New Projects in 2019 Projects Funded in 2018
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
New Projects in 2019 We are looking forward to an active new year and hope to receive request for funding to support good projects in Niger. The Project Committee has revised the process a bit and scheduled quarterly reviews of applications. We hope to continue supporting solar electrification and Moringa plantations. We also want to continue to support projects that promote women’s economic advancement and hopefully some new projects that address the refugee crises in Niger. We would like to expand to cover more regions of the country and different types of projects. Most of these projects involve some coaching and support from FON board and members. We are always looking for FON members to help with project review, implementation and support. We also want to provide our members with inspiration and ideas for projects they may want to initiate in their villages in Niger. What ideas do you have? Do you have connections to help replicate some of these successful projects in your village? For example, we have a format for electrifying small clinics in rural areas with solar power. The technology used is simple and adapted to rural community capacity, the supplies are all local and each one costs less than $1,000. If someone is interested in promoting solar energy for a village, please contact us and we will give you the details. FON has also been helping former volunteers who are assisting the country. Some groups have used FON as a financial pass through like the Zinder Albino Children’s Project organized by Niger IV Carbondale Kids. In other cases, FON has “spread the word” about projects seeking funding like the International Conference on Saving Lake Chad and the Kirker Foundation Shipments of Hope bringing medicine, medical supplies and food to the Diffa Department, for Nigeriens and the Boko Haram refugees from Nigeria. These supplies have also been shared with hospitals throughout Niger. Projects Funded in 2018 Leather Tanning and Tent Making The ACHET 'AKAL in Tchin Tabaraden women’s cooperative of Tchintabaraden is composed of 60 women who work together to purchase hides to be tanned and made into tents. Project funding assisted with the bulk purchase of hides. They are looking to expand into more artisanal leather products. The participants are women who are trying to reestablish their positions in their community after having lost other means of support in their society. Four tents were made in Intidoden and seven in Toudou and all were sold. FON funding for this project was $2,700. Achet'Akal women making tents Women's Cooperative Work Space This year we funded two projects with Bien-Être de la Femme Rurale (BFR) in Niamey. Low-income women are taught to fabricate craft items for sale and how to use sewing machines for making and repairing garments. FON funded the purchase of 30 machines and six months’ rent for their work space. BFR eventually needs to generate income to be able to continue renting the space on its own. They are preparing a business plan which will shape future funding. FON’s support of this project was $5,098 Women and Girls Training Center CEPEF Potentiel Terre established a training center in Dosso to provide skills in child care, Soap making at BFR cooking, sewing, and cleaning to help young coop women and girls get better jobs. CEPEF has been quite successful, impressing both Nigerien officials and those of us monitoring the project for FON. They work with poor girls and women from very rural settings who have been forced by poverty and other adverse circumstances to move to the city. These young women have very little understanding or skills in modern urban housekeeping and domestic responsibilities. CEPEF trains them in sewing, cooking, cleaning, etc. so they might find jobs in an urban household setting. Assistance from FON has provided equipment and helped make improvements to the training center where the participants can focus on learning new skills. FON contributed $6,711 this year. CEPEF Trainees in the uniforms they designed Well Rehabilitation Chintighismen in Tchin Tabaraden OURZP is an NGO focused on the improvement of living conditions of the pastoral populations to the north of Tchin Tabaraden. A 20-meter-deep well was rehabilitated and lined with cement to improve access to water for people and livestock. FON funding of $2,700 matched funding to accomplish the project. Moringa Garden Project Evaluation The moringa tree offers enormous amounts of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals and provides food for the neediest women and children in the villages. FON has been financing Moringa plantation projects in the Dakoro area. Because we are convinced that small scale Moringa gardens offer great potential we financed an evaluation to examine what worked well, what could be improved and how can we move ahead with improvements and build on the successes to expand Moringa gardens. We will use the report early in 2019 to give us ideas for next steps. Solar Electrification of Health Clinics in the Dakoro Region, FON provided $2072 to Moustapha Harou in the Dakoro Region to purchase and install solar electrification in 2 rural health clinics. Medical care can now be provided round the clock and at low energy cost. .