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News from the first six months 2023

We are currently working in Kenya in three different schools that are facing different challenges and problems. The new semester started in all three schools on 03 July 2023.

REHOBOTH SCHOOL

Since the beginning of 2023 we have been supporting the Rehoboth School. This school is located in Kitengela Noonkopir, the largest slum in the Kajiado District, right next to a dumping site, the “workplace” of many of the students’ parents. The school was founded by Jane Gitonga, a mother of five, in 2014 with the aim of giving poor children from the area the opportunity to attend school. Rehoboth is a public school and unlike Europe, in Kenya public schools are for the poorest of the poor as they do not have to pay school fees. The stories of the students are similar and are mostly of sexual and domestic violence, HIV, and abject poverty. Before Covid, the school had about 170 students, most of whom were financed through sponsorships. One consequence of the pandemic is that the school lost many its sponsors. As a result, teachers’ salaries could no longer be guaranteed, and some left the school. A considerable rent arrears accumulated, and the landlord was already threatening to kick them out. The number of students had dropped to 90 as the school had to ask for support from parents who could not afford it.
In this emergency, the WeCare Association decided to take over the school’s fixed costs as of January 2023. The children now receive three meals a day, 7 days a week. In the last month alone, 20 new students joined the school, and the total number of students is now 170 again. The number of daily cases of illness has decreased due to the improved nutritional situation of the children. Since there is no caning in this school (a practice that is officially banned in Kenya but is nevertheless common in many schools), the children like to come to school because they not only get food there but also have a haven. As the pupils are also provided with school materials and uniforms due to our donation, the cooperation with the parents has improved massively. The motivation of the teachers has increased, as they no longer must fear waiting for months for their salaries. It was also possible to increase the number of teachers from seven to eleven, which has a direct impact on the quality of teaching and all school subjects can now be taught.

Iloshon

We visited Iloshon four times in the first semester of 2023, but in April 2023 the visit ended halfway due to a closed road. The “normal” road, on which we have also visited the school in Iloshon several times, had been closed by the landowner due to disputes with the local population. This had a dramatic effect on the primary school in Iloshon, which is attended by 430 pupils. The teachers did not come to school, the pupils also had problems in some cases and of course our aid delivery also had to be picked up halfway by the pupils, as the alternative route was not passable. We contacted the local authorities, but unfortunately the mills grind very slowly in Kenya. The government is working on finalising the new route. Just for understanding: It is not about road construction in our sense, but the roughest stones are being removed to create a “road”.
In addition, Iloshon has a new school headmaster named Mr. James. According to Agnes Gitonga, he is an older Masai, but very open. He has promised to motivate parents in terms of having their girls attend the Nasaru Learning Centre.
We also organized and carried out the long-needed renovation of the drainage pipes and connection of the washbasins in the “bathrooms” of Nasaru through the vice-director Purity. This was urgently needed as the drainage pipes in the outdoor toilets had holes in them, causing a massive health problem.
There is also good news from the sewing studio: the sewing teacher Lilian has managed to sell some bags. We are not sure if these sales were profitable. But it is a very good start. However, Lilian is currently pregnant again and will soon stop working. We will try to find an acceptable interim solution.

Mperrishi

We visited Mperrishi four times in the first half of 2023. According to the budget, only three visits were planned for this period, but we were able to win a sponsor for an additional 10 girls from Mperrishi. The donation now covers the higher frequency of visits that has become necessary as a result, which will of course also benefit the girls already supported.
There has also been a change in the school management in Mperrishi: Mr. Immanuel has been replaced by Mr. Reuben. In addition, the number of teachers has been increased to a total of 9, which will have a positive effect on the learning success of the students.
Another positive development is the arrival of a young Masai teacher named Charity, who can act as a role model for the girls.

You can download the entire Half Year Report 2023 here:

We see progress in many areas and are convinced that we are on the right track.

Thank you for supporting us on this journey!

For regular updates, please follow us on social media:Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/femmes_des_rizieres
https://www.instagram.com/wecareassociation
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/femmesdesrizieres
https://www.facebook.com/WeCareAssociation
And of course, on our websites:
www.wecare-association.ch
www.femmes-des-rizieres.com

Have a wonderful summer 2023!

Cambodia Femmes des rizières

Volunteering in Cambodia for Femmes des Rizières – a very personal report by Gabrielle Friedmann

A history about fashion…
A history about humanitarian and humanity…
A history about loving and sharing
Briefly: A wonderful history

 

Today my five months volunteering as the first designer for the brand «Femmes des Rizières» (Woment from the paddy fields) come to an end. «Femmes des Rizières» is the brainchild of the Cambodian NGO avec in close collaboration with Swiss based WeCare-Association.

Early in July 2018 I left Paris to travel to Cambodia. Already before this adventure began I was full of ideas and thoughts, I dreamed about it and I tried to imagine how it would be ….as I am a naturally optimistic person, my head was full of idylic images which even to me did not seem very realistic. Never in my wildest dreams could I have envisioned how extraordinary and exciting this mission was going to be.

 

Upon arrival at the Safe House of the NGO avec in Cambodia I found myself in the middle of a small paradise which has become home to 34 children and 3 substitution mothers over the course of the last 10 years. A safe heaven for these children who had to live through dangerous situations, injustices and fear in their earlier lives.

Between myself and the children things clicked immediately and the five months were filled with lots of fun and laughter and many very spicy dishes were shared as well – which occasionally were a huge challenge for me.

The close contact to these kids taught me that there is something that cannot be taken away even from poor people and that is joy. Joyfulness cannot be bought and you cannot loose it either. It might get out of sight occasionally but is always lingering somewhere close, somewhere inside the person.

Moreover, I am convinced that one of the main reasons for the SAFE House of the NGO avec being such a magic place is that upon arrival you perceive above all this joyfulness.

Then. My adventure as woman from the paddy fields…

In the beginning there were the tailors, the name of the brand, the logo and more goodwill than I had every seen before.

The tailors, who above and foremost are women from the paddy fields, have an incredible power and inspiring force. They are young, beautiful and often have at least two young children and they are fighting like lionesses about their survival now and never loose their smile when thinking about tomorrow.

Together we have developed a collection of a total of 27 models with 2 or 3 color variations for each model. An incredible achievement ! Every time I think about this collection I am overwhelmed by joy.

I would like to tell my former colleagues: Women from the paddy fields, you are beautiful and like Apsaras, those goddesses of feminity with their incredible force and their glow. I would like to thank you four for these five intense months: We have been working a lot but we also had a lot of fun and I just loved it !

Of course I hope, that this project will be successful and able to achieve its goal to provide young Khmer women with a work that is fairly remunerated and they can rely on. Those women really deserve it !

In particular, I would like to mention Susi (WeCare-Association), Theavy and Patrik (NGO AVEC), the three guardian angels of the project who were closely accompanying the mission and all people involved – and there were a lot of people ! Without the three of you the mission would not have been as extraordinary! You are witty, openminded, patient and interesting – I have to stop here as Patrik has told me often that too many compliments are boring😉. I consider myself very lucky having met the three of you and above all that I have been given the opportunity to participate in the development of this project.

Last but not least I would like to thank all those wonderful people I met over the last five months. I am leaving very proud of all our joint efforts and achievements. It was a wonderful story and I am completely overwhelmed.

Cambodia Education Empowerment Femmes des rizières

Femmes des rizières – A typical day in the life of Sophan

As we are about to launch the social label Femmes des rizières pretty soon, we would like to take the opportunity to get to know those Femmes des Rizières – the women of the rice fields, whom we had in mind when creating the brand name.
Sophan is a young Cambodian woman 25 years of age. She has been living in the Safe House since 2010 together with her two younger sisters. They share a room with 14 other girls and on a typical day she gets up between 05:00 and 05:30 o’clock as they have to do some homework with the younger children before they go to school. Sophan graduated from high school 4 years ago and right now she is already in her third year as a student at the university of Battambang with her major being management. She also benefits from the computer courses offered in the Safe House and is attending them in the morning and in the afternoon. Moreover, she teaches English at the Safe House to the younger children and she enjoys this a lot. During her lessons she tries to teach the children in a playful way and so they sing, dance and also play games – in English! On the weekends she has to continue her English studies at least for two hours. In her spare time she likes to ride the bike to the rice fields together with her friends from the Safe House or to just hang out with her friends. She is a very talented photographer and an avid reader. She also likes to play Volleyball. Her younger sister is 22 years old and is also already studying at the university with her major being English. She has also taken up teaching English at the Safe House. Her youngest sister, who is a little bit shy, is still in high school and she loves drawing and dancing. They have changed a lot since they arrived at the Safe House a couple of years ago and they have turned into very lovely, intelligent and well educated young women who are striving towards a bright future.

Cambodia Femmes des rizières

The making of “Femmes des rizières”

The concept for Femmes des rizières was developed in 2017. The idea about Femmes des rizières was to create a brand under which we can commercialize the work of the tailors’ atelier within the Safe House in Battambang, Cambodia. The tailors’atelier is now in its fourth year and there have been around 40 young women who have been trained to be a tailor so far.

The idea is to allow them to work independently and to earn their living in order to make them financially autonomous.

Once you have a concept it is extremely important to get some energy into the project, i.e. to involve people and to fill it with facts and activities. Among other challenges, the biggest challenges we were facing were two: we did not have a designer and we did not have the fabric.

We came up with a profile and a job description and placed a search online. We were overwhelmed by the number of extremely qualified applications we received. Consequently, we arranged one-to-one skype interviews with a number of candidates. In the end itw as clear, Patrik and myself had come to the same conclusion and we chose Gabrielle. For me it was like love at first sight. I was immediately intrigued by her natural and gay character. From the very beginning, Gabrielle showed a lot of enthousiasm for the project. The details were arranged rather quickly and after a short briefing and first encounter, Gabrielle was off to Cambodia on July 5th, 2018.

She was greeted at Siam Reap airport by Sophan Phoeun, who lives and works in the Safe House and who was chosen as Gabrielle’s interpreter and guide during her stay in Cambodia.

Gabrielle adapted rather quickly to her new home away from home and immersed herself immediately into the huge task at hand.

After a week she presented already her first inspiration boards for products as well as for dying techniques. One of her first big trials was the ecoprint project, ie dying with natural ingredients such as vinegar and plants and leaves. She then spend a couple of days to dye different fabrics and the results were very promising. The production of the first prototypes followed without delay.

 

In order to really fully immerse herself into Cambodia, its culture, landscape and people, she went to the capital Phnom Penh guided by Sophan where they also were on a scouting mission for fabrics.

Gabrielle was inspired by the paddy fields, the colorful markets, the beauty of the women on the rice fields who reminded her of the beautiful Cambodian Apsaras – half goddesses half dancers. Some of the adjectives she is using to describe the style of « Femmes des rizières » are white/aired, casual/elegant, handmade, fresh and natural.

The handmade of course is right at the core of this brand as we really want to provide the young tailors with a better future and above all with a perspective to become autonomous women who will be able to finance themselves and their families and thus will be able to take their own decisions.

Gabrielle then came up with the following brand introduction and definition of the future brand’s target group:

 

To all the Apsaras in this world

Similar to nymphs, fairies or even angels, the Aparas represent the pure and fragile side of feminity.

As goddesses they used to spend their time dancing, laughing and singing and in doing so they provided the world with the opportunity to contemplate their beauty. But times have changed and the Apsaras adapted. Study, work, travel… in their own interest they learned to hide occasionally.

But they never ceased to exist… and you know that because you are them – all women of this world.

You represent this new and discrete beauty, this delicateness one cannot get enough of, the sweetness of this planet, the Apsaras of the 21st century.

Femmes des rizières…

This brand is for you as well as for us. Friends, mothers, daughters, sisters or partners… this brand is about women and about the secret Apsara in every woman.

Here we are surrounded by paddy fields. No matter where, on the beach, in the mountains or in the desert …. There are extraordinary women everywhere.

Our creations come from the paddy fields but are for all the women in this world.

Eventually, the beauty oft he Krama stroke Gabrielle and she decided to make this wonderful garment into an integral part of the collection.

The Krama is a traditional Cambodian garment with multiple uses : it is worn as scarf, to cover the face as a protection from sun or dust, for decorative purposes, as children’s hammock… Traditionally, the kramas contain a gingham pattern of some sort. The Krama ist he Cambodian national symbol.

At this point, Gabrielle has decided to extend her stay in Cambodia and wants to spend an additional two months at the Safe House to really advance the project. We are very happy about her decision and will keep you posted….

Farm in Africa Masai Mama Africa Center (MMAC) Uncategorized

Susi and Manu go to Africa – Part 2

Also this year we – Susi and Manu – decided to travel to Kenya in order to personally check on the situation there. Not only did we want to see the development of the projects with our own eyes, we were very curious about the longterm effects of our projects on the development of the villages.

View from the car on the road
We did not really know what to expect and thus were very excited. The atmosphere in Olpirikata was very cheerful. As we arrived on a Sunday, the local population had decided to reduce the usually very long mass ceremonies, however, we could not avoid having to sit through a number of relatively long sermons given by lay priests. It was a very warm welcome.

After the opening ceremony, we headed straight off for our visit to the farm or Acacia Camp as the locals call it. The local Masai population has provided 18 ha of land for the farm project, which now includes a stable for 20 dairy cows, three greenhouses, a couple of vegetable fields, fenced grazing land for the cows, a hens’ coop with 250 chicken and 500 Aloe Vera plants. The greenhouses were necessary to protect the young and fragile vegetable plants from the strong and frequent winds in the savannah.

Upon arriving at the farm on time for the vespertine milking at 5pm, we were surprised to find a queue of people lined up with their own plastic containers to buy fresh milk. The plastic containers faintly reminded us of laundry detergent containers. The people had formed a proper line and were waiting patiently until it was their turn.

Masai milk cans

John Sawa Tuwei is responsible for the farm and is also in charge of the other 6 men and 3 women who are employeed at the farm. The men take care of the cows, ie. they feed, nurture and milk them, and also manage the sale of the milk. They also take care of the fields and the greenhouse and are greatly supported by Antonio, a collaborator of La Nostra Africa who lives in Olpirikata permanently. The three women take care of the hens’ coop and sell the eggs.

Generally speaking, the atmosphere in Olpirikata is very good – thanks to our well project, the village has been spared from last year’s drought and they have enough water for the population as well as for the cattle. The fact that fresh milk can now be easily bought at any time is perceived as a miracle. You can see children waving happily with their milk containers and the local shop owner was able to increase business by selling Chai (sugared tea with hot milk), which has turned her shop into the local Starbuck’s of Olpirikata.

On this trip, we stayed overnight in Olpirikata for the first time, that is to say, we slept in one of the rooms of the Massai Mama Africa Center. We were fed well and enjoyed tomatoes, eggs and milk from the farm. Since Giorgio also wants to teach the Massai how to make cheese, he brought a lab-ferment from Italy for the first trial with local milk. After adding the lab-ferment to the milk, he let it rest for 24 hours and then made the cheese. We got to be the guinea pigs for this first cheese production and we survived!

The following day we travelled to Iloshion to participate in the celebrations of the first stone laying for the Nasaru Learning Center for Massai Girls. Iloshion suffered a terrible drought last year and people there are worse off than those in Olpirikata. Nevertheless, they provided us with a very friendly and warm welcome with children forming a guard of honor for us. It was very emotional!

We then had the opportunity to observe the children at break time at the local elementary school:
All children bring a little bit of milk in a plastic container to school. This milk is then poured into a huge pot where the women prepare the porridge as a snack for the break. At break time, the kids make a line in front of the pot and everybody gets a portion.

 

Then we visited the new administration building of Iloshion and interviewed and photographed numerous children and adults.

After a typical Massai ceremony with lots of speeches and gifts, the whole assembly was directed towards the future construction site for the Nasaru Learning Center.

It was a very big group walking through the savannah as a rather big number of parents had arrived especially for the celebration. The teachers told the children to form a line along the floor space of the future building. This was very impressive as this way one could imagine the dimensions of the future building complex. Symbolically we laid the first stone and then distributed some sweets to the children. A touching moment we had been looking forward to for a very long time!

Our next stop was the Boma complex of a family in Olpirikata. We were invited to discuss a potential future project. The family would be willing to provide land for this project which is still in the planning stage. Although we, as two women, were treated with a little bit of suspicion, we were once again given a very warm welcome.

Our dinner consisted of pizza prepared by Antonio with homemade cheese and tomatoes from the farm! As we were a little scared of potential bacteria, we washed it down with a little bit of gin – strictly as a safety measurement! The nocturnal way to the bathrooms proved to be an adventure which definitely will have a positive impact on Susi’s and Manu’s friendship. Experiences like this are bonding and will never be forgotten. Generally speaking on trips like this one, bodily functions turn into very repetitive and interesting topics!
Next on our list was a visit to Singiraine. This is a village with a population of about 2,000 and does not have any water even though there is a river bed right next to it. Singiraine unfortunately is proof of the German saying, “the opposite of “well done” is very often “well meant”. Actually, another NGO intended to build a dam but unfortunately the project was abandoned before termination and thus the population is still without water. The people, ie the women of Singiraine, have to walk 10 km and more to fetch water! Giorgio from La Nostra Africa is working on the evaluation of a project – in close cooperation with an Italian university – to finish the dam.

After a long and very tiring journey back to Nairobi, we went to see furniture to find inspiration for our next project. Information about this project will follow soon…. And then our short but very intensive visit had come to an end. We left Kenya full of new impressions and ideas and know one thing for sure: We will be back!

Cambodia Education Empowerment Safe House

Tailors’ Workshops

On November 16th, 2017, the graduation ceremony for the tailors took place already for the third time. A total of 15 graduates proudly accepted their diplomas which were handed over by their teachers together with Theavy Bun.

The girls proudly accepted their diplomas – some of them very timidly.

Following the ceremony they presented themselves in their graduation works, i.e. their beautiful yellow and orange dresses.

Thanks to Theavy who has undertaken a major effort, 10 out of the total 15 graduates have found a job. One girl will open up her own tailor’s shop and two will continue their education. Two young women have to take care of their respective families. Bravo Theavy!!! The project was completely financed by Fondation Le Solstice – an impressive project!

Empowerment Uncategorized

Day of the African Child

On the occasion of the Day of the African Child, we would like to present to you a very successful project for empowerment.

Tanzania’s total population of 52.5 m has an illiteracy rate of almost 30%, i.e. 5.1 m women and 3.5 m men over the age of 15 are unable to read or write !
In comparison, Kenya’s and Cambodia’s illiteracy rates are 22% and 23% respectively.
Since 2015 there is a hospitality school in Tanzania which is financed by the Swiss More- Than -A- Drop Foundation and managed by a dear friend.

Project idea

Empowerment of young and poor women : From poverty to economic and social independence.
The current basic education system in Tanzania produces a very high dropout rate due to discrimination especially against girls. Higher education is almost impossible, in particular for adolescent girls from a poor background. They are either forced into marriages and give birth to children at a young age or have to work as prostitutes. Their children face a similar destiny…

The hospitality business in the Moshi (departure village to access the Kilimanjaro mountain) area is important and it is growing. Thus, there is a growing demand for qualified employees in the hospitality industry. The hospitality school of the More-Than-A-Drop -Foundation significantly improves the vocational training on offer in the Moshi area.

B&B der Hotelfachschule More Than A Drop in Moshi, Tansania

Bed&Breakfast in Moshi

Moreover, the hospitality school runs a Bed & Breakfast, which can be highly recommended as it is managed with extreme attention to detail and offers a small, vegetarian restaurant.

Blick auf das Restaurant der Hotelfachschule More Than A Drop in Moshi, Tansania

Charming, vegetarian restaurant

Realisation

The hospitality school founded in 2015 offers up to 35 young women, aged 18 to 21, the possibility to attend an innovative hospitality school. Consequently, this 12-months-vocational training gives motivated and poverty stricken young women access to the job market.

The first year started in 2015. The following subjects are being taught

  • English (12 hours per week)
  • Cooking and service (15 hours per week)
  • Housekeeping (10 hours per week)
  • Sports – gardening (5 hours per week)
  • Soft skills (empowerment, self-control, motivation)

They can put their theoretical knowledge into practice right away in the Bed & Breakfast with 10 rooms and a restaurant for 30 guests.

Zwei Kochschülerinnen vor der Tafel mit dem Rezept

Training concept

The concept requires that students perform and are motivated. Consequently, they are being very closely monitored. Students have to be motivated, discipined and willing to assume responsibility. These demands can be very challenging for these the students, in particular when considering the following facts:

  • All students are school drop-outs
  • They last attended school 3 to 6 years ago
  • They never learned how to study
  • They never had to do any homework

Class of 2016

In September 2016, the first graduation took place. 30 students successfully finished the vocational training’s program. 25 students found a job and 5 students have presented their CV.

Abschlussklasse 2016

 

More-Than-A-Drop is looking for volunteers

More-Than-A-Drop-Foundation is looking for volunteers for this interesting and barnstorming project with the very ambitious goals to obtain financial independence for the project and to find jobs for as many students as possible.

They are looking for volunteers to ensure the achievement of the goals. Volunteers are needed to cover the following activities

  • Coordination Switzerland
    • PR – activities
    • Recruiting of volunteers
    • Fundraising
  • Social Media Specialists for the marketing of the rooms and the restaurant
  • Trained and experienced chief/restaurant experts to enlarge the culinary offer

Contact for volunteers

Nicola Spring (n.spring@morethanadrop.org)

 

Cambodia Empowerment Safe House

Sewing Machine Day

This day honors the invention of the sewing machine. The sewing machine took the labor out of hand sewing. The first working sewing machine for shoemakers was conceived in 1790 by the Englishman Thomas Saint who filed a patent for his invention. Even though his patent was considered very progressive, his construction plans were never transformed into a sewing machine.
Only in 1874, William Newton Wilson reconstructed a sewing machine based on Saint’s plans for the London Science Museum. The first machine was made entirely from wood.
In Battambang sewing machines are of significant value as they can provide a potential source of income. The current class of tailors at the Safe House’s vocational training is already in their third year! This year, 18 girls are attending the vocational training to become tailors which takes one year to complete. Thanks to this vocational training a lot of girls have already found a job. Moreover, the Safe House has already paid for three tailors’ workshops, i.e. a sewing machine, mirror, fabric and haberdashery, to enable the girls to work autonomously in their home villages.

Right now, the Safe House owns 17 sewing machines for the vocational training and 5 sewing machines for the small production.

Pattern drawing has to be learned and practised. This skill is an integral part of the vocational training for a tailor and students also have to learn to work with precision.