Sandra fled her home in Tindonsobligu, Northern Ghana in search of a better life, but the streets of Accra were harsh and she felt alone. Soon she found hope, love and a place to call home.
Sandra was born in Tindonsobligu, in the Northern region of Ghana. She grew up with her grandparents always thinking her Grandmother was her birth mother. This is because when her mother gave birth to her, she was not able to care for her so she left her in the care of her grandmother. After a few years her mother returned to the village, married to another man. Sandra did not know she was her mother and called her Aunty Sara.
When Sandra was ten years old she was sent to live with an Aunt in a different village in Bolgatanga. There, she helped with work on the farm and with basket weaving. Sandra was in school before she moved to live with her aunt but within a couple of months, she had to drop out of school. She had to spend the day helping her aunt on the farm, and at night she would weave baskets until very late. She tried to study and attend school when she could but it was difficult and she was always tired. She wrote her B.E.C.E. exams, but did not do as well as she hoped.
Sandra lived with her Aunt for a few years, but she desperately wanted to concentrate on her schooling so she told her Aunt that she wanted to go back to her Grandmother. Sandra’s aunty didn’t support her decision to leave, so Sandra made up her mind to run away and go back home. She saved up for a bus and left quietly when her aunt wasn’t around. When she got home, her grandmother was happy to see her. Sandra finally felt at peace and started school again.
During this time, Sandra learned that Aunt Sara was in fact her birth mother. She was so happy to learn that this was her mother, and embraced her as such. However, in spite of this, Sandra had begun to feel that there were no opportunities available for her in Bolgatanga. Some of her friends had been to the city and were saying good things about it. She was intrigued about the things they were saying and it planted a seed in her mind.
Soon after this, two of Sandra’s friends robbed a local shop one night. They took clothes and money from the shop, and the next day they blamed Sandra. The shop owner beat Sandra and complained about her to her Grandfather. Sandra had never felt much love from her Grandfather, and was not surprised when he believed the words of the shopkeeper over her own plea of innocence. She felt her family did not love her enough to defend her. Grandmother stood up for her, but Sandra felt her Grandfather had never had any love for her, or her biological mother. When Sandra’s Grandfather told the shopkeeper that they could do anything to her, she feared she would be sent to prison and knew her family had no money to bail her out, so in fear and desperation, she fled. She was only 15 years old at the time.
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On the streets you hustle before you eat. Nobody cares about you.
Sandra had a little money, from a cleaning job she had been doing after school, and it was enough money to get a bus to Accra. She crept out of the house in the early morning and by the time her family noticed she was gone, it was too late. Sandra was on a 16-hour bus to Accra. When she arrived, she called her mother to inform her, and her mother was very sad.
Upon arriving in Accra, she was not sure where to go next or who could help her settle. She had heard she could make money in the Capital city, but everywhere was so different and so busy, compared to her home town. This made her overwhelmed. It was not long before she made friends with a girl a little older than her, called Jessica, who invited Sandra to the beach that day. They got along well and Jessica invited Sandra to live with her. Jessica had a makeshift tent in Kantamanto, close to the bustling market. It was very poor living conditions; very cramped and dirty under a sheet of cloth for protection from the rain and sun. At first, Sandra did not have work, but she began dating a boy called Obed, who said he would take care of her if she slept with him. This turned into a relationship that lasted for almost a year.
In addition to this, Sandra started selling water sachets and bread on the streets. Soon she began to buy sausage meat and gizzard from the market and cook it to sell. This helped her make enough money to rent a kiosk in a slump with Obed. But life wasn’t what she had dreamed of as a child. Each day was a struggle—finding food, and trying to pay rent week after week just to have a relatively safe place to sleep at night.
After a year surviving on the streets, Sandra heard about Future of Africa, and how ‘Sir Nicholas’, a man who works with the organisation helps street children find a better life and education. She then joined our weekly outreach programs because other street youth were saying the organisation could really help. By then, she was tired of street life. She wanted to leave because she was scared she’d get pregnant, and the guy she was with would just walk away, leaving her alone to take care of the baby. She also felt like no one on the streets truly cared about her, so every day she had to hustle just to survive.
One day, Sandra had a long talk with Nicholas about wanting to leave the streets. That same day, she quickly said yes to the offer to move into the Norviwo community centre. She was really ready to get off the streets. All she wanted was a chance to go to school, a safe place to sleep, food to eat every day, and more than anything, to be somewhere people actually cared about her.
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FOA is taking care of me like as if I was their own daughter. I feel blessed
After a few months at the community center, Sandra started to feel hopeful again. She became confident that she could achieve her dreams now that she had the chance to learn a skill and rebuild her life.
Sandra had not seen her family for two years, since the day she ran away to Accra. However, she was finally able to visit them in March 2022. Future of Africa traced her family and reunited her with her mother. The whole family were excited to see Sandra. She was able to see her birth Mother, Siblings, Grandfather, Aunties, Uncles and other Elders from the community. Unfortunately, her Grandmother, whom she was excited to see had sadly passed away.
After having a long conversation, Sandra was asked whether she wanted to stay with her family in Bolgatanga or continue being a Norviwo resident in Accra. She expressed her interest in being a Norviwo resident and the family also agreed to Sandra’s choice. They promised to continue being a support to Sandra anytime she needed their support.
For two years, Sandra trained in hairdressing at Twist and Locs, one of Ghana’s top natural hair salons. After completing her training, she was offered an internship and now she’s thriving. She’s becoming an expert in natural hair care and even has her own clients. Today, Sandra is one of the trainers at FOA’s new hairdressing training space, helping other former street youth learn the basics of hairdressing.
