History and Background

In 1994, Street Girls Aid (S.Aid) was established by Response, a local non-governmental organization.

At the time of S.Aid’s inception, street children were a new phenomenon in Ghanaian society and establishing an NGO solely dedicated to street girls was revolutionary. The Ghanaian government and the general public did not comprehend the magnitude of the growing social problem of children living on the streets in Accra partly because little formal research about street children had been conducted prior to the foundation of S.Aid.

Work began with a provision for a day refuge center where girls came to rest, wash, and place their values in safekeeping. It quickly became apparent that the most vulnerable populace on the streets was young mothers and pregnant girls. Most of the pregnancies are the result of a boyfriend who also lives on the street, rape, or prostitution. In any case, the father is usually unknown, unable, or unwilling to assist with the emotional and monetary costs of pregnancy. Malnutrition, and other risks that are inherent to life on the streets, threaten the health of the baby and mother. Operations at the refuge were expanded to offer shelter to these girls in an effort to promote proper prenatal and postnatal care. Skill training, literacy programs, baby care programs, and health education have since been added to the services provided by S.Aid through the initiative of both the staff and the girls.

The staff of S.Aid consists of 67 people operating in 4 departments. This includes field workers, refuge staff, skill-training personnel, and baby-care providers. Volunteers regularly assist the functioning of our organization and S.Aid usually hosts four volunteers at a time. All staff members are expected to be actively involved with the street-children.

Street children are interdenominational and no child is excluded from the benefits of S.Aid based on religion.