This page provides interested people with an in depth look at how GWF attempts to make a difference in the world of education with a unique approach to aid.

However, before we can get into the question - "How does it work?" - a more pressing question must first be addressed: "Does it work?" Surpisingly, this all important question is too often absent in the discussions of aid organizations, and too easily escapes the FAQ pages of most foundations. What should be at the center of all approaches and philosophies regarding aid, has become the white elephant in the room of utopian promises and feel good stories.

A good part of the past five years has been spent equipping ourselves with the knowldge to properly address this question. To find our answers has not been easy, nor should it ever be. We have researched, listened, discussed and observed. We have lived amongst the people we claim to be helping and measured the outcomes of our deeds. When things didn't work, we changed our approach accordingly and gave it another try. On more than one occasion we failed. We have felt overwhelmed with feelings of hopelessness. We have watched an entire education system stagnate to the point of near implosion. We have become doubters in the entire concept of aid.

Yet at the same time, we have watched schools rise from the ashes, providing entire communities with hope and entire generations with dreams. We have seen the smallest organizations do the biggest things - eradicate diseases, feed the hungry, educate the blind, and care for the disabled and disheartened - and most importantly, we have seen Ghanaians lead most of these initiatives. We have learned the value of perserverance. We have learned to count our blessings with our successes and we have learned to find hope in the smallest of triumphs. In the end, we changed some more. Today, after nealy half a decade, GWF is proud to offer, not a final solution, but a step in the right direction.

Today, GWF is cautiously opptimistic that we can be a source of positive change in the communities and the schools that we serve. We have spent uncountable hours building and shaping our organization so that we might be effective and effiecient in our aims. From the most general ideas (working in a succeptible recipient country) to the more complex (intergrating a free market approach to aid), GWF is proud to lend our voice to the discussion regarding effective foreign aid and answer the questions that we are confronted with regularly.

Does Foreign Aid Even Work?

Here are two numbers:

1) 3,200,000,000,000

2) 3,000,000,000

The first represents the amount in total dollars, spend by the "Western World" on aid to "developing countries." The second number represrnts the number of people in the world, roughly half of its popultion, that currently live below the poverty line (less than $2 a day). These numbers are frequently used int he world of aid, often for varying purposes. Some people say that the numbers suggest that aid doesn't work. That it is a crutch, a waste of money and valuable resources that could be used more effectly elsewhere. Respected aid experets and other academians use these numbers and many others to argue against the basic conccepts of foreign aid. Others use these numbers as a starting point. They argue that the first number is not nearly large enough to reduce the second. They argue for more money and more foreign assistance. A third group looks at these numbers and admits that the concepts and practices of aid are inherently flawed. They argue not for the dismissal of aid, but for drastic changes, starting with accountablitity. GWF falls into this third group. Our years in Ghana have placed us here.

The truth remains that the two numbers above can be used to effctley to argue all three stances. Ultimately the choice is up to the individual. It is true that many, I would say most, foreign aid attemtps have either failed completely or did not reach their intended gaols. However, I have seen too many success stories, many of them small, all of them inspirational, to give up on aid completley. GWF has tried to learn from these successes and apply some of the lessons learned to our own approach. We hope that you will feel the same way we do, that aid can work, when common sense and productive practices are applied.

Why Ghana?

It was never our intention to start an organization in Ghana. We were fresh out of college in 2005, and our objectives attested to this. We wanted to get a little teaching expereince, improve our resumes, and travel the world a bit before settling down into our careers. We chose to volunteer in Ghana for two basic reasons: 1) they spoke English, and 2) it was safe. Other than that we didn't know what to expect.

Ghana and English: Years later, the same reasons we chose to travel to Ghana, are the cornerstones for our successes as international aid organization. They seem simple (and they are) but they are so essential to what we do and what we hope to accomplish. That English is their official langauge is not just important because it ensures effective communication, but also it connects a nation in need (Ghana) directly with a nation that produces more volunteer hours (by far) than any other nation in the world (America). This feature also allows GWF to create reciprocal learning projects, service learning opportunities, effective volunteer programs and a genuine interaction between our partners from both sides of the Atlantic - all of which fuel outside participation, an essential component to our success. Finally, it allows GWF to communicate and evaluate our projects in Ghana and make necessary changes effieciently and effectivley.

Ghana and Safety: Statistics (crime rate, prisoner rate, tribal conflicts) help to place Ghana in the lowest tiers for crime and violence in all of the world. That Ghana is safe ensures the longevity of our projects, giving them time to develop and grow into sustainable projects. Many people are familiar with Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, which states that basic needs must be met before an individual can acheive self actualization or begin to realize his or her maximum potential in life. Communities are much like individuals in this way. In order for a community to excel, to realize its potential, basic needs must be provided. Ghana does a relatively good job providing its citizens and communities with these basic needs, espeically in terms of safety. Sure, it's not perfect - corruption is still prevealent - though at a lesser scale than similar counties - droughts still produce panic, and their are still many regions where starvation and tribablism interfere with these basic human needs. However, generally speaking, Ghana as a whole is much more ready to realize its full potential, than other countires with similar GDP's and developmental needs.

Ghana's History: Since our intitial visit in 2005, GWF has learned much more about Ghana that helps attribute to its potential as an aid reciepient. For starters, it's rich history lends to the possibility of future successes. As Britain's prized colony, formal education played a significant role during colonialization. For years, Ghana was often the first or the best in regards to education when compared to any of its African counterparts. These early successes carried over into independence and instilled in its peole a love for knowledge and an appreciation for formal education that exists today. The vast amount of families that pay tuition fees for thier children to attend private schools, despite living below the poverty line, attests to this attribute. This history of successes and firsts, not only in edcation, but in general (first grade school, first country to attain independence, first West African country to get connected to the Internet) helps to create a cycle of success, or as they say, "success breeds success." These proud facts add fuel to the nation's psyche, and drives it people on a quest for superlatives. This fuel is processed during the children's years at school. Education, GWF belives, can be the spark that ignites the untapped potential of its inhibitatns.

Personal reasons

The Negatives: However, despite all of these positives, Ghana is a country that struggles to find its footing on the “ladder of development,” taking baby steps toward the lofty perch of sustainability and economic independence. This is why, according to the IMF, Ghana 's latest GDP per capita rankings had the country 129th out of 179 countries. They came in at $2, 786… just ahead of Sudan . It is no surprise then that the domestic economy continues to revolve around subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 50% of GDP and employs 85% of the work force, mainly small landholders. This too, like the countries success stories, can create its own cycle, this one not so positive. For every child that leaves home for the university, there seems to be a child who leaves grade school for work at home.

Ghana Today: Ghana stands at an important crossroads. With the recent discovery of large amounts of oil deposits off the western coast, the future has never been brighter. But it will take a huge effort to raise this once proud nation out of the cycle of aid and dependence to the once proud nation it once was and strives to be. Mostly this effort must come from within, from those who call it home (and statistics show that many Ghanaians are ready to meet this challenge), with smart, efficient and non-counterproductive support from outsiders who know the country and its problems closely. GWF is a small NGO but we are more then ready to join this effort and do our small part to invest in the most important resource that Ghana has…its people.

Why Education?

With the aids epidemic always lurking, deadly diseases still present, and hunger still a problem, the question, "why are you building schools," is frequently asked and deserves an answer. First, because it is what we know. GWF is comprised mostly of professionally trained teachers. Education is our passion. Our background allows us to advise and to evaluate our partner schools more effectively and more confidently. It has provided us with valuable resources and contacts. Look around our web site, education is integrated into almost every program and project we create. Even our funding comes primarily from service learning projects. We do not pretend to be something we are not.

Education is premise of progress. However, organizations are not judged on the knowledge they possess. Ultimately, they are judged on what they can offer society. We offer assistance to deserving schools in West Africa, so that they might be able to improve the educational opportunities that they provide for their communities. In a country like America, where exceptional free education has been offered for over a century, the value of this commodity is sometimes lost. Kofi Annan - born, raised, and schooled in Ghana - became the Secretary General of the United Nations in 1997. About education he says, “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” About his own schooling at Mfantsipim , one of Ghana's premier secondary schools, he has said that the school taught him "that suffering anywhere concerns people everywhere." Education is no only a springboard for career opportunities and personal advancement, it can be a catalyst for social progress.

Education is proactive.Investing in education is also a proactive form of aid. Rather than deal with problems when they arise (AIDS epidemic, diseases, social unrest), education provides an effective proactive measure to combat these problems before they manifest into epidemics. Proactive measures, such as early education, have more often than not proved to be both cheaper and more effective in combating the more serious problems that developing counties face. Some studies have shown proactive aid to be one tenth the cost of reactive aid. Disease prevention, hygiene, and health are required to be taught to all early grade levels. Ghana's own AIDS problem, although still a serious concern, is one of the lowest rates in all of Africa, at 3.1% compared to 7.5% for the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is no coincidence that they are also one of the most educated countries as well.

Education is the best investment. Besides being one useful measure to prevent serious problems it is also a useful measure to ensure future success. In a sense, it an investment that keeps on giving. One of Ghana's premiere IT universities, Ashesi University was started by Ghana born (and raised), Swarthmore educated, and Microsoft employed, Patrick Awuah. He came from a family without money and prestige, but who valued education. He earned a scholarship to learn in America and the rest is history. Because his family invested in his education decades ago, today thousands of young Ghanaians will get the same chance; the same chance to earn a high paying job, the same chance to pass on the values of education to their children, and the same chance to give back to their country in a meaningful way.

Education is freedom. Not only is it a cornerstone to all democratic nations, it is also the key of an active press that acts as a watch dog for the protector these freedoms. It is the vehicle to personal freedoms as well. It breaks the chains of poverty that dictates and controls peoples lives in every facet - keeps people one place, grips them with fear and apprehension,

Why Private Schools?

GWF works entirely with private schools and, occasionally, education-based organizations in Ghana. The fact that public schools are free and easily accessible to most Ghanaian communities, has led people to wonder why GWF doesn't focus our efforts on helping public schools. Public schools, after all, are the foundation that all developed nations are built upon. There are two answers to this legitimate question:

1) Too many problems

2) Too few solutions (not a market approach)

market economy

What makes GWF effective?

-maximize our effort and donations

-let the experts decide

-keep it simple

-feedback and accountability - adding a free market approach to aid

-partnerships

-no utopian goals v. saying the right thing - realistic ideas =volunteer program is an example

-asking the right questions??????????????????????

So who are searchers? First, Ghanaians. Then we search for them.

Working in Ghana

Why education

Working with Private schools - not against public schools, but a special opp. would have to arise.