Kwabena Danso, the Executive Director of the Yonso Project, grew up in the rural community of Yonso, Ghana. He was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to receive a great education due to the support of his grandfather who worked in the UK, but many of the children from his town were not so lucky. While Kwabena was attending the University of Ghana, he began the Yonso Project with some friends from America as a way to improve the educational resources available to students in communities like Yonso. Since 2006, Kwabena has committed his life to furthering the aim of the Yonso Project- to educate the youth in rural Ghana in an attempt to break the cycle of poverty. Furthermore, Kwabena created a subsidiary social enterprise of the Yonso Project called Booomers as a means of providing rural Ghanaian youth with employment (see Bamboo Products). With a vision for the future and a passion for the cause, Kwabena has been the driving force behind the many efforts of the Yonso Project.
Kwabena has also received much notable recognition for both his work with the Yonso Project and with Booomers. Below is a list of the awards and acknowledgements that he has received.
Awards:
- International Youth Foundation Global Fellowship Award for Social Entrepreneurs- 2010
- Airtel Touching Lives Award– 2012
- President of Ghana National Youth Achievers Award for Grassroots and Rural Development- 2012
- Engine Entrepreneurship Award for Booomers- 2014
Acknowledgements:
- Interviewed on BBC Autos– 2014
- Interviewed on BBC World Outlook Service– 2015
- Interviewed by VOA (Voice of America)– 2014
- Interviewed by VOA for Africa 54- 2015
- Interviewed on a CNN feature on African start-ups- 2015
- Featured in the magazine This is Africa, bicycles – 2014
- Featured in the magazine Face to Face Africa- 2015
- Featured in the magazine Young African Visionaries– 2015
Feel free to contact Kwabena Danso at kdanso@yonsoproject.org