Changemaker Stories:
Nathaniel Kwesi Somuah

The Changemaker Stories are a set of interviews that look to redirect the spotlight from the “project impact and outcomes” of our regular work to the humans behind the projects – those who choose to go above and beyond. We hope it will inspire others to do the same and serve as testimony that however big or small your idea is, it is possible to bring positive social change to your community. These are the everyday heroes in the Dream Building Fund project.

My dream for the project is to see it growing beyond the span of the funding period and being replicated in other communities with similar challenges. I also want to see many of the children in my community in the future being beneficiaries of the projects. - Nathaniel Kwesi Somuah, Asoba Foundaion, President and consultant of the EduDrive Table Tennis project.

Sustainability and scalability are two essential aspects of most social and field initiatives. As the founder of Asoba Foundation, Nathaniel Kwesi Somuah runs the EduDrive Table Tennis project in Ofankor and Kweikuma Communities, Ghana. Together with the partner association NK Foundation, the duo seeks to establish EduDrive as the ground zero for similar projects and expand it across borders.

Spirit of a philanthropist

I am always moved to help people find their feet and to improve their conditions.

As a self-proclaimed Sportspreneur and a Sports Concept Developer, Somuah believes in the triangle of sports-education-media and EduDrive Table Tennis signifies what can be achieved when the three elements work together.

EduDrive aims to reduce the number of school drop-outs and low literacy among the impoverished areas in Ofankor and Kweikuma Communities. We want to help the less privileged children to continue their studies, as well as to improve their academic performance through table tennis and after-school math, English, and science lessons.

Nevertheless, it is more than the academic performance that Somuah wishes to improve with the project.

Table tennis is known to be multi-beneficial; from health benefits, to bonding countries together, to being numeracy inclined. It is a fun sport that teaches the children to observe and play by the rules, a great virtue that would accompany those children a long in their lives.

Innovation and sustainability are the keys

Since its start in 2021, EduDrive has already seen positive results.

Looking at the trickling down effect, this is an excellent project. 200 school children being trained in table tennis and academics is fantastic. These 200 children will also go back and teach other children. Hopefully by the end of the project, at least 500 people will be knowledgeable in table tennis and empowers many more.

For Somuah and his partner, this is only the beginning. The project leaders have been monitoring the progress closely and constantly thinking of ways to improve.

Currently, the number of children is too many for this novel project. Ideally, only 100 children should be on the current project so that each one of them will have adequate time for table tennis and academics.

This means more volunteers for the table tennis session, and a bigger budget for the expenses of coaches, teachers, and volunteers.

And we need to be innovative to overcome the challenges. One of our visions is to build a sustainable and scalable project model that would not only grow beyond the funding period, but could also be easily replicated in other communities.”

Spreading the seeds

Our teachers for the academic sessions have also learned to play table tennis and will be able to teach other children on their own, continuing the project and spreading the seeds across communities and beyond boundaries.

Discover more about the EduDrive Table Tennis project in Ofankor and Kweikuma Communities, Ghana.
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