Strengthening Communities

Players of People's Postcode Lottery are supporting AfriKids to help children in northern Ghana stay healthy, safe and in school.

AfriKids recently invited staff members from People's Postcode Lottery to see the amazing work that they have undertaken, thanks to our players.

Saving Children's Lives

On day one, they arrived in Sirigu, a village in the Upper East Region of Ghana to see some of the longest-running AfriKids programmes. One such programme is the Spirit Child Phenomenon (SCP) programme. In some of the communities where AfriKids works in northern Ghana, disabled children are labelled as "spirit children" who are believed to be "bewitched" and thought to bring harm on their communities. In these circumstances, communities are forced to make the impossible choice between one child's life or the survival of their entire community, as they perceive it. This is a complex, deeply rooted social and cultural issue that can leave children vulnerable to being neglected, abused or even killed. With support from players of People's Postcode Lottery, AfriKids has managed to end these beliefs in 58 communities, saving an estimated 243 children's lives. It also improves the children's conditions by offering physiotherapy sessions and support for their families.

Lucy, an AfriKids staff member, said, "At the SCP centre, we talked about how difficult life could be for families of children with disabilities in such a rural setting in northern Ghana. It was amazing to see how People's Postcode Lottery and AfriKids have come together to help these children with physiotherapy and to see some of them now walking independently."

Over the following days, the team explored AfriKids' other programmes including the _Child Rights Club_s, which teach children about their rights and train them to advocate for the rights of their peers. They also saw the work of the Opening Doors to Schools programme, which has helped improve access to education for children in rural communities.

On the final day of the trip, the team headed out to see AfriKids' partnership with Book Aid International, which was facilitated by our players. Since the partnership began in 2017, it has been able to start mini-libraries and help boost literacy in 80 communities.

Lucy added, "We saw the difference that Book Aid libraries and teachers trained by AfriKids have made in schools. It was wonderful to see the partnership that started in the UK making such a big difference in Ghana."

Amazing Causes

Our players have raised over £500 Million for more than 7,500 good causes. Check out some of the other incredible Charities receiving vital support.