Ghana, the “Switzerland of Africa”, is one of the most developed West African countries and is rich in natural resources. It faces challenges particularly in its northern area, where there are pockets of food insecurity along with weak infrastructure and poor health levels. Besides, past conflicts in surrounding countries have made Ghana a destination for refugees, mainly from Sierra Leone, Sudan, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire and Togo.
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Caritas Ghana was established in 1971 by the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference. Throughout Ghana, there are twenty dioceses and four Directorates: Social Development, Education and Religious Education, Health and Governance, Justice and Peace. As part of a restructuring process, a Department of Human Development (DHD) was established. The Medium Term Program 2012 – 2016 is the Department’s framework for programme development, whose focus is ‘Integrated and Holistic Human Centered Development’.
Among its most relevant service delivery projects within the region, Caritas Ghana’s work includes promoting self-help projects in agricultural development, rural health and micro-credit for small businesses. It also coordinates relief operations after emergencies.
Work on public policy advocacy on behalf of the poor and the promotion of the common good has become central to the Department of Human Development. One example is its effort to include the ‘Right to Health’ in the new national constitution. Other proposals include the launch of another campaign on the ‘Right to Food’ as part of the Caritas Internationalis global campaign.
The ‘Religious Bodies for efficient Oil Resource Management (REFORM) project is still at fundraising stage and looking for interested partners.
There is a Newsletter (C2 AGENDA 4 CHANGE), used to share information about development outcomes.
Some Caritas partnerships include: the Christian Council of Ghana, Office of the National Chief Imam, STAR-Ghana, UNHCR and members from the Caritas confederation.
For more information, please visit the Caritas Ghana website.