The Extension Now Serving in Ghana

The Extension is partnering with Martha Education Foundation to bring much needed Addiction Rehabilitation and Behavior Health services to this West African nation.

The Extension and Martha Educational Foundation (MEF) are teaming up to change the way psychological care and addiction recovery are managed in Ghana, West Africa. A formal inauguration and fundraising event is scheduled for May 26th at First United Methodist Church in Marietta Georgia.

The Extension and the Martha Educational Foundation are pleased to announce the opening and operation of the Peep-Ters Extension Institute. This is a joint partnership to manage Addiction Rehabilitation and Behavioral Health Treatment in Ghana and beyond. Our joint vision is to develop a replicable model of successful addiction and behavioral health treatment in Africa and beyond. The first facility, the Peep-Ters Extension Institute, is already operating in Akrade, Akosombo, Ghana.

George Awuah Fosu Executive Director of MEF, a member of the Atlanta Group Psychotherapist Society announced that “the presence of Peep-Ters Institute in Ghana would help contribute to mental health education in Ghana which may accelerate the passage of the mental health bill that has been in Ghana's parliament since 2006.” He also added that “the Institute will introduce modern, effective and affordable psychotropic medications with minimum side effects to the country that will help treat mental illnesses and addictions.”

This partnership and subsequent approach to providing tried and tested behavior health services in Ghana has been proposed by mental health practitioners and industry experts as one of the best things to happen to behavioral health management in Ghana in a single year. Ghana the first African country to have independence from western colonial rule, is a country of 24 million people with an impressive history of peaceful democracy and an emerging contributor to the global economy with recent discovery of large quantities of crude oil for export. Peep-Ters Extension Institute, the first of its kind in Ghana, is positioned to transform the lives of thousands of Ghanaians with its main focus on domestic abuse, mental health illness and addiction recovery. As reported by National Public Radio (NPR), fuelling demand for addiction rehabilitation services is the increased use of West Africa, including Ghana as a transit point by South American drug cartels transporting cocaine and heroin to Europe. Dr. Asare, former country Drug Czar, has explained, “...though the hard drugs are not meant for the country market, large quantities find its way into the country to the youth.” This has resulted in a serious social-economic problem in the country since there are no drug rehabilitation centers to manage and treat these individuals.”

The Extension is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization located in Marietta, Georgia. Its mission is to facilitate a transformation that empowers chemically dependent men and women to become sober, accountable members of society. It has been in existence for almost 25 years and is the model for the Peep-Ters Extension Institute in Ghana.

Martha Educational Foundation is a 501(c)3 corporation with operations in Powder Springs , Georgia. One primary objective of MEF is to help develop a replicable model of success in Ghana for collaborative community services providing mental health and addiction prevention and treatments aligned with employment education and career services.

For more information about the Martha Educational Foundation, please visit www.marthaedu.org. For more information about The Extension, please visit www.theextension.org. Marietta, March 10, 2012

Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:24:50 -0400

Please see attachment. Thanks

Joe Kingsley Eyiah (Ph. D. Candidate) Dept. of Curriculum, Teaching and Learning (CTL) The Ontario Institute of Studies in Education of the University of Toronto 252 Bloor St, West, 10th Floor (Office # 227) Toronto, ON. M5S 1V6 Canada