In February 2008, several strands of the AfriKids story wove together in a creative and exciting way to produce the film ‘How to Make a Difference in Africa’. Early in 2003 the Sir Halley Stewart Trust offered a boost to the fledgling AfriKids by providing a grant to cover the first salary costs in northern Ghana. Fast forward to the summer of 2007 and the end of the Sir Halley Stewart Trust’s support for AfriKids. Having funded key salaries in Ghana and the UK that had driven the charity’s development forward for four years, the Trust had gone beyond its funding remit and needed to end support. However, Bill Kirkman, one of the trustees there felt that there was some mileage in AfriKids producing a film that demonstrated how the organisation’s methodology worked in northern Ghana, so that others could learn from it. The Trust felt that they could help with this one last project. Cath Herring, Managing Director of Taylor Herring PR, on hearing about the film, offered her company's support for a fraction of their normal fee. Add to the mix Jim Rice, an enormously committed and generous donor to AfriKids, ArtVenture, a foundation interested in supporting the film to promote freedom of expression through the media, and Schroders, who were inspired to give at an after dinner speech by AfriKids’ founder and International Director Georgie Fienberg, and you have the partnership behind ‘How to Make a Difference in Africa’. The documentary is an honest, balanced and uplifting film about the work of AfriKids, made possible by the hard gj ) y g ( work and commitment of Sorious Samura ((BAFTA and Emmyy award winning journalist) and Danny Bogado (the cameraman and editor), and the generosity of Ron McCullagh (the producer and director of Storyhouse Films and Insight News TV). ‘How to Make a Difference in Africa’ had two packed out launches in London in June 2008. At the Frontline Club premiere, over 150 representatives of the media and development world received the film with overwhelming positivity.
“I believe history will judge AfriKids as one of the few charities who manage to answer the million dollar question: how can we make aid work for Africa? The way they give in Ghana seems to me as the ultimate upgrade of aid in Africa.” Sorious Samura, Journalist The screening was followed by a lively debate with a panel including Nich Kumah, Baroness Lynda Chalker of Wallasey, Bill Kirkman and Sorious Samura. At Westbourne Studios over 350 of AfriKids supporters both old and new saw the film for the first time and reaffirmed their support for the organisation. , The film has been screened all over the UK at local film festivals, in company board rooms and to NGO staff. Internationally it has been commissioned by GTV in Ghana, Lisboa in Portugal , NHK in Japan and the Community Channel in the UK. In Ghana, as well as being screened regularly on the national TV station, the film was launched 40 to over 150 representatives of the press, NGOs and community.
‘How to Make a Diffference in Africa’
‘How to Make a Difference in Africa’