Artisans in Ghana face floods

CRS Fair Trade supports the work of basket weavers in northern Ghana, as well as cocoa farmers in the central region of Kumasi. We are saddened to hear some of the very regions the Raise Money Right delegation visited last month are facing unrelenting rains in West Africa that started in July. CRS will respond with humanitarian aid in Ghana, Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali.

The flooding – the worst in recent memory – toppled thousands of homes and destroyed crops. CRS plans to assist families to rebuild their homes and help them revive their fields. Assessments continue and the number of people affected may grow.

Northern Ghana was the hardest hit with more than 260,000 people affected. There, schools, bridges and large tracts of farm land have been inundated, and the government has declared a state of emergency in three northern regions. Initial assessments by the Ghanaian government estimate that flooding caused 18 deaths and the loss of 20,000 homes. Some 8,000 acres of farm land was flooded.

“Most schools are unable to reopen for the academic year because the classrooms have been occupied by displaced people,” says Daniel Ayugane, CRS’ Head of Programs in Tamale, Ghana. “One displaced woman we talked to in the town of Saboba had taken refuge in a classroom. She said that she had lost all her clothes as a result of the floods. What she was wearing was all she had.”

As U.S. school children return to school this fall, we offer teaching resources to help them get to know the people of Ghana through our Fair Trade chocolate and crafts programs.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 23rd, 2007 and is filed under Beyond Fair Trade, Chocolate, Fair Trade, crafts . You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Artisans in Ghana face floods

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