The Golf Trust is readying its next shipment of donated golf equipment to be sent out to The Fafali Organisation in Accra, Ghana.
This will be the third time that the international UK-based charity has supported this project with a gift of equipment donated by amateur golfers from across the country. The results of the collaboration are already improving young people’s lives and the future of golf in the country.
The Fafali Organisation, a not-for-profit, project-based charity serves marginalised groups and under-served children, aged 5 to 18 years in Ghana. The donation of equipment from The Golf Trust allows Fafali to deliver their Golf & Goal programme, which provides golf coaching and general education for children who may otherwise not receive it. The impact of this donation is not measured by the team at Fafali in terms of golf, but in terms of the life opportunities it gives to the children they work with.
“I am delighted to highlight the transformative impact of our new golf equipment,” explains Atsriku Selase COO of the Fafali Organization. “This equipment empowers our students to explore their passions, enhances their skills, and prepares them for future challenges, positioning them as leaders in their respective fields. Through collaboration and the support of these golf clubs and The Golf Trust, we are confident in our ability to drive meaningful change and inspire our underserved children to reach new heights.”
The Golf Trust has been supporting The Fafali Organisation since 2020. Over a series of online conversations during lockdown it became clear that a partnership could help Fafali’s co-founder Raymond Amezado solve several problems. This collaborative approach provides a best in practice solution that as well as addressing the lack of equipment, also connects emerging talent to existing expertise in Ghana, allowing coaches and golfers to grow in tandem.
“Fafali do an incredible job of reaching children in their community, but they didn’t have easy access to the equipment they needed or any structure for the youngsters who wanted to continue to play,” explains Cae Menai-Davis, co-founder of The Golf Trust. “Together we have bridged those gaps. They now have access to the equipment, which is paramount, but there is also a clear pathway for the children who are keen to continue to learn.”
That pathway has already proven to be incredibly successful. One of the first beneficiaries of golf equipment, Julienne Afi Amezado, became the first African female to participate in the Mack Championship Invitational in America. Her trip to the US was funded by British Black Golfers and has inspired her peers as well as the team in Ghana who made this possible.
Children from the Golf and Goals project have explained that their golf bags make them proud and “feel like a golfer”. Gloria Mensah a student on the project concludes, “I am so glad to finally have a bag because the bag is given to players that are serious with school and with practice. Hence, when I got my bag with a complete set of clubs, I feel like I am being recognized for my hard work.”
As well as its work in Ghana and across the UK, The Golf Trust is supporting projects in Kenya and Grenada, providing equipment and expertise to people delivering golf to underprivileged communities in these countries.
The Golf Trust’s work is split into three delivery pillars: disability, older people and low socioeconomic communities. With a strong emphasis on autism, The Golf Trust is also a delivery partner of Els4Austism in the UK.