The Classroom Experience vs the Field Experience

By Gloria Makafui Dovoh, 1st year MDP student

One of my greatest aspirations in my academic career is to apply my classroom knowledge to practical experiences. I consider this an essential background to suggest sustainable interventions for issues related to gender and education. I embarked on a journey to experience practical learning with the Regional Advisory and Information Systems (RAINS) in Ghana.

RAINS is a non-governmental organization that works with communities and development partners to improve the quality of life for vulnerable groups such as children, women, girls and people with disabilities. RAINS strengthens local structures to take actions to promote and ensure fairness for all people in society. The organization envisions a just society that is based on equity with equal opportunities for all and respect for diversity. 

RAINS logo - two interlocking horns

The interesting thing about RAINS is the variety of projects available, ranging from; alternative approaches to education, women and girls empowerment programs and supporting smallholder farmers’ adaptive capacities to climate change. Interestingly, all of these project activities have gender issues cutting across. My work here is simple - To participate and learn from the various activities the organization is undertaking with various communities in Northern Ghana.    

From interactions with some community members and project officers, the issue of female migration has been reported to be exceptionally difficult to tackle. Young females migrate independently of their families to urban and/or peri-urban areas in search of greener pastures. These young females are usually vulnerable since they have a low economic capacity, low education or training among other structural vulnerabilities. This practice of young girls migrating down south happens to be deeply rooted in the conventions of the people for many decades and seems too complex to eliminate.

Children at African Union Day of the African Child 

Based on this experiential learning, I realized the importance of considering the context and cultural principles of the said community in order to understand these practices. Relationship building and open-mindedness are also useful tools for working with community members. 

A striking report on the dynamics of migration explains how social status is gained as a result of migration. “Girls who return from urban areas are perceived to have higher social status than girls who have not migrated. Additionally, migrant females are more likely to be empowered and confident in comparison to their non-migrant counterparts.” - Female community member.   

"Also in some communities, returnee female migrants have higher bride prices as compared to their non-migrant counterparts.” - RAINS Project Officer.             

Indigenous Tree Foods of Northern Ghana

By Naomi Gichungu, 2nd year MDP student

Ghana had never been my intention, I had dreamt and envisioned myself in Vietnam. It has however been a rewarding experience, in the country estimated to be the closest to the center of the earth. I have had a lot of fun making new friends, using the public transport, and interning with Tree Aid Ghana. Working in the area of food and nutrition security in the North has also been a great treat. 

Northern Ghana has three different regions; Upper East, Upper West and the Northern regions. These regions are characterized by Savannah grasslands and scattered shrubs and trees. They experience the least and erratic rainfall compared to the rest of the country and therefore long drought spells. Future projections further predict an increase in the temperature from 1.0 to 3.0 °C by 2060, with the highest increases in Northern Ghana. Such conditions have shaped the work of Tree Aid Ghana. 

Working on the questionnaire with the field officer/ interpreter during the pretest

Focus Group Discussion in Pindaa Village during the pretest

With the intention to alleviate poverty and ensure community food and nutrition security, Tree Aid invests in Indigenous food trees. It works with communities to create enterprises around non-timber forest products while encouraging preservation and sustainable consumption of foods from these trees. My time with Tree Aid has been spent designing a research study to document Indigenous knowledge related to Indigenous tree foods. An initial desktop review helped to shape my ideas which I developed into questionnaire and focus group discussion tools. I went out to meet the community members during my pre-test in Savelugu and Paga Districts. Indigenous knowledge has always fascinated me. Community members had rich information regarding species such as Adansonia digitata (baobab), Parkia biglobosa (African locust bean) and Vitellaria paradoxa (Shea tree) which have been very instrumental for food and income. I got to sample a few of the fruits.

My colleagues in the office

With the help of Tree Aid partners in the field, and with support from the Country Director, we have reviewed our research tools. The organization intends to commission the study and collect data through its field projects and partner organizations. The Indigenous knowledge gathered will be considered in the development of enterprises and conservation efforts. The organization is striving to involve the youth in its future projects and this research will serve as a stepping stone for these projects.