbours sometimes entangles ex-convicts in cycles of crime and prison life. Convicts learn to feel permanently guilty and unworthy to live in a free society. Past loyalty to crime gangs and unfavourable economic conditions increase pressures and hardships which lead to re-offences. We counsel the would be free Prisoner, depending on interest, understanding and committment to integrate him/her in our sports clubs as a first step to find new friends and supports them into the AgriCare programme.
I really am interested in how the push for the unemployed to get involved in agriculture has fared. Farming in general has become more precarious in the recent decades due to climate change - floods and drought leaving crops devastated. Has this not been the case in Ghana? If not, how has the success been in converting the unemployed youth/ex-cons to become farmers? Because so many farmers are subsistence farmers, have you devised methods that will help the farmers enter the marketplace?
Hi Tahn, thanks for going down to the AgriCare programme of ACRO Ghana with your queries.
Ghana is basically an Agricultural country, that is about 70 percent support their livelihood with farming, whether tilling of the land or animal husbandry. That supports the extent to which mother nature align herself to our Agricultural activities.
ACRO Ghana has since 2004 used football to have the various groupings and informing the need to use available resources to improve living. On the specific question as to which extent we have fared in agriculture, we have not done much. This coming farming season would be the first time ACRO Ghana community goes into commercial farms in all centers. Subsistence farming has been an old traditional method whereby each one farmed to support a particularly family. With gradual urbanization and population increases we plan differing from the old practice. ACRO Ghana feels that, we have been born and raised in areas where land is avaiable for farming and therefore, we have to find out how we would fare, since one does not need huge financial capital to start. It is after all labour intensive and labour and land abounds every where!
The climate change has not been seriouly considered, but it is good that you have raised it. Frankly speaking we have not experienced much climatic hazards except the recent past two months when mostly, the northern part of Ghana suffered masive flooding. What has been the weather pattern and worry to farming is sometimes late rains to start the planting season but Nature being good we do come out not, with much crop yield variations over the years. Now that, that is becoming an issure worldwide, we consider working with the Meteological service department to learn more of the weather and its climatic consequences.
The success rate of this programme is put high since all the groups support this AgriCare programme. Dormaa District is leading in Poultry in Ghana and that, there is huge market for cereals as well as root crops and vegetables for the work force in the poultry industry. ACRO Ghana is planning the go into Pigs rearing and also to other viable sectors of the Agric industry. Everybody in ACRO Ghana now knows that, our sports and other groups are for personal and community development, hence their interest and support for any developmental activity.
The Prisons have established farms both for their food suppliments and for teaching inmates how to go into farming. With our establishment we would make sure all those who settle with us put their know how to productive use.
Our worry, however, is post harvest loses particularly during bumper harvests and also with perishable commodities. We are still learning around how best we could preserve our yield in times of good harvest and to cater for vegetables which are perishable. So Tahn, you know, we have many challenges here too, but it is wealth taking this risk than to sit unemployed and we hope, with time we could find appropriate solutions to the challenges that would come our way. We have the potentials to succeed!
I'm not so sure the heading - Over-populated Prisons, re-cycling of crime in Ghana -
is appropriate as it is.
From what I read, and as anyone would expect, I think it's the criminals, rather than crime, that the project seeks to re-cycle. Left to me alone, therefore, I think the heading should read "Over-populated Prisons, re-cycling of CRIMINALS in Ghana".
Kwame, thanks for your response. I thank you also for the comment. I am still interested to read again if you find my explanation for the use of crime instead of criminal not convincing enough. What I meant about that, is people committing one petty offence and after imprisonment committing more serious one. Here I wanted to potray the fact that once remind prisoners are put in the same cells or prisons as the armed robbers and the like, the petty offender can in another round commit a more serious offence. In this case it is the petty offence that, has been re-cycled to a more serious offence by the same person. That civil offenders graduating to become criminals when they finish prison terms.
I also think to some extent that, people commit crimes as necessity or a way to survive and I believe that, when other sources of engagements are provided many of the crimes could be avoided. I am in contact with Prison authorities and it is quite amazing to hear them say, many of the convicts are from petty offences like stealing a mobile phone, cassava, goats, soup from kitchen, unable to pay a loan, etc and these are convicts we would want find, in the end,alternative punishment for and not to be in confinement. However, those who have served their prison terms and are committed to join any of ACRO Ghana programmes to re-integrate would certainly have a place. It would be told that, some of the same offenders come again into prison with much more serious crime than the earlier ones. Here it could be argued that, the same person has its earlier offence re-cycled to much more serious one. In effect, we are much concern about the type of offence that leads people to prison and not the individual perse. There are some whom no matter what, would not change and there are many others who are prepared to be shown the way and they are done.
Thank you for your time, and I want to say I enjoy reading from you.
There seems to be a great partnership or dialog opportunity for you as another entrant is working on the prison system through sports in South Africa. http://changemakers.net/en-us/node/2234 Although the age groups may be different, there will be lots of overlaps and it could potentially be a powerful collaboration!
This project seems very interesting to us. With such a high rate of recidivism, we really agree upon the necessity of social rehabilitating actions. Notwithstanding we would like to ask you to clarify some few points. The title of your project highlights the overpopulation in the prison. In what way are you planning to face that? Is it one of your aims to use sport activities and AgriCare to educate the children in order to prevent them from criminal activities and therefore prevent the overpopulation in the prison?
In the presentation you explain that in prison an environment of diseases exists. The evolution of severe diseases might develop, in some of the convicts, to disabilities making them unable to participate in farming activities. We would like to know if Agricare (in the future) wants to provide some courses to ex-detainees with disabilities. Besides, you explain that the HIV/AIDS is common in the prisons. Thus, we were wondering if HIV/AIDS education programs are planned to be implemented.
The idea of going into the prisons to create awareness among the detainees on the re-integration is really brilliant. On this point, we also would like to know if you plan to implement AgriCare within the jails in order to work with the nearly released prisoners and therefore promote a faster integration within the society.
Your project will surely have an impact on the society. Thus, evaluation of the efficiency is a central point to promote the implementation of your project and the development of the concept countrywide or even worldwide. What are the tools that are planned to be used to assess the project? Do you plan to evaluate the impact on the recidivism rate within your target group or the crime rate of your youths?
We are looking forward to hear your answers and wish all the success for your project.
Regards,
Steffi and Pierre
Mathare Youth Sports Association, Kenya
Kids with Disabilities Project
Mathare Youth Sports Association, Kenya is one organisation I have longed to contact to exchange ideas. It is great that you wrote, thank you so much.
As a result of poverty and population increases, people are fleeing from their responsibilities, creating problems amongst friendly relations. Poverty accounts for many of the troubles created by many communities.
The news report on ghanaweb above says that 51% of last years reported cases are from stealing. Therefore, the population increases in Prisons are mostly caused by mostly stealing, and other poverty related offences. We approach this problem in 2 ways:-
Firstly, as you mentioned rightly, we support creating enable enviroment to disadvantaged people who are proned to crime. With our engagement in Sports, Cultural Dancing music, kids playgrounds and AgriCare programmes, we entertain as well as finding practical solutions to the youth's problems. These, take them away from crime as well as giving hope to the hopeless. Our volunteers help interact with participants to learn more about what is in their minds and with the parents support we try find lasting solutions.
We set up our community farms whilst the Prisons have their farms to train inmates in Agriculture and also produce food to suppliment what the government buys. In effect we are more with sports, HIV/Aids and the Prisons take the trade training aspect. Therefore, those willing to trade in Agriculture get background knowledge from the Prisons making it convenient to settle in the farming communities.
Secondly, those who have already committed offences and have served theirs sentences are given second chances in the communities they lived in. These who are interested and are willing to change are supported by finding new friends in the various groups as first step to re-integration.
With issue of HIV/Aids advocacy and disabilities, it is the aim of ACRO Ghana to engage all without any form of discrimination. Therefore, all are catered for in the programmes. Two weeks ago we placed one of the young girls, aged 17 to learn trade when we interacted with parents to find out that, they could no more on their own take care of her and her sibling. In this way ACRO Ghana acts as intermiediary in job placement by recommending and finding job opportunities not only in the Agric sector but all other sectors for the needy. We plan training some of them to run the various offices in their localities.
On HIV/Aids, we work with Dormaa Primary Health Care on our HIV/Aids advocacy in the Districts and beyond.
Our evaluation is based on the number of ex-cons we are able to re-settle. On the youth in the communities we work closely with the Police stations and our community leaders to find out how many of our members have been reported of offences having previous reports as basis.
Hope I am able to answer your questions satisfactorily, else do not hesitate to contact me for more clarification. Apart from this tread, you could also write to garoghana@yahoo.com for more interactions, I enjoy knowing more of your programmes as well.
Hi Adu,
I liked reading about your activities in the prison. It seems like you have a full plate going on there.
So do you all have programs specifically designed to reduce the recidivision rate, especially in the case of minor offenders? Are the prison quarters designed such that you can do such a thing, by separating minor offenders from serious offenders? How do you all manage the different programs amongst the prisoners?
Many people are looking to reach and rehabilitate prisoners, especially due to the gang populations, which often include younger offenders, who have adopted that lifestyle as a way of fitting in.
Most people appreciate a bit of wholesome attention, even prisoners.
Dear Lady A, thanks for your interest and the quieries raised.
First to get access to the Prisons is not very easy as result of security concerns. This in a way limit our presence, however in promoting sports we are able to work with the security agencies in and around the Prisons to let our voices heard. We advocate human right abuses, HIV /Aids, and other issues that are important to the Prison Administration and general public as well as inmates.
The above link throws more light on our advocacy on the overpopulated prisons. We see the solution to this in two ways:-
To make sure youth at disadvantaged areas who are prone to crimes are engaged, that crime would not readily be committed to increase the prison numbers.
That those who have already committed would get the chance of a new way of life when they get out of prison. In that, get the needed support to find a better life to contribute to society which admits them. We make sure our community programmes absolve them as first step to find new friends on their way to re-integration.
Consequently, ACRO Ghana is ready to take on ex-cons by interacting with civil society to understand the need for ex-cons to find their place in our mist. We are well entrenced in the farming areas which make it easier to re-settle those who have interest in farming.
The Prisons have different trade training for not hard criminals which support our re-integration programme. That said we have to bear in mind that, because government resources are streched, it does not rank the prisons high on its priority lists making it very difficult for all inmates to have skillful trade after serving, making farming the only viable choice.
Ghana has juvenal prison for boys which is part of our programme. Notwithstanding, it is not uncommon to see minors in the main prisons designed for adults. This is as a result of overpopulation and lack of facilities. As part of our long term programme, we advocate for minor offences to be punished out of prison confinements which would in many ways reduce the prison numbers.
Governments spend huge resources in policing the people, however, as the above news report indicates, the results are not too good and unless some thing concrete is done to abroot the the causes of all these many petty crimes which re-cycle to be hard core crimes, we are not safe after all.
I'm called Lukman, from Ghana, i belong to a Youth Association and our aims and objective is to bring peace among the youth of my community and also to take up cleaning compaigns inorder to reduce disease such as malaria, colera and other diseases, we also educate the youth the danger of HIV AIDS, prevention, and how to live with the victim, so what i need is education on this issue, ie. advice, tibs, etc, so that i can pass it on to association, and looking at your exprience u can educate me on this issue, that;s why i come to u for Help...By the congralution on the awards and more grease to your elbow, God bless you..... sirlukman@hotmail.com Regards Lukman
Thursday, November 8, 2007 - 11:12
sirluk
Dear Mr. Lukman, thank you so much for the issues you are dealing with in your community. I am prepared to give all the support we have and you may also need. I would be glad if you could give me your specific location in Ghana, that would certainly help us to locate you and your association for any collaboration.
your project sounds delightful and extremely useful to me. i appreciate your idea to use football for a good purpose. are there also any plans to contact youth that have been in prison or even are imprisoned?
Thanks Bene. ACRO Ghana believes that most of the offences committed by some of the youth are of neccessity. They are on the streets, no home, no mentors, no guidance and are going hungry. So we engage as many as come to us to let them use their energies for productive purposes. We also operate in one only Juneval prison in Ghana, that by providing recreation, they would listen and behave diffently when they get of prison.
So yes to your question, we are already there doing all we can, to engage those who are not yet in prison and re-integrate those who offend. The key role in the Prisons is more of advocacy. Finding alternative punishments to less serious offences and take the youth out of the streets.
Hi Adu,
How are you? Great to see you up here and so much activity on your awesome project! Are you planning to take advantage of the Cup of Nations in Ghana at all to draw attention to the great work you are doing and the issues you are tackling?
All the best,
Ziba
Hi Ziba it is good to hear from you again. Thanks for the reminder, for I think next year is an opportune year to publize our image. We are on it. We are already in contact with some groups to make documentary about what we do.
Most likely we could also meet the regional Country Manager of Mercy Corps to discuss possibilities of sports kits. In all ACRO Ghana is doing fine and hope sooner most of our presssing needs would be over.
tells how South African soccer is connected with prison leagues and how important prison sports can be in general. Drawing on that history in a moment when the world is looking to Africa...might that be a chance of getting more attention for what you are doing?
Also, I´d be interested to know if any of your activities bring inmates to communities and help them prepare for a life after prison. Sport could be an excellent tool to help prisoners establish bonds outside of prison before they get out and don´t know where to turn.
Jasper Nicolaisen
Free University Berlin
University Challenge
Dear Adu
What a great project and interesting comments and answers! Many years ago I visited a women's prison in Peru and saw much of the same problems you are describing. I did not read any specifics on women so I gather your project targets the male prisons only. Or, am I mistaken? Do you have any experience with sports and women prisons in Ghana? If you do I would love to hear more about that. If not, do you think your project could be replicated with women who are in prison and their children? What is the situation of female crime, prisons and prisoners in Ghana. How do you think a project with sport could target and support them? Thank you in advance for your reply,
Astrid Aafjes
Women Win www.womenwin.org
Thank you for participating in this collaborative competition. We value the time and effort you’ve put forth and we would like to offer you feedback and some thought provoking questions from our Evaluation Team.
The project is innovative, as it is the only initiative in Ghana that uses an integrative approach spanning sports, music, and drama to combat crime and reintegrate ex-cons into the community. The project’s scale, however, has thus far been limited to one district. In addition, the project depends on external resources for its sustainability; future expansion, sustained impact, and financial viability would require the development of collaborative partnerships.
Please use this input as both potential insights into your innovations, as well as constructive ideas for how to improve or grow your organization.
Comments
Thank you for sharing your program. Might you be able to clarify the title of your project. Does your program aim to reduce or rehabilitate crime in Ghana? Are you looking to reduce over-population in prisons? I do hope you might be able to clarify the title of your project.
Thank you very much, and I look forward to your reply.
All the very best,
Eli
Eli A. Wolff
Manager, Research & Advocacy
Center for the Study of Sport in Society
Northeastern University
e.wolff@neu.edu
Hi Eli,
thank you much for your interest and your enquiry to the project title. As I mentioned in the submission about prison numbers, the government is doing very little to actually rehabilitate convicts. I read from government ministers and the general population about better policing. By that, is incresing police numbers and equipment. Much as ACRO Ghana agree to this assertion, we believe the source of the problem needs to be looked into as well. Imagine some one stealing a tuber of yam or so going into jail for at least 6 months in the same facility meant for hardend criminals and suffering the same fate. They rather come out with more knowledge of committing serious crimes because there are not enough facilities to rehabilitate them, they rather have enough time to share experiences. Notwithstanding, the prisons are already over populated, some times with remind prisoners. So what ACRO Ghana is advocating is, conditions must to set to prevent crimes particularly amongst the youth whom are mostly unwaged. Added to that, we sought with stakeholders that those who offend are not left on their own after serving their prison terms and minor offenders should be made to pay back by doing community work. Some countries including South Africa is doing that and is paying off.
This project is sending the message across that, we should not use our scanty resources to cater for minor offenders in prisons whilst we engage particularly the youth to prevent crime and re-cycling in the Prisons.
Do not hesitate to write back for more information if the need be.
With kindest regards
Adu Adjei
Project Manager
Dear Mr. Wolff we are grateful to you for you thought concerning the title of this project. Apart from the many health advantages accruing from sports activities, our target is use this platform to improve standards and quality of living. As I stated in my earlier submissions, ACRO Ghana finds it not too convincing for governments which depend on foreign aid to supplement annual budgets to cater for young, energic minor offenders in the prisons.
Ghana is finding it very difficult to manage her prisons. Overpopulated penal establishments can often only provide inadequate conditions for inmates, both physically and psychologically. Prisoners have to be detained for long periods on remand and prisons are frequently unable to carry out the tasks of training and rehabilitation, despite there being stated aims in the national statutory texts which govern them. At the same time, rising crime rates, especially in large conurbation’s, make these inadequacies all the more worrying, Minor offenders are brought into close proximity with more hardened criminals without their being any real possibility for their rehabilitation into society and employment. The suspended sentence whereby court convicts an offender while adjourning the sentencing process for a period during which he is placed under supervision in its form is therefore the basic alternative to custody.
In Ghana it would be possible with time for a supervising court to delegate the probation officer’s function to a social worker, a relative of the offender or ACRO Ghana’s sporting clubs which help them to reintegrate into society. In Zimbabwe and Namibia, one of the conditions of probation can be to carry out a service to the victim of the offence. ACRO Ghana with the support of the Authorities could adopt this to compensate the victim to bring harmony. ACRO Ghana and the government departments responsible of promoting penal reform would run a campaign to inform the public about the problems surrounding the prison system and the advantages to be expected from the new policy, which aims to protect the interests of the society in which the offender has grown up and to which he must continue to belong.
The AgriCare programme of ACRO Ghana is to move from subsistence to commercial to provide employment for the youth and ex-offenders. The effect is poverty reduction, increased quality of standard of living and harmonization of Society.
Your project sounds very interesting and ambitious! I would agree with Eli's comment - I too need some clarification regarding the title of the project.
Another aspect of the project I find very interesting is the aim to be wholistic in your approach. Can you provide more details as to why this is important?
Thanks and all the best,
Usha Selvaraju.
Swiss Academy for Development
Thank you Usha! For the first concern I have tried to explain in Eli's reply and hope you will bear with me to have a look, thank you!
The second issue is the way we involve ACRO Ghana in the communities we operate. The emphasis of ACRO Ghana’s football projects is on participation, personal and social development and fun. Although football is a competitive sport, our projects work to engage young as well as the aged people regardless of individual skill, ability and sex. Through outreach work in the local community, projects target hard-to-reach young people from school who are not in any form of education, training or employment or not involved in any kind of youth provision. Once young people are taking part in activities, project staff and volunteers support them in identifying and addressing any other issues they may be facing, such as problems with drugs, alcohol and general health and fitness.
ACRO Ghana establishes an effective model of working, on which all our football projects are based:
1. Meetings held with local residents’ associations and community groups in order to identify local needs
2. and to recruit adult volunteers to set up and run the clubs. Volunteers are given training and support,
3. including help with establishing a club structure, the provision of equipment and accessing training
4. venues, and the opportunity to participate in an accredited training programme.
With the problems of a particular community established, the root causes are also identified, ie approaching the issue wholistically. In most communities, the problems of poverty, umemployment, lack of entertainment and recreation, health related issues such as HIV/Aids, Malaria, other communicable diseases cut accross the board.
Therefore, we work with the District Health Care Unit to support participants with Health education, including Enviromental Hygiene and Sanitation.
The AgriCare programme help solve to some extent, the problem of unemployment.
The toddlers and the kids are not left out in our wholistic approach. They have the playgrounds which are led by ACRO Ghana and are community owned.
Entertainment for the youth is very important and in this regard we have the Cultural Music and Dance which does very well even without electricity.
The problem of the huge remand population in Ghanaian prisons has been an area of concern. The problem of HIV/AIDS in prisons is another area of intervention. Advocacy, therefore, involves first gathering and presenting enough evidence in a world in which multiple crises and innumerable just causes are fiercely competing for attention, legitimacy and urgency. If and when ACRO Ghana succeeds in its pleading, when the issue gains enough political salience to become “an issue”, then the task becomes one of sustaining concern; i.e., keeping it on the political agenda.
To find out whether reforms are feasible (alternative penalties, the appointment of judges to execute and review sentences) it is essential to gain more comparative knowledge of existing statutes and practices in Ghana. All too often, the argument that there are “insufficient resources” is put forward by those who prefer the status quo and who avoid thoughts and actions which require commitment, conviction and energy. It is our humble desire to work with Judges, prison staff members and voluntary workers to look out the way forward despite the harsh socio-economic conditions with which we may have to cope.
I think this has the potential to be a very good program. A recidivism rate at 60% in Ghana is alarming and programs like this will go far in curbing this rate. In what ways does the Agricare program help educate ex-cons and the unemployed?
Charles Rush
Center for the Study of Sport in Society
Northeastern University
Thank you Charles for your interest and comment. Ghana`s economy basically revolves around Agriculture, contributing at least 36% of GDP and employing about 60% of the total population. Literacy is low with unemployment high amongst the youth.
Consequently, what ACRO Ghana does is to use sports as platform to attact the unemployed youth in the communities, encourages and supports them to go into farming which requires less start up capital. Arable lands abound every where in the country with farm produce also having huge market potential in and outside the country. The only risk here is to prevent post harvest loses and low pricing during bumper harvest. There are also poverty related offences everywhere and we believe once we make use of available productive resources to improve living, poverty related crimes amongst the youth is catered for.
Secondly, Our main target is to teach to create awareness of peoples civic responsibilities which in many cases is lacking, to prevent crime and other social vices which turn to increase the prison numbers. The withdrawal and absence of family support, along with guilt imposed by society and neighbours sometimes entangles ex-convicts in cycles of crime and prison life. Convicts learn to feel permanently guilty and unworthy to live in a free society. Past loyalty to crime gangs and unfavourable economic conditions increase pressures and hardships which lead to re-offences. We counsel the would be free Prisoner, depending on interest, understanding and committment to integrate him/her in our sports clubs as a first step to find new friends and supports them into the AgriCare programme.
I really am interested in how the push for the unemployed to get involved in agriculture has fared. Farming in general has become more precarious in the recent decades due to climate change - floods and drought leaving crops devastated. Has this not been the case in Ghana? If not, how has the success been in converting the unemployed youth/ex-cons to become farmers? Because so many farmers are subsistence farmers, have you devised methods that will help the farmers enter the marketplace?
Thank you in advance for your response!
Tyler Ahn
Changemakers
Hi Tahn, thanks for going down to the AgriCare programme of ACRO Ghana with your queries.
Ghana is basically an Agricultural country, that is about 70 percent support their livelihood with farming, whether tilling of the land or animal husbandry. That supports the extent to which mother nature align herself to our Agricultural activities.
ACRO Ghana has since 2004 used football to have the various groupings and informing the need to use available resources to improve living. On the specific question as to which extent we have fared in agriculture, we have not done much. This coming farming season would be the first time ACRO Ghana community goes into commercial farms in all centers. Subsistence farming has been an old traditional method whereby each one farmed to support a particularly family. With gradual urbanization and population increases we plan differing from the old practice. ACRO Ghana feels that, we have been born and raised in areas where land is avaiable for farming and therefore, we have to find out how we would fare, since one does not need huge financial capital to start. It is after all labour intensive and labour and land abounds every where!
The climate change has not been seriouly considered, but it is good that you have raised it. Frankly speaking we have not experienced much climatic hazards except the recent past two months when mostly, the northern part of Ghana suffered masive flooding. What has been the weather pattern and worry to farming is sometimes late rains to start the planting season but Nature being good we do come out not, with much crop yield variations over the years. Now that, that is becoming an issure worldwide, we consider working with the Meteological service department to learn more of the weather and its climatic consequences.
The success rate of this programme is put high since all the groups support this AgriCare programme. Dormaa District is leading in Poultry in Ghana and that, there is huge market for cereals as well as root crops and vegetables for the work force in the poultry industry. ACRO Ghana is planning the go into Pigs rearing and also to other viable sectors of the Agric industry. Everybody in ACRO Ghana now knows that, our sports and other groups are for personal and community development, hence their interest and support for any developmental activity.
The Prisons have established farms both for their food suppliments and for teaching inmates how to go into farming. With our establishment we would make sure all those who settle with us put their know how to productive use.
Our worry, however, is post harvest loses particularly during bumper harvests and also with perishable commodities. We are still learning around how best we could preserve our yield in times of good harvest and to cater for vegetables which are perishable. So Tahn, you know, we have many challenges here too, but it is wealth taking this risk than to sit unemployed and we hope, with time we could find appropriate solutions to the challenges that would come our way. We have the potentials to succeed!
I'm not so sure the heading - Over-populated Prisons, re-cycling of crime in Ghana -
is appropriate as it is.
From what I read, and as anyone would expect, I think it's the criminals, rather than crime, that the project seeks to re-cycle. Left to me alone, therefore, I think the heading should read "Over-populated Prisons, re-cycling of CRIMINALS in Ghana".
Thanks.
Kwame, thanks for your response. I thank you also for the comment. I am still interested to read again if you find my explanation for the use of crime instead of criminal not convincing enough. What I meant about that, is people committing one petty offence and after imprisonment committing more serious one. Here I wanted to potray the fact that once remind prisoners are put in the same cells or prisons as the armed robbers and the like, the petty offender can in another round commit a more serious offence. In this case it is the petty offence that, has been re-cycled to a more serious offence by the same person. That civil offenders graduating to become criminals when they finish prison terms.
I also think to some extent that, people commit crimes as necessity or a way to survive and I believe that, when other sources of engagements are provided many of the crimes could be avoided. I am in contact with Prison authorities and it is quite amazing to hear them say, many of the convicts are from petty offences like stealing a mobile phone, cassava, goats, soup from kitchen, unable to pay a loan, etc and these are convicts we would want find, in the end,alternative punishment for and not to be in confinement. However, those who have served their prison terms and are committed to join any of ACRO Ghana programmes to re-integrate would certainly have a place. It would be told that, some of the same offenders come again into prison with much more serious crime than the earlier ones. Here it could be argued that, the same person has its earlier offence re-cycled to much more serious one. In effect, we are much concern about the type of offence that leads people to prison and not the individual perse. There are some whom no matter what, would not change and there are many others who are prepared to be shown the way and they are done.
Thank you for your time, and I want to say I enjoy reading from you.
There seems to be a great partnership or dialog opportunity for you as another entrant is working on the prison system through sports in South Africa. http://changemakers.net/en-us/node/2234 Although the age groups may be different, there will be lots of overlaps and it could potentially be a powerful collaboration!
Changemakers Team
Thanks a lot Tahn, I will read the entry and contact them to share ideas and information.
Dear Adu,
This project seems very interesting to us. With such a high rate of recidivism, we really agree upon the necessity of social rehabilitating actions. Notwithstanding we would like to ask you to clarify some few points. The title of your project highlights the overpopulation in the prison. In what way are you planning to face that? Is it one of your aims to use sport activities and AgriCare to educate the children in order to prevent them from criminal activities and therefore prevent the overpopulation in the prison?
In the presentation you explain that in prison an environment of diseases exists. The evolution of severe diseases might develop, in some of the convicts, to disabilities making them unable to participate in farming activities. We would like to know if Agricare (in the future) wants to provide some courses to ex-detainees with disabilities. Besides, you explain that the HIV/AIDS is common in the prisons. Thus, we were wondering if HIV/AIDS education programs are planned to be implemented.
The idea of going into the prisons to create awareness among the detainees on the re-integration is really brilliant. On this point, we also would like to know if you plan to implement AgriCare within the jails in order to work with the nearly released prisoners and therefore promote a faster integration within the society.
Your project will surely have an impact on the society. Thus, evaluation of the efficiency is a central point to promote the implementation of your project and the development of the concept countrywide or even worldwide. What are the tools that are planned to be used to assess the project? Do you plan to evaluate the impact on the recidivism rate within your target group or the crime rate of your youths?
We are looking forward to hear your answers and wish all the success for your project.
Regards,
Steffi and Pierre
Mathare Youth Sports Association, Kenya
Kids with Disabilities Project
Mathare Youth Sports Association, Kenya is one organisation I have longed to contact to exchange ideas. It is great that you wrote, thank you so much.
As a result of poverty and population increases, people are fleeing from their responsibilities, creating problems amongst friendly relations. Poverty accounts for many of the troubles created by many communities.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=133457
The news report on ghanaweb above says that 51% of last years reported cases are from stealing. Therefore, the population increases in Prisons are mostly caused by mostly stealing, and other poverty related offences. We approach this problem in 2 ways:-
Firstly, as you mentioned rightly, we support creating enable enviroment to disadvantaged people who are proned to crime. With our engagement in Sports, Cultural Dancing music, kids playgrounds and AgriCare programmes, we entertain as well as finding practical solutions to the youth's problems. These, take them away from crime as well as giving hope to the hopeless. Our volunteers help interact with participants to learn more about what is in their minds and with the parents support we try find lasting solutions.
We set up our community farms whilst the Prisons have their farms to train inmates in Agriculture and also produce food to suppliment what the government buys. In effect we are more with sports, HIV/Aids and the Prisons take the trade training aspect. Therefore, those willing to trade in Agriculture get background knowledge from the Prisons making it convenient to settle in the farming communities.
Secondly, those who have already committed offences and have served theirs sentences are given second chances in the communities they lived in. These who are interested and are willing to change are supported by finding new friends in the various groups as first step to re-integration.
With issue of HIV/Aids advocacy and disabilities, it is the aim of ACRO Ghana to engage all without any form of discrimination. Therefore, all are catered for in the programmes. Two weeks ago we placed one of the young girls, aged 17 to learn trade when we interacted with parents to find out that, they could no more on their own take care of her and her sibling. In this way ACRO Ghana acts as intermiediary in job placement by recommending and finding job opportunities not only in the Agric sector but all other sectors for the needy. We plan training some of them to run the various offices in their localities.
On HIV/Aids, we work with Dormaa Primary Health Care on our HIV/Aids advocacy in the Districts and beyond.
Our evaluation is based on the number of ex-cons we are able to re-settle. On the youth in the communities we work closely with the Police stations and our community leaders to find out how many of our members have been reported of offences having previous reports as basis.
Hope I am able to answer your questions satisfactorily, else do not hesitate to contact me for more clarification. Apart from this tread, you could also write to garoghana@yahoo.com for more interactions, I enjoy knowing more of your programmes as well.
Hi Adu,
I liked reading about your activities in the prison. It seems like you have a full plate going on there.
So do you all have programs specifically designed to reduce the recidivision rate, especially in the case of minor offenders? Are the prison quarters designed such that you can do such a thing, by separating minor offenders from serious offenders? How do you all manage the different programs amongst the prisoners?
Many people are looking to reach and rehabilitate prisoners, especially due to the gang populations, which often include younger offenders, who have adopted that lifestyle as a way of fitting in.
Most people appreciate a bit of wholesome attention, even prisoners.
Thanks for your program,
lady a
Dear Lady A, thanks for your interest and the quieries raised.
First to get access to the Prisons is not very easy as result of security concerns. This in a way limit our presence, however in promoting sports we are able to work with the security agencies in and around the Prisons to let our voices heard. We advocate human right abuses, HIV /Aids, and other issues that are important to the Prison Administration and general public as well as inmates.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=133457
The above link throws more light on our advocacy on the overpopulated prisons. We see the solution to this in two ways:-
To make sure youth at disadvantaged areas who are prone to crimes are engaged, that crime would not readily be committed to increase the prison numbers.
That those who have already committed would get the chance of a new way of life when they get out of prison. In that, get the needed support to find a better life to contribute to society which admits them. We make sure our community programmes absolve them as first step to find new friends on their way to re-integration.
Consequently, ACRO Ghana is ready to take on ex-cons by interacting with civil society to understand the need for ex-cons to find their place in our mist. We are well entrenced in the farming areas which make it easier to re-settle those who have interest in farming.
The Prisons have different trade training for not hard criminals which support our re-integration programme. That said we have to bear in mind that, because government resources are streched, it does not rank the prisons high on its priority lists making it very difficult for all inmates to have skillful trade after serving, making farming the only viable choice.
Ghana has juvenal prison for boys which is part of our programme. Notwithstanding, it is not uncommon to see minors in the main prisons designed for adults. This is as a result of overpopulation and lack of facilities. As part of our long term programme, we advocate for minor offences to be punished out of prison confinements which would in many ways reduce the prison numbers.
Governments spend huge resources in policing the people, however, as the above news report indicates, the results are not too good and unless some thing concrete is done to abroot the the causes of all these many petty crimes which re-cycle to be hard core crimes, we are not safe after all.
I'm called Lukman, from Ghana, i belong to a Youth Association and our aims and objective is to bring peace among the youth of my community and also to take up cleaning compaigns inorder to reduce disease such as malaria, colera and other diseases, we also educate the youth the danger of HIV AIDS, prevention, and how to live with the victim, so what i need is education on this issue, ie. advice, tibs, etc, so that i can pass it on to association, and looking at your exprience u can educate me on this issue, that;s why i come to u for Help...By the congralution on the awards and more grease to your elbow, God bless you..... sirlukman@hotmail.com Regards Lukman
Thursday, November 8, 2007 - 11:12
sirluk
Dear Mr. Lukman, thank you so much for the issues you are dealing with in your community. I am prepared to give all the support we have and you may also need. I would be glad if you could give me your specific location in Ghana, that would certainly help us to locate you and your association for any collaboration.
you may also write privately to: garoghana@yahoo.com
Hope to hear from you again soon
with kindest regards
Adu Adjei
Project Manager, ACRO Ghana
Hi Adu,
your project sounds delightful and extremely useful to me. i appreciate your idea to use football for a good purpose. are there also any plans to contact youth that have been in prison or even are imprisoned?
All the best for your project!
Benedikt Fecher
Spirit of Football Project Group
University of Erfurt, current student
www.spiritoffootball.com
Thanks Bene. ACRO Ghana believes that most of the offences committed by some of the youth are of neccessity. They are on the streets, no home, no mentors, no guidance and are going hungry. So we engage as many as come to us to let them use their energies for productive purposes. We also operate in one only Juneval prison in Ghana, that by providing recreation, they would listen and behave diffently when they get of prison.
So yes to your question, we are already there doing all we can, to engage those who are not yet in prison and re-integrate those who offend. The key role in the Prisons is more of advocacy. Finding alternative punishments to less serious offences and take the youth out of the streets.
Once again thank you for your interest.
Hi Adu,
How are you? Great to see you up here and so much activity on your awesome project! Are you planning to take advantage of the Cup of Nations in Ghana at all to draw attention to the great work you are doing and the issues you are tackling?
All the best,
Ziba
Hi Ziba it is good to hear from you again. Thanks for the reminder, for I think next year is an opportune year to publize our image. We are on it. We are already in contact with some groups to make documentary about what we do.
Most likely we could also meet the regional Country Manager of Mercy Corps to discuss possibilities of sports kits. In all ACRO Ghana is doing fine and hope sooner most of our presssing needs would be over.
with best regards
Adu
...or even the FIFA World Cup in South Africa 2010? This story
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/worldcup/2006-07-06-robben-island-...
tells how South African soccer is connected with prison leagues and how important prison sports can be in general. Drawing on that history in a moment when the world is looking to Africa...might that be a chance of getting more attention for what you are doing?
Also, I´d be interested to know if any of your activities bring inmates to communities and help them prepare for a life after prison. Sport could be an excellent tool to help prisoners establish bonds outside of prison before they get out and don´t know where to turn.
Jasper Nicolaisen
Free University Berlin
University Challenge
Dear Adu
What a great project and interesting comments and answers! Many years ago I visited a women's prison in Peru and saw much of the same problems you are describing. I did not read any specifics on women so I gather your project targets the male prisons only. Or, am I mistaken? Do you have any experience with sports and women prisons in Ghana? If you do I would love to hear more about that. If not, do you think your project could be replicated with women who are in prison and their children? What is the situation of female crime, prisons and prisoners in Ghana. How do you think a project with sport could target and support them? Thank you in advance for your reply,
Astrid Aafjes
Women Win
www.womenwin.org
Dear Adu:
Thank you for participating in this collaborative competition. We value the time and effort you’ve put forth and we would like to offer you feedback and some thought provoking questions from our Evaluation Team.
The project is innovative, as it is the only initiative in Ghana that uses an integrative approach spanning sports, music, and drama to combat crime and reintegrate ex-cons into the community. The project’s scale, however, has thus far been limited to one district. In addition, the project depends on external resources for its sustainability; future expansion, sustained impact, and financial viability would require the development of collaborative partnerships.
Please use this input as both potential insights into your innovations, as well as constructive ideas for how to improve or grow your organization.
Warm regards,
The Changemakers Team
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