Dear Mr. President,

My name is Marla Ludwig, and I am the founder and director of Bright Star Vision, a grassroots organization committed to putting smiles on the faces of children in the deprived communities in Ghana.  I have just returned from my fifth visit to Ghana, and everyone I met as I traveled throughout the country is thrilled that you have chosen to visit Accra and Cape Coast this month.  The tour of Cape Coast Castle will surely be a rewarding experience for you and Michelle and an invaluable one for your host, President John Atta Mills. 

I am currently working with John Homadzi Glidden from Youth Creating Change in the Volta Region on several projects, including the construction of a three-classroom kindergarten block in the Dalive Village, creating bio-sand water filter systems, providing books for our growing libraries, and hosting volunteer opportunities to raise awareness of the plight of Africa.  As a community organizer, you well know how difficult missions like ours can be, especially since we have been relying primarily on private donations from friends and family. 

During my most recent trip to Ghana, I had the honor of representing the USA at the 30^th Anniversary celebration of the promulgation of the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) Protocol on free movement of persons, residence and establishment. This event was funded by OSIWA (Open Society Initiative for West Africa), and implemented by WACSOF (West African Civil Society Forum).   Other representatives at this conference included the GIS (Ghana Immigration Service), CEPS (Customs Excise and Preventive Service), and the Ghana Police.  Instrumental in organizing this event were the dedicated youth from the Abusua Foundation and the Ghana Youth Network in Cape Coast.

At the close of the conference, I had the pleasure of meeting with Afia Asantewaa Asare-Kyei, the Law, Justice & Human Rights Program Manager of the event and Tsike-Sossah Eyram Simon, Executive Director of the Abusua Foundation.   I was very impressed with their efforts toward organizing for the unification of West Africa, and I promised them that I would contact you for your support.  I urge you to encourage the US Embassy and the US ambassador to Ghana to assist US grassroots organizations like Bright Star Vision in our on-the-ground efforts to make a difference.  Far too often the aid that goes to bigger agencies never makes it to the people in the deprived communities who need it the most.  Because Bright Star Vision is an all volunteer organization, almost all of the funding we receive goes directly to the people in need. 

I further urge you to prioritize youth-focused and youth-based organization in their funding process and also to make the process more open and transparent.  It is critical that USAID look to growing incubators and putting more money and resources into youth capacity development.  

The Abusua Foundation believes that young people have a right to participate in decision-making processes in their communities, districts, and regions, as well as at the national level.  To influence ECOWAS movement and implement change, however, young people require the tools and funding to make this possible.  It is important that we support the freshness, energy, and dynamism of the youth in their causes of self-reliance and duty to mankind, specifically their efforts to provide clean water and education for the people in the deprived communities.    

The ECOWAS conference, which celebrated three decades of progress, also shed light on a considerable shortcoming. The ECOWAS Protocol was established to unite fifteen West African states with a common currency by facilitating the free movement of citizens and goods into member states for a maximum of ninety days.  Yet the Protocol has neither been implemented universally nor enforced completely – travelers attempting to enter a member state are often stopped at the border and required to pay – what normally amounts to unauthorized fees.  In many cases, this occurs because travelers, border officials, or both are unfamiliar with the Protocol, while in others, border officials illegally charge travelers, often using extortion.  According to the GIS and the CEPS, Ghana border officials in particular have failed to adhere to the Protocol, making it especially difficult for citizens of ECOWAS states, including those of Ghana, to freely cross Ghana’s border posts in the western and eastern corridors of Ghana where trade in excess of five million dollars takes place daily.

As a result, one of the main concerns raised at the conference in Aflao was the lack of awareness of all parties involved, the chief obstacle to fluid movement across Ghana’s border.  Raising national awareness in Ghana would in turn create a greater sense of community and increase cooperation among citizens of ECOWAS states.  The ECOWAS Commission plans to promote awareness primarily through various means of advertising, such as billboards at border posts, a Free Movement Magazine, and television and radio broadcasts.  The representatives at the conference concluded that a strong political will and the involvement of Ghana’s citizens and those of the other fourteen member states were essential to this process.  It is my hope that you will focus some of your attention while you are in Accra on how the Unites States can help in this regard.  I believe that your efforts will help to alleviate some of the difficulties of the Ghanaian people, especially for the men and women who have a need to cross the borders regularly for their livelihood.   

I am sure you will love Ghana as much as I do.  The people are friendly, the children are precious, and the mangos are sweet.

Sincerely,

Marla Ludwig

(860-324-0461) marla@brightstarvision.org

24 Cortland Street, West Hartford, Connecticut 06110

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