Cape Coast, Feb. 18, GNA – Hundreds of children in the Cape Coast Metropolis queued up at the Heritage House to register for the second cohort session of the ‘Baba Future Leader Initiative’ programme.
The Baba Future Leaders Initiative is a community driven programme rolled out by the Baba Future Leaders Foundation with the aim of taking vulnerable children off the streets.
Founded by Mr Victor Beausoleil and his family alongside members of African-Canadians living in Cape Coast, the programme engages young boys and girls through personal development, performing arts and literacy sessions to improve their literacy skills.
The six months programme, started in the summer of 2020 with more than 120 children successfully completing their study at the end of the first cohort session in December last year.
Speaking in an interview with the media during the registration exercise for the second cohort session of the programme, Mr Beausoleil stressed his committment to help children grasp the importance of attaining education and subsequently become lifelong learners.
“I want to see our children read and write and not struggle with word recognition and will therefore collaborate with local organizers to raise up the future leaders of our communities”.
“Once a week, the children are motivated through different empowering sessions, in addition to being served a hot meal and a small stipend”, he “said.
Additionally, there was continuity of care where the beneficiaries were given room to further obtain, improve, and retain the skills, knowledge and other resources through support from a large group of community animators and volunteers.
“The continuity of care model is to ensure that no child is left behind”, he stated and stressed the need to expand and identify more locations to facilitate the program.
“We consistently seek advice from our Elders and collaborate with local organizers to ensure the initiative is not only sustainable but also impact”, he added.
Mr Beausoleil said efforts were being made to engage individuals and institutions including; traditional leaders and other educational institutions for the smooth running of the programme.
“We have partnered local community organizers who have helped in diverse ways, and we are looking forward to collaborating with some schools and other stakeholders”.
Some of the children who spoke to the GNA expressed excitement about the programme, saying it would help them live meaningful lives.
They expressed gratitude to the Baba Future Leaders Foundation for the timely intervention while urging other NGOs to do same.
GNA