[IMPACT] Please describe your proposed solution.
<u>Background</u>
This proposal is a follow up on the funded project called Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach which the first workshop was held on 14th June 2022 at Accra Technical Training Centre to educate the youth to know and adopt Cardano blockchain and gain the opportunities in project catalyst. The impact was seen as 152 participants out of over 200 registered to become part of the community.
The enthusiasm shown and the questions asked showed that the the workshop was impactful. Subsequently most of these tertiary students (over 30) participated in the first Africa Catalyst School held online on 21st June 2022. Most of the participants expressed interest in taking part in Fund9 Proposal Assessment and registered on Project Catalyst Idea scale immediately after the workshop.
Yoroi wallets were opened for most of them who got interested.
The second and last workshop will be done in July 2022. Over 150 tertiary students (youth) will be attending in another Tertiary Institution, which the total target of 300 students/youth as indicated in the proposal would have been achieved.
Based on the impact above, I and the team decided to hold another two sets of workshop in Accra and in another Region of Ghana called Ashanti Region to scale up Cardano blockchain and project catalyst, by putting in another proposal, hence this 'Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach 2' in Grow Africa Grow Cardano challenge to promote Cardano in Ghana and Africa. The first proposal was in Fund8 New Member Onboarding challenge.
This second project called 'Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach 2' is targeting another 300 youth or students of tertiary education who will be exposed to Cardano blockchain and project catalyst opportunities and be able to start micro businesses on their own to better their lives because jobs after school in Ghana virtually do not exist especially in these difficult times.
The youth of Ghana face difficult challenges as they grow into adulthood. Technology and skills development should not be the preserve of the affluent in our society, it must be decentralized and accessible by all.
Volunteer opportunities have been a source of providing skills for the youth for brighter future since their hidden talents would be realized during project works.
In collaboration with Wada Ghana team, volunteers have come on board and are learning blockchain to understand the whole concept of blockchain technology.
This proposal will have a positive impact on the lives of 300 more youth in Ghana as listed below:
- More students and graduates are going to learn blockchain and bring out great ideas such as information technology talents which they did not even know they possessed.
- The students and youth will know about cryptocurrency, because currently, cryptocurrency knowledge is very little in the country and the continent as a whole.
- Great ideas that can turn into business and jobs after getting knowledge in Project Catalyst through the workshops.
- Anticipated youth impacted - 300 aged 16 to 25.
- Train young people in marketable skills to boost their chances of escaping poverty.
- Training will include technical and computer skills.
- Education of blockchain will reduce dependence on government for job after school education.
[IMPACT] Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.
In addressing the challenge, The Fund9 Grow Africa, Grow Cardano is about how to scale cardano adoption into the future of Africa by seeding and growing in 2022 and beyond. This is exactly what Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach is doing and seeking to continue. The aim of Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach is to get more people, especially the youth who are the future of Ghana and Africa to be aware of Cardano, and adopt it and scale it up in the continent. The workshops being done by this project is educating the youth (the future of Africa), getting them to adopt it and scaling up by also spreading the news about Cardano and getting more youth. Already one workshop has been done in June, another will be done in July to complete phase 1. The phase 2 which is this Fund 9 proposal seeks to to another one in another tertiary Institution in Greater Accra Region and then the second workshop in the Ashanti Region, which is 5 hours drive from the Greater Accra Region, to also get the youth in that Region to adopt and scale Cardano. It is intended that the subsequent proposals can be seeded by Cardano to be done in the other Regions of Ghana. Ghana has a total of 16 Regions in Ghana, meaning that we have a lot of work to do to scale Cardano in Ghana and Africa.
The youth will know about cryptocurrency and it's uses.
This project has stated that the youth knowing about Cardano project catalyst are very much interested in becoming proposers, Proposal Assessors, Voters, etc. which are all spelt out clearly in the Grow Africa, Grow Cardano challenge. Yoroi wallets were opened for students who participated in the phase 1 of the project. In this phase 2, Yoroi wallets will be opened for participants, thus addressing the key metrics of the challenge.
[IMPACT] What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?
With my experience from the first workshop, the main risk is the tertiary institutions' refusal to grant us permission to hold the workshops for the students due to the misconception around blockchain in Ghana. But with much talk and education principal of the school agreed to allow us to do the workshop. So to mitigate the risk, I and my team have been going to the schools some days before the program just to speak to the authorities about the opportunities involved in Cardano project catalyst, and that blockchain is not just about bitcoin trading, which has been the main misconception among Ghanaians. So having spoken to the authorities in the Institutions, permission is given to educate the students and youth.
[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed plan, including timeline and key milestones for delivering your proposal.
<u>Detailed Plan</u>
The expected two months of delivery will be as follows:
August 13th to 15th - An appropriate date within these dates will be the first of the two sessions of the workshop depending on which date is given by the tertiary Institution.
- Publicize outreach program in the selected school with a banner and flyers
- On the appointed date, set venue in order.
- Educational presentations done by team of experts
- Wallets opened for interested participants
- Mentoring activities, including one-to-one relationship building and tutoring.
The program will be a three hour duration from my experience.
September 13th to 15th - As mentioned above for August, same details will be followed.
The Timeline for the two months project is as follows:
August 2022 - publicity of the program on banners and flyers in the tertiary Institutions
August - 1st workshop in mid August in a conference room in the school to accommodate over
150 students
September - 2nd workshop - to be held in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region- another set of 150
students
All workshops are face-to- face and online participation.
[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed budget breakdown.
With my experience in the workshop of the phase one of Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach, transportation cost was higher than budgeted. So the cost pattern for this project is changed to reflect the actual during implementation. With this project, the second workshop will be held in the Ashanti Region, 5 hours drive from Greater Accra Region, so accommodation and transportation cost has contributed to the upward adjusting to $5500, which phase 1 was $4000.
The total budget requested for this phase 2 is $5500 and breakdown as follows:
Equipment hiring for 2 sessions $600
Transportation costs 2 sessions $600
Materials and Stationery 2 sessions $800
Hotel Accommodation 1 session (Ashanti) 2 nights stay $1200
for 5 team members
Allowance for Resource persons $1200
Refreshments for 150 participants $700
Miscellaneous/Contingency $400
Total $5500
[FEASIBILITY] Please provide details of the people who will work on the project.
Emelia Sarfo is a CA/PA for Fund6, CAPA and vCA/vPA for Fund7, CA/PA and Voter for Fund8, an Entrepreneur, Challenge Team Member, Funded Proposer Sub Circle Member, Catalyst Africa Town Hall Co Presenter, Africa Catalyst School co-presenter, a Training Consultant, Community Worker, Human Resource Practitioner of over 20 years experience, Philanthropist, Marketer of over 10 years experience, Hotelier and Hotel Customer Service Trainer.
Reference: Twitter@emeliasarf2, www.linkedin.com/in/emelia-sarfo-92787662
Afia Owusu is an Educationist, Entrepreneur, Cardano Ambassador, Catalyst Swarm member, Catalyst Africa Town Hall Host, Africa Catalyst School Host, Environmental and Conservation Specialist, CA/PA, Proposer
Reference : twitter@afia owusu, LinkedIn
Awura Adwoa Owusu is a Cardano Blockchain student Ambassador, CA/PA, vCA/vPA, Entrepreneur, Proposer.
twitter@awura_asamoa
[FEASIBILITY] If you are funded, will you return to Catalyst in a later round for further funding? Please explain why / why not.
Yes.
I will seek repeat funding from Catalyst because , I and my team are doing an ongoing education for the youth of Ghana, with main goal of promoting Cardano in the sub region. So currently we are in Greater Accra Region, and in this fund9 proposal, I will have the second session in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. I will propose in Fund 10 to cover the Central Region of Ghana and with this trend , Cardano will be scaled up high in Ghana and Africa.
[AUDITABILITY] Please describe what you will measure to track your project's progress, and how will you measure these?
During the month of July 2022, I will write to the authorities of four tertiary institutions to seek permission for the workshop to be done in their schools. Two of them will be selected to have the programs done there.
In the month of August, when the first session is held, the number of people that physically attend will be on record, plus the online participants will also be recorded. Those that express interest to become volunteers will also be documented for follow ups after the program, as it has been done for phase one which participants have joined the Africa Catalyst School for education in Cardano and project catalyst.
In the month of September when the second session is done, the number of participants will be documented- both physical and online participants, the number of volunteers that get onboarded will also be recorded for follow ups.
[AUDITABILITY] What does success for this project look like?
At the end of the two months' workshop on the project:
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The number of people who get to know about the Cardano blockchain and project catalyst and also want to put their great ideas into proposals for funding will be recorded and assisted through coaching and mentoring to bring ideas into reality to impact lives.
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Cardano becomes the go to blockchain in Ghana and Africa, thus bringing in more developers who will grow and bring change in the ecosystem.
[AUDITABILITY] Please provide information on whether this proposal is a continuation of a previously funded project in Catalyst or an entirely new one.
This project from the above write up is obviously an extension of the Fund8 Ghana Youth Onboarding Outreach which was in the challenge called New Member Onboarding. This time there in no such challenge in Fund 9. That is why I put it in Grow Africa, Grow Cardano Challenge because it is related to Ghana and Africa and it is about adoption and scaling of Cardano in Africa as depicted in the challenge.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Rating
Education, Scaling, Adaptation, Equal Opportunities for all.
