International Children's Trust has been in partnership with Youth Alive – in Ghana – since 2012. Work has been mainly in the former 3 regions of northern Ghana: the Upper East, Upper West and Northern Regions and with vulnerable children, in particular, but not limited, to girls and addressing the obstacles girls face in situations of poverty which prevent their school attendance – including early marriage, domestic work and unpaid care work.

We have also helped develop facilities for children living with disabilities and helped overcome obstacles to attending special school provision, and supported Youth Alive develop COVID 19 mitigation strategies in the communities.

We have supported Youth Alive through a number of grant awards made by a range of Trusts and Statutory Funders (including a UK DFID grant of 3 year duration for reducing violence and other obstacles to boys and girls entry to and daily attendance of school, which was scored A for excellent performance by DFID after evaluation).

We can without hesitation recommend Youth Alive highly in its field of children's, youth's, girls', adolescents' and women's empowerment. Youth Alive has the knowledge and skills to apply real development strategies for change within the communities in which it works, and has over decades developed the trusting interrelations with traditional and poverty stricken communities and their leadership, and with government and professional stakeholders, that are needed to make meaningful programmes of work.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you wish for any further information.

I first came across Youth Alive when I was working for the charity Comic Relief and I was fortunate to travel to Tamale to visit the organization to make an appeals film for the Red Nose Day Television Program. I was literally blown away by the incredible work that Youth Alive were doing. I saw it with my own eyes where they were taking vulnerable children off the streets and given them a chance in life through education.

I remember visiting a market and saw many children that were waiting on scraps of corn to fall on the floor that they would collect up to take home at the end of the day to help feed their family, some of the children were only 6 years old. This child the organization ended up helping, but it was not as simple as giving the child a free education, but also the child being the one of the main providers for his families food diet, meant that they also needed to ensure that made a contribution to the family so they could continue to eat and survive.

I visited Tamale for several days, and everyone who came with me from the UK for the visit were so deeply moved. I went back to the UK to my wife and life were. I didn't really think about how I would get my next meal, I had a bank card and a local food shop that could enable me to eat whatever I would like. I was really deeply moved by my experience in Tamale and knew I needed to do something, unfortunately I wasn't in the position to help financially, so I racked my brain and thought how could I help, even if it was a very small contribution.

Alongside my day job at Comic Relief, I had a side gig that I volunteered to build a website for a couple of charities in the UK, whilst updating one of these websites I was thinking how can the world learn more about this charity. I knew the appeal film would bring a spotlight for a few days on the organization but the organization needed something more, their story needed to be told and retold to people outside of Ghana.

That is when I asked Agnes, who founded and ran the organization, if I could buy them a domain name and also build a website for them, with me covering the small cost of such a thing. The website was not just a way to raise much needed monies for the organization but also a way of telling the world the incredible work being down. This is where my story really began with Youth Alive, even though we didn't raise vast amount of money we still were able to raise monies that the organization wouldn't normally have. I remember a couple of Bergan that were getting married asked me if instead of guests buying them presents if they could ask them to donate to Youth Alive, this was a great success.

I hope and I am sure I will find a new way to keep Youth Alive a part of my life, as I will always have a place in my heart for Agnes and Youth Alive both who are both incredible. I can also say with a hand on my heart that any monies people donate to Youth Alive will help to change someone's life.

There is one major problem confronting the people of this country which if not checked and controlled will have serious effect on the economy of the nation. Streetism or street life is something no one wishes to associate with. However, certain situations push children into this kind of life or activities.

Streetism can be attributed to so many causes such as poverty, broken home, fostering, child abuse etc. Most of these children found on the street are people who can become prominent personalities if they are given the opportunity. These children engage in all kinds of activities just to earn a living. Some are the bread winners of their homes and contribute to the survival of their siblings. They do this to the neglect of their education and future.

Many of us are looking for help to move away out from street life so that they also contribute their part to the development of the nation in future. Society however thinks negatively about them. The use of inhuman words and names like 'useless', 'thieves', 'criminals', 'market vultures' and the like. In short people have no iota of respect for street children. Such people forget that these children are also human beings just like them.

A street child also has knowledge, wisdom, conscience and ambitions. The only difference between a street child and that of the home child is the opportunity that the home child has. Street children have a lot to offer if they are given the opportunity.

I was a street child but, now in school, I compete well with children from good homes. I perform better than most of them in class. If street children are given half of the opportunities that the home child has, they will perform wonders.

Youth Alive is helping me and my colleagues to rediscover ourselves and to realize our dreams. We cannot afford not to mention Youth Alive always. Help take care of a street child today and God will richly bless you.