Please describe your proposed solution.

• This proposal aims to build on the achievements of our Planting Roots in Africa project by turning the already acquired space into a self-sustaining co-working space set up to attract people for organic blockchain awareness creation. It will fulfill the fund goal of "preparing a group of people willing and able to make contributions to the ecosystem"
• Notwithstanding the fact that blockchain technology is fast-growing and being adopted in many countries and gradually being mainstreamed in the national development agenda, the lack of requisite knowledge, understanding and capacity is hindering meaningful actions on the ground. This is largely because there is currently no organized effort in Ghana and across borders to provide targeted information and knowledge to understand the innovations that come along with the blockchain.
• The proposed Information Center sees tremendous opportunity in adding further innovative resources and technologies that could together enhance outreach, engagement, knowledge dissemination in regard to blockchain technology. In particular, the Center hopes to acquire technologies that will facilitate learning and engagement with students, in formal and non-formal learning contexts and professional development. The Center will put together a list of technological resources which when acquired could boost the capacity of the Center to pursue its mandate of knowledge production hub in blockchain and dissemination of same.

Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.

The Center, when established, will provide opportunities for the public to visit (both physical/online)to learn and adopt the blockchain technology. This is likely to have a ripple effect, thereby getting new people onto Cardano and Catalyst.

• The Center could also serve as a hub for outreach to the youth in tertiary institutions, workers and business owners to promote and raise awareness of Cardano and Catalyst; and subsequently serve as a resource space for blockchain research for skill development.
• The center will train and mentor young professionals who be able to provide their services broad and wide.
• Start-ups and young entrepreneurs will also be trained and mentored.
• Create opportunities to spend time with successful small scale businesses for skills improvement.
• Other opportunities may include the organization of mini exhibitions and workshops to showcase the application of blockchain technologies, in various sectors in Ghana.
• Key materials to be used for communication include flyers, stickers, pull-ups, brochures, key rings, badges, banners etc, will be developed in different languages for ease of understanding.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/140p4FCIcSIvH4qnz5DnQUWy4efwwNftv?usp=sharing

What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?

Currently, there seems to be no major challenge foreseen in the implementation of this project. However, some risks envisage are outlined below:

1. The fear of unrealistic schemes that have connections with cryptocurrency could make people reluctant and slow down patronage
2. The misconception and disinformation of blockchain and cryptocurrency related issues could make people reluctant to patronize the space

However, we propose to take proactive measures to reach out to prospective participants to allay their fears and encourage them to attend educational sessions and use the space to learn about the opportunities on blockchain. Examples of success stories would be used to encourage prospective participants.

Please provide a detailed plan, including timeline and key milestones for delivering your proposal.

The establishment of the center is expected to be completely executed within 3 to 4 months. An office space at Wada’s current office premises will be dedicated to the information center and will need to be appropriately equipped for that purpose.

The first month will be used to set up the office with furniture and equipment. Key tasks to be undertaken will be the procurement and set up/installation of office desks, chairs, and a simple office decor to make the center appealing,welcoming and informative.

During the second month, information materials will be developed in English as well as French. These will include simple leaflets, flyers, banners, pull ups, and brochures among others. These will be compiled into information packs to provide detailed yet simple information on blockchain and Cardano/Catalyst to visitors.

In the third month, the materials developed will go through the design and printing processes after which the center will officially open up to the general public. People will be able to walk in and either pick up an information pack or use the information center as a workspace and by so doing get acquainted with Cardano and blockchain. The center will be publicized mainly through social media ie. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Whats App groups.

There will be training and mentoring of young professionals, start-ups and entrepreneurs and these people will be input into a data base where the will be sorted for their services.

Please provide a detailed budget breakdown.

Equipment

• Furniture (Desk (3), Chairs (8) - $3,000
• Laptop (1)- $1,200.00
• Desktop computer (1) - $1,200
• Camera - $1,500
• Video Coverage equipment - $3,000
• Rent subsidy - $3,600

Development of various information materials

• Translation - $1,500
• Development of flyers, booklets etc. - $1,500
• Production of the materials (hard copies) - $3,500

Volunteering time

• Training/mentoring sessions - $4,000
• Staff time ($250 x 5 pers x 4 months) =$5,000
• Transportation- $1,000

Subtotal = $30,000

Administrative costs and overheads (10% of sub-total) =$3,000

Grand Total =$33,000

Please provide details of the people who will work on the project.

The team comprises seasoned persons with years of experience in management of information and development. Members of the team are also familiar with the Cardano protocol and have participated in all funding rounds.

Emelia Sarfo is a funded Proposer of Fund8 Ghana Youth Onboarding under New Member Onboarding, a Fund9 Proposer, a CA/PA for fund6, fund7, fund8 and fund9, a Voter, a Challenge Team member, funded proposer sub Circle member, a Human Resource Practitioner by Profession, a Teacher and a Community worker and Volunteer at Wada Ghana.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emelia-sarfo-92787662

Afia Owusu: Currently lead in organising CATH for the past 3 months. Wada West Africa Lead, Environmentalist, CA for funds 6, 7 and 8. vCA for fund 7&8, Idea Fest Host for funds 6, 7, & 8, active in most Catalyst meetings (C4C, Town Halls, Idea Fest programs). Twitter - @AfiaOwusu13 Linkedin -

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/afia-owusu-04911816/>; Discord - Afia Owusu #3104; Telegram - @AfiaAOwusu;

Richmond Oppong is a graphic designer with over 10 years of experience in logo designs, print and poster designs, business card designs, 3D signage, and advertising and marketing. He holds a Higher National Diploma in Graphic Design from Takoradi Polytechnic, Takoradi-Ghana. Richmond is a blockchain enthusiast and is actively part of the Cardano project catalyst community. He was a Community Advisor in Catalyst fund 5, 6 and 7, also was a Veteran community Advisor in fund 7 and Catalyst Challenge Team member for ‘Scale-UP Cardano’s Community Hubs’ challenge settings for fund 8, Twitter: @cardanoholious, https://www.linkedin.com/in/richmond-oppong-054689b4

Daniel D. Lezu - Web Manager at Wada and a Front-End web developer. He holds Bachelors of Science in Information Technology and Professional Diploma in Software Engineering. He is passionate about Cloud computing, Cyber Security and Decentralized Applications. He was a Community Advisor in Catalyst fund 7 and Catalyst Challenge Team Lead for ‘Scale-UP Cardano’s Community Hubs’ challenge settings for fund 8. He envisioned using Blockchain Technology to bridge the gap between human capabilities and machine learning (AI & IoT).

Assor Siaw: Translator: Bachelor's degree in French.Translated several documents and reports for Ministry of Interior and African Research Network

If you are funded, will you return to Catalyst in a later round for further funding? Please explain why / why not.

Yes, given that this proposal will support for 4 months if the view of being self sustaining and No because if this is realized with the 4 months there will be no need

Please describe what you will measure to track your project's progress, and how will you measure these?

The success of the project will be measured using the following KPIs:

1. The number of people patronizing the Center per day in the month
2. The number and types of educational materials produced
3. The number of people who have consulted to obtain guidelines to enable them to participate in Cardano/Catalyst activities
4. The number of people joining Cardano/Catalyst platforms as a result of the education received
5. Number of people signing on to mentorship programmes
6. Qualitative feedback from mentees
7. The number of people presenting proposals for funding
8. Revenue generated from the public for co-working space

What does success for this project look like?

What does success for this project look like?

Information Centers are designed for storing, processing and retrieving information for dissemination at regular intervals, on demand or selectively, according the needs of end users. At the end of the project we expect to see a fully equipped and vibrant Information Center, with some permanent and volunteer staff attending to the needs of patrons and offering blockchain education. We also expect to see some mentees starting up their own small businesses as a result of the training they received We ultimately want to have a repository of public knowledge with regards to blockchain, Cardano/Catalyst in Ghana.

Please provide information on whether this proposal is a continuation of a previously funded project in Catalyst or an entirely new one.

This project is a new one leveraging on previously funded project from a different source to acquire space.