Groups
Schools Group
The Schools section of the website is now open. Click here to access it.
There are nine primary schools and one secondary schools in each district with links to the other district. We have built up a collection of material that can be provided to schools. For more information about the schools group and school linking, please email our Schools Coordinator
Youth Group
Young people are an integral part of our community. One World Link, as an organisation, wants to promote friendship between young people at both ends of the link. Youth participation within our organisation is particularly important because it is the young people of today, who will be the future of this country and the next generation of the link.
The youth wing in Bo, was established in 2005, and currently has 20 registered groups, who work on a variety of issues ranging from agriculture to music. Out of the 20 registered groups, currently there are 10 – 12 active groups, which serve over 1000 young people. The intention of the various groups is to equip the young people with a variety of skills, which make them more “rounded” and give them greater employability. It is important to note, that youth unemployment in Bo is extremely high, however the members of the youth wing remain motivated – and passionate about what they do.
Our Warwick-district based youth group was set up recently, and has had two extremely successful events – an evening celebration event for the Day of the African Child and One World - One Weekend, a world music festival, for our guests from Sierra Leone. Following the visit of Alpha Bah, the youth chairman for OWL in Bo, Ben Wesson and JoAnne Fisher visited Bo in October 2009. Having returned enthused and excited, the duo have many ideas for projects for engaging young people here. The membership of our youth group is currently 10, and we meet fortnightly.
For more information about the work of the youth group or if you’d like to get involved in any of our projects, please contact us
- email youth@oneworldlink.co.uk
- phone 07904 351247 or 01926 425403
- see our entry on Facebook (opens in a new window)
Women's Groups
Since the end of the civil war in Sierra Leone there are many war widows, traumatized young women and school leavers with children who have no source of income and, because of their experiences as combatants or war victims, they have had little opportunity to acquire education or skills to become self-supporting. In Bo the women decided to do something about their plight and we in OWL have been supporting them. They formed an umbrella organization called Kayoma and in 2004 OWL loaned them £1000 and a microcredit scheme was set up.
Jane Knight visited Bo recently and met with some 20 of the Kayoma women. She reported that they were less enthusiastic about setting up a tailoring business inspite of having sewing machines. This is another reason to be really sure that what we send out they really would use!
They were talking about setting up a café to cater for those people using the community centre and might require funding for more pots and pans We were pleased to learn that Catherine Kamara was coming to visit us in February/March as one of our aims was to welcome women as official visitors to OWL
Our main focus is on developing an oral history of women's life in this country which could be used in Bo. We are setting up three tasters for Jane to take out to Bo when she goes in November. They are a business woman, a woman who remembers life in the 1930s/1940s and a woman who has had to overcome difficulties. If these work we shall apply for funding from the Awards for All Lottery and extend the project to the local women here who have expressed an interest in Bo. We would also hope to encourage Bo women to produce a similar thing to send to us
I am pleased to report that Soroptimist International has asked Leamington Soroptimists to support and adopt a Club being set up in Bo by the Freetown Soroptimists – apparently they already have a group of interested women.
There is also scope for us to help with the women's education and training. When asked what training they would like, the responses were:
• Adult literacy
• Financial management
• Information technology
• Tailoring
• Weaving
Anyone interested in offering help or materials should contact:
Val Davis on womensgroup@oneworldlink.org.uk
Local Government Group
The Link
Warwick District, Warwickshire County and Leamington Town Councils are all linked with Bo City Council in Sierra Leone as part of a long year relationship (One World Link), which was originally started by members of the local communities in Bo and Warwick. It was supported from the outset by Warwick District Council (WDC). Bo City Council came on board in 2004 when Sierra Leone had its first truly democratic local elections since the 1970s.
These activities will set the stage for our long term cooperation. On top of this, Leamington Spa is now officially twinned with Bo at council level. Read more ...
The Projects
Local council involvement has slowly grown in recent years as the benefits to both partners have become clearer. There is now a great deal of excitement building following the visits Bo of the Environmental Health Officer from Warwick District, Waste Management and Finance Officers from Warwickshire County and an ex-President of the Royal Town Planning Institute. Bo City sent its Chief Administrator to Warwick for a further exchange of ideas and the Chief Environmental Health Officer for Bo District (under an Commonwealth Professional Scholarship). An Action Plan was adopted by the Mayor of Bo and plans are now under way for a pilot Environmental Health Project with funds from UNDP and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF).
The Benefits to both Warwick and Bo
Nicola Cumberledge is a member of the Local Authority Group. Her experiences of visiting Bo and the subsequent professional developments included:
• Worked with people from different professions and organisations from the UK, Sierra Leone and Uganda
• Helped to give an assembly about Sierra Leone to my old primary school in Leamington
• Found my way from SL airport across the sea to Freetown on a helicopter in the dark
• Eaten fresh pineapple with villagers in Sierra Leone and made friends with a beekeeper
• Visited a school in Sierra Leone, where they sang songs to welcome me
• Been driven to a rainforest island by the Bishop of Kenema
Read more ... of her many and varied adventures!