Projects

Education center

E-Learning: Starting as an idea many years ago, the education centre came into being. In 2004, Gudrun de Vries worked in different projects initiated by another association in Dormaa-Ahenkro. Back in 2004, there was no internet to found in Dormaa, nor were there schools being equipped with computer working places. Computer lessons were and are mostly still given as dry run. This fact brought into being the idea of an education centre, an idea developed in consent with the people of Dormaa. The centre conceptualised as a place for worldwide exchange and mutual exchange likewise, should be for everyone. Moreover, it is thought as a centre where modern technologies enable the people to improve their career opportunities and where people have the chance getting well founded IT and computer knowledge.

Subsequently, the Traditional Council, the local Onipa Nti Ghana N.G.O. and Dormaa’s town hall developed and cooperated on ideas which they considered possible to realise. With the aid of many volunteers and sponsors we succeeded to build the education centre in August 2011. Generously supported by sponsors like Konkreter Friedensdienst (GIZ), GLS Bank, Reisebüro 10.000m GmbH and many others, more than thirty volunteers from Dormaa and Germany realised the education centre.

Nowadays, the education centre has turned into an internet café run by two permanent employees who also give computer lessons. Our biggest challenge is the project becoming financially independent from Germany by means of the earnings which result from the internet café and the computer lessons.

During our last journey to Dormaa (which was in spring 2013), some of Onipa Nti’s executive board members came together with the schools of Dormaa to speak about and develop a concept for e-learning in the education centre. In the beginning the centre was just one big room, with a separate storage room and an office in addition to it. Now, the big room is separated into two so that the internet café and lessons of e-learning can take place at the same time. In exchange for the maintenance of garden, building and computers conducted by pupils of public schools, they are allowed to use the room for e-learning free of charge.

To enable teachers and pupils to start with the e-learning as soon as possible, we need the computers donated by the GLS-Bank and restored by AfB social&green IT being transported to Dormaa. We would be most grateful for any donations and sponsoring to finance the transport of the computers so that they can be used as soon as possible!

Through sponsoring, everyone can help realising our aim of a better education of Dormaa’s next generation. You are invited to use the donation platform betterplace.org or our bank account which you will find under our homepage category “supporting”.

 

Edubuntu

What does Edubuntu stand for?

Edubuntu is a special version of Ubuntu and was optimised for the use in class rooms. It implements the Linux Terminal Server Project and consists of educational software including educational games. Generally, it is an upgraded version of the Linux distribution Ubuntu. It provides educational software which pupils and students can use daily. There are four learning packages which are intended for different ages. They are developed for and divided in the following categories: one package for preschool children (under five), one for schoolchildren (five – twelve years), for pupils of advanced grades (thirteen to eighteen years) and finally for students.

How Onipa Nti applies Edubuntu

Schools can use Edunbuntu for their IT and computer courses. Furthermore, it provides an offline encyclopaedia which pupils can use to look-up things or to search for information. Pupils and students can use the different teaching programmes to learn or to deepen different subjects. In the context of the education centre, pupils and students have the possibility to use Edubuntu outside of school.

Who is Labdoo and what do they mean for Onipa Nti?

The aid project Labdoo.org is a worldwide initiative consisting of volunteers. Labdoo collects laptops which are withdrawn from service to use them in international projects. Thus, projects for schools, children and juveniles are realised worldwide free of charge. Labdoo’s aim is to decrease the “digital gap” in an economically responsible way, donating the laptops. According to a BITKOM study from 10/2012, there are 20mio. computers in private households which are taken from service. These computers are then reprocessed and a Linux based software for children is installed on them, including an offline encyclopaedia in case there is no online access.

It is a win-win situation for everyone: electronic waste is reduced, the “digital gap” is being decreased (in giving children access to education, to IT and to internet), aid projects are supported and transport is carried out CO2 neutral since the computers are part of the luggage of the respective travellers. Labdoo.org supports Onipa Nti with computers and in installing the Edubuntu software. Five laptops were provided for lessons in Dormaa-Ahenkro. At present, teachers are learning to use the Edubuntu software so that they can apply it in their classes.

Programme of the education centre

Aside from the offers for school and internet use, there are no firmly established programmes in the education centre yet. However, there are often requests for various subjects to treat like nutrition, health or movie nights. Our aim is to offer information events in the future which treat various subjects. These events should take place as presentations, debates and rounds of discussion or as movie nights.

Presbytarian Hospital Dormaa-Ahenkro

Apart from the education centre there is the Presbytarian Hospital in Dormaa-Ahenkro. It has been established by Dutch and German doctors a long time ago. It is meant to take care of the whole district which consists of more than 200.000 people, who partly live a long distance away. Although the hospital has to take care of so many people it is lacking in instrumentation, facilities and equipment. That is why Onipa Nti urgently wants to support the hospital by means of donations in kind. The hospital is equipped with a maternity ward, a department for children and men, with a gynaecology, a surgery, an ambulance, an emergency hospitalisation, a laboratory and a X-ray room.

But it is lacking in various things from a blood pressure cuffs, a stethoscope, supply carts, electrocardiograms and a surveillance monitor up to washing machines. Sheets are momentarily washed by hand. The hospital is very happy to welcome nursing staff and doctors from Germany who would like to support them. They are grateful for everything they could learn from them. Students of medicine are very welcomed alike and are guided and instructed very patiently.

Visions for the future

Our measures are meant to change and ameliorate the educational opportunities making them accessible for everyone regardless of age or background. That is why we offer public schools to do their classes at our education centre using our computers. With the aid of an assisted distance learning programme at our education centre, graduates get the opportunity to study if they do not have the financial means to leave Dormaa for a bigger city.

Regarding to the medical sector, we aim for a cooperation between the Presbytarian hospital and hospitals in Germany. Moreover, we aspire to support medical programmes like “Health Care” in villages next to Dormaa supporting both their working and a better medical education. In sending German volunteers to hospitals, nursery schools and schools in Dormaa, we want to contribute to an intercultural exchange. We hope to make it possible to send people from Dormaa to Germany alike in the future. The work and projects of Onipa Nti are meant to give help to the people of Dormaa so that they can help themselves in the future. This is realised by cooperating closely and making decisions together with the local people and public authorities.