Groups and Resources
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
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.
There are now some 15 women’s groups registered with Kayoma and many small projects have been started under the scheme such as:
• Using the money to buy materials such as palm oil and soda for soap making
• Buying cloth and dyeing material for producing tie-dye gara cloth
• Buying firewood in bulk to divide and sell in small qualities
• Setting up petty trading of basic foods.
Recently OWL organized the shipment of dozens of unwanted sewing machines from the community and the local Soroptimist Club which was followed by packs of sewing materials collected by the Soroptimists. There is an on-going need for sewing materials and a bigger project would be the provision of a sewing shed for the women in Bo.
• 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
Warwick District, Warwickshire County and Leamington Town Councils are all linked with Bo City Council in Sierra Leone as part of a 26 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.
Over the last 5 years, since the end of the Civil War in Sierra Leone, local council involvement has slowly grown as the benefits to both partners have become clearer. There is now a great deal of excitement building up as 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 prepare to leave for Bo in November. Bo City is sending its Chief Administrator to Warwick in October so that he can meet his counterparts and exchange ideas with them. These visits will set the stage for a long term plan of cooperation. On top of this, Leamington Spa is now officially twinned with Bo at council level. Read more ...
Maps
The OWL Archive - We are building a timeline
There is a wealth of heart-warming experience and co-operation in the link and we endeavour to capture this in our archive.
As part of our 25th Anniversary Year celebration we showed off the pictures, video and other records of the 25 years of friendship between Warwick and Bo. Much of this information is available online through our timeline.
We want to retain the spirit of the link as it evolves and will welcome further contributions.
The Library Collection
The OWL shelf in Leamington Library is now stocked and its resources are available to borrow in the usual way. Click here to see details of the collection (this pdf document will open in a new window).
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