Child Sponsorship Background from Kumasi, Ghana

SOS Children’s Village Kumasi  

The SOS Children's Village Kumasi is situated in the centre of Asokore Mampong, a little town in the suburbs of Kumasi, and was built on a site of around five hectares of land. It consists of 12 family houses, the Village Director's house, a service and administration block, a house for the SOS aunts (SOS mothers in training, who support the SOS mothers), sports facilities and a playground.

Other SOS Projects in Kumasi

An SOS Nursery and an SOS Primary School opened their gates to the children from the SOS Children’s Village and the neighbouring community. The SOS Nursery comprises three classes and an administration area. It can be attended by up to 60 children. The SOS Primary School consists of seven classrooms, an administrative area, a workshop, a library and a canteen. The primary school can admit up to 210 children.

An SOS Social Centre combined with an SOS Medical Centre is in construction with the aim of providing medical care to the people in the neighbourhood, informing them about local prevention measures, providing families in need with social and material assistance and offering counselling regarding child education and career guidance for parents. The centre comprises rooms for consultation, treatment, isolation and observation as well as a room for sterilizing equipment, a dispensary and rooms for the director, the educators and the social workers.

Background to Kumasi

Kumasi is the capital of Ashanti region and the second biggest city of Ghana, with approximately 1.5 million inhabitants. It is situated 250km northwest of Accra. Due to its growing industry (wood, cocoa) and mining activities (gold), Kumasi is an economic centre and a place towards which a lot of people gravitate in the hope of finding a job, even if it is only a temporary one. In this situation of increasing migration and social and economic uncertainty, slums are multiplying, prostitution is on the rise and the number of both direct and indirect victims is growing (higher rate of unwanted pregnancies, more HIV infections and AIDS cases). Children suffer most. Given the lack of infrastructure focusing on aid for children as well as medical prevention and treatment, the necessity of setting up SOS Children's Village facilities became clear.