As the UK team leader for one of the first Lattitude ICS projects, I’m so excited to be writing from Accra, Ghana, at the beginning of what I’m sure is going to be an amazing journey – for myself, the other volunteers and for the communities in which we’ll be working. Having completed our pre-placement training in the UK, we are now on our in-country training, and it has been great to finally meet our Ghanaian counterparts and for our teams to feel complete!
A central aspect of our orientation period has been intercultural exchange, and we’ve had lots of discussions about cross-cultural working and the challenges and opportunities of living and working with people from different cultural backgrounds. It’s been really useful to learn more about the do’s and don’ts of Ghanaian cultural etiquette. For every new thing I have learned about the ways in which Ghanaian and British people do things differently, I have learned another that has shown me how much we have in common. One of the best parts of my experience so far has been spending time with the Ghanaian members of our team and finding that all the positive things that my friends and family members who have been to Ghana before have said to be true: the warmth and friendliness came through straight away in the gloriously warm welcome we received from our Ghanaian friends when we arrived. I’m really looking forward to working together as a mixed group, and to discovering all the different skills that we as individuals will be able to contribute to the team.
As for what lies ahead, I’m looking forward to getting to grips with our project, Football for Hope, a programme which aims to improve the livelihood prospects of young people in Cape Coast, an area which has very high levels of youth unemployment. The centre works to provide programmes which help young people gain life and work skills to assist them in gaining access to further education or entering employment. But before that, our next milestone will be meeting our host families where we will be living for the next few months, and of course, getting used to the tropical heat!
Klara, UK ICS Lattitude Team Leader
I’m the Ghanaian team leader for the ICS Lattitude Football for Hope programme and I was born and raised in Accra. I was very excited when I was picked to be part of the ICS programme because I read about the programme and I felt it was something worth sacrificing my time for. I was also happy to be a part of it because I love issues to do with youth development and helping the needy. This raised my expectations and my impatience to start working on the project. Finally the day arrived.
The Ghanaian and British volunteers arrived in Accra on the same day for the in-country orientation. On the first day we had a welcome and introductory presentation from both the Ghanaian and UK volunteers. We also had a city tour of Accra and a whole package of orientation sessions. We have now fully completed our orientation. It has been amazing, fun and full of teaching, practical sessions, cultural understanding and advice. It has been a good learning experience to have before the actual project. Right now I just can’t wait to start working… I am charged!
Derick, Ghanaian ICS Lattitude Team Leader
