Teacher Profile: Ernest "Saga" Badu

Why do you like teaching with GHEI?

Because I am helping my community. My work with GHEI has also taught me self-confidence. When I first started teaching, I could not even stand in front of 10 students and speak. Now, I can stand before 1000 with confidence.

Why do people call you “Saga”?

“Saga” is short for “Sagacious”. I acquired this name a few years ago, because “sagacious” is my favorite word. It means ‘wise’ and I like to think I am ‘wise’ beyond my years.

Tell me about your background.

I come from Humjibre and I am the oldest of 5 children. My family are cocoa farmers, so I grew up working on the farm. For schooling, I attended primary and junior high here in Humjibre, before going to Sefwi Bekwai for senior high as a GHEI scholarship student.

What are your hobbies?

Football! I played on the boys football team when I was in school. In 2006, my junior high team made it all the way to District finals, the farthest any Humjibre school team has gone in football competition. I still play with the local football team called FGS.

Does FGS stand for something?

At first, we were the ‘Fear Girls Squad,’ but now we are the ‘Foreign Giants Squad’.

Dare I ask why you were the ‘Fear Girls Squad’?

Because, at the time we were afraid of girls. They will break your heart, you know? But, now we are the Foreign Giants Squad because many of us are returning students [from senior high boarding school] so we see ourselves as somehow foreign. And ‘Giants’ because we want to intimidate the other teams, of course!

How did you become involved with GHEI?

I participated in a 2-week summer camp 2005. A group of foreign volunteers ran the camp, and we did activities like science experiments, art projects, and educational games. In fall 2005, I was among GHEI’s first group of senior high scholarship students. When I graduated senior high in 2008, I returned to Humjibre and have been teaching with GHEI ever since.

What is your favorite subject?

Math is my favorite subject to learn and to teach, because it comes naturally to me. I love using logic to solve problems. I think that’s why I like math so much.

Tell me about your career goals.

At first I wanted to be an accountant, which is why I studied Business in senior high. But now, I want to pursue teaching as a career because of my experience teaching for GHEI. I love teaching, because when I am teaching, I am also learning. I learn something from my students almost every day.

For more information on GHEI Education Programs, visit http://ghei.org/health_and_education_programs.html

--Natalie Rich, GHEI Communications Director

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6-Year Old Receives Life-Saving Heart Surgery

In partnership with Boston Children’s Hospital in Ghana, GHEI has facilitated a successful heart surgery for another patient in the BAB District. Six-year-old Portia Adjei Nipa (pictured left) was diagnosed with heart disease as an infant at the Ghana Bauxite Company hospital, a private hospital in Ghana’s Western Region. For years she suffered bouts of lethargy and difficulty breathing before she was hospitalized in 2008 at Korle-Bu Hospital in Ghana’s capital, Accra, where she received an initial cardiac surgery. She needed a follow-up operation, which was scheduled for April 2010 and would cost a prohibitive 6,000 euros. Her father (pictured right with Portia) tried in vain to fund-raise this money while Portia’s health rapidly declined: she was too weak to walk, talk, or attend school.

Thanks to the assessment and referral of UCLA Pediatric residents working with GHEI, Portia received her second surgery in October 2010. A team of pediatric cardiac surgeons from Boston Children’s Hospital supervised the surgery at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) as part of a medical mission to develop a self-sustaining pediatric cardiac center in Ghana. In 2008, GHEI began working with the Boston Children’s Hospital in Ghana team to identify rurally-based children with congenital heart disease and refer them for free surgery. Since her surgery in October, Portia has shown marked improvement: she walks and talks freely and her recovery looks promising. To date, 6 children have been treated for congenital heart disease and 4 have received life-saving heart surgeries thanks to GHEI’s advocacy efforts.

Read more about GHEI’s support of local health services on our website: http://ghei.org/health/support_of_local_healthcare_services.html

For more information on Boston Children’s Hospital in Ghana, visit their website: http://childrensinghana.typepad.com/childrens_hospital_boston/childrens-in-ghana.htm


--Natalie Rich, GHEI Communications Director

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GHEI Community Health Worker Wins District Assembly Election

“I am proud to be the youngest District Assemblyperson in this district” beamed 24-year-old Dickson Ackah Mensah, the newly elected local representative and GHEI Community Health Worker. On the last day of 2010, constituents of the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai (BAB) District of Ghana’s Western Region cast their ballots in the local elections. According to their website (http://bab.ghanadistricts.gov.gh/):

The Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District Assembly (BABDA) was set up in 1988. Like all other districts/municipal/metropolitan Assemblies, it was set up to decentralize national administration and development and to afford opportunities to all localities to identify and resolve their social and development problems. BABDA ‘s jurisdiction covers 30 Assembly Electoral Areas made up of 9 Area Councils and 110 Unit Committees. The functions of the Assembly fall in three main areas. These are:

• Legislative which involves the formulation of bye-laws within the district;
• Deliberative which involves the various discussions and deliberations made on the development of the district; and
• Executive Functions which involves the execution of policies and projects within the district.

After securing 65% of the vote, Dickson Ackah Mensah won a seat in the District Assembly representing the Ampenkro electoral area. Assembly representatives serve a 4-year term, without term limits, and do not get paid for their service. Here, Dickson discusses his decision to run for District Assembly and goals for his upcoming term:

GHEI: Tell me about your background.

DICKSON: Both of my parents died when I was young so my uncle, who is a primary school teacher, took responsibility for me and funding my education. I completed primary and junior high school here in Ampenkrom, my home village, before attending Bekwai Senior High School, where I studied Business. I graduated senior high in 2007.

GHEI: How did you become involved with GHEI?

DICKSON: In August 2008, I was selected to be trained as a Peer Educator in GHEI’s Multi-Sectoral HIV and AIDS Program [HIV education program that GHEI implemented 2007-2010 in partnership with the Ghana AIDS Commission]. As a Peer Educator, I conducted outreaches in and around Ampenkrom, educating young people about HIV/AIDS prevention, and I helped plan GHEI’s World AIDS Day Event in 2008, hosted by Ampenkrom. In 2010, I became a GHEI Community Health Worker and coordinated the summer de-worming program in Ampenkrom with a group of US volunteers.

GHEI: Why did you choose to run for District Assembly?

DICKSON: I have seen so many problems in this community, and I felt that local elected officials were not doing enough to help. I wanted to address some of these problems, like the lack of proper school infrastructure and education supplies, so that I can help the people in my community.

GHEI: What area do you represent as District Assemblyman?

DICKSON: I represent Ampenkrom, which is around 2000 people, and Gyponkrom, which is only about 60 people.

GHEI: Can you tell me more about your duties as Assemblyman?

DICKSON: The first thing I will do, after being sworn in later this month, is meet with the newly elected Unit Committee to draft our strategic plan for the year which we will then submit for district approval. The District Assembly formally meets 4 times per year in Bibiani [district capital] to review progress on our strategic plans. As Assemblyman, I will meet with the Unit Committee [5-member elected administrative body] every 2 weeks to address our goals in the strategic plan.

GHEI: What do you hope to accomplish as District Assemblyman?

DICKSON: First, I want to focus on education. We have 1 primary school here with over 200 students and 1 Junior High with 74 students, but we lack sufficient teachers. Also, many of our classrooms do not have chairs for the students or supplies like books. The primary school building is also in very poor condition. So I hope to appeal to the District Leaders for funding and solutions to these issues. In regards to health, I want to propose building a community-based clinic for this area, because the nearest clinic is more than 6 kilometers from here and many people have no choice but to walk. We really need a clinic here.

For more information on the district in which GHEI operates, the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District, visit their website http://bab.ghanadistricts.gov.gh/. For further information on district and regional government in Ghana, go to http://www.ghanadistricts.com/home/

--Natalie Rich, GHEI Communications Director

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