We work with a number of NGO’s and host organizations. Available Host Projects reflect changing needs and priorities and may vary from those shown.

After you apply, we work closely with your Sending Country and our Host Project organizations to find an appropriate placement that best matches your skills, preferences and capabilities.
Placements are offered in rural and urban Ghana in the areas of Rural Education and Development, Health, Small Scale Enterprises, Orphanages and Group Community Service Projects.

Rural Education and Development (R E&D)
Through these projects we help enhance Rural education and development in Ghana and at the same time to promote healthy interaction among peoples of different cultures.

The key to the development of rural communities in Ghana is making education accessible to the rural populations and improving the educational infrastructure. This we believe will have direct impact on the future of such communities. The lack of adequate facilities (some children are still having education under trees) and the unwillingness of many educators to accept posting to rural areas make it difficult to achieve these objectives. Trained teachers prefer to live in the cities where facilities are relatively better and more attractive. To offset this disparity IYEP and partners in Ghana are developing programs aimed at attracting teachers in Ghana to these areas. Discussions are going on with various ministries and stakeholders to address the situation.

Presently we are seeking volunteers to teach English in primary schools, introduce computer skills to students to Senior Secondary school (SSS) students, teach Life and vocational skills in Junior Secondary Schools, (JSS) Develop and Build library facilities in schools in communities where students have no access to text books etc. Opportunities are also available in career counseling -- helping students to realize their potential and work towards achieving a successful career. Communities available for this program are Greater Accra, Eastern, central, Western, Volta and Ashanti regions of Ghana.

Rural Development Program (RDP)
This program is offered in rural areas only. Volunteers work on specific projects in communities where a special need has been identified. This could include income generating activities or assisting a coummnity seeking funding to build a clinic, a school or a library or a community seeking a nurse or a medical doctor for a local clinc. When set goals are acheived and the direct impact of work on inhabitants is realised, these projects are especially rewarding for both volunteers and the communities.
For those volunteers involved in lobbying or efforts to communicate the need and raise support, time may also be spent in the capital, Accra.

Accommodations are usually provided with Ghanaian families. In home stay situations the volunteers have their own space and privacy. These projects are usually at least 6 months in duration. Longer stays are also desirable. To ensure consistence, IYEP and partners will endeavour to assign a replacement for a volunteer before the end of the duty tour.

Communities available are Greater Accra, Eastern, central, Western, Volta and Ashanti regions of Ghana.

HEALTH
Ghana has two medical schools tuning out 200 medical doctors every year. The majority of these doctors are in the teaching hospitals in urban areas where facilities are relatively better. The Patient/Doctor ratio is 120,000:1 in urban areas. At the district level the doctor patient ratio is 144,000:1 The nurse/patient ratio is 1:3000 The Ghanaian government owns 80% of all health delivery institutions and related facilities in the country with 10 regional hospitals located in all the regional capitals. District hospitals, polyclinics, health centers and dressing centers can also be found.
The main diseases are malaria, HIV, TB, Diarrhea, road accidents, Typhoid fever, maternal deaths, Guinea worm, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) 80% of Ghanaians depend on traditional medicine. Many factors contribute to this situation including the Ghanaian government's disturbing "Cash and Carry" policy that requires patients to pay for services in advance of receiving medical attention. There is substantial evidence that patients have died due to their inability to purchase medical services.

The Ghanaian health c are system is also a victim of brain drain with trained medical professionals such as nurses and doctors emigrating to the western world where economic conditions permit better rewards and facilities for their work.
Lack of education, inadequate facilities and lack of trained personnel also play a role in the poor health conditions of rural people. Most rural dwellers depend on the social causation theory – attributing illness to the disturbances in social relations. Individuals turn to occultism for healing -allowing their conditions to reach unbearable proportions before seeking hospital care. A lot of education has been provided but there is still a long way to go before the germ theory will be functional in the rural areas.
Most of the placements the health sector are based in rural areas where medical facilities are not extensive. Health posts are located in some rural areas serving clusters of villages. Placements are available in the following areas: Greater Accra, Eastern, central, Western, Volta and Ashanti regions of Ghana.

ORPHANGES
Orphanage work in Ghana gives volunteers the opportunity to work with children who lack parental guidance. This includes abandoned children, those who have lost their parents due to AIDS related diseases, children plucked from the streets of Ghana and others who live in extreme poverty. These well structured volunteer projects attempts to create an atmosphere where orphaned children can experience the fun and excitement of life. The orphanage work project is highly challenging, as you will be changing the lives of children who rarely have opportunities to interact with other people. Working with orphaned children demands lots of patience, as harsh living conditions have often alienated these children from society.

The job responsibilities of orphanage volunteers in Ghana will depend on the needs of the particular orphanage as well as the skills and interests of the volunteer. Most of the orphanages aim to provide education opportunities to orphans. Therefore, in most of the cases, volunteers will teach basic English or help in developing creative programs such as art, music, dance, sports, etc. Additional help with day trips, sanitation, cooking, and administration might be also requested.

One of the most wonderful opportunities that work on an orphanage can give you is the chance to share your love and skills with poor children. By sharing love and caring for innocent, troubled, and forgotten children, you will be offering a profound gift. For many volunteers this has been a life changing experience for them and for the children they have cared for. Whether you have a background in childcare or simply enjoy sharing love with kids, a smile or kind hug can offer something meaningful in the life of a child deprived of love and care.
There are 8 orphanages in Ghana each under different managements. What they have in common is their desire to offer shelter, food and clothing to these disadvantaged children.

The challenges of globalization are enormous for developing countries in Africa. In most countries of Sub-Saharan Africa per capita incomes are less than $500 a year. Government resources are largely over stretched leaving few resources to attend to the needs of the destitute, the disadvantaged and those who live on the margins of society.

To implement and sustain needed programs requires support from well meaning individuals and groups to achieve the desired impact. IYEP has teamed up with all the orphanages in Ghana and, with volunteer help, provides services including building physical structures such as school blocks or kitchens, and providing scholarships to some of the kids. Currently we provide volunteer placements in the following areas.

• Developing facilities in orphanages by providing drinking water, electricity, residential homes, classrooms, play areas and other facilities.
  
  
• Building the capacity of caregivers through training and skills development.
  
  
• Developing programs in social service and delivery systems such as sponsoring and fostering vocational skills training.
  
  
• Providing either vocational and technical training or higher education for orphans and abandoned children over 16
  
  
• Providing program support, particularly IT, financial and agricultural advice for income generating activities. Orphanages might undertake these activities individually to reinforce the local markets wherever possible and to contribute to the community as a whole.
  
  
• Seeking international aid and assistance, such as food, clothing, developmental toys and medicine.
  
  
• Treating and preventing malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and leprosy in the community thus helping to reduce the number of children orphaned or abandoned in future.

The orphanages are based in various areas in the country: two in Greater Accra region, two in the Ashanti region, one each in central, northern and Eastern regions of the country. Volunteers are provided with accommodations at the various sites. There are areas of work that require special skills such administration, nursing etc. However other assignments do not require any formal skill or training.

COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECTS FOR GROUPS (CSP)
This program is designed for groups – usually with a minimum of 10 participants. Volunteers live in the host community during the program and work with a community in building school blocks, libraries or clinics. Participants and the local community members work hand in hand during the entire period of the program.
Usually the duration is 5 weeks beginning with a 5-day orientation in Accra and a travel segment to interesting tourist sites in Ghana at the end of the program. Accommodation is home stay situation in the rural community and hotels during the orientation period in Accra. The program is available in the following areas: Greater Accra, Eastern, central, Western, Volta and Ashanti regions of Ghana.
If you interested in joining or organizing a group program, please contact the sending office in your country or the VIP International Office for more information.

CULTURAL EXCHANGES / WORK AND TRAVEL
This program is designed for students in the tertiary level to have the opportunity to travel and work in the United States or United Kingdom during holidays. This opportunity broadens students’ horizon and introduce them to international work culture. Students are provided with employment, social security or national insurance number and accommodation during their stay. They meet a lot of other nationals from all over the world to make friends, share ideas and enhance their curriculum vitae.
We have been running this program for the traditional universities (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and technology, University of Cape Coast and University of Ghana campuses), Wisconsin University, Valley View University etc. we are extending our services to cover all the tertiary levels gradually.

PROCESS
The program is announced on all campuses through banners, posters and flyers early first semester of the academic year. Students then buy the forms, fill and return to the office.
Dates are set to screen applicants through interviews at various campuses or in the office. Applicants are given time to justify their inclusion.

WHO QUALIFIES?

• Student in the tertiary level
• Motivated students who are likely to return after the program
• Ability of Parents/ Guardian to sponsor without borrowing
• Students who have working experience
• Students who have travel experience
• Students desirous of learning international culture as a tool to promote self- motivation

AUTHENTICITY
List of students selected on the program are sent to various schools registry for authentication.

PAYMENT AND PROCESSING.
Payment is done for us to begin with the processing.

GUARANTORS
Each student provides guarantors who signs bonds to that effect.

SUMMER HIGH SCHOOL
Students in the secondary schools have the opportunity during holidays to travel to other parts of the world and to learn the cultural values of that country to promote and broaden the understanding of young people as well as appreciating their culture and country.

The students travel for 3-6 weeks to participate in cultural immersion programs. They live with host families, go on excursions, audit high school classes, take part in organized activities with their host family, local peer group and other students on the program. They live with host families on full board basis( breakfast lunch and dinner), take part in their daily activities, they also travel with a Ghanaian matured leader who sees to their general well-being.

ORIENTATION
Orientation covers areas such as

• Environmental expectations such as cultural shock
• What to do in case of emergency
• Program rule’s- Dos and Don’ts
• Purpose of program and expectations
• Behavior at host family setting
• Answering concerns of participant in all aspects
• Host country’s social structure- history, geography, people, traditions and customs
• Transportation system
• Contacts for assistance