Abdul-Latif Alhassan is a
key founding member and current Executive Director of the Civil Society and
Institutional Foundation (CSIF), a network organization in Tamale, Ghana, with
He has successfully (under
the International Citizen Service Programme) led two diverse teams of Ghanaian
& UK Volunteers to raise awareness on disability to over 20,000 people,
advocating for inclusion of Persons with Disabilities into the society. Latif
holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Geography & Resource Development,
University of Ghana and a Level 5 Award in Professional Consulting (QCF),
Chartered Management Institute (CMI), UK. He plans to continue his passion and
drive for capacity building of civil society organisations and the next generation
of student leaders, making tertiary education accessible to needy but brilliant
students and challenging some social injustices in Northern Ghana.
Tamale is often referred to as the NGO capital of Ghana due to the
multitude of NGOs in the area. Majority of these organisations are small and
medium sized but their contributions to the development of the region cannot be
denied. Capacity level of small and medium size NGOs in Northern Ghana is
generally weak and thereby affects their ability to compete for donor funds and
duly also implement development project satisfactorily. Strengthening of CSOs’
capacities is essential to achieving sustainable development and I envision
CSIF being the leader in this area in Northern Ghana in the next 5 years. This
will go a long way to ensure that civil society organisations and community
institutions have become strong, partnering with government and markets forces
to provide social development services to the numerous beneficiaries of these
CSOs in Northern Ghana.
My greatest strength is my ability to create a strong and open
relationship with partners, networks, local communities and my enormous
enthusiasm for my work which rubs off on everybody I work with. Meeting new
people, adapting to new environments and networking with people are endearing
to me and I relish being in new environments and interacting with people from
diverse backgrounds for societal advancement. However, I see my little
patience for subpar performance and slow processes as my greatest weakness
which I’m working on.
It is a known fact that poor leadership is at the root of Ghana’s
under development. At CSIF, we believe in tackling the root cause of this
problem. Student Union Leaders at the tertiary institutions mostly turn out to
migrate into national level politics and leadership roles. We address the
leadership challenge with an innovative tripartite solution dubbed Student
Union Empowerment (SUE): A Stronger Voice for Students in Northern Ghana.
The SUE project is giving stronger voice to student unions at the
University for Development Studies (UDS) by empowering 110 student leaders (55
per year) to independently govern their affairs, building their capacities
(through trainings in Leadership, Governance, Financial Management, Social Media
and Communication, Advocacy and Position Papers) and creating a strong linkage
between students and the job market, thereby facilitating a smooth
student-to-employer/employee transition to reduce the high graduate
unemployment in Ghana.
Education is one of the greatest tools to develop a nation, it is
a right but in my part of the world, it is a privilege. Through our EduAfria
Scholarship and Development Project, we make it possible for brilliant but
needy students from 3 deprived districts of the Northern Region of Ghana access
tertiary education. This has resultant impacts on themselves and their local
communities as they engage and implement development projects in their
communities and tackling their local issues.
Raising an organisation from its idea stage to a fully functional
and vibrant organisation making huge impacts in the lives of organisations and
people in Northern Ghana is my greatest accomplishment so far. My greatest
challenge so far is not being able to help people in dire need.
Mr. Shani Mahama (A Ghanaian living in Denmark) is my mentor. He
is credited with initiating a number of organisations and projects in Ghana
making impacts in the lives of people.
Civil Society and Institutional Foundation (CSIF) – Ghana, is an
umbrella organization consisting of twenty-two (22) small and medium-sized
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) mainly NGOs in Northern Region, established
in 2011 to serve as a mouthpiece for its member organizations and to support
their resource mobilization and capacity building. Apart from supporting our
member organisations, CSIF also currently implements two projects;
a.
The Student Union
Empowerment (SUE) - an innovative tripartite (in partnership with AfriCAN, a
Danish NGO and the National Union of Ghana Students) solution to the leadership
challenge.
b.
The EduAfrica Project – a
tertiary education scholarship scheme and development that makes it possible
for brilliant but needy students from 3 deprived districts (Tolon, Kumbungu and
Savelugu/Nanton) of the Northern region of Ghana have access to tertiary
education pursuing courses in 2 demand areas (teaching and nursing). One key
criterion for selection of scholars into the scheme is community
engagement/volunteer work where candidates must demonstrate their active
engagement in local community development or have brilliant project ideas to be
implemented in their communities.
Since 2013, once every quarter, CSIF offers Advisory
Services/Training and counselling for nascent member organisations. Trainings
in organizational development, proposal writing, branding through social media
etc have been done. The result of the trainings so far has increased
participating organisations ability to understand the prospects and challenges
affecting NGO management. We have provided space and facilities as a hub for 5
nascent member organisations to grow within their first few years of incorporation.
Our EduAfrica Project is a tertiary education scholarship and
development project supporting needy but brilliant students from three deprived
districts (Tolon, Kumbungu and Savelugu/Nanton). The EduAfrica Project
currently makes tertiary education accessible to 3 first-generation graduate
students from 3 deprived communities in Northern Ghana, hitherto lifting a huge
financial burden off the scholars’ shoulders, positively impacting their
stellar academic performances and helping the scholars develop themselves
professionally and personally as they implement their volunteer projects in
their local communities with resultant impacts.
Student Union Empowerment (SUE): A Stronger Voice for Students in
Northern Ghana is a 2-year pilot project
working with student union leaders at the University for Development Studies
(UDS). The student unions have limited influence to promote as well as protect
the rights of the students, resulting in lower quality of tertiary education
and a greater mismatch between the qualifications of the students and the
requirements of the job-market. My brainchild, the SUE project is giving
stronger voice to student unions at the University for Development Studies by
building capacities of 110 student leaders who have become influential and
positioned to best serve the interest of students. SUE also makes it possible
for student unions at UDS have a designated role in creating a stronger linkage
between students and the job market by organizing employment related activities
and involving students. These have had positive results to the over 20,000
students of the four campuses of the University.
When under pressure, I utilize my philosophical training and
reasoning ability to analyze issues, consult and make informed decisions. Reggae
soothes my heart and a source of inspiration and motivation when under pressure
as well.
I have over time improved
my knowledge through short courses and trainings and hold certificates in
Leadership, Management and Entrepreneurship from British Council’s Blazing
Trails program, Training of Trainers (ToT) & Global Change Campaign
(from Action Aid Global Platform, Ghana),a Level 5 Award in Professional
Consulting (QCF), from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), UK and
currently pursuing Level 6 at the Institute of Project Management Professionals
(IPMP) in Ghana. I’m also a Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Fellow,
Nigeria Cohort 3.
I believe that where you were born is just an entry point to the
world but your sphere of influence knows no bounds. You can achieve greatness
but that requires consistent dedication to the cause. A thought without action
is empty and action without thought is blind.
Email: abdul-latif@csifghana.org
Website: www.csifghana.org or www.facebook.com/csifhgana
LinkedIn: abdul-latif Alhassan
Facebook: Alhassan Abdul-LatyfDepylot
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