Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Ghana
Overview
Recognition by the international community as a democratic and economic leader in Africa has made Ghana a magnet for tourists, but few see the widespread poverty that still exists off the beaten path.
Catholic Relief Services Ghana works with the Ghanaian people to tackle poverty with a holistic approach including projects that improve child and maternal health; increase access to clean water and sanitation; scale up farm production; and enhance community level savings and lending.
CRS’ HISTORY IN GHANA
CRS Ghana was established in 1958, just one year after Ghana gained independence. In our 50 plus years of service, CRS Ghana has established itself as a trusted and respected partner in Ghana’s development. Since 1987, in the spirit of CRS’ mission to work with the poorest and most vulnerable populations, CRS Ghana has served people living in the three most in-need regions: Northern, Upper West, and Upper East.
Health is the largest part of our project portfolio. Our work in Ghana is focused at the community level, where we are scaling up effective strategies to mobilize people through their local leaders to change cultural practices that impede the promotion of maternal and child health.
By supporting communities and health facilities with emergency transport systems, medical supplies, and staff trainings, we improve the level of care for whole communities. We mobilize support for pregnant women and mothers of newborns to increase the child survival rate by addressing the behaviors that have been shown to limit maternal and child health services in the past. To reduce the incidence of malaria, we work to increase ownership and usage of long-lasting insecticidal mosquito nets.
In the agriculture sector, we continue to focus our efforts on improving the production and livelihood capabilities of poor smallholder farmers. We introduce farmers to new technologies that are appropriate to their needs, while helping them save and access credit so they can increase their profits in local and regional markets. We work with farmers on the yam value chain introducing varieties and techniques to make their farms more productive and give them a role as seed suppliers, while also integrating others across the production, sale, storage and marketing stages. We also work to improve postharvest storage systems with sweet potato farmers to ensure stronger food security through the lean season and increase their profit potential.
CRS Ghana continues to work in the water, sanitation, and hygiene sector. We improve sanitation coverage in schools and health facilities by working with school health clubs and sanitation advocacy groups to construct latrines, urinals and “tippy tap” hand washing facilities, as well as establish safe water points. We continue to integrate our Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILC) programming into the WASH sector, which helps create a supportive environment for sustained behavior change.
PROGRAMMING AREAS
- Agriculture
- Health
- Microfinance
- Water and Sanitation
Contact Us by Telephone
888-277-7575
Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Eastern Time
877-435-7277
After hours and weekends
Contact Us by Mail
Catholic Relief Services
228 W. Lexington St.
Baltimore, Maryland 21201-3443
Contact Your Local CRS Representative
If you are a parish, diocese or individual and would like to find out how to make a difference here in the United States, please call 866-608-5978, or find your local CRS representative here.
Find Your CRS Diocesan Director
If you would like to get involved with the work that CRS does, contact your local Diocesan Director. The Catholic Relief Services Diocesan Director educates Catholics about Catholic social teaching and the work of Catholic Relief Services. Your Diocesan Director can help you participate in CRS programs like CRS Rice Bowl, Food Fast, Helping Hands and more. Your Diocesan Director also coordinates your diocese’s response to international emergencies. Find your Diocecan Director here.
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