Ten years ago, Bimma village in Ghana consisted of 2,500 farmers scratching a living by inappropriate farming. Polluted water and lack of sanitation meant three in ten babies died aged under two years.

Bimma’s fortunes changed in 2008 when Barrie Coates, from the Rotary Club of Leigh, visited Bimma and formed a relationship with Ghana’s charity ‘Ashanti Development’, who undertook the planning and work under matching grant conditions.

The main goals, which were all achieved, were to provide:

Clean Water – to prevent disease and to save having to walk for hours each day to a dirty, mosquito infested pool;
A Latrine for each family - to reduce illness;
A Primary School - so children have a meal each day;
Food Production – education, finance and facilities.

A recent report has said that Bimma is now recognised as the best grower of vegetables out of 200 villages in the Ashanti Region.

Part of the success was due to a Micro-Finance scheme where farmers are loaned £100 per year for seeds, fertiliser, etc. This is repayable with interest, which then goes to help farmer after farmer.

The British Overseas Development Agency recently visited Bimma to learn how the training and marketing is done and want to use this as a model for other regions.
Babies rarely die in Bimma nowadays and it is one of the most sought-after places to live in the Ashanti Region.