BACKGROUND INFORMATION OF TUMA KAVI DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION

Tuma Kavi Development Association is a Non-Governmental Organization operating in six geographical districts in the Northern region of Ghana. The districts are the Savelugu/Nanton, Saboba, Yendi, Zabzugu/Tatale, Karaga and Nanumber North. The people of these districts are predominantly peasant farmers with a few women engaging in petty trading. They face a lot of challenges and the unpredictable nature of the rainfall in the north has even worsened their plight in the area of farming.

The six districts of the Northern Region of Ghana is an area of low income, low productivity, poor health and food insecurity. As a result, many parents cannot provide the basic needs of their children. School enrolment is relatively moderate at the basic levels, and as the children progress, there is a challenge of retention since most parents are not able to support with the payment of the school fees at the post basic school level. This is particularly a challenge for girls whose dropout rate is about 45% in the districts. This leads to a higher illiteracy rate in the rural communities. Children’s health and nutritional status is deplorable as their families could not afford to provide nutritious meals for them for most part of the year. Women and children are therefore considered to be the most vulnerable.

As a result of the interventions by Tuma Kavi and other stakeholders, the communities are seeing improvements and many people are seeking employment opportunities to be created for the youth so that the gains of Tuma Kavi and the communities can be sustained.