We sponsor Bright.

Bright is a 12 year old boy in Ghana. Here’s the information we can share with you.

About Bright

PREFERRED NAME: 

Bright

GUARDIANS:

• Father
• Mother 

MOTHER/FEMALE GUARDIAN OCCUPATION: 

Unemployed

CHILDREN IN HOUSEHOLD:

2

CORRESPONDENCE LANGUAGE:

English

HOBBIES:

• Football

EDUCATION:

• UK School Year Equivalent: Year 4
• Favourite subject: Art, Reading

About Bright’s Project

CLOSEST MAJOR CITY: 

Kumasi

COMMUNITY: 

Forested, Town

MOST COMMONLY SPOKEN LANGUAGE: 

Ashante twi

NO. OF RESIDENTS: 

10,500

MOST COMMON OCCUPATION: 

Domestic ServicesPetty/Market Trading

TYPICAL HOUSE CONSTRUCTION: 

• Roof: Tin/Corrugated Iron
• Wall: Brick/Block/Cement
• Floor: Cement

REGIONAL DIET: 

• Bananas
• Beans
• Bread
• Cassava

About Bright’s Country

Country:

Ghana

Capital City:

Accra

Population:

26.32 million

Life expectancy:

Male 63.76 years, Female 68.66 years

Population with improved drinking water:

Urban 92.6%, Rural 84%

Population with improved sanitation:

14.9%

Percentage of children underweight:

13.4%

Literacy rate:

Male 82%, Female 71.4%

Child labour:

34%

Religion:

Christian 71.2% (Pentecostal/Charismatic 28.3%, Protestant 18.4%, Catholic 13.1%, other 11.4%), Muslim 17.6%, traditional 5.2%, other 0.8%, none 5.2% (2010 census)

Percentage living below the poverty line:

25.15% (5.4 million)

A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY

Ghana became a country in its own right in 1957 when the British Gold Coast colony merged with neighbouring Togoland Trust Territory. It was actually the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence. Like many of its African neighbours, Ghana’s history has been marred by political coups and instability. Since peaceful democratic elections in 1992, the country is now experiencing relative stability.

HOW THE COUNTRY MAKES A LIVING

The stability of Ghana is having a positive impact on the country’s economy, which is largely reliant on natural resources including gold, cocoa and oil. More than half the workforce is involved in agriculture, but in recent years more employment has been generated as a result of oil production. Despite this new-found income stream, not all Ghanaians are benefitting and the distribution of wealth remains hugely unequal.

CHALLENGES FACED BY THE CHILDREN

The boost in the economy has led Ghana to be re-categorised as a lower-middle income country. However, poverty remains rife. Education is free and mandatory, but facilities are inadequate and children are often required to help their families farm the land instead of going to school. Due to its location near the coast children are also at great risk of trafficking, with many forced to work internally in the fishing industry and cocoa plantations or taken further afield to be used as domestic servants, street vendors and porters.