The Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG) was founded in February 2019 with the goal of putting an end to the increasing human rights violations, promoting peace and justice, and empowering women in Ghana and beyond in order to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030.
HRRG is a dynamic non-governmental organization that focuses on the defense, advancement, and fulfillment of human rights. It is based in Ghana but has a global reach.
With the goal of advancing the rights of women, girls, children, the aged, persons living with disabilities (PLWDs), and other minority groups, the organization brings together committed and passionate young Ghanaian journalists, news editors, and human rights activists.
The HRRG team is made up of professionals in a variety of disciplines, including law, journalism, human rights, and social activism. The organization benefits from the diverse team’s wealth of expertise, knowledge, and experience, which increases its effectiveness and impact.
To accomplish its goals, Human Rights Reporters Ghana uses a variety of strategies, including research, education, documentation, access to justice, advocacy, monitoring, and reporting.
“Society for All Without Discrimination” is the organization’s mission statement, and it complies with Ghana’s legal and constitutional framework as well as international human rights standards.
The mission of HRRG is to advance and protect the interests of those who value basic human rights, such as the right to life, the right to free speech, the right to education, the right to one’s own dignity, the right to a fair trial, and other such rights.
In response to the rise in kidnappings in Ghana, the HRRG launched a nationwide sensitization campaign dubbed “the KTT Project” in 2019 to raise awareness of three key issues: kidnapping, teenage pregnancies, and tramadol/drug abuse.
The campaign team has successfully reached over 60,000 beneficiaries since the program’s launch in July 2019, in particular schoolchildren, parents, and youth groups in local communities and places of worship across three regions of Ghana.
The group has received widespread praise for its commitment and passion for its activism roles in protecting and ending rights abuses in Ghana and beyond from individuals, organizations, and institutions both inside and outside Ghana.
The positive feedback that was received inspired the HRRG team of outstanding volunteers to go above and beyond to expand the campaign to include all 16 regions of Ghana.
It also opened the door for the HRRG to be nominated among the ten (10) organizations from across Africa that were named finalists for the 2020 Africans Rising Activism Award in the category of Movement of the Year.
Surprisingly, the HRRG, which finished the competition in fourth place, was the only advocacy organization from Ghana to be selected for this prestigious award.
The same year also saw Mr. Joaquin Boston, the Chairman of the International Board of Global Actors and Business for Sustainability, announce that Human Rights Reporters Ghana had been shortlisted among other initiatives across 126 countries to compete in the final round of the 5th Global Entreps Awards.
In August 2019, the group’s Executive Director, Joseph Kobla Wemakor, in his advocacy effort sheds light on a young female head porter (Kayayo) who needs help to enroll in the university to become a nurse after securing excellent WASSCE results (aggregate six A’s and two B’s) with no help to go back to school to achieve her dream.
Only a few hours after Ms. Salah’s story went viral online, Mr. Wemakor started getting calls from a variety of influential people, institutions, and organizations in Ghana and beyond. Following that, he receives a call from the vice president of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, asking that he meet with him to discuss how she can be helped to realize her dream.
The decision by Abudu Salah to accept a full scholarship from the Venezuelan government in order to study medicine at one of the country’s top universities marked a turning point in her life. Since then, Mr. Wemakor has had a significant impact on Ms. Abudu Salah’s life and brought about change.
Since then, Mr. Wemakor has had a significant impact on Ms. Abudu Salah’s life and brought about change. It is obvious that God used Wemakor to bless many people in addition to Ms. Salah. If there is anything to be proud of, it is without a doubt this important accomplishment for Human Rights Reporters Ghana.
In addition, the HRRG team, through its relentless pursuit towards human rights defense, led by its Executive Director, Joseph Kobla Wemakor, mounted a strong media advocacy campaign on the case of human rights abuses in South Korea during the era of the first outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the release of an 89-year-old man who is the founder and leader of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus Christ, a growing minority and ‘unpopular’ church in Korea, from detention.
Mr. Lee Man-hee was scapegoated, unjustly arrested, and detained for his alleged involvement in withholding information from the South Korean government and authorities about church members, which they claimed is harming the fight against the pandemic.
The act of injustice, which is contrary to international human rights law, was greeted with wide condemnation by activists, journalists, including various civil society groups, the United Nations, and international organizations alike globally.
The incident also witnessed over 220,000 Shincheonji believers around the world who were equally harassed by the South Korean government. In addition, over 5,500 cases of human rights violations, including coercive conversion, have been reported since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in South Korea.
Mr. Wemakor, a braver man supported by his able team, actually got to the bottom of the situation and stood up to make justice right in the issue.
He boldly spoke up in his writings and articles, press statements, and virtual meetings to inform the international community of the truth. Through efforts and actions on research and writings on the case of the church, the grace of God moved in, and Mr. Lee Man-hee was freed.
The noble agenda was backed by national, regional, and global stakeholders who joined the campaign at various stages to garner support and momentum, which put pressure on the South Korean authorities to act. The HRRG team is indeed forever grateful to all stakeholders and collaborators who supported its effort towards achieving this hard-won fight.
As a recognition for good deeds, the HRRG Executive Director was honored in October 2020 to be featured with an update on upholding women’s rights after the lockdown on a glossy page of the International ‘Business Woman Magazine’ which happens to be the first Ukrainian magazine accredited by the European Parliament, with offices in 24 countries.
HRRG in its unrelenting fight against child abuse in Ghana and beyond on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, a troubling news about a 7-year-old girl who was brutally assaulted, tortured and abused by her father over an allegation that she was caught shoplifting a biscuit from a shop.
The sad incident shook the foundation of the entire nation and beyond, but barely a few minutes after the news story surfaced online, it pushed the Ghanaian authorities, including the Department of Social Welfare and the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, to move into action, leading to the rescue of the child.
The positive feedback received was a testament to another good deed by Human Rights Reporters Ghana, which is highly commendable. Undoubtedly, this is no mean feat for the vibrant global human rights group.
As a mark of outstanding contribution to the promotion of human rights in Ghana, the good deeds again warranted yet another recognition which went the way of the leader of the global advocacy group. The honor this time came from AfricanDefenders, a Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network based in Kampala, Uganda hosted by DefendDefenders (East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project who nominated Wemakor for the 2023 African Human Rights Defenders Shield Award, a prestigious award that recognizes the efforts of individuals working to promote and protect human rights in Africa.
His nomination for the coveted accolade is not only a recognition of his hard work and dedication but also a call to action for others to join the fight for human rights in Ghana and beyond.
The HRRG, whose mandate revolves around whistleblowing and shedding light on critical human rights violations and social issues that confront the citizenry so the authorities can be informed to take action and resolve them, particularly the school children, again broke the news about an unwarranted abuse and merciless canning by teachers that caused bodily harm to nineteen (19) final year students of Annor Adjaye Senior High School at Ezilibo of the Jomoro District Western Region.
The offense for which the students were tortured, brutally caned, and hurt by their teacher allegedly was their lateness for the Sunday morning church service. The nefarious act of injustice perpetrated against the victims, which blatantly violates their rights, was met with public outcry and condemnation when the issue was brought to light by the HRRG.
Since the story was told, it moved the Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to set up a 4-member committee, which was deployed to the school to investigate the matter.
The committee report on the matter established wrongdoing on the part of the teachers and pointed out their approach to handling the situation as inappropriate and unprofessional.
Through the relentless efforts of the HRRG, justice has been served to the victims of the brute canning, as the teachers who misbehaved have been punished and made to sign a bond of good behavior according to the disciplinary action code of the GES.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s work is crucial to achieving the SDGs, particularly those related to human rights, justice, education, and the rule of law. The organization’s efforts contribute to SDG 16, which seeks to promote peace, justice, and inclusive societies. Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s activities also support other SDGs, including SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities).
Human rights are fundamental to every human being, and their protection and promotion are vital aspects of human dignity.
The United Nations emphasized the importance of safeguarding and defending human rights when developing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Upholding human rights requires strategic and relentless efforts, and it is the work of organizations such as Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG).
In fulfillment of its mandate, HRRG carries out research into various areas, including civil and political rights, economic, social, and cultural rights, and women’s rights.
The information gathered from this research is used to develop reports that highlight human rights violations and provide recommendations to relevant actors.
These reports serve as a platform for advocacy and can be used by policymakers, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to influence policy and decision-making processes.
The organization also monitors human rights violations by various actors, including state agencies, private organizations, and individuals.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana provides legal assistance to victims of human rights violations, including assistance with legal representation, referrals to support services, and advocacy on their behalf.
This support is critical, especially for vulnerable individuals such as women, children, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups.
In addition to its research and documentation work, Human Rights Reporters Ghana engages in advocacy to influence policy and decision-making processes. Through its advocacy efforts, the organization has successfully contributed to the development of policies and laws that protect human rights and improve the human rights situation in Ghana.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s advocacy efforts have also helped to increase public awareness and support for human rights issues.
HRRG has achieved significant success in its work to promote and defend human rights in Ghana. Some of the notable achievements include the following:
1. Contributed towards the development and passage of the Right to Information Act in Ghana, which guarantees citizens access to information held by public institutions.
2. Highlighting and exposing human rights violations, including police brutality, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings.
3. Advocating for the rights of women and promoting gender equality, including through the provision of legal assistance and support to victims of gender-based violence.
4. Advocating for the rights of children particularly victims of brute canning emanating through all forms of corporal punishment which caused bodily harm, abuse the rights and lowered the dignity of students.
5. Increasing public awareness and participation in human rights issues through various campaigns, including the #KTTProject, which seeks to end kidnappings, teenage pregnancy and drug abuse but equally set about creating a deeper education on human rights to bring about a cultural change.
In carrying out its duties, the HRRG is presently engaged in series of advocacy campaigns in Ghana aimed at bringing about change through the partnership with the Ghana Civil Society Organization Platform on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and its network of members spanning over 400 organizations, local, national and international non-governmental organizations, and religious groups including the Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) and other stakeholders and civil society organizations in the country and beyond to achieve the following:
1. Address the issues of period poverty while advocating for the total removal of import tax on sanitary/ menstrual hygiene products in Ghana.
2. Advocating for the establishment of a Public Health Emergency Fund (PHEF) in Ghana to achieve Epidemic Preparedness (EP) Response Financing.
3. Advocating towards the urgent passage of the affirmative action bill into law to promote gender equality and women empowerment in Ghana.
4. Advocating for the Ghana Government to prioritize urgent abolition of the death penalty and have it struck completely from the country’s statutes.
5. Advocating for press freedom and protection of rights of journalists
6. Advocating for the government to create better policies that protect the rights and welfare of cocoa farmers against exploitation and provide them with access to essential resources.
7. Advocating for the ban on single-use plastics and promotion of proper handling of waste products to avert environmental pollution in Ghana.
8. Advocating for an end to child labour/modern slavery in Ghana.
9. Advocating for the protection of the rights of persons living with disabilities (PLWDs) in Ghana.
10. Advocating for an end to police brutality/violence in Ghana.
HRRG is a member of various civil society groups, coalitions and networks operating at the national, regional and international levels including the Ghana Civil Society Organizations Platform on Sustainable Development Goals, Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Amnesty International Ghana Global Network of Civil Society Organizations on Disaster Reduction (GNDR) African Network of Young Leaders for Peace and Sustainable Development (ANYL4PSD), the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Network of Journalists (IPPF) and the Bureau of African Peace (BAP).
Human Rights Reporters Ghana is the Co-convener for both the Youth Sub-platform and the SDG3 Sub-platform of the Ghana Civil Society Organizations Platform on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as the National Focal Person (taskforce) for the African Network of Young Leaders for Peace and Sustainable Development (ANYL4PSD), a Pan-African Network working across Africa committed to climate justice, biodiversity conservation and restoration in order to ensure that the continent’s natural resources are sustainably managed to bring about positive ecological and socio-economic transformation for communities.
Joseph Wemakor
“Our team supports this kind of practises and also recognises the fine results“
Joaquín Boston
50 Refugee Women Made Soap, Now They’re Building Businesses!
/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by entreps entrepsNeville Gaunt, Chairman of Your PassPort2Grow (YP2G) and CEO MindFit has been actively working on a solution to the growing refugee problem. In fact it’s no longer just a problem, it’s a crisis.
Many refugee camps across Africa are busting at the seems with nearly 4 times the planned number of refugees housed in tents. A refugee camp is supposed to be a safe, temporary haven from war and conflict. But when you’ve spent THIRTEEN years living in one, it becomes your home.
But unlike the homes we know, these are more akin to prisons. There’s virtually nothing you can do to improve the conditions – and you can’t break free.
This is the reality of life today for millions of refugees and it’s getting worse as escalating military and political disasters drive more and more from the only real homes they have known and putting their lives on hold.
It’s a refugee crisis not just a problem and the Aid Agency (NGO) model is broken
We rely on Aid Agencies to follow the old saying
“give a man a fish, he feeds for a day, teach him how to fish he feeds his family for life”
But these agencies are struggling to do the feeding and not touching the teaching.
There are only two ways refugees can improve conditions for themselves and their families:
1 start a business
2 get a job
Sadly, the infrastructure in most camps doesn’t support either. The few projects aimed at creating entrepreneurs are soon dashed by a lack of leadership and resources. Only a lucky few, those with qualifications, will find a job and move out. But they’re all too rare.
We know we can’t change this overnight, but you can help by joining our group of international business mentors and local in-camp leaders and trainers who all work to a simple model, based on nothing more than commitment and common sense.
Be in no doubt, this an ambitious international collaboration and one that will soon see us bring together a few pockets of early success and make each of them sustainable under the same model.
The results
We trained 50 refugee women to make and sell soap, restoring their confidence, giving them hope and building a brighter future. (This is the third time we’ve run the programme, so it’s a process that works and not just luck!)
And we do all this for $50 per startup!
All the coaching/training/mentoring by the international team is given free.
Once trading profitably the startup micro business – pays a monthly club fee as payback – $2
We now need your help to reach more refugees!
Donate and empower refugees to become entrepreneurs https://www.gofundme.com/f/how-you-can-help-the-refugee-crisis
“Entreps, is committed to supporting initiatives like this one that not only addresses the refugee crisis but also promotes long-term autonomy and sustainability. The training of these 50 refugee women to produce and sell soap not only provides them with an opportunity to generate incomes but also restores hope and confidence in a brighter future. We endorse projects that not only offer immediate solutions but also empower vulnerable communities to forge their own paths to prosperity”.
Joaquin V. Boston
Chairman of Entreps
ZapSap Project: We are uniting the world with great traditional craftsmanship to help realizea sustainable world.
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entreps“Here a project that makes an impact in Africa, from Japan! Yes, from Japan.
Imagine that there are tires piled in front of your house 🏡, or even worse, that are burning 🔥 in front of your neighborhood starting a fire in the sabana…
Well, you can better read a bit more through this article below, to understand why Zapsap is an international best practice rewarded with a special recognition over the 5th Global Entreps Awards.
The Global Entreps Awards, by the International Board of Global Actors and Business for Sustainability, were born back in 2014, to consistently outstanding best practices on the UN 🇺🇳 17 SDGs; hand in hand with the United Nations Organization since 2020.
Cheers to Zapsap! Well done ✨”
Joaquin V. Boston
Chairman of Entreps
Copyright Nakayoshi Gakuen, NGO
I am Yuri Hirayama from Japan. I work as the Director and Global Section Chief for the Nakayoshi Gakuen School in Japan led by our CEO Yuichi Nakamura. I am passionate about education and sustainability. I teach math, science, and languages to children and adults from home while studying for my MBA at EGADE Business School.
The Nakayoshi Gakuen School generates activities around Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Recently, the focus has been on assisting Africans to learn about disaster prevention, food, sports, fashion, and science in connection with sustainable Goal 12, Responsible Consumption and Production. We do this by making durable sandals from used tires, climbing ropes, and clothes. These are for Africans who have to walk long distances on a daily basis to get water.
Let me explain how our story started. In 2021, a volcano erupted in Goma, DR Congo. Thousands of people fled their homes on foot. Unfortunately, many of them did not know how to deal with the natural disaster. They needed food, water, houses, shoes, and medical care. Since the devastation created an immediate need for action, we decided to build a Disaster Prevention School in Goma to offer knowledge to local people and protect their lives.
While our activities there helped a lot, water scarcity is still a big issue. Many women and children are required to walk long distances to get water while wearing cheap and dirty sandals or walking barefoot. Consequently, illnesses and infections from open cuts and wounds are frequent. To prevent this, we came up with the idea of making sandals ourselves from recycled materials such as tires, mountain climbing ropes, and clothes.
In Japan, there are approximately 1.5 million tires manufactured each year. Those tires once no longer safe to use are put into our waste management system, which will create more environmental harm. Our ZapSap project is to recycle the tires by making eco-friendly products. I found one motorcycle store which could give me used motorcycle tires for free. By using an electric cutter, scissors, tires, climbing ropes, and second-hand clothes, we are making sandals both for children and adults. The used tires become soles, and ropes or clothes are used as straps. Some recycled sandal designers gave me hints to improve the quality. To gain continuous improvement, we held running marathon events in Tokyo and asked Japanese eco-conscious people to wear our original tough sandals. The questionnaire that we conducted showed that out of 100 people, most of them agreed that our original sandals were durable, creative, and comfortable.
The next step is to teach Africans how to make their own sandals by using their local tires, clothes, and reusable items so that they can become self-reliant. If the local people master how to make sandals using the materials that they can get within their communities, they can reuse them and sustainably produce footwear and elevate their quality of life.
Tire and apparel industries generate large amounts of waste, which must be repurposed. In advanced countries such as in Japan and the United States, people keep throwing away tires and clothes although they are still usable. There are still some aged people who experienced poverty during the war and keep using the same materials for many years with a sense of “mottainai”, which describes how sad, unfortunate, and regrettable it is to throw some usable things away. I consider this sense of “mottainai” to be one of the Japanese virtues that should be valued and inherited.
We have shared this initiative with others, and people in Japanese communities started to give us a lot of valuable ballet costumes, dresses, and kimonos in addition to tires.
We wish to bring joy and smiles to a world with suffering and difficulties. We will continue to provide education for the people in developing countries to build self-reliance by repurposing recycled materials, creating jobs, and attaining a sustainable world.
Copyright Nakayoshi Gakuen, NGO
ZapSap is at an early stage. Our plan is to save the environment and help the African people by repurposing tires and clothing and creating sandals. This initiative has a wider impact. We are creating experiences for Japanese students to teach classes and contribute themselves in Uganda and DR Congo by helping them increase sensitivity, global awareness, and self worth. We are uniting the world with great traditional craftsmanship to help realize a sustainable world.
copyright Nakayoshi Gakuen, NGO
Empowering marginalized groups by recycling e-waste
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsA Pilot Project in Nepal
Background
The digital transformation has been changing our lives massively. Still not everyone is provided with access to the digital
world even though it could be considered a fundamental right.
This is where JCI Nepal’s e-library comes in. Recycled e-waste is distributed via an e-library that supports marginalized
groups. People who lack skills in finding their ways through the digital jungle are educated and trained in a digital education
infrastructure setup.
Not only does this project empower marginalized groups, it also contributes to sustainable use of our shared resources. On
top of it all JCI Nepal manages to run the project without financial support.
Zero waste. Optimized cost. Maximum access.
JCI Nepal is interested to work on SDG projects and impactful actions in communities. Since JCI Nepal had done lots of
innovative projects . Mr. Ashish create an ideas to support for marginalized group of people and managing the E-Waste.
Target for SDG 9.A and SDG 4 Quality Education.
1- Root Cause Analysis
Problem: Lack of Digital Literacy and Waste of Old Computers
City: Lalitpur, Nepal
Why is this a problem? 1. Economy, 2. no resources
What is happeining? Why it happens? Why it happens? Why it happens? Root Cause
Purpose of the Project
– Digital Literacy
-Library for Teacher and Student which will be saving cost for making physical library.
– Milestone for Education for dominant group of people
– lasting for at least 4-5 years
2 -Develop: Formulate Sustainable Solutions
3 – Execute: Take Action
As a pilot Project we have started the E-Library Establishment with reusing old Computer in Damaitar Community School. Damaitar Lower Secondary school has proposed us for support to setup E-library. where children from low income people are studying. People who are working as labor in bricks factory are students in this school. The concept of this project is to complete with Zero cost of investment and impact to numbers of people. We collected computer (new or used) so that we can setup computer lab for student and teacher. We are reusing the Old (working condition) Desktop computer which are unused in people s homes/offices.
4 – Review: Monitor and Evaluate Results
This is financially viable and sustainable with help of our project of E-Library, more than 100 People are getting benefit per year. It is to fully support to poor people. After this project, more and more people and Organization as joining and Helping us. Recently Help Nepal Network and Nepal Clearing house grant us 10 more Computers. Now Damaitar School is becoming the Collection Center for Computer and managing to provide computers to other school too. After this pilot Project , it seems we can run more project and establish 20 E-Library throughout the country in Coming days.
. Teachers and class officers will be tapped to monitor the usage of the students of the platform. Also, technical officers of each school will be tapped to assist the students in using e-library aligned to their school s curriculum.
5 – Partnership
Now, we are partnering with Help Nepal Network, Nepal Clearing House Ltd., for the support. Damaitar School and its teachers, Students are the major stakeholders.
Students, Parents and surrounding community are happy to get the new system. And we can handover them with sustainable solution.
We are also looking for new partners to run this project in other district and schools of nepal with the successful stories of pilot project.
Finally, a message from our Chairman, Joaquin V. Boston:
‘Asia is a priority to the International Board of Global Actors and Business for Sustainability -Entreps-. This initiative facilitates a second life to basic and stepping up technological devices helping certain groups in need of them who otherwise wouldn’t have that chance.
Cheers to this best international practice on the implementation of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in Nepal’
Entreps named Human Rights Reporters Ghana the recipient of 5th Global Entreps Awards
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsHuman Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG), a dynamic media and human rights advocacy non-governmental organization from Ghana, has been named the winner of the 5th UN Global Entreps Awards
The prestigious accolade was conferred upon HRRG and its founder Joseph Kobla Wemakor for impactful Nationwide Sensitization Campaign on Kidnapping, Teenage Pregnancy, and Tramadol/Drug Abuse (‘KTT Project’), recognized as the ‘Best International Practice Award on Sustainability’.
The esteemed award, supported by the Secretary-General of Entreps-International Board of Global Actors and Business for Sustainability, Raquel Torres, along with the endorsement of the 1,000 Global Jurors of Entreps in partnership with the UN75, highlights HRRG’s exceptional efforts in promoting human rights and fostering societal safety.
The KTT Project, initiated by the visionary founder and executive director of HRRG, Joseph Kobla Wemakor, addresses critical issues such as kidnapping, teenage pregnancies, and drug abuse while also fostering education on human rights to create a positive cultural change.
Among 1,912 projects and enterprises from 126 countries vying for recognition as exemplary implementers of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, HRRG’s initiative stood out and was shortlisted for the final round of the prestigious Global Entreps Awards. The recognition is a testament to the organization’s unwavering dedication to making a difference in society.
Since its launch in July 2019, the KTT Project has reached over 60,000 beneficiaries, particularly schoolchildren, parents, and youth groups in various Ghanaian communities and religious settings.
The positive feedback received within a year of the campaign’s implementation demonstrated its success in saving lives and contributing significantly to the advancement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Joseph Kobla Wemakor expressed his gratitude for the honor and emphasized that the award acknowledges HRRG’s significant strides in advancing human rights and combating international crimes. He sees it as a testimony to the hard work of the dedicated team at HRRG and believes that this accolade will inspire them to continue their benevolent endeavors.
The Chairman of Entreps, Joaquin Boston, was enthusiastic about the success of the KTT Project and applauded HRRG’s fine results.
Wisdom Eli Kojo Hammond, the KTT Project Coordinator at HRRG, also expressed pride in the project’s accomplishments and acknowledged the recognition and support received from the Global Entreps Awards.
The UN Global Entreps Awards honor outstanding initiatives, policies, institutions, start-ups, and entities that align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
HRRG’s dedication to promoting human rights awareness and protection resonates perfectly with these goals, positioning Ghana as a global leader in sustainable practices.
The recognition from the Global Entreps Awards marks a significant milestone for HRRG and Ghana as it demonstrates international support for their efforts in achieving sustainable change. This recognition is expected to inspire more stakeholders and governments to invest in preventive strategies and social initiatives to safeguard human rights and create a safer and more progressive society.
The 5th edition of the Global Entreps Awards, launched in partnership with the United Nations to celebrate its 75th Anniversary, showcases the organization’s commitment to sustainability and good governance. HRRG’s remarkable achievement stands as a shining example of the positive impact NGOs can make on society and encourages others to follow suit in creating a better world for all.
“In Entreps -The International Board of Business for Sustainability- we support these types of practices that promote and reinforce the UN SDGs -Sustainable Development Goals-.
Additionally, we have an agreement with the UN
to promote together the SDGs, ever since January 2020.
We are pleased to find and recognize best practices – projects and initiatives- as the one carried out by Human Rights Reporters Ghana, a brave project in such a challenging society; their actions defend the role of women, from childhood to adulthood, and seeks to end bad habits and practices that denigrate a large part of their society.
We boost people as those who have carried out this project, for being deeply involved and dedicate a large part of their free time to changing – improving – the society to which they belong. Cheers to them!”
Joaquin V.Boston
Upholding rights and contributing to achieving the SDGs: thestory of Human Rights Reporters Ghana
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsThe Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG) was founded in February 2019 with the goal of putting an end to the increasing human rights violations, promoting peace and justice, and empowering women in Ghana and beyond in order to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030.
HRRG is a dynamic non-governmental organization that focuses on the defense, advancement, and fulfillment of human rights. It is based in Ghana but has a global reach.
With the goal of advancing the rights of women, girls, children, the aged, persons living with disabilities (PLWDs), and other minority groups, the organization brings together committed and passionate young Ghanaian journalists, news editors, and human rights activists.
The HRRG team is made up of professionals in a variety of disciplines, including law, journalism, human rights, and social activism. The organization benefits from the diverse team’s wealth of expertise, knowledge, and experience, which increases its effectiveness and impact.
To accomplish its goals, Human Rights Reporters Ghana uses a variety of strategies, including research, education, documentation, access to justice, advocacy, monitoring, and reporting.
“Society for All Without Discrimination” is the organization’s mission statement, and it complies with Ghana’s legal and constitutional framework as well as international human rights standards.
The mission of HRRG is to advance and protect the interests of those who value basic human rights, such as the right to life, the right to free speech, the right to education, the right to one’s own dignity, the right to a fair trial, and other such rights.
In response to the rise in kidnappings in Ghana, the HRRG launched a nationwide sensitization campaign dubbed “the KTT Project” in 2019 to raise awareness of three key issues: kidnapping, teenage pregnancies, and tramadol/drug abuse.
The campaign team has successfully reached over 60,000 beneficiaries since the program’s launch in July 2019, in particular schoolchildren, parents, and youth groups in local communities and places of worship across three regions of Ghana.
The group has received widespread praise for its commitment and passion for its activism roles in protecting and ending rights abuses in Ghana and beyond from individuals, organizations, and institutions both inside and outside Ghana.
The positive feedback that was received inspired the HRRG team of outstanding volunteers to go above and beyond to expand the campaign to include all 16 regions of Ghana.
It also opened the door for the HRRG to be nominated among the ten (10) organizations from across Africa that were named finalists for the 2020 Africans Rising Activism Award in the category of Movement of the Year.
Surprisingly, the HRRG, which finished the competition in fourth place, was the only advocacy organization from Ghana to be selected for this prestigious award.
The same year also saw Mr. Joaquin Boston, the Chairman of the International Board of Global Actors and Business for Sustainability, announce that Human Rights Reporters Ghana had been shortlisted among other initiatives across 126 countries to compete in the final round of the 5th Global Entreps Awards.
In August 2019, the group’s Executive Director, Joseph Kobla Wemakor, in his advocacy effort sheds light on a young female head porter (Kayayo) who needs help to enroll in the university to become a nurse after securing excellent WASSCE results (aggregate six A’s and two B’s) with no help to go back to school to achieve her dream.
Only a few hours after Ms. Salah’s story went viral online, Mr. Wemakor started getting calls from a variety of influential people, institutions, and organizations in Ghana and beyond. Following that, he receives a call from the vice president of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, asking that he meet with him to discuss how she can be helped to realize her dream.
The decision by Abudu Salah to accept a full scholarship from the Venezuelan government in order to study medicine at one of the country’s top universities marked a turning point in her life. Since then, Mr. Wemakor has had a significant impact on Ms. Abudu Salah’s life and brought about change.
Since then, Mr. Wemakor has had a significant impact on Ms. Abudu Salah’s life and brought about change. It is obvious that God used Wemakor to bless many people in addition to Ms. Salah. If there is anything to be proud of, it is without a doubt this important accomplishment for Human Rights Reporters Ghana.
In addition, the HRRG team, through its relentless pursuit towards human rights defense, led by its Executive Director, Joseph Kobla Wemakor, mounted a strong media advocacy campaign on the case of human rights abuses in South Korea during the era of the first outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the release of an 89-year-old man who is the founder and leader of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus Christ, a growing minority and ‘unpopular’ church in Korea, from detention.
Mr. Lee Man-hee was scapegoated, unjustly arrested, and detained for his alleged involvement in withholding information from the South Korean government and authorities about church members, which they claimed is harming the fight against the pandemic.
The act of injustice, which is contrary to international human rights law, was greeted with wide condemnation by activists, journalists, including various civil society groups, the United Nations, and international organizations alike globally.
The incident also witnessed over 220,000 Shincheonji believers around the world who were equally harassed by the South Korean government. In addition, over 5,500 cases of human rights violations, including coercive conversion, have been reported since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in South Korea.
Mr. Wemakor, a braver man supported by his able team, actually got to the bottom of the situation and stood up to make justice right in the issue.
He boldly spoke up in his writings and articles, press statements, and virtual meetings to inform the international community of the truth. Through efforts and actions on research and writings on the case of the church, the grace of God moved in, and Mr. Lee Man-hee was freed.
The noble agenda was backed by national, regional, and global stakeholders who joined the campaign at various stages to garner support and momentum, which put pressure on the South Korean authorities to act. The HRRG team is indeed forever grateful to all stakeholders and collaborators who supported its effort towards achieving this hard-won fight.
As a recognition for good deeds, the HRRG Executive Director was honored in October 2020 to be featured with an update on upholding women’s rights after the lockdown on a glossy page of the International ‘Business Woman Magazine’ which happens to be the first Ukrainian magazine accredited by the European Parliament, with offices in 24 countries.
HRRG in its unrelenting fight against child abuse in Ghana and beyond on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, a troubling news about a 7-year-old girl who was brutally assaulted, tortured and abused by her father over an allegation that she was caught shoplifting a biscuit from a shop.
The sad incident shook the foundation of the entire nation and beyond, but barely a few minutes after the news story surfaced online, it pushed the Ghanaian authorities, including the Department of Social Welfare and the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, to move into action, leading to the rescue of the child.
The positive feedback received was a testament to another good deed by Human Rights Reporters Ghana, which is highly commendable. Undoubtedly, this is no mean feat for the vibrant global human rights group.
As a mark of outstanding contribution to the promotion of human rights in Ghana, the good deeds again warranted yet another recognition which went the way of the leader of the global advocacy group. The honor this time came from AfricanDefenders, a Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network based in Kampala, Uganda hosted by DefendDefenders (East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project who nominated Wemakor for the 2023 African Human Rights Defenders Shield Award, a prestigious award that recognizes the efforts of individuals working to promote and protect human rights in Africa.
His nomination for the coveted accolade is not only a recognition of his hard work and dedication but also a call to action for others to join the fight for human rights in Ghana and beyond.
The HRRG, whose mandate revolves around whistleblowing and shedding light on critical human rights violations and social issues that confront the citizenry so the authorities can be informed to take action and resolve them, particularly the school children, again broke the news about an unwarranted abuse and merciless canning by teachers that caused bodily harm to nineteen (19) final year students of Annor Adjaye Senior High School at Ezilibo of the Jomoro District Western Region.
The offense for which the students were tortured, brutally caned, and hurt by their teacher allegedly was their lateness for the Sunday morning church service. The nefarious act of injustice perpetrated against the victims, which blatantly violates their rights, was met with public outcry and condemnation when the issue was brought to light by the HRRG.
Since the story was told, it moved the Director General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to set up a 4-member committee, which was deployed to the school to investigate the matter.
The committee report on the matter established wrongdoing on the part of the teachers and pointed out their approach to handling the situation as inappropriate and unprofessional.
Through the relentless efforts of the HRRG, justice has been served to the victims of the brute canning, as the teachers who misbehaved have been punished and made to sign a bond of good behavior according to the disciplinary action code of the GES.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s work is crucial to achieving the SDGs, particularly those related to human rights, justice, education, and the rule of law. The organization’s efforts contribute to SDG 16, which seeks to promote peace, justice, and inclusive societies. Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s activities also support other SDGs, including SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities).
Human rights are fundamental to every human being, and their protection and promotion are vital aspects of human dignity.
The United Nations emphasized the importance of safeguarding and defending human rights when developing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Upholding human rights requires strategic and relentless efforts, and it is the work of organizations such as Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG).
In fulfillment of its mandate, HRRG carries out research into various areas, including civil and political rights, economic, social, and cultural rights, and women’s rights.
The information gathered from this research is used to develop reports that highlight human rights violations and provide recommendations to relevant actors.
These reports serve as a platform for advocacy and can be used by policymakers, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to influence policy and decision-making processes.
The organization also monitors human rights violations by various actors, including state agencies, private organizations, and individuals.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana provides legal assistance to victims of human rights violations, including assistance with legal representation, referrals to support services, and advocacy on their behalf.
This support is critical, especially for vulnerable individuals such as women, children, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups.
In addition to its research and documentation work, Human Rights Reporters Ghana engages in advocacy to influence policy and decision-making processes. Through its advocacy efforts, the organization has successfully contributed to the development of policies and laws that protect human rights and improve the human rights situation in Ghana.
Human Rights Reporters Ghana’s advocacy efforts have also helped to increase public awareness and support for human rights issues.
HRRG has achieved significant success in its work to promote and defend human rights in Ghana. Some of the notable achievements include the following:
1. Contributed towards the development and passage of the Right to Information Act in Ghana, which guarantees citizens access to information held by public institutions.
2. Highlighting and exposing human rights violations, including police brutality, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings.
3. Advocating for the rights of women and promoting gender equality, including through the provision of legal assistance and support to victims of gender-based violence.
4. Advocating for the rights of children particularly victims of brute canning emanating through all forms of corporal punishment which caused bodily harm, abuse the rights and lowered the dignity of students.
5. Increasing public awareness and participation in human rights issues through various campaigns, including the #KTTProject, which seeks to end kidnappings, teenage pregnancy and drug abuse but equally set about creating a deeper education on human rights to bring about a cultural change.
In carrying out its duties, the HRRG is presently engaged in series of advocacy campaigns in Ghana aimed at bringing about change through the partnership with the Ghana Civil Society Organization Platform on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and its network of members spanning over 400 organizations, local, national and international non-governmental organizations, and religious groups including the Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) and other stakeholders and civil society organizations in the country and beyond to achieve the following:
1. Address the issues of period poverty while advocating for the total removal of import tax on sanitary/ menstrual hygiene products in Ghana.
2. Advocating for the establishment of a Public Health Emergency Fund (PHEF) in Ghana to achieve Epidemic Preparedness (EP) Response Financing.
3. Advocating towards the urgent passage of the affirmative action bill into law to promote gender equality and women empowerment in Ghana.
4. Advocating for the Ghana Government to prioritize urgent abolition of the death penalty and have it struck completely from the country’s statutes.
5. Advocating for press freedom and protection of rights of journalists
6. Advocating for the government to create better policies that protect the rights and welfare of cocoa farmers against exploitation and provide them with access to essential resources.
7. Advocating for the ban on single-use plastics and promotion of proper handling of waste products to avert environmental pollution in Ghana.
8. Advocating for an end to child labour/modern slavery in Ghana.
9. Advocating for the protection of the rights of persons living with disabilities (PLWDs) in Ghana.
10. Advocating for an end to police brutality/violence in Ghana.
HRRG is a member of various civil society groups, coalitions and networks operating at the national, regional and international levels including the Ghana Civil Society Organizations Platform on Sustainable Development Goals, Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Amnesty International Ghana Global Network of Civil Society Organizations on Disaster Reduction (GNDR) African Network of Young Leaders for Peace and Sustainable Development (ANYL4PSD), the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Network of Journalists (IPPF) and the Bureau of African Peace (BAP).
Human Rights Reporters Ghana is the Co-convener for both the Youth Sub-platform and the SDG3 Sub-platform of the Ghana Civil Society Organizations Platform on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as the National Focal Person (taskforce) for the African Network of Young Leaders for Peace and Sustainable Development (ANYL4PSD), a Pan-African Network working across Africa committed to climate justice, biodiversity conservation and restoration in order to ensure that the continent’s natural resources are sustainably managed to bring about positive ecological and socio-economic transformation for communities.
Joseph Wemakor
“Our team supports this kind of practises and also recognises the fine results“
Joaquín Boston
Entreps Awardee recognised as The Best Interactive Digital Classroom for soft skills and attitude
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsHere some of the recent activities of one of awardees for the 5th Global Entreps Awards:
“The global success of MindFit’s highly revered and accredited Leadership Development Programmes that guarantee business improvement have been in the blue chip business market since 1998.
But it wasn’t until 2004, when a chance meeting of school governors and Sir Ken Robinson did one of the founders of MindFit, CEO Neville Gaunt consider an alternative to developing soft skills in students.
During 2004-2012 Neville Gaunt was a governor at several schools and led many employability programmes to sixth form students introducing the Mind Fit Leadership process along the way. It was ad-hoc series of workshops focused on attitude and soft skills and fulfilled a need but there was no formality despite the significant results when compared to other services.
Even today, it’s assumed these skills are learned along the students journey.
Your Passport2Grow- YP2G was finally born in late 2013 as Neville Gaunt was asked to develop an employability programme for 3rd year undergraduates at Greenwich University in London, UK. Through a series of lectures, seminars and paper-based team exercises the programme was delivered over a period of 4 days and the students were to work on their project for final delivery some 3 months later to a team of successful business entrepreneurs. The context and outcomes of this specific project can be read here http://www.mindfitltd.com/employability-view-experienced-recruitment-specialist/
Since it’s birth YP2G has taken over a million students through the process and developed bit-sized online programmes that not only develop a good work ethic, attitude and soft skills but lay the foundations for entrepreneurial success.
On receiving the unexpected award from SME News for Best Interactive Digital Classroom Neville Gaunt said “it’s a great day for all our students to see their certificates from YP2G have real value on the world stage. It was a great surprise to hear we were nominated and that we’d beaten all the completion in the same Award notification letter!
It reminds me of the same feeling I had when Entreps gave us an award!”
The challenge for YP2G is to make their process part of each country’s schools curriculum and an automatic choice that all Heads of Education make, knowing it’s the missing link for young people to succeed.”
Neville Gaunt
Our Chairman, Joaquin V. Boston, personally endorses YP2G’s fine work, for its consistent work towards the UN SDGs over the years.
Our United Nations… by Thakur S. Powdyel
/0 Comments/in News, Uncategorized /by entreps entrepsOur United Nations: 75 Years on…
One war too many; one misery, all miseries; one dream, all dreams… This was the context, extent, and intent that led to the founding of the United Nations Organisation from the ashes of the Second World War that engulfed humanity on a scale unprecedented and desolation unimaginable. The United Nations came into existence on October 24, 1945, when the UN Charter was officially ratified by the five permanent members and a majority of other signatories, with the cherished aim ‘to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war’.
Signed 75 years ago today, on June 26, 1945 at San Francisco, the United Nations Charter enshrines the most fundamental and comprehensive aspirations of humanity and the obligations of member-states to enable the flourishing of life and conduct of nations befitting the human of the species. The many organs that constitute the United Nations Organisation are mandated to fulfil the foundational aims of the world body in letter and in spirit.
In its chequered journey, the United Nations has come a long way. With all its imperfections, the United Nations remains the most important, truly international institution comprising some 193 sovereign, independent states from across the globe as its members. It symbolises the most fervent hope of humanity for peace, security, and a life of dignity and respect in an environment of inter-state, inter-regional, and inter-national relationship based on mutual tolerance, integrity, and goodwill.
Despite the threats to its basic goals that were unleashed almost from day one with the dropping of the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima, the blatant violations of membership obligations, challenges posed by human and environmental crises, cyber-security threats, and a host of other compelling issues that claim the attention of the United Nations at different points, it remains the most reassuring symbol of hope and sanity in the world today.
With all its imperfections, it is thanks to the sustained efforts of the United Nations that the world is this much safer, the human lot this much better, and the future still worth-working for. Often close to the brink, yet short of strike, a global conflagration of a Third World War has been avoided, humanitarian crises mitigated, and chances for peace enhanced. The UN is the first and the last point of reference for standards of good behaviour for governments and nations around the world.
Successive secretaries-general, heads of agencies, regional as well as country chiefs and functionaries at all levels, past and present, have each brought to bear their individual convictions and professional commitments on the discharge of their duties and advanced the goals of the United Nations and given it cause for legitimacy and worth often in the face of cynicism and threat.
Come 2021, it will be half a century of exemplary partnership between the Kingdom of Bhutan and the United Nations. Becoming the 128th member of the United Nations Organisation on September 21, 1971, thanks to the far-sighted vision of the Father of Modern Bhutan, Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, has immensely benefitted the country, both in tangible as well as symbolical terms, advancing thereby the foundational ideals of United Nations to which Bhutan is fully committed and enhancing the overall development goals of the country through targeted, strategic support provided by the UN system.
Having started its operations in the country as early as 1973, the office of the United Nations Development Programme was formally established in 1979. Currently, it has some 26 agencies of the UN working in the country under the auspices of the Delivering as One approach with the Resident Coordinator as the overall chief.
Each head of the UN system in Bhutan and their colleagues have made their own unique contributions to the advancement of the country’s development goals particularly in the human resource capacity building and governance areas with significant, visible results in diverse sectors they have been involved in.
As a passionate believer in the noble ideals of the UN Charter, Bhutan has been playing its role, albeit modest, by participating actively in deliberations in the different bodies, advocating the foundational vision of the organisation, and in more recent years contributing volunteers to peace-building and peace-keeping missions in some of the most challenging hot-spots in the world.
Bhutan’s holistic development vision of Gross National Happiness, articulated by His Majesty Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck, has found deep resonance with the long-term development goals of the UN. Endorsed as the ninth Millennium Development Goal, the UN General Assembly adopted pursuit of happiness as a basic human right and declared March 20th as the International Day of Happiness in 2012. Several themes of the 17-point Agenda 2030 draw their inspiration from the work of the high-level international experts’ team, including Nobel Laureates, appointed by His Majesty the King in 2012 to chart the post-2015 development road-map.
As the world celebrates the 75th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Charter, it is a moment for some deep soul-searching, to reflect on the vision of the founding-fathers and the distance we have covered. How might the world look like without the United Nations? How might we make it more efficient, effective and fair? How do we hold the defaulters to account?
For Bhutan though, the benefits that have come through our membership to this pre-eminent extended family of nations have given to us a global platform to share the country’s unique vision of holistic development dedicated to human and societal flourishing within mutually supportive planetary boundaries. This membership has allowed us to make our own the all-embracing foundational ideals of the United Nations.
Inspired by Friendship in all Seasons, “working together to ensure no one is left behind is at the heart of our work in Bhutan and we are grateful for these partnerships”, in the words of the current UN Resident Coordinator, Mr Gerald Daly.
This is the inescapable fact. The ideals of the UN are human ideals, conceived and communicated in time for a time beyond time. The UN is us and ours. So are its ideals. They survive and thrive through individual faith and conviction. It is the integrity of individual leaders and individual nations and their citizens to breathe life into the UN and live out its noble ideals in their life and action. The soul of the UN expresses itself in the role of its functionaries and signatories.
For me as an individual, and a man of faith, the United Nations still represents the best of human yearning and the noblest of collective striving. If not for Covid-19, I should have been at Seville in Spain this moment to partake of the historic 75th anniversary of the signing of the UN Charter as a special invitee of Entreps-UN75.
May the sublime ideals of our United Nations flower and flourish in all realms, at all times, and in all lives…
__________________________________________________________________________________
Reflections: June 26, 2020.
Thakur S Powdyel, Former Minister of Education, Royal Government of Bhutan
Entreps Global Juror.
Kickoff Event – 25 Sept 2020
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsOpening Agenda on PDF
/0 Comments/in News /by entreps entrepsSolution17 Art for Climate Change
Opening-Agenda-on-PDFKickoff Event for the 5th Global Entreps Awards (UNGA75 – NYC), with Ban Ki-moon.
Entreps Partnership with Creative Youth Community Development Initiative
/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by entreps entrepsEntreps partners now the Creative Youth Community Development Initiative (CYCDI) to deploy Solution17. This partnership works towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, as a way to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations and prepare for the 5th Global Entreps Awards and 5Gcitizens International Congress, to take place in Seville on 25th to 27th of June 2020.
Learn more about Solution17’s entrepreneurship project, ‘IC2030’, on http://www.cycdi.com/ic2030/index.php and Solution17 for Climate, by the Covenant University International Office of Linkages.
The Creative Youth Community Development Initiative, the winner of an United Nations’ SDG Action Innovator award-winning, was born to promote the Sustainable Development Goals and the achievement of the 2030 agenda through education and creative development, innovation and entrepreneurship in children, youth and women. All of it, running in Africa to the world’s sake.
This initiative, brought to us by our Global Juror Foluke Michael, is to be implemented through the platform Solution17 for SDGs, the Vision of the Children, Creative Youth Initiative Against Corruption, InnoCreativa Youth Hub and CDMA Social Enterprise Programme.
If you want to get more information about the CYCDI don’t forget to check their site, and if you want to read about the 5th Edition of the Entreps Awards, its categories and other Entreps initiatives, get onto www.entreps.org and social media!
You can also become one of the 1,000 Global Jurors from 126 countries. They nominate and select projects and initiatives like this one: Learn more here
We want to remind you that you can also play an active role on the celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the signing-off of the Charter of the United Nations by taking part on the global conversation on the role of international cooperation in building the future we want by voicing your opinion on the UN75 1-minute survey via Entreps.
The future will sustainable if no one is left behind. Entreps, Looking beyond Horizon.
Register here!