22 0 0 0 0 7 7 ANNUALANNUAL REPORTREPORT 2007 ANNUAL REPORT 2007 ANNUAL REPORT Dear Friends of HANDS, As countries around the world grapple with rising food costs and other economic pressures, HANDS' support of programs that bring socioeconomic stability to communities in Egypt is more crucial than ever. With inflation soaring, families are having difficulty feeding their children. Millions of people who were previously on the margins of poverty are slipping below that line, unable to keep up with the rising costs of bread, dairy products, and other daily needs. Combined with an uncertain political future, a population heading toward 100 million, and limited natural resources, this economic situation necessitates, now more than ever, our active involvement in supporting programs that give people hope for the future. Providing opportunities to the people of Egypt is key to bringing stability to the broader region. As the largest and one of the most influential countries in the region, Egypt sets the pace for other countries in the Middle East. Together with our friends around the US, HANDS has the privilege of helping our Egyptian partners respond to the many needs facing the people of Egypt. In addition to providing financial support, HANDS also provides training for local organizations in nonprofit management and brings volunteers with special skills, including doctors, nurses, and artists, to serve at our partner projects. Facilitating partnerships between Americans and Egyptians is at the core of HANDS’ mission. We are constantly seeking new ways of linking our two great cultures. Our Egyptian American Dialogue continues to flourish, and our frequent Insight Trips provide an opportunity for adults and youth alike to experience Middle Eastern culture, history, and hospitality first hand. This year has been a time of transition for HANDS as Robert Ludwig, Board President for the past seven years, turned over the reins to new leadership. HANDS would not be the vibrant organization it is today were it not for Bob's dedication and vision. Bob continues to be actively involved as a HANDS board member, for which we are grateful. We hope that you'll continue to partner with HANDS this coming Above: Harry M. Goodall year in our efforts to bring a brighter future to the people of Egypt. meets working children in Salam City, where HANDS sponsors educational programs.Below: Jennifer Cate visits a healthcare center in Upper Egypt. Harrison M. Goodall, Jr. Jennifer A. Cate Board President Executive Director Front cover: Members of a HANDS Insight Trip marvel at the wonders of Ancient Egypt. Photo by trip member, Edward A. Toran. WHY EGYPT? EOPLE OFTEN ASK WHY HANDS chooses to focus on Egypt. POur organization believes that Egypt is a uniquely important place to concentrate development efforts. It is one of the largest and most influential countries in the Middle East. Egypt also produces a majority of the media and cultural content that is shown across the region, plays a leadership role in regional diplomatic relations, and generates many of the ideas discussed on the streets of major Arab cities from Damascus to Riyadh. Despite its great cultural and political influence, there are estimates that 40% of Egypt's population of over 80 million faces the challenges of poverty, including lack of access to healthcare, dilapidated housing, widespread illiteracy, and unemployment. In the governorate of Minia, a rural area south of Cairo, for example, about 43% of the population is illiterate, according to the UNDP. This number is even higher for women. HANDS believes that helping to raise the level of development in this populous country will ensure a more stable climate in the Middle East. As Egypt is able to tackle its own economic and social challenges, it can be a stabilizing force in the region. Successful programs in Egypt can even be replicated in other Middle Eastern countries. We are thankful to our donors for helping to bolster Egypt’s role as a regional leader in social development and peace. A young woman at a HANDS-supported job-skills training program learns to weave. DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS in egYpt HANDS’ PhilosophY OF development n order to improve the quality of life for Along with supplying the funds necessary Egyptians in need, HANDS sponsors for these projects, HANDS also provides Iprograms that seek progress in a number project oversight and helps to train local of areas including healthcare, education, workers in areas of project management, job creation, and business development. We fundraising, volunteer mobilization, and a believe in empowering local communities variety of technical skills. as a means to achieve long-term stability in Through our efforts we hope to build a underserved areas of Egypt. For this reason, bridge between the West and the Middle East HANDS partners with local organizations by partnering Americans with hard-working in Egypt to support them in their efforts people in Egypt, uniting them through the to bolster socioeconomic stability in their common purpose of improving the lives of communities. those who are in need. Retreat Centers IRAQ Village Partnerships MEDITERRANEAN SEA • BEIT EL SALAM throUgh CEOSS PORT ISRAEL/ • WORKING CHILDREN in Salam City SAID PALESTINE• NEW MINIA DEVELOPMENT (Cairo) ALEXANDRIA PROJECT ISMALIA • BEIT EL WADI Health Care • EL KHASHA’A CAMP n CAIRO • COMMUNITY EYE CARE CENTER, Miniaio ss Giza JORDAN re ep • CENTER FOR GERIATRIC SERVIaCDES, Cairo Donor-designated tar El Ain Qat • CENTER FOR HOPE AND A CURE, Alexandria Fayoum el Sokhna Capital Campaigns Siwa Oasis • HELIOPOLIS, Cairo • CAIRO PRESBYTERIAN MEDICAL Bani Suef ARAB CENTER REPUBLIC • MINIA SECOND PRESBYTERIAN Minia • THE AMERICAN HOSPITAL OF TANTA OF EGYPT • AGulf ofBUTIG Aqaba • GREEN PALIBYA STURES MEDICAL CENTER, • FOURTH PRESBYTERIAN Mallawy Sharm outside Cairo el SheikhOF EL EKSAS Ashmoneen Assuit Hurghada • ROD EL FARAG PRESBYTERIAN Social Services Farafra Oasis Safaga • MINIA THIRD PRESBYTERIAN SAUDI ARABIA • AssOCIATION FOR THE PROTECTION OF • HRERZ E D S E A Suhag QENA THE ENVIRONMENT (APE), women’s literacy • NAZLET EL ABEED, Minia and job skills training center, Cairo • ATTARINE PRESBYTERIAN • THINK AND DO, microcredit LUXOR El Dakhla • ROD EL FARAG PRESBYTERIAN loan program Oases Esna Edfu • LILLIAN TRASHER ORPHANAGE, Assiut Christian Leadership • FAIRHAVEN SCHOOL FOR Kom Ombo THE DISABLED, Alexandria ASWAN Development • EVANGELICAL (PRESBYTERIAN) • SHARABEYYA CLINIC AND Lake Nasser THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY DAYCARE CENTER, Cairo IN CAIRO • FAGGALA COMMUNITY OUTREACH • SYNOD OF THE NILE • VILLAGE OF HOPE, center for HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH the mentally challenged, Alexandria Abu Simbel SUDAN 4 ▲▲ HANDS ALONG THE NILE development programs proJect proFiles Community Eye Care Center, Minia n Egypt, nearly three million people suffer from diseases that cause blindness, yet only three out Iof 200 serious patients have the opportunity to undergo an operation that could save their sight, and only one ophthalmologist is available for every 51,000 people. HANDS' not-for-profit Community Eye Care Center in the Upper Egyptian city of Minia, in the final stage of construction, will help to provide affordable high quality eye care to the people in the city of Minia and 100 surrounding villages. The center will house a staff of doctors and trained medical staff and will also bring in American doctors and professionals to provide training and support. A mobile eye care unit is already travelling through local area villages providing examinations, basic treatments, and referrals. Staff on a mobile van conduct an eye examination. Center for Hope and a Cure, Alexandria ne of HANDS' partners, The Center for Hope and a Cure, provides free dental care and Oother health services to over 900 people per month in Alexandria, Egypt. Many of the center's patients are Sudanese refugees forced to flee from their home country as a result of war and violent conflicts within the Sudan. The clinic is located in Alexandria and serves about 80 Sudanese refugees per month, as well as many of the urban poor in the region. Trained professionals offer medical services that include surgical operations, assistance with child birth, distributing eye glasses and medicine, along with the free dental care administered in the HANDS- sponsored dental clinic. Dental-care providers with HANDS’ gift of new equipment. HANDS ALONG THE NILE ▲▲ 5 DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS Working children in Egypt are often forced into dangerous conditions. HANDS’ Egyptian partners train them for safer jobs and, when possible, reenroll them in school. proJect proFile: Working Children in Salam City, Cairo he United Nations Children's Fund scholarships are awarded to help cover school- estimates that there are approximately related costs. Assistance to working children T 2.7 million children between the ages of also includes literacy classes combined with six and 14 working in Egypt. planned social outings to attract children who To support their families, these children are are not used to academic settings. forced out of school and into workshops, where The well-being of the children is protected they are employed in a variety of labor-intensive through providing free health services, safety jobs and often face dangerous work conditions equipment, and job training in a new skill and physical abuse. for those who work in dangerous professions. Responding to this situation, HANDS They are also educated about their legal rights supports programs aimed at helping these and provided with legal assistance to lobby for working children. Our most recent partnership improved working conditions. is in Salam City, on the outskirts of Cairo. Supporting the emotional growth of the Working with partners in the area, HANDS is children is another important aspect of this empowering some of the 20,000 child laborers program. Weekly “Kids Clubs” offer the chance in Salam City - providing the financial and for local children to play sports, learn to draw logistical means to allow these young people to and make crafts, go on field trips, and to interact get an education and achieve their dreams.