Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Fides) - Jirapa is a town in Upper West Region of Ghana near the border with Burkina Faso. In 1929 the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary built an orphanage here. The orphanage still exists but in terrible conditions. An Italian NGO RAY Foundation ONLUS has rebuilt and re-equipped the centre. Furthermore to help orphans become self-supporting and to stop the flow of emigration away from the town it has given the orphanage an Internet and Information Centre and a new name is St. Joseph Knowledge Center Jirapa.
Unique in the area, built between 2003 and 2004, the orphanage can accommodate 40 children. The Info point has 40 PCs connected to the Internet, and serves 1,010 clients a month with services of e-mail, use of the Internet, printing, photo-copies, courses in PC, translations and typing of thesis. With income from the Info centre the orphanage opened a small bank, a mobile telephone operator and a petrol station.
In the dry season young people tend to leave rural areas like Jirapa in search of work. During the 7 dry months there is no work for young people except for hunting, harvesting and family micro-credit businesses consequently many move to cities and then abroad.
RAY Foundation aims to form human capital lacking African rural areas, long term support for spontaneous self-supporting economic development to discourage emigration. (AP) (9/3/2006 Agenzia Fides; Righe: 30; Parole:330)
