BOWLEP | ghana

Bonyase Women's Livelihood Empowerment Project (BOWLEP)

BOWLEP is a rural empowerment intervention project with an aim towards establishing gender equality through the promotion of women in development, the education of children in the surrounding rural areas and the reduction of poverty in Bonyase.

The village of Bonyase is one of the communities in which women accused of witchcraft are remain exposed and vulnerable. They are forced to dwell in an encampment that is know as 'the 'witches' homes' which is located in the Central Gonja district of northern region in Ghana.

BOWLEP mainly seeks to improve the livelihood of women living at “witches” home, as well supporting the education of children in the village through the education and training of their mothers.

Our hope is that the project will facilitate an effective, peaceful re-integration of accused women back to their previous homes and communities, reduce poverty and sufferings among the accused women, encourage parents to send their children to school and strengthen community participation in school management. Our plan is to then harness these positive outcomes to unify the rural women from these communities in order that they should engage in self-help development.

The project’s main activities shall include support in the mobilization of communal labour for the construction of a 3 room/cubicle to be used for the rearing of goats (as IGA), to organize regular women’s group meetings, offering training in livestock management and group dynamics, promoting reproductive health rights awareness among the women and campaigning for the need to also educate the youing girls of rural communities.