Mission Statement

Jaynii StreetWise Organisation is a grassroots NGO committed to moving Ghana’s gifted youth off the streets and into the classroom. 41% of primary school-age children in Ghana remain at home or on the streets according to UNESCO’s Institute of Statistics 2004 report. Each day they can be seen, hawking goods or performing on street corners for spare change, without even enough money for paper and pens. StreetWise seeks out youngsters in Jamestown, the poorest neighborhood of Ghana’s capital, and provides them with the opportunity to go to school. By paying their school fees, purchasing uniforms and supplies, feeding them two meals daily, supervising their homework, and providing extra-curricular programming regarding HIV/AIDS prevention and education about environmental issues, we hope to ensure these children a comprehensive educational experience. We aim to afford them the opportunities they deserve, to both educate and empower, to create a healthy and loving community, and to make them feel that they too deserve to join the ranks of Ghana’s educated youth.

History

Jaynii Cultural Troupe, a small, grassroots community based organization operating in Jamestown, is committed to the spread of African tradition, and the promotion of education in general. They have performed around the country and world, representing the best of Ghanaian culture at home and abroad. Their enclosed stretch of beach behind the Jamestown lighthouse has become a community center in its own right, with children playing, performing, and doing schoolwork, while adults sit and enjoy the peaceful, friendly atmosphere. Jaynii Cultural Troupe has hosted many community projects, but StreetWise marks their foray into the world of larger scale, citywide operations.

The project is the culmination of their collaboration with several students from New York University in Ghana, who were inspired by Ghanaian youth and their seemingly unlimited potential.

The program got off to a great start on May 2, 2007, when ten contestants, all interested in attending school but unable to do so due to lack of funds, were selected to perform in a talent show at Jaynii Beach in Jamestown.

Each participant was given a year’s worth of supplies, including two uniforms, textbooks, notebooks and pens. The approval of their families and their agreement to attend school regularly was a prerequisite for their participation, and each child was enrolled in government schools in the Jamestown area prior to the talent show. The performances at the event were judged by important members of the artistic community such as Reggie Rockstone, founder of Hiplife, a new musical genre in Ghana.

This was their initiation into the program. Only after showing us their commitment to hard work and self-improvement through a one month audition and rehearsal process were these particular ten children given entrance to school on the first day of the new term on May 3rd, the very next morning.