APPEAL FOR TOGOLESE REFUGEE CHILDREN IN GHANA

Transcription

1 APPEAL FOR TOGOLESE REFUGEE CHILDREN IN GHANA UNICEF GHANA, July 4, 2005

2 GHANA CRISIS APPEAL FOR TOGOLESE REFUGEES IN GHANA AND GHANAIAN HOST COMMUNITIES UNICEF Ghana seeks funding of US$ 946,000 to: a) Ensure that at least 90% of the 8,000 child refugees of Togolese origin in Ghana and 4000 of the host communities' children access an 'integrated' education package of - early childhood care, primary schooling and psychosocial support; b) Monitor the situation of the 8,000 child refugees of Togolese origin in Ghana and ensure a protective environment; c) Halt the transmission of Guinea Worm in the Volta Region and cross-border through strengthening of surveillance, provision of knowledge/skills and water and school sanitation facilities in host/refugee endemic communities, as well as communities at high risk of becoming endemic For the period of 18 months (July 2005 to December 2006) BUDGET Table 1: Urgent Funding Requirements (July 2005-December 2006) Inputs Requirements in USD 1. Education - early childhood care, primary and psychosocial support 630, Guinea Worm control and water and sanitation 95, Planning, Implementation, Monitoring situation of children, Coordination 120, Indirect Programme Support Costs (12%) 1 101,000 TOTAL - 946, Background The sudden death of the late President of Togo, Gnassingbe Eyadema, who ruled for 38 years, initiated political instability in the country. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU) intervened politically and insisted that elections be held within sixty days, in accordance with the Togolese constitution. Despite the prompt mediating role of the ECOWAS and AU, events since the death of the former President in February 2005 continue to unsettle the West African sub region politically and in humanitarian terms. Opposition claimed that massive violence, rigging and intimidation of opposition supporters marred the April 24th election in which the former President's son Faure Gnassingbe was declared winner. Political instability and persecution continue to occur as signalled by cross border movement of Togolese into 1 The actual recovery cost applied will be in accordance with the UNICEF Executive Board Decision 2003/9 of 5 June

3 Benin and Ghana. The Republic of Togo shares its boundary in the west with Ghana and in the east with Benin (see map below). There are several entry points (official and non-official) into Ghana along the southern and northern parts of the Volta Region. Aflao area alone has over fifteen (15) entry points. Out of the fifteen districts of the Volta Region, five (5) share borders with Togo. The hardest hit in terms of numbers of Togolese Refugees are Kadjebi, Jasikan, Hohoe, and Ketu (especially the border town of Aflao) (See Map below) Map of Ghana: Showing (left) Volta Region/districts and communities hosting the Togolese refugees and (right) sandwiched between two countries in crisis in the West African Sub region Of the 15,095 Togolese who fled into the Volta Region of Ghana as at May 14, 2005, and have not returned to Togo, approximately 8,000 are children. Host communities have been very accommodating, offering shelter and food for their Togolese neighbours, with whom majority share common local language (Ewe) - but the level of poverty is high and social infrastructure is poor. Most of the refugees are averse to being camped and have take refuge in the host communities also for security reasons. There are immediate and emerging needs in health, protection, water and sanitation and education. 2

4 A. Education UNICEF is taking the lead on the education response to the crisis. Assessment has been done through joint visits of all UN agencies and partners including the Ghana Education Service (GES), Regional and District authorities. Existing educational systems and structures are weak. At primary level, almost half of the children (i.e year-olds) in the host communities are out of school for such reasons as unaffordable school fees and associated costs for uniforms, textbooks and learning materials/stationery; long distances from home to school; disease burden; and low quality of education due typically to lack of trained teachers and unfavourable school facilities. Hence, host communities should also benefit from the emergency assistance. For the first 5 years of schooling (2 years pre-school and 3 years of lower grades of primary school), medium of instruction is basically in local language. The people of the affected belt from both Togo and Ghana are largely of the Ewe ethnic group. Early childhood care is not fully in operation in the affected areas but the Government of Ghana adopted the ECD policy about 5 months ago with standards and curriculum nearing completion. In response to the refugee crisis, the principle of 'integration' is adopted to ensure that all refugee children are absorbed into the Ghana education system with adequate provision for the language and educational system differences. It is pertinent to provide education assistance for the 8,000 child refugees of Togolese origin (and another estimated 4,000 children of the host communities who lack access to education) for a period of 18 months from July 2005 to December 2006 for which additional resources is urgently needed. B. Guinea Worm Control - Water & Sanitation Ghana and Togo are among the 11 remaining Guinea Worm endemic countries in the world. In 2004, Ghana reported more cases of Guinea Worm than any other country world-wide. Of the 16,026 cases reported in 2004, 278 and 7275 were reported in Togo and Ghana respectively. A large number of the Guinea Worm cases in Togo are an indirect result of population movement between these two countries. Consequently, Ghana has been the focus of the global campaign to eradicate Guinea Worm led by WHO, UNICEF, Global 2000/ Carter Center. This requires the breaking of transmission of the parasite by the end of The Volta Region, where the Togolese refugees have settled, is the second most Guinea Worm endemic region in the country. The influx and movement of populations pose a serious risk of the spread and re-infection of Guinea Worm to erstwhile safe areas. In several of the Volta Region communities and including Aflao, the main urban centre that holds these refugees, the water supply was already inadequate before the influx of refugees. The lack of access to safe drinking water, coupled with poor hygiene habits, weak surveillance system and mobile population could result in a serious setback to the global Guinea Worm eradication effort. This could have negative impact on the positive manner in which the refugees have been perceived and welcomed to Ghana. Through the W&S activities planned for the refugee caseload, an additional and stronger effort for the eradication will target the host communities in the focus districts. 3

5 2. Action to Date Several planning sessions and assessment visits have been held with key actors including UNICEF s Togo Office to ensure synergy of all actions and plans. Working with all stakeholders (UN team), Ghana Education Service and the regional and district authorities, the rapid assessment on education, health, and protection has been completed with clarity on roles and a response plan in place. UNICEF leads the Education response and co-ordinates with UNICEF Togo. a. Education A School Mapping exercise has been conducted for the Volta Region through UNICEF assistance. Data on all basic education facilities/services now exists to guide the intervention in education in terms of availability and gap in quantity and quality of education services. The Ghana Education authorities have identified some bilingual teachers in the affected area. When the UNHCR completes the refugee information by end of June 2005, some professional and para-professional teachers among the refugees would be identified as well. UNICEF has obtained concurrence of Ghana's Minister of Education on the country's lead role in 'integrating' the refugee children into the educational system. The Honourable Minister has pledged the support of the Government of Ghana to this response plan. This would allow refugee children not to lose school years. UNICEF has provided emergency education supplies (50 school in box and 30 recreation kits) to support existing district schools hosting refugee children in the Volta Region. These supplies cater for approximately half of the 8,000 refugee children for 3 months. b. Guinea Worm control UNICEF and the Guinea Worm control partners have reduced significantly the incidence of Guinea Worm in the Volta Region in the past year - for instance from 1006 to 97 cases between March 2004 and March 2005 in Nkwanta community alone in the Volta Region. As part of the Rapid Assessment Mission, the Guinea Worm situation was reviewed. 3. Actions in the Next 18 Months This proposal is to cover a period of 18 months from July 2005 to December UNICEF Ghana, leading the education response, would work with Ghana Education Service (GES), regional/district authorities and other partners to: a) Ensure that at least 90% of the 8,000 child refugees of Togolese origin and 4000 of the host communities' children access 'integrated' education package of - early childhood care, primary schooling and psychosocial support; b) Monitor the situation of the children and ensure a protective environment; 4

6 UNICEF Ghana, in collaboration with Global 2000, WHO and GOG authorities and entities, would undertake activities to: c) Halt the transmission of Guinea Worm in the Volta Region and cross-border through strengthening of surveillance, provision of knowledge/skills and water and school sanitation facilities in host/refugee endemic communities, as well as communities at high risk of becoming endemic. Basic principles in this emergency response will be: integration; capacity building; utilisation of local resources; and empowerment and community participation of both refugee and hosting stakeholders. Key tasks include: a) Education 1. Finalise and utilise the School Mapping Reports 1 and develop District Education Emergency Plans in each district to identify the current capacity and specific needs of the hosting communities/schools - July Conduct sensitisation and enrolment drive in the affected communities and cluster children into a few schools in each district, rather than enrolling them in a number of schools in scattered area July to August Provide teaching and learning materials (school-in-a-box, recreational kits, pencils, exercise books, play items, chalks etc) for at least 12,000 pupils (refugees and host community children) in pre-primary and primary schools in host communities carrying refugee pupils - each term till December 2006 (4 terms). 4. Engender participation of both refugee and host parents in school management, planning and monitoring and related training programmes - July 2005 to December Liaise with UNHCR to identify and deploy teachers and teaching assistants and pay the stipends of extra teachers, respecting local salary levels and not creating discrepancies. - July 2005 to December Train supervisors, teachers, and teaching assistants in such areas as basic subjects, psychosocial care, HIV/AIDS and life skills education and peace education - July 2005 to December Assess the impact of refugees usage of existing facilities like classrooms, chairs, toilets etc. - December Establish agreement on a common framework for accreditation of school certificates obtained in Ghana and Togo, as well as for a performance evaluation framework for cross-border transfer - July 2005 to December Work with UNHCR to screen and compile database on children and women with detailed disaggregated data by age, sex, situation of children etc - July December Train teachers and social workers on child protection skills in emergencies - sexual and gender based violence, child labour, child trafficking etc - July 2005 to December With UNHCR, establish and train a community child protection network of teachers, social welfare workers, host and refugee community women, leaders, and NGOs to monitor, secure and report on child protection issues - July 2005 to December UNICEF has been supporting the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service to conduct School Mapping in all the districts in the country. The 15 districts of the Volta Region have advanced in this process. 5

7 Table 2: Funding Requirements for Education Inputs Requirements in USD 1. Provision of school equipment and learning materials (school-ina-box, exercise books, pencils etc. + supply overhead costs) 200, Provision of teaching material & training of teachers / teaching assistants 130, Psycho-social support activities (safe space, recreational kits and activities) and training 70, Provision of kindergarten and IEC activities (recreation kits, play items and toys) 110, Support to district / school emergency education planning 20, Provision of sanitation facilities in schools plus training related to Guinea Worm 40, Community sensitisation and enrolment drive 50, Data collection and training on child protection issues 10,000 Sub-Total 630,000 b) Guinea Worm control 12. Ensure effective surveillance system to track Guinea Worm in host/refugee communities and environs and intensify case search/containment and chemical treatment of open water bodies to kill copepod vectors - July 2005 to December Train village volunteers on hygiene education, use of water filters, and surveillance on Guinea Worm control in the affected communities - July 2005 to December Promote health and hygiene education for behaviour change to keep the communities' Guinea Worm free - July 2005 to December Provide safe drinking water and sustain filtration of water from unsafe sources, drill at least 10 boreholes and/or other safe water sources in Guinea Worm endemic communities - July 2005 to December Procure and distribute pipe filters and cloth filters to control Guinea Worm in both the host communities and refugees populations - July 2005 to December Table 3: Funding Requirements for Guinea Worm control Inputs 1. Provision of safe water supply (at least 10 boreholes, alternative water options, water purification tablets, collapsible filters, buckets) Requirements in USD 80, Hygiene education and community mobilisation 10, Strengthen Surveillance and case containment 5,000 Sub-Total 95,000 c) Planning, Implementation and Monitoring the situation of children 17. Work with UNHCR and the Ketu District in compiling a comprehensive database on all refugees with disaggregated data on age, sex, situation of children, women etc by end of June Ensure co-ordination, monitoring and reporting on the situation of children - July 2005 to December

8 Table 4: Funding Requirements for Planning, Implementation, and Monitoring situation of children and coordination Inputs Requirements in USD 1. Staff costs (1 NO-B staff* + Driver) for 18 months 75, Project vehicle (1 L/C) and travels costs 35, Other operations costs - IT, telephone, communication and coordination costs 10,000 Sub-total 120,000 * 1 National Officer (at NO-B level) to be based at Ho, Volta Regional capital in the UNHCR premises 4. Management of the Project The project will be managed by the UNICEF Ghana Country Office (GCO) and within the framework of the UNICEF-Government of Ghana Country Programme of Cooperation for The Volta Region, the region in which the Togolese Refugees have settled, while being part of the UNICEF country programme, did not benefit from a constant UNICEF presence. Considering the other tasks/priorities of GCO staff members, the time that will be required to implement this emergency response, and the need for someone to speak the local language of the region (also spoken by the majority of the refugees), one Ewespeaking national officer will be recruited to undertake the day-to-day activities. The officer will be programmatically, technically and administratively supported by the GCO team. The officer will be based in the UNHCR premises at Ho in the Volta Region and will directly report to the Chief of GCO's Education Section. Anchorage with the central Ghanaian authorities will be handled by the Education Section with inputs from other programme sections as well as Programme Coordination. The GCO WES Officer will be responsible for the Guinea Worm Eradication component of the project. A vehicle and driver would be dedicated to this purpose for an 18-month period. GCO's Operations Section, especially its Supply Unit, will be responsible to ensure the timely delivery of the supplies. The UNICEF Ghana Representative will provide overall guidance plus interaction with high level Government Officials and with the UN Country Team. The donor will be invited to participate in joint visits to project sites and reports shared as appropriate but at least twice a year. By end of December 2005 and depending on the political situation and solutions emerging from Togo, the African Union and ECOWAS mediation, a review of the tasks and targets will be undertaken and where needed, adjustments will be made. FOR FURTHER DETAILS CONTACT Dorothy Rozga Olivier Degreef Gary Stahl UNICEF Representative UNICEF EMOPS UNICEF PFO Ghana Geneva New York Tel: Tel: Tel: Fax: Fax: Fax: Cell: odegreef@unicef.org gstahl@unicef.org drozga@unicef.org 7