Help Bridge Kids Ghana & Malawi Raise the Bar

Help Bridge Kids Ghana raise the roof on their school and Bridge Kids Malawi start their Village Savings & Loan Project

A fundraising campaign for Bridge Kids International

Raise the Roof, Finish the School, Educate a Community!


 


Bridge Kids International is raising $2000 to help Bridge Kids Ada purchase the metal roof sheets and have them professionally installed.  The rainy season is coming, so they need to finish the roof by moving day on April 25th. 

We are also raising $200 to purchase a refurbished laptop.  They are operating the school on one borrowed computer!


In Dawhenya, Ghana Bridge Kids Ada is getting ready to raise the roof!  The Bridge Kids Ghana School is almost a reality.  After the success of their My Book, My Friend literacy project, the local community asked BK Ada to open a school in the area.  With local support and a $1,000 investment from Bridge Kids International, the intrepid group members opened the school at a local church in September 2017.  A year and a half later, they have 91 students!  The school has been operating on modest school fees which families cannot always pay and the grit of BK Ada members.  A few of the group leaders are trained teachers and they have hired others. 


Residence at the church was always meant to be temporary, but a ruling by the government that schools could no longer operate in churches hastened the need for a separate building.  With a $4000 investment from Bridge Kids International and friends Bridge Kids Ada began construction on their school in the fall of 2018.  BK Group members have put in hours of sweat equity and even mined and sold salt from a local lagoon to raise money.  They endured a frustrating work stoppage for months due to unexpected permitting issues.  They have come so far!  Now construction is in high gear, but they must vacate the church by April 25th.

With the support of Bridge Kids International Group Coordinator Felix, Richmond and the other Bridge Kids Ada members are considering how they can generate more funds for their programs through the use of the building.  Outside of school hours they are planning to rent space for community gatherings and events. We are confident they will come up with some creative ideas to make their work sustainable and support their ambitious goals!


Village Savings & Loan Project Changes the Equation for Girls and Young Women



You can help the inspiring girls and young women of Bridge Kids Malawi grow their savings and loan project! Bridge Kids International is raising $1,000 to support their training and loan fund.


Girls and young women in Chikwawa, Malawi are on the move! Bridge Kids International is working with our partner Development Initiative Network (DIN Malawi) to support a group of young women through a village savings and loan project.


The young women have formed a youth club where they have been working collectively to develop work opportunities to increase income, promote gender equality and educate about the importance of the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. Many of the young women are mothers and have dropped out of school.  Early marriage, often forced, is a widespread problem in the region.  With few opportunities for employment, many live in deep poverty.  But for these young women, poverty is just a status, not a destination and it is certainly not a definition!


Through a village savings and loan project (VSL), the young women will gain access to financing, expand their financial knowledge, get entrepreneurial training and help with a business plan for micro-enterprise creation. Lacking access to formal banking services, they have always struggled to save and to borrow money and they are often forced to go to loan sharks who charge exorbitant interest rates.  Through VSL, after their training, the young women, all under age 30, will receive micro-loans to start their businesses. 


After 6 months of operating their businesses, they begin paying back the loan with a small percentage of interest.  The money goes back into the pool for other members to borrow.  With the help of the VSL, many of the young women will engage in agribusiness, tailoring and other enterprises.  They can provide for their families, ensure that their children are educated, and break the cycle of generational poverty.  These young women will be a shining example for their community, demonstrating for boys and girls the importance of gender equity.







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