Ghana, like most developing countries, suffers from a deluge of health problems that are nearly absent in the developed world.   Children under the age of five are especially vulnerable to the consequences of poverty.   In Ghana, malaria is responsible for a quarter of the deaths of children in this age group.  Malnutrition from both protein and energy deficiencies as well as vitamin and mineral deficiencies, underlies the majority of morbidity and mortality in the region.  The belief that simple interventions can have a profound effect led to the development of the Ghana Health and Education Initiative (GHEI) by members of the professional schools of University of Maryland.

The primary goal of GHEI is to encourage the advancement of health and education in Bibiani district, Ghana, by providing the village with resources and the necessary support to effect change.  The secondary objectives of GHEI involve the growth of each student’s vision; volunteers will leave Bibiani district with a greater understanding of the challenges that face rural sub-Saharan Africa.  This insight will encourage and enable future professional leaders to assist underserved populations both at home and abroad.

The Western Region of Ghana has a very different culture from that of anywhere in the United States exhibiting health problems that differ in spectrum and severity from those of the developed world.  To ensure that the group’s future endeavors will address the specific concerns of the people intended to benefit from the programs we develop, we will begin by acquiring detailed information about the needs of the community.  The first phase of this assessment was completed in December 2001, and will be followed by a second phase beginning in June, 2002 when medical and pharmaceutical students from various universities across the United States will go to Ghana for an 8-week period. 

In December 2001, the initial phase involved surveying the health and education aspects of the Bibiani district and in order to find an appropriate area for our base.  A committee was formed from local leaders in the health, education and religious sectors to provide necessary opinions about the culture and specific needs of the district.  Dr. Paul Ntodi of Bibiani Government Hospital encouraged that our research focus on the intersection of malaria, malnutrition and anemia.  The village of Humjibre was selected based on several of its characteristics:  a manageable size of 2,500 people, a clinic which demonstrates the most need of the seven in the district, an enthusiastic and welcoming chief, and the ability to live within the village without straining its people or resources.

Following language, cultural, and epidemiological training, ten students will live and work in the village of Humjibre for a period of eight weeks during the summer of 2002. Four of these students will perform a Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA), a technique that encourages active participation of the community in gathering information that will be used to plan development projects.  The two other groups will conduct epidemiological research. Another group will conduct research that explores the causes of anemia, while the third group focuses on nutrition, performing research to identify possible areas of intervention that can be addressed in the future.  Upon their return to the United States, the students will analyze the data and develop projects that most effectively meet the needs of the village while ensuring maximum empowerment of the members of the community that are to benefit from the program.   In the summer of 2003, another group of students will return to Ghana to work under the direction of the committee in Bibiani to implement the program. 

Dr. Clarence Sarkodee-Adoo and Dr. Robert Jackson who are experts in the field of malaria and anemia will provide the necessary knowledge about the construction and implementation of the research studies.  Dr. Peter Kyem, a former resident of Bibiani who now resides in the United States as a professor of geography, has provided our group with mentorship and the necessary contacts to implement our plans.  Dr. Samuel Gyapong, who splits his time between the duties of being chief of Humjibre and professor of business at Fort Valley University in the United States, is providing our group with additional support and opinions about the village’s needs. A committee led by Mr. Christopher Addae, the District Chief Executive of Bibiani, will work with us to determine the focus of our needs assessment research, to implement the research, and to plan an effective approach to raising the quality of health in the village. 

GHEI intends to develop an equal partnership between our organization and the people intended to benefit from the programs we will develop.   It is our mission to develop sustainable improvements in health care and education in Ghana.