RUGLI’s Bag Weaving Project Has Uplifted Families

Rwenzori United Group for Life Improvement (RUGLI) works to empower women, raise awareness around HIV/AIDS, provide support to disabled, and elderly people and equip vulnerable community members with opportunities to improve their livelihoods. Recently, they provided an update on their project, Weaving Bags for Economic Independence, in which they’re providing training in weaving shoulder bags and entrepreneurial skills to women, including disabled women and young mothers, so that they can support themselves and their families.

The organization identified weaving shoulder bags as an in-demand skill that they could train large groups of women to do in order to start their own businesses. Many women in the area have been unable to support their basic needs, and have come to RUGLI for help. In response they’ve employed a number of community based trainers who have been teaching bag weaving skills and will continue to check in on the participants afterward.

This project is ongoing, and will be shaped largely by the goals and needs of the participants. Since all trainers and participants live relatively close to each other, they will continue to weave bags together, and can decide if they want to create individual businesses or form a collective. RUGLI shared testimonials from the participants on the impact of the project.

Tusiime Agnes told them, “I have been so honored to be part of this project. My children now have hope that after selling our initial products our lives changed completely. I am a mother of 5 children and the man died of HIV/AIDS in 2014 and ever since then we have suffered. We only ate once a day, my children lacked even clothes to wear. The skills I have learned and the startup capital provided to me have really helped me a lot. Thanks, RUGLI for always helping me whenever I am in need, may God continue to bless the work of your hands. Moreso, I have started a small business shop which has increased income inflows into my family and I have also put my children back in school.”

Another participant, Nyamwiza Venacia, explained, “I lost my dignity and honor when I was a 16 years old when I was raped and got infected with HIV/AIDS. This gave me the honor of being a mother but I never had any employment that could help me look after my child. I was dragged into prostitution so as to be able to provide the best I could for my child who never had a father. I have been a prostitute for 5 years now and I regret the day I began practicing it but I never had a way out. When RUGLI offered help I was really so grateful and positive about it. You have taught me weaving and entrepreneurship skills, provided us with startup capital and I have established my business. Thank you so much for what you have done for me, with this I believe people will have some respect for me as I will be able to provide basic needs for my child doing a decent job.”

Kabugho Moreen said, “I cannot express my happiness of what RUGLI has done for me, I am a single mother with one child. I dropped out of school when I was in primary four and after 5 years I got pregnant. When I got pregnant my parents chased me away from home to go to the person who was responsible for the pregnancy, life became so hard because the man also ran away. I have been struggling to earn income to support me and my child for the last 10 years, tried looking for jobs but life here is so hard, of lately (four months back) I was fired from the job where I was working as a maid and they were paying me UGX15,000 ($4.80 USD) per month. But because of this training acquired, I can manage to get that very amount in a day or two. I am able to get relevant needs for my child and I hope to get more. Thank you so much RUGLI and Rockflower for the support extended to us. We are grateful that you have changed our lives as women mothers.”

It’s astounding to see how education in just one skill can change the lives of entire families. The majority of these women did not have the opportunity to complete a formal education and have had no access to career training. With RUGLI’s support and belief in the power of education, they have been able to uplift and provide economic stability to these determined women.

YWISD is Proving to Women That They Can Make It

In September, Youth and Women Initiative for Sustainable Development (YWISD) based in the Wakiso sub-district of Uganda, completed its first round of their project, Kisoboka (you can make it), where they educated 50 women and girls in tailoring skills. YWISD was founded in 2016 by 5 young, unemployed women graduates, who grew up witnessing their mothers being exploited by men in the agricultural industry. They saw women in their community doing the majority of the work tending the crops, and then allowing men to sell the products, and take most of the profits. YWISD was created to take a stand against gender and economic inequalities and to increase women’s participation in securing their livelihoods.

Kisoboka was created for indigeneous women and girls with disabilities to engage in viable employment opportunities to support themselves and their families and increase their overall quality of life. Beginning in March 2022, 50 women were selected to participate in a six month training program in tailoring. The goal of the training was to provide a practical, profitable skill to women who are unemployed and unable to find traditional work. YWISD identified tailoring and baking as skills with high demand in their community, and following this first round of training, they are beginning a second cohort to teach women baking skills.

YWISD has shared some participant stories with us to demonstrate just how impactful this project has been in the lives of women with few opportunities to support themselves.

Nakimuli Angelinah, a seventeen year old who left school in senior one said, “I stay with both of my parents. My mother is a house wife and my father is the one financially taking  care of us. Due to COVID-19, my father lost his job, making it difficult for him to sustain the family. Therefore, being a girl child, I was forced to drop out of school for my boy siblings to study. My  father has an old belief that educating a girl child is a waste of money. ‘After all, I am going to get married and leave home.’ He was planning to marry me off as he could see me as a source of dowry. When I heard about Kisoboka I hurried to join the training because I always wanted to  learn tailoring even though the funds weren’t available and I hadn't yet got any opportunity. It is  really a once in a lifetime opportunity for me and I am really so grateful. Thank you very much Angella [YWISD founder], may God really bless you for me because I have nothing to give back to you.” 

Mary Kabonesa, a participant and advocate for the creation of Kisoboka told us, “When I was in senior five, my father married a new wife and ended up separating from my mother. He was previously the one taking care of us, and he had stopped my mother from working. After marrying his new wife, my father refused to pay me and my siblings’ school fees, claiming that we would be able to survive without studying because he also didn’t study but was surviving. I was forced to get married  when I was 17 years old and I have 4 children and without any income. I want to be in a position to  provide basic needs to my children as well and to avoid what happened to us. I have always  wanted to learn tailoring skills and I was among those who suggested that YWISD could help extend to us these services. I am so grateful for the skills I have learnt for free of charge, they will help me earn a living.”

Another participant, Nabirye Mariam explained, “I lost my mother when I was in primary six. My mother was the one taking care of me and also paying my school fees because my father had neglected his responsibilities and no relative was willing to take me in. I had to drop out of school. This forced me to go to the city to look for a job and I got a job as a maid. However, without guidance from any parent or relative I found very many  challenges and I was forced into marriage when I was fifteen years old. I currently have three  children. I am the breadwinner for them, but I don’t have any skill other than digging people’s gardens to earn a living. I am grateful for this opportunity as now I will be able to earn a decent  income and provide basic needs for my children.”

The participants in the first cohort of Kisoboka are looking forward to starting their own businesses and are optimistic about the future and their ability to support their families and keep their children in school. This month, YWISD will begin its second cohort, training 50 women in baking. When the second training is complete, they will hold a graduation ceremony for both groups. 

Currently, YWISD is overwhelmed with interest in the program, as many women and girls were forced to leave school during the COVID-19 pandemic and are looking to earn an income. The organization has plans to construct an outdoor awning, allowing them to expand their capacity and train women outside even during the rainy season. They have 25 women registered for the next tailoring training and are working to raise the funds to implement the program. Kisoboka, which translates to “we can make it,” is living up to its name as it continues to provide opportunities for economic empowerment of women on the margins.

How SOFDI’s Soap Making Cooperative is Revitalizing a Village

Women's Solidarity for the Integral Development (SOFDI) based in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been a Rockflower partner for a number of years. Most recently they have been working to create sustainable livelihoods and improve hygiene in the village of Kazimia through teaching women how to make soap and operate a business. The organization aims to increase the active participation of women in decision making, politics and the governance system of all community structures. Creating opportunities for economic independence while providing education around human rights and financial literacy is a key pillar in achieving this goal. 

The province of South Kivu, located in the eastern part of the DRC, has been dominated by armed conflicts for more than two decades. Officially the war in the eastern provinces, which began in 1996, has been declared over. Several peace agreements have been signed, however in reality the war still continues, especially in the poorest parts of the nation. The unemployment rate in urban areas is 22% and school enrollment remains low which is one of the main reasons that new armed groups continue to form.This has led to increases in sexual violence and poverty.

Women in this area hold a great deal of responsibility and very little power to influence change. They care for the children, as well as the medical care of all family members and are responsible for fetching water, cooking on wood fires and preparing meals. With such a high unemployment rate, many women are in a position where they must support their families financially in addition to all of their other duties. 

The main source of income in the region is agriculture, although crop yields are highly variable and often do not provide enough food to carry families from one season to the next. Most of the farmers have poor quality seeds and equipment as well. In the village of Kazimia, the nearest town to purchase supplies is nearly 50 kilometers away, and for those who make the journey, the supplies they need are often not in stock.

SOFDI identified an opportunity to improve the local economy in Kazimia by revitalizing the soap making industry. Soap is one of the items that villagers must travel far to purchase and is often out of stock. It was clear that soap would sell in the area, and that it could be made in all seasons for a decent price. This led SOFDI to create the Umoja Ni Nguvu (Unity is Strength) Cooperative to support women in the area and create economic opportunities. They decided to train 15 women in soap making as well as how to manage income and expenses and provided some literacy classes so that the women were well positioned to operate a business. These 15 women are the direct beneficiaries, however the impact on the local economy and hygiene will benefit the whole village.

The first round of training has been highly successful. Throughout the training around 500 bars of palm oil soaps in 3 different shapes were produced. After the training, they produced over 1,500 bars of soap and their first sales allowed the cooperative to purchase more raw materials and continue growing the business. In total they earned the equivalent of $273.15 USD in their first round of sales. More recent sales have been more challenging as the price of raw materials has greatly increased. However, they are still committed to producing soap, even with a lower profit margin and the women who received the training are now ready to train others in soap making.

As the cooperative has gained recognition, their demand has increased significantly, especially because their product dissolves more slowly than factory made soaps. The quality is much higher. Currently production varies from 150 to 300 bars of soap per week and the women work three days each week. They have created a management team to weigh the materials and ensure the business’ success. This new availability of soap has led to a real improvement in the hygiene of families as well. Previously they had to stock up on soap since they needed to travel so far, and many families couldn’t afford to do so. Now they can purchase soap as needed.

The potential for the growth of this business is huge. The members of the cooperative want to work to meet local demand first before expanding into surrounding areas. An unexpected benefit is that many women and young people are coming to the factory to stock up on soap to resell. This is great for the local economy, and the cooperative welcomes it. 

SOFDI’s Executive Director, Dr. Alice Lukumbu, who was one of the featured speakers for the recent Rockflower workshop on Peace and Security, said, “The creation of this unit has benefited the women and the whole village in many ways. Before the start of this activity, obtaining soap required great effort because we had to go to Baraka and Uvira to buy it. Not only is the journey tiring for so little, but also the stocks were often limited and one could move around and get nothing in the end. The finalization of the artisanal soap factory cooperative has overcome their last doubts and allows them to dare to believe that their life will no longer be quite as it was before. I think that in addition to the material benefits, such an attitude is beneficial for the advancement of the village.”

Flicker of Hope Empowers Women Farmers to Implement Agroforestry

Flicker of Hope, based in Nyamira County, Kenya has been working hard to bring smokeless bio-briquettes and cookstoves to the county through their project, Promoting Smokeless Fuel & Sustainable Incomes for Women. As a recent addition to the Rockflower family, Flicker of Hope has made great strides in just a few short months.

This project, although it has one clear goal, to bring bio-briquettes to the area, is complex in its systemic approach to accomplishing this goal. Ultimately the project will work to combat climate change, improve public health, provide sustainable livelihoods to women, fight resource scarcity, and air pollution. In a recent update from Flicker of Hope, it is clear that they are well on their way.

In this first phase of the project, they are working to rehabilitate degraded areas through agroforestry. Previously, deforestation has been a large issue, as wood is being burned for fires, and land is cleared for crops. It has caused damage to the soil, degraded animal habitats, and made the area even more vulnerable to climate change, which is causing a lack of viable crops. Flicker of Hope has identified 200 women farmers who could plant trees on their farms to improve their land and gain additional income. The brush and leaf litter from the trees will be used in bio-briquettes eventually. 

The farmers in the program will learn how to grow indigeneous tree species that have largely been removed from the region. One of these trees is Moringa, a fast-growing, drought-resistant tree with antioxidant properties. They are encouraging them to grow these trees around the perimeter of their farms so that they can maintain most of their farmland and it will provide a windbreak. Some of what will be taught includes tree selection, tree care and planting site selection. What they are hoping to see as the trees grow is a decrease in erosion, groundwater being drawn upward, more fertile soil, regulation of temperature in the local micro-climate, and increased habitats for wildlife like birds.

Michael Nyamweya, Project Coordinator at Flicker of Hope writes, “Ensuring there are suitable habitats for animals means the entire ecosystem can work in harmony and continue to function in a healthy way. When ecosystems are degraded they are more vulnerable to extreme temperature fluctuations and less likely to bounce back and continue to provide services such as carbon sequestration and the storage of groundwater.”

The organization recognizes the inherent lag time in this project, as trees need years to grow. In the meantime, they will be teaching the farmers an improved method of raising chickens that will increase their yield. With this method, the chickens are ready to be sold within 35-40 days which will allow the farmers to earn more income, and feel less dependent on the trees before they are fully grown. 

“Through increasing the farm’s resilience, agroforestry will help women farmers to secure their yields against climate change and degradation. It will, therefore, enhance food security. Further, women farmers will be able to source biomass from their own farms, reducing the time needed to fetch firewood which specifically benefits women…The goal is to inspire and facilitate women farmers in adapting agroforestry to increase their farm’s climate resilience, productivity, and fertility while regenerating degraded land.”

Flicker of Hope is creating sustainable changes to their environment and the livelihoods of their community, with the role and benefit of women in mind. Upon completion of this phase, they hope to build a model farm to showcase the efficacy of regenerative agroforestry and educate others about how different systems suit the local context.

Reflections on HORUWO's Community Beekeeping Project

Hope for Rural Women (HORUWO), a community-based organization in the Kasese District of Uganda working to implement community health education and livelihood improvement projects, has just wrapped up their beekeeping project. This project was created in response to climate change, which has caused  both extreme flooding and droughts and nearly wiped out the region’s farming industry. HORUWO sought to create a sustainable source of income for men and women facing poverty, HIV/AIDS and illiteracy. The Kasese district has an HIV/AIDS prevalence rate of 11.2%, creating major health problems for men and women who are already facing poverty. 

The organization found that beekeeping could be a sustainable replacement for traditional farming. The raw materials to create beehives are readily available and honey has a number of medicinal properties, in addition to being highly valued in local and international markets. Beehives are much less sensitive to extreme changes in weather which makes it a smart long term source of income. Beginning in February of 2022, the organization selected 35 members of the community who lacked a source of income, many due to HIV/AIDS and illiteracy, to train in beekeeping. They purchased 15 beehives and trained the cohort on how to manage an apiary, collect honey and sell it at market. 

They have just completed their first cohort of the program and it was a success. The beehives are thriving, and the community members are now able to provide for themselves and are beginning to earn income through this new skillset. HORUWO has received additional funding from Rockflower and is now looking to the future and hopes to expand the project and create livelihoods for even more people in poverty.

Reflections on our Partner Workshop Series

In the fifteen years it has taken to build Rockflower Partners, one thing has been central to our mission, and that is to ensure that every single partner feels seen, heard and to know that their lived experiences and voices matter. Finding a way for them to translate that agency into a shared platform with access to best practices, challenges and solutions has long been a goal, but as a small team it has been tough to facilitate.  However, after the January 2022 partner survey responses made clear, now more than ever there was a need to find a way to make this happen. 

So this summer we embarked on our first Partner Workshop Series. By inviting all of our current partners from across twenty two countries to come together for a five week series of zoom meetings, they were able to learn directly from each other, as well as from Rockflower Board Directors and Advisory Board members. Each week throughout July, we hosted a conversation on the Rockflower Five Key Framework: Economic Empowerment, Maternal & Reproductive Health, Education, Access to Food & Water and Peace & Security. 

Choosing four speakers from within the partner community and the wider Rockflower network, with specific experience on the designated key, allowed for a broad but deep exchange of experiences, challenges, ideas and thoughtful connection. Each session finished with thirty minutes of open discussion in which attending partners could ask questions, contribute their own experiences, and get to know each other better. 

Many important findings have emerged from this workshop series. Perhaps most gratifying has been the overwhelmingly positive feedback from partners at their delight in being able to see themselves mirrored in so many of their fellow community based organizations and social enterprises around the world. The sense of not being alone in some of these often impossible scenarios held incalculable value for all of the participants. 

Another very important insight from the workshops was the degree to which each one provided a thread of conversation that could be woven into the following week’s key topic. Economic Empowerment led to conversations about women's power over their own bodies in Maternal and Reproductive Health, which led on to the importance of continued secondary and tertiary Education for women and girls.  In the conversation on Access to Food and Water, addressing the existential threat of climate change and the rising cost of food as drivers of conflict and instability, touched on many of the issues discussed in the final workshop on Peace and Security. 

Rockflower believes in the philosophy of “Radical Idealism, Practically Realized”. We deliberately positioned these workshops to provide an overview of the larger global perspective, but then demonstrated how armed with that knowledge, partners could use it in the precise application of practical solutions to their everyday problems. Partners sensed hope in the sharing of ideas and the meaningful engagement and connection with each other, which has led to some new substantive solutions and ideas. We are witnessing just how strongly this connective root system will impact the growth of the Rockflower garden as we build our “seed to canopy” funding model. Please read more for some of the key takeaways from each workshop. 

Economic Empowerment

Roseline, Haja, Charlot and Constance started us off with a vibrant and lively conversation on Economic Empowerment. Not surprisingly with four powerhouse African women leaders, the discussion was frank, heart centered and of course filled with a great deal of humor.   

The discussion began with an opportunity to talk about what it really meant to be “empowered”, and more specifically “economically empowered”.  An overused word in many instances, we focused on the growing need for access to capital, training and business opportunities that actually lead to funding, and the best way to access markets. This laid bare the fundamental reality of just how much women contribute to the foundational strength of the economy of any nation. 

Charlot shared her deep frustration at the misconception that African women entrepreneurs need to receive ongoing training before they can access funding. She reflected on a quote that summed it up for her:

 “The most over-mentored and underfunded woman is the African Female Entrepreneur.”

As a young mother of 16, growing up in the slums of Mukuru in Nairobi, she had trained herself on the skills of entrepreneurship out of the sheer necessity of having to feed her child. 

This was echoed by Lucy Odiwa, of WomenChoice Industries later in the Q&A section, who shared the countless number of times she had been asked to attend training so that she could “train” to be a viable candidate to receive funding, only to be told to go on another training.  Whereas men are trusted to be given the funding right from the start without the requisite “training”. 

 “The problem with the world is imagining that if we are going to give women the chance we first have to set them up for success, but they have already set themselves up for success and all you have to do is trust them and get out of their way” - Charlot Magayi 

Roseline and Haja shared similar experiences in accessing funding for their community based organizations -  African Youth Alliance in Cameroon and FOWACE in Liberia. The barriers included being unable to receive funding without an audit or extensive list of previous project impact, but as they aptly pointed out, how can you show that before you have been given funding to bring your vision to life? The suggestions of  “go create some impact and then come back and tell us how you did so we can decide if we want to fund you”, are so frustrating when you cannot do that without funding in the first place. 

Additional practical advice for the partners on the call from Roseline was to suggest that they maintain an internet presence even with the simplest of websites and/or social media. Continue to keep growing networks and always ask for referrals, this is what builds trust and confidence. 

Haja described the importance of women’s savings groups in being not only a place to learn and be mentored on business management and savings but as a way to come together and share problems and experiences. This sense of community and distributed leadership is what has inspired so many of the women to continue with the program. 

Constance was keen to express a plea to financing institutions at all levels to acknowledge the unequal processes in place for women entrepreneurs. Stop asking for collateral and instead see women’s bold visions for what they are worth. Empowerment for Constance means the ability to make decisions for yourself and this is what led to her vision for the Women Advocacy Project. To prevent child marriage in four districts around Harare, Zimabawe, finding a way to provide economic empowerment was essential. This led to the creation of Clean Girls Soap, a social enterprise, run and managed by girls who had previously been on track for child marriage. 

The conclusion: It's not very complicated - give women the money and they will return it ten fold to their communities.  

Maternal & Reproductive Health

The conversation on Maternal & Reproductive Health was extremely informative, whilst also deeply personal.  Lucy, Dr. Chris, Somto and Audrey, shared wide ranging perspectives on the cultural taboos, personal challenges and direct assault on menstrual health hygiene, family planning, and choice and consent over women’s bodies. 

Despite these organizations being very different in size and mission, they share a common goal - to ensure that more girls and young women have access to reproductive education and menstrual hygiene products, which results in greater retention in secondary school, greater accessibility to higher education and increased employment opportunities. Lucy and Audrey who both run menstrual hygiene social enterprises - WomenChoice based in Tanzania and Be Girl currently working in several countries in Latin America and Africa, shared their personal experiences as to what led to their involvement in menstrual health.  

Lucy gave a brutally honest assessment of her own experience of starting her menstrual cycle, and the accompanying shame and embarrassment that led her to want to ensure that other girls did not suffer a similar fate by developing affordable menstrual hygiene products and education materials. 

“It is really important for a woman and a young girl to understand themselves initially, first of all as an individual, to know their worth, to know how they should be handled actually…Girl empowerment is nothing dangerous, it simply tells a girl that you are free to have a dream of your own, you are free to have a vision.” - Lucy Odiwa 

Audrey, although based in Washington DC, had spent time working on cross-sectoral issues in Ethiopia and saw how menstrual health for young girls was a key leverage point in ensuring access to education and mental well being.  She shared how Be Girl is extremely focused on ensuring young girls receive the education they need to know and understand their bodies and showed us an example of the manual period tracker that Be Girl has developed. 

Dr. Chris and Somto from the Society for the Improvement of Rural People in Enugu State, Nigeria, were delighted to be able to contribute to the conversation, given that there is so much taboo around men discussing these topics. 

Dr. Chris explained, “It’s a taboo almost, to talk about issues around menstrual poverty or menstrual issues” and went on to describe how they work to address many of the myths around menstrual hygiene and the misinterpretation of religious and cultural beliefs which can sow disinformation and doubt on an already complicated topic. 

As Gender Lead for SIRP, Somto reiterated:  “The importance of men and boys can not be overemphasized …It is so important to have men and boys as allies.” - Somto Ugwu 

It was indeed extremely gratifying to see so many men on this call.  Tonny from Hope for the Future, Uganda made the extremely salient point that individuals and communities should continue to question why governments spend trillions of dollars on defense when the equivalent spent on the health and wellbeing of women and children would generate exponential benefits in security for nations. This was an issue we would revisit in our next three workshops. 

Education

Despite a great deal of progress in ensuring more girls have access to education, today there are still 130 million girls who lack the ability to go to school. One of the most devastating side effects of the COVID pandemic has been the impact it has had on girls education worldwide, particularly in countries such as Uganda where schools were closed for over 2 years. 

However, this period of time has also seen a fast tracking of many innovative solutions in the delivery of education. By upending traditional formats and looking at cost effective ways to ensure those in rural communities with little access to the internet gain access to learning, there has been a real momentum to use this crisis as an opportunity. 

With Tania, Siddique, Miriam and Dancan, we were able to hear from leaders from a cross section of understanding and experience regarding the value of education across different cultural and social contexts from Colombia, Pakistan, Kenya and the USA.

We talked about existing barriers to accessing education including the impact of poverty, access to technology and digital education and how to broaden the types of education girls receive by looking toward global future needs. 

One of the most important themes to emerge from the workshop was the concept of role models and representation. When discussing the hugely significant impact of the election of Francia Marquez, the first female Afro Colombian to hold the office of Vice President, Tania stressed how monumental this was for poor indigenous women to understand that there was actually a path out of poverty through education and mentorship, together with sheer bravery and determination. 

“It is always important that we keep representation in mind, because we cannot be what we can not see” - Tania Rosas

Another big topic was that of access to information. Dancan wanted to point out that similar to representation you do not know what you are capable of until you have a better understanding of what resources are available to you. Key to his work with Jiwo Paro is to ensure a wider distribution of information so that women can access their own inborn talent. 

Siddique stressed the importance of engaging the decision makers at the government level who have control over the gender budgets. A key component of the success of the Bridging the Digital Divide: from Colombia to Pakistan, the Rockflower pilot project being implemented by Tania and Siddique, has been the ability to act as a catalyst for the Ministry of Education to scale up the project. 

Miriam’s perspective as a lawyer brought a wider lens to the subject of Education by linking to an understanding of fundamental laws and rights, “There are laws in place for a reason, you are entitled to live a better life… and this can often lead to more political and civic engagement… If you understand your fundamental rights… then you can engage in the political process” - Miriam Foley 

But time is running out and as Tania reminded us at the end of the workshop, there are so many young people whose potential is being stymied through sheer lack of access and opportunity. 

Access to Food & Water

The number of people classed as “acutely food insecure” by the UN before the Covid crisis was 130 million, but this has since increased to 345 million due to the crisis in Ukraine. 50 million people are just one step away from famine. The rising cost of fertilizers and fuel, and the ongoing threat of catastrophic weather, is adding to an already heightened sense of fear and chaos, creating the perfect storm for social unrest, political instability, forced migration and the continued deep suffering of already marginalized communities. 

Against this rather gloomy backdrop, we had an opportunity with Brianna, Lucas, and Anandan (Twisi was unable to join us on the day) to provide some insight into the different types of food and water security issues at a local level, in the very different geographies of The Gambia, Nicaragua and India. 

Lucas and Brianna discussed their respective experiences and approaches to working as outsiders in community based programs and social enterprises. As a vet and social entrepreneur, Brianna has been able to bring her expertise without enforcing or prescribing solutions not generated by the community. Lucas shares this ethic and has worked closely with the women of L’Astillero to ensure that all decisions were participatory, in particular the budgeting and agroecology center planning.  Humility was the key word, and prompted discussion on the value of the traditional and indigeneous learned experience. 

Anandan held particular expertise in this regard,  detailing his work in ensuring indigenous knowledge on how to purify water is preserved through oral and written tradition. Local knowledge is key to transforming systems and communities. 

Lucas and Anandan also both referenced the ability of communities to build seed banks as a practical tool to ensure food security. Lucas detailed his own revelations when building the Center of Agroecology, that the reason that he could not access seeds was because they were all controlled by a few large multinational corporations. These were the same choices available to the local community of Astillero. The other partners on the call really liked the idea of seed banks and made plans to cross pollinate ideas in this regard. 

We also discussed localization vs globalization of food supply chains and the importance of diversifying farms and livestock as one form of mitigation against the effects of climate change. Brianna highlighted the difference between food security and food sovereignty, and how because of international food and trade policy so many people in emerging economies do not have ownership over their food production. Nutritious foods are cost prohibitive, for example milk is 16 times more expensive than rice in The Gambia, which is why the focus at Gambian Goat Dairy is to deliver cost effective animal source protein. 

We touched on the issue of land rights for women and referenced a recent Landesa paper "Women and Dirt"  in which they make the case for gender parity in land rights as a solution to issues of food security. 

One thing was clear  - waiting for the international community to fix climate change was too much of a long shot for so many of our partners. They need solutions today. 

“If the community of Astillero waits for the global community of politicians and diplomats to solve climate change, they are all going to be dead by the time that’s done so we need to prepare for building resilience on the ground” - Lucas Worsdell

Peace & Security

By providing a broad overview as to what peace and security means in different contexts and settings, but then to show how this directly affects communities and individuals, we were able to ensure that the partners on the call could draw a line between the information shared and their daily experiences. 

Peace and Security is not just the absence of war, it is a multi-layered understanding of the needs and wants of different groups and communities, at a personal, local, national and international level. 

With Dr. Alice, Rajaa, Sahana and John, we had a wide ranging conversation on what it takes to develop systems and strategies to counter violence, greed and injustice.  All of them have deep experience and a personal commitment to building a world in which peace is paramount.

Dr. Alice delivering her remarks in French, (our grateful thanks for translation by Will Burgat)  brought us into the heart of the issue, by describing the daily task of helping victims of atrocities become survivors and then contributors in the redesign of their communities through their lived experience.  There was a deep weariness in her voice as she described the continued witnessing of rape and murder and the daily repercussions of a reality in which Security Resolution 1325 does not actually live up to its intention. There are still not enough women involved in the concrete actions to bring about peace. In 2020 she was involved in talks with armed groups in order to bring more women to the discussion but was met with push back and the suggestion that they should only come if they bring women with weapons to the talks. Her plea was to ask how the UN can find a way to insist that more women from civil society are present at the “real peace talks” not just the secondary track two discussions. 

Rajaa shared the deeply personal experience of her father, a policial and human rights activist, having been detained and tortured in a Syrian prison for almost ten years of her life. When the uprising began in Syria in 2011 she was studying for her PhD in Mathematics in the US, but returned home to Syria knowing that she had to be involved in documenting the human rights abuses. She started CCSD with a group of activists determined to see a better future for the women of Syria, and continues to engage with civil society activists, youth leaders and all those wishing to see a greater emphasis on the women, peace and security agenda. She is extremely keen to ensure that all the lessons learned from the last ten years of work in Syria be shared with those in conflict situations so that all of the rich resources and learnings can be put to good use. 

 Sahana gave us a detailed analysis of the work of bringing multi stakeholders together in order to ensure the agenda of Women, Peace and Security is put front and center in the minds of policy decision makers. She applauded the partners on the call for their bravery and willingness to imagine a better and more peaceful world and for their consistent daily work to make this a reality.  Indeed, Security Council Resolution 1325 came from women in the Global South saying to those in the North - “What you are doing is not working, we need a better way” . She also reiterated the need for a collective vision of what peace would look like, and to take a step back to assess what is working and what is not.  By being willing to co-create something better there exists a real potential for a more secure world. .  

“Women want to change the dominant security narrative  … for the benefit of everyone. We can change the narrative of what is possible by seeing through a feminist lens” - Sahana Dharmapuri

John took us deep into the reality of the “captured state” - which is what happens when war economies take hold and become a perpetual money making machine for a few corrupt individuals. In order to tip the balance for those living in these countries who want an even playing field, the importance of using the tools of network sanctions and challenging the incentive structures that reward violence and authoritarianism cannot be overstated.  John’s decades of work in the DRC meant that he was particularly in tune with Dr. Alice’s deep feelings of frustration and shared how his own journey had evolved as an activist, to focus on dismantling the means by which war machines and kleptocracies thrive. This was a timely discussion, as his piece in Project Syndicate last week demonstrated on the occasion of Secretary Blinken’s visit to the Congo and Rwanda. 

We finished with a conversation on why Peace and Security is so difficult to fund, and not just in the world of philanthropy. As the world keeps spending trillions of dollars fighting wars only to rebuild after the destruction, a tiny portion of that invested in prevention would bring untold dividends.

“It's so hard to quantify the results of investments in peace” - John Prendergast

Conclusion: 

This was just the beginning of a series of workshops that Rockflower will be producing throughout the year as we digest the conversations and dig deeper into other ways to ensure that our partners have access to a shared platform of tools, techniques and approaches that can continue to contribute to the improvement of life and well being for so many women and girls and their communities. 

We are grateful to everyone who participated and thank all of our speakers for their insights, vision and clarity. 

Rockflower Partners with Flicker of Hope, Kenya

Rockflower is pleased to announce our newest partnership with Flicker of Hope, a community based organization located in Nyamira County, Kenya. The organization aims to organize and empower vulnerable rural populations in drought prone areas, with an emphasis on women and children, by helping them to build sustainable livelihoods and to empower the communities to become self-reliant. Rockflower has provided funding for their project, Promoting Smokeless Fuel & Sustainable Incomes for Women, which will be addressing a number of issues including resource and water scarcity, deforestation, pollution, public health, and the lack of sustainable employment in the area. 

Nyamira County is an area with very few options for earning a living. The area is prone to crop failure and drought. One of the only consistent resources in the area has been wood from the forests, which are used for fires and building materials. However, the prevalence of deforestation has caused the few watersheds in the area to dry up. Due to a lack of resources, the forest is being destroyed, water is being depleted and the air is becoming polluted from all of the smoke. 

Flicker of Hope is partnering with Rockflower to bring smokeless bio-briquettes and cookstoves to the county. This project will reduce deforestation, utilize untapped resources, increase public health, and provide income to rural women who will produce the bio-briquettes. The briquettes are made primarily from brush and bushes, which until now have not been utilized as a resource and also inhibit forest growth.

Additionally, this is a self employment opportunity for rural men and women. They will train people on how to collect the brush and provide a consistent source of income to those people. Jobs will also be created through the production of the bio-briquettes as well as through distribution and transportation of the product. The organization will focus on providing jobs to disadvantaged women and girls. 

Rockflower looks forward to working with Flicker of Hope as they promote the effective utilization of resources, conservation and preservation of the environment, improved opportunities for child education, adoption of healthy & hygienic lifestyles, financial inclusion, skills development, entrepreneurship & women empowerment.

The Pehran Project Celebrates its Third Round of Graduates

Rockflower partner, Community Services Program (CSP), Pakistan has completed the third round of the Pehran project, a Rockflower funded initiative providing employable skills to disadvantaged women in Kashmir, or who may already produce handmade crafts, but struggle to earn money. This 12 month project, broken into multiple cycles, recruits women who are interested in learning or improving upon a trade and supporting themselves financially. In this third round of students, CSP trained 24 women in embroidery, stitching, dressmaking, design and marketing. The goal of the project is to elevate the level of crafts that were produced so that the women could sell in-demand products, and have the knowledge to operate a business.

The rural women of Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJ&K) actively participate in the production of Kashmiri arts and crafts, but face significant hurdles in maximizing a return on their efforts - for themselves as well as their families and communities. CSP’s team, led by Mr. Siddique Hussain, understands that providing women with the opportunity to learn a trade, and how to market that trade effectively will not only benefit them economically, but will also help to build self esteem, a sense of responsibility, teamwork and effective communication skills. Throughout the training, the group also held two sessions focused solely on life skills, led by board member, Dr. Shazia. 

CSP is determined to train and support so many women that eventually, the Gurase Valley will have an established brand and reputation for its crafts. They have set up four training centers, led by graduates of the Pehran Project, to continue providing support and education. 

The third round of training ended in July of 2021, and CSP has been closely following the graduates on their entrepreneurial journeys. The organization found from previous groups that many of the graduates still need support in tapping into the market as they work on starting their businesses. The benefit of having multiple rounds of graduates, is that they are able to teach and support each other given what they’ve learned in both the training and in their own business. Not only has CSP provided job skills, but they’ve created a community of women ready to support one another as they work toward their mission of creating a reputation for craftsmanship in their community. 

Success Stories from CHICOSUDO's Women Empowerment Through Vocational Skills

Nelia Kabambe is a 17 year old single mother living in Traditional Authority Nkanda in Mulanje district, Malawi. She is one of twenty women who were given the opportunity to receive vocational skills training through a program implemented by Rockflower partner, CHICOSUDO. 

Nelia (right) learning to sew alongside her baby.

Nelia lost her parents at the age of twelve, and was unfortunately left to support herself. With very few options, she was forced to leave her education behind. She made one of the only decisions that she could and decided to marry a man, and be his second wife. Despite her young age and lack of experience, she took on the role of a wife in order to survive. 

In 2019, Nelia, who now had a child, was approached by a volunteer from CHICOSUDO who invited her to take part in their ‘End Child Marriage Now!!!’ program. Through this program, she received counseling on sexual and reproductive health, was provided an outlet to discuss concerns in her marriage, and received support through continued community programs.The knowledge she gained from the program allowed her to think critically about her situation, and to understand that there were other options for her. With the support of CHICOSUDO, she made the difficult decision to end her marriage, and live with her grandmother and baby. Nelia was determined to create a better life for herself and her child.

Over the past few years, Nelia has struggled to earn an income and support herself, her grandmother and her child. She is now 17 years old, and has been taking on casual jobs in order to make money whenever possible. However, through CHICOSUDO’s most recent project ‘Women Empowerment Through Vocational Skills' Nelia is learning the skills and tools necessary to become self-reliant.

Participants completing their tailoring assessment.

The goal of the project is to empower survivors of child marriages and single mothers by equipping them with skills, tools and education to support themselves and their families. Over the past few months, CHICOSUDO has worked to train twenty women in stitching, tailoring and embroidery while also providing education on sexual and reproductive rights and other emerging social issues. 

The organization is now close to completing this program, which consisted of 12 weeks of training in sewing and tailoring. The women have learned how to sew by using paper, how to maintain old clothes, and how to sew their own garments. The program has been highly successful, with over 85% of the course materials covered by the eleventh week. The decision has been made to extend the program by a few weeks to ensure that all of the women have learned the necessary skills. For the course’s final project, the women will sew uniforms for underprivileged children in the community. 

Not only are the participants learning these valuable vocational skills, but CHICOSUDO is also working to put a revolving loan scheme in place so that the women will have access to capital and can start their own businesses. The business loans will have an interest rate of 30% which will allow more money to go back into the fund, so that more women can access the loans. Over time, the fund will grow and so will their businesses. Upon completing the training, 85% of the women intend to start their own enterprises.

As the training comes to an end, the women, who are survivors of child marriages, are feeling hopeful and empowered by their ability to become self-reliant. Nelia is excited to complete the program and start her own business, or partner with others in the group to create a larger business. She now feels that her child will have better opportunities, and that she will be able to support her family despite all that she has been through. The work of the volunteers at CHICOSUDO has changed the lives of many women like Nelia through supporting them to leave abusive marriages, and providing them with the necessary skills to move forward and succeed on their own. 

Update on AYA’s Five Keys in Five Villages Project

Rockflower partner, African Youth Alliance, based in Cameroon, has been working to support seven groups of women in five different villages, utilizing Rockflower’s Five Key Framework. The project includes thoughtful elements that serve to improve the women’s quality of life through training focused on peace and security, maternal and reproductive health, access to food and water, education, and economic empowerment. This two year project has faced a great deal of challenges as a result of the pandemic, however, since resuming activities in March of 2021, the project has had a great impact on the lives of women, and has pivoted to include COVID-19 prevention education into their curriculum. AYA has provided an update on the program and its impact on the community.

Peace and Security:

AYA held a number of group discussions on peace and security to help women to better manage crises and conflict in their own homes and communities. The rate of physical and/or sexual violence toward women from intimate partners in Cameroon is 51%. More than half of the women attending these sessions had themselves been victims of domestic and/or sexual violence. The trainings not only taught them how to react and de-escalate conflict and violence, but how to protect themselves and understand their rights and power in these situations. 

At the end of each training session, the women were encouraged to stay in contact with one another and continue to have conversations on these topics. The group labeled themselves as ‘Community Peace Ambassadors’ and as such committed to sharing knowledge regularly, providing training to others, informing their community that they can be contacted in times of crisis, as well as working together to identify problems and seek solutions for women’s safety.

Group participant, Petra Mbom, a 25 year old, single and a mother told AYA, “I have benefitted as well as my group because we have been taught that women also have rights and that they can stand firm to defend themselves. Also from the lectures given we are able to settle disputes in our families and in our community and we hope to change certain aspects in our community. That is, allowing women to have rights to landed property is our target.”

Maternal and Reproductive Health:

AYA knew that focusing on women’s reproductive and sexual health was one of the most important aspects of this project. Since the women in these groups have received little, if any education on their sexual health, the potential for impact was immense. 

The primary focus areas for these sessions were education on HIV/AIDS, family planning, and menstruation. AYA enlisted the help of community nurses to stress the importance of learning their HIV/AIDS status, help them to understand the damage caused by stigamitizing and discriminating against other women based on their status, and to educate women who are HIV positive on how to stop the spread. 

In terms of family planning, the group focused on practices that would promote the health of both the mother and child, such as spacing out births. This topic was particularly impactful, as some of the women came to the session with the belief that they were going to be discouraged from having children, which was not the case. 

One participant explained, “Family planning has been taught in our group and we now understand that family planning does not mean women should stop giving birth or should not give birth, but it helps women to space their births and maintain a healthy family. Also, we now know the importance of reusable sanitary pads, how to use and take proper care of the pads.” Overall, the participants learned a great deal about caring for themselves as they navigate childbirth, sexually transmitted illnesses, and menstruation.

Access to Food and Water:

This portion of the project focused primarily on agriculture and land stewardship. Many of the women who participated in this training were already farmers by trade, while others were interested in gardening to supplement their family’s food supply. Some of the skills taught included preparing land for farming or gardening, propagating and nursing fruit trees, and understanding root systems.

The women also gained knowledge on land stewardship and conservation. They began a project in which they mapped out sites that would be considered unsafe or risky for farming, which led to a much higher success rate of crops in the area. This was the first time that the community conducted a study of land types, and it will have great long-term benefits. Through this mapping the women learned about the impacts of deforestation, land erosion and overfarming. They also learned about and implemented compost piles, harvested cabbage from community gardens and began an initiative titled “Operation One Man One Tree” in which each participant will plant a tree and encourage friends and family to do the same.

One participant, Ngwainmbi Mercy, who is 26 years old, married and a mother of two children said she has benefitted from the agricultural techniques that she learned through AYA’s training. Her and her group have been able to cultivate carrots, cabbages, and beans and this has helped them to provide food for their families and communities.

Education:

Due to the immense success and positive feedback from the maternal and reproductive health education, AYA decided to focus their education training on female empowerment. Several group meetings were held in which the groups discussed the negative impacts of early marriage and teenage pregnancy. They also gained valuable insight about the role of sexuality for women, which is generally considered taboo to discuss. Much of the conversation focused on the importance of fighting for their rights, maintaining good self esteem, and discrediting many cultural norms and traditions that serve to keep women out of positions of power. 

After this training, the women felt that they had a better understanding of how to live their lives with dignity, without shame and how to encourage the next generation of women to lead fulfilling lives. 

Juscentha Fukuin, a 40 year old mother of four children told AYA that she will no longer encourage her children to marry at a young age. 

Another participant, fourteen year old Belva Ndum said “I have benefitted from the lectures on general hygiene, and I can now take good care of myself. I have hope in the future despite the crisis and the closure of schools. I also know I have to work hard if I want to be a good leader in future.”

The sessions typically ended with goal setting, where the women were able to discuss what they hoped to achieve, and how they could support one another to achieve those goals. 

Economic Empowerment:

The final pillar of AYA’s training focused on ensuring that the participants had an understanding of how to manage a small business. In these training sessions, they learned basic accounting principles, book keeping, how to evaluate business growth, identifying financial setbacks, and strategies to overcome setbacks.

AYA also created a revolving loan scheme, in which each of the women would contribute a certain amount of their income to provide loans to others. As their businesses grow, so would the fund, and more businesses could emerge. This year, the women were able to fund half of their goal for the revolving loan scheme. As their businesses gradually grew throughout the year, the group was able to achieve a 44.6% profit from the sales of items like manure, salt, soap, and body lotions. This also served as a hands on lesson in deducting expenses in order to calculate profit.

One business owner, Carine Bih, benefited greatly from this education. She learned that a business and the business owner are separate entities, and that it’s possible for the business owner to owe money to the business. She had been operating a doughnut stand for years, and had seen almost no profit. She told AYA that she would often give donuts away to her friends and family, but she wasn’t clear on the fact that when she did that, she would have to owe the cost of those ingredients to the business. Through the group training, she came to understand that she was the reason that her business was not profitable, and she learned how to keep record of any product that she gives away so that she can pay it back to the business. 

Many of the women involved in the program had been running businesses for years with no education on how to maintain and account for their business. This education has been invaluable to them as they now are able to recognize their profits and plan for their futures.

Overall, the training and resources provided by AYA has had an immense impact on improving the participants’ knowledge of their rights, especially sexual and reproductive rights, food security, income and agricultural skills. For these rural women in Cameroon, many of whom are young and/or single mothers, this education will serve to allow them to improve their quality of life and that of their families as they plan for the future. AYA noted that due to the challenges faced by these women, including extreme poverty, domestic violence, and child marriages, the program has been met with more than enthusiasm. The women are delighted and eager to better their lives and work together to improve their communities.

Update on the Reducing Poverty through Honey Production and Distribution Project

In May of 2018, Footsteps Africa wanted to find a way to help increase the productivity of rural poor women on the outskirts of Blantrye. Women like Mary were travelling over 145kms to sell the bottles of honey to honey processors and formal retailers in the Blantyre city region. However, the honey failed to even pass the minimum quality needed by the companies. 

There were many reasons for this: 

• Lack of modern honey production and processing skills existed among rural poor women to produce quality honey demanded by formal honey buyers and exporters 

• Lack of modern bee hives to produce high yields quality honey 

• Lack of proper honey extraction machines and soft knowledge on extracting honey for high-end markets 

• Knowledge and skills gaps in proper storage, packaging and branding 

• Knowledge gaps in business management and recording, financial literacy, access to saving and credit 

• Lack of improved personal hygiene and lack of access to affordable clean water solutions needed in honey processing.

The story of Mary’s efforts reflects the economic struggles that women’s traditional bee keepers face in Malawi due to low-quality honey that prevent them from accessing viable markets that could generate good income for their productive efforts. Additionally, apart from honey, women beekeepers in Malawi rarely develop trade in other by-products of bee farming such as bee-wax that could double their earning potentials. 

Twisi and his team at Footsteps Africa were determined to find a way to connect all of these missing gaps in the chain. 

In the beginning the plan was to integrate this project into our water, food and income project activities in Chikhwawa district. However, after further assessment they realized  that the agroecological factors in Chikhwawa were not supportive of a successful and sustainable bee farming project.  

They reluctantly moved the project to within Blantyre rural district as a stand alone project. This went against their overall programming approach which integrates different projects to maximize impact and project management. Unfortunately an enormous forest fire gutted the hives into unrecognizable ashes. 

Fortunately, Footsteps Africa had taken out hive insurance from the supplier and they were eligible to receive compensation and replaceable Hives within three months. However, due to COVID-19, the supplier of the HIVEs was unable to import and it took them almost a year to have a consignment successfully imported into Malawi from Kenya. 

By the time they had the delivery of the second HIVEs, they were unsure of next steps. They wanted to get it right the second time. They waited patiently to find a suitable site to implement a sustainable Bee farming project that would also benefit marginal women farmers who would like to do bee farming as a business. After surveying several places, they initially settled for Nkhata-bay district in Northern Malawi. But they later changed to Mzimba district along Lunjika hills in northern Malawi because they have a plan to implement irrigation farming and renewable energy projects in the same area. 

In this way, the bee farming will be integrated into the holistic structure of all Footsteps Africa projects and allow them to successfully provide support to all our projects with the limited staff and resources they have available. 

This is a real testament to the tenacity and determination of Twisi and his team and that he followed through on the project precisely because they were given the opportunity and flexibility to reach their goals. 

SIRP Local Leader Empowerment Project Update

Rockflower partner, Society for the Improvement of Rural People, based in Nigeria, has just completed a project in which they were able to provide project management training to 30 women and youth-led organizations in Enugu State. 

Since 2011, SIRP has been involved in developing school governance frameworks, with support from the Education Sector Support Programme in Nigeria (ESSPIN). Although SIRP originally focused it’s projects on schools, they realized that education is very much needed outside of the classroom as well. SIRP Director, Dr. Christopher Ugwu saw an opportunity to help small, local, organizations run by women and youth in Enugu State, by educating them on how to manage projects, draft proposals, manage budgets and effectively leverage social media to promote their work. 

Women and youth make up more than 50% of the population in Enugu State, and are highly vulnerable to poverty, domestic violence, issues of sexual and reproductive health, and lack agency. Young business owners are seen as inexperienced and lack access to financial resources and women are often seen as inferior, and also struggle to secure resources for their organizations. 

The project was highly successful overall. Through a number of training sessions, the organizational leaders learned to write impactful proposals, lead their organizations confidently, manage projects, draft budgets and leverage social media to promote their organizations. The youth in these groups now feel confident to begin fundraising on their own. An unintended benefit was the strong networking connections that were built throughout the program. Many of the business owners, who knew of very few other women-led organizations, found comfort in shared experiences and formed bonds that will benefit them both personally and in their work. 

Dr. Christopher Ugwu told us, “We define youth and women empowerment as the process; by which youth and women gain the ability to make decisions not just for themselves, but also that of others. This could be formal or informal education. This is so essential and forms the basis of all our successes.”

Upon the completion of the program, participants were surveyed on their experience. Over 86% of participants said that this program was highly impactful to their lives, with the other 14% indicating that the program was somewhat impactful to their lives. Overall, the skills built in this program will allow this underrepresented group of aspirational women and youth to succeed in their endeavors, provide for themselves and their families, and ensure that they are able to maintain independence and safety into the future. Rockflower is greatly inspired by the work of SIRP and their ability to respond to the needs of their community.

Rockflower Partners with Dare Now Uganda to Empower Female Entrepreneurs

Rockflower is pleased to announce our partnership with Dare Now Uganda, a non-governmental organization based in Kampala City, Uganda that works closely with marginalized groups of women, girls, youth and their families in the urban-slums of Kampala city and Wakiso district. 

Dare Now Uganda is dedicated to economically and psycho-socially empowering marginalized groups of women, girls, youths and their families by providing them economic opportunities, career development skills, small business enterprises development support, access to formal education, as well as access to maternal, reproductive and oral health.

The organization recently partnered with Rockflower to provide micro-capital to disadvantaged women-owned small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Family Economic Empowerment Support (FEES) for Women in Uganda will allow these women to get back on their feet and avoid the very real threat of homelessness that many of them face.

Robertson Hagggai, founder of Dare Now Uganda told us, “Before we met and mobilized the women, one constant issue for most of them was precarious day to day type of survival and when speaking of the future, it was difficult for these women to see past the immediate future or to see past a life in the slums. Much of their energy was focused on day to day survival.”

Nabwire Mary, a 30-year-old single mother of two living in the urban slums of Kampala is one of those women, who did not envision a bright future for herself before participating in Dare Now Uganda’s program. After the passing of her father, Mary moved to Kampala City at the age of twenty with a neighbor who promised to find her work as a housemaid, although there were no jobs waiting for her when she arrived. After facing unemployment, years of domestic violence, and raising two young children on her own, a group of women who were enrolled in Dare Now Uganda’s community program approached Mary and encouraged her to enroll as well. Since then, Mary has learned a number of skills and started her own small business.

“When I joined the women’s group and committed to working and participating in the training program, I felt very afraid and wondered whether I would be able to cope with the program. Now I have also been empowered by the skilling program and my fellow women and started my own business supported with the capital I received from Dare Now Uganda to boost and expand my small business. Right now I have diversified my small business through selling a variety of things which increases my daily profit. I want to tremendously thank Rockflower for the continuous support given to Dare Now Uganda who have given us hope of living.”

Dare Now Uganda aims to not only economically impact women on a small scale, but to provide emotional support, training and education that will allow them to envision and create  a better future for themselves and their families.

Update on Association Burkinabé des Femmes Battantes’ Weaving and Dyeing Project

Rockflower Partner, Association Burkinabé des Femmes Battantes (ABFB), based in Burkina Faso, has just completed the training phase of their Weaving and Dyeing project. The year-long project aims to train and employ 20 women facing extreme poverty and joblessness through the installation of a weaving and dyeing loom in Godin village. 

Burkina Faso is a small West African country that has long suffered from droughts, flooding, and increasing desertification, overgrazing, soil degradation and deforestation. Over the past decade, the country, which was once one of West Africa’s most stable, has been under constant attack by terrorists and local rebels, leaving many areas decimated, and many citizens displaced. In 2013, the French military intervened to counter terrorist violence. However, in June of 2021, France announced their intention to end this military operation, and the effects of this decision have the potential to devastate the nation. 

“Things have become much worse in Tin-Akof recently,” Boubacar Dialo, a displaced citizen, told Al Jazeera. “Terrorists have a chokehold on the area. There are no more markets, so the vehicles no longer come and there is no work. Before, [fighters] just came to loot our animals, kidnap the people they were looking for and leave. Now it’s come to the point where they just burn down whole villages.”

The country also has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world, at 36% and only 1% of girls graduate from high school. This lack of education has led to a staggering 52% of girls married before the age of 18. The nation has the worst rating in the world for the health of mothers with less than 50% of Burkinabé having access to clean water. For women and girls seeking to support themselves and their families, there are very few options.

Given the desperation of the country’s current situation as well as the nation’s high unemployment rate of 77%, ABFB’s project is able to offer a light of hope to women, many of whom are victims of child marriages and domestic abuse, in the village of Godin. The 20 women who are currently participating in the program have completed a 30-day training in using the weaving and dyeing loom and will soon be able to generate income through the sale of yarn and cloth. In addition these 20  women will train additional women in the skills they’ve learned as the project progresses, ensuring a continuum of sustainability. 

Aline W. Bontogho, ABFB president, told us, “This project is the very first activity that the women of the village of Godin will benefit from. Apart from this project, the women have no activities to do and are left on their own without any activity that will allow them to get out of poverty, but thanks to your support, they will carry out an Income Generating Activity (IGA) which will greatly contribute to their development and the development of Godin.” 

As the organization moves into the next phase of this project, they are excited to begin generating income, and helping the residents of Godin Village gain financial stability during such an extremely challenging time for the nation. The women involved in the program will soon have the ability to financially support themselves and their families, which will allow them agency over their lives. 

CHICOSUDO Begins Women Empowerment Through Vocational Skills Project

Chitani Community Sustainable Development Organization (CHICOSUDO), a Rockflower partner based in Malawi has begun a new project in which they aim to empower disadvantaged and unemployed women through providing training in vocational skills. Rockflower has previously funded CHICOSUDO’s project, End Child Marriage Now!!! Promote Her Rights, which advocated for policies against child marriage and raised awareness around sexual and reproductive health issues in order to address the knowledge gap within communities.

The goal of the organization’s newest initiative is to empower the survivors of child marriages and single mothers by equipping them with skills, tools and support to become self-reliant. This project will help to break the cycle that pressures girls to leave school early in order to marry young or work in the home. This cycle leaves those women who have not completed school without any access to vocational training or forms of higher education, which often leads to complete dependence on their husbands. 

CHICOSUDO is aiming to break this cycle with their new project which is specifically aimed toward helping 20 women who are both survivors of child marriages and single mothers to teens and young adults. They have also determined that this project will also indirectly benefit 105 additional people including children and relatives of the women. The organization will train these women in stitching, tailoring and embroidery. Additionally  the women will receive business training and help from local businesses and agencies to support them and connect them to potential markets as they prepare to begin their own businesses.

Upon completion of the program, CHICOSUDO will introduce a Savings and Internal Lending Community (SILC) program to help the women start their businesses. At the end of the six month training period, the participants will take the Technical Education, Vocation and Entrepreneurship Training Authority (TEVETA) exam and receive official certificates. The group will also organize a number of market fairs to sell their products. 

This project will lead to increased access to capital, reduced poverty, reduced unemployment, and an overall enhanced quality of life for survivors of child marriages. Not only will it improve the lives of the women involved, but it will help break the cycle of women being subjected to child marriages in the future.

SIRP Begins Vocational Training for Unemployed Youth in Nigeria

Society for the Improvement of Rural People, a Rockflower partner based in Nigeria, will be launching a new project, Vocational Training for Unemployed Youth in Nigeria, in which they will train unemployed youth and young adults in the Idaw-River community in a number of highly employable vocational skills. SIRP has previously partnered with Rockflower to reduce the female genital mutilation (FGM) prevalence rate in the Akwuke community of Enugu State from 85% to 45% while directly effecting the number of girls that were able to remain in school.

The organization has conducted interview-based research of young adults ages 18-30 in the Idaw-River community, and determined that of their sample, 50% are currently unemployed and lack useful job skills. SIRP also found that the majority of interviewees have attended school, but the quality of their education has left them lacking the skills necessary to gain employment. Due to the prevalence of unemployment, many young adults are turning to theft and other illegal activities in order to support themselves and their families, which has had a negative impact on the overall safety of the community.

In response to this research, SIRP plans to train 30 young adults in a number of vocational skills which will allow them to develop their job skills, gain financial independence, and have the ability to teach these skills to other community members. The vocational skills will include: graphic design, soap making, cosmetology and baking. These specific vocations have been chosen based on a number of factors including time needed to learn the skills, demand and profitability. 

Through this pilot project alone, the program aims to reduce the unemployment rate in the Idaw-River community from 33% to 31% by the end of 2021. SIRP will also provide participants with training in business management and financial literacy so that they feel empowered to begin their own small businesses. They will then hold a certification ceremony at the end of the program to recognize the participants and name them champions of the community, which will empower them to help train the next round of participants and ensure the long-term sustainability of the program. This project aims to improve the quality of life for unemployed young adults in the Idaw-River community, as well as for the community as a whole.

Mategemeo Women Association Partners with Rockflower for Revolving Loan Scheme Project

Mategemeo Women Association, a non-governmental organization based in Tanzania, will be partnering with Rockflower once again for the creation of a Revolving Loan Scheme in order to help local women break the cycle of poverty and maintain financial security in the event of an emergency. The organization has previously partnered with Rockflower to remediate their community’s acute water problem by creating a number of shallow wells that provided clean drinking water to over 300 households. 

The Revolving Loan Scheme Project will work with twenty women who wish to start or boost their micro-projects in order to generate consistent  income and break the cycle of poverty. Once the borrowers receive their funds, they will pay back their loans with 2% interest over the course of six months, which will allow the organization to cycle the money to other women looking to start small businesses. 

Mategemeo Women Association will also provide free training in small business management, bookkeeping, calculating revenue, marketing and leadership which will allow them to successfully manage their businesses and finances. Some of the existing businesses in the program include the management of a poultry farm, and the sale of products like groceries, second hand clothing, shoes, stationery, and cosmetics.

Additionally, the organization will ask each of the women to contribute 15% of their net monthly income to an emergency welfare fund, which will be used to help members in the event of an emergency. This mutual aid fund will provide peace of mind to the beneficiaries, as they begin their businesses and face the uncertainties of maintaining financial stability and independence. 

This project will allow women who have previously had little access to capital, to start or scale micro-projects through a sustainable fund that will grow over time and reach more and more community members. The business training and emergency fund created by Mategemeo Women Association will support the beneficiaries as they navigate owning a business and will allow for greater financial security and stability while contributing to breaking the cycle of poverty in Tanzania. 

Progress on RUGLI’s Tailoring their Futures Project

Rwenzori United Life Group (RUGLI) has been a Rockflower partner since 2018. The success of the Bio Briquette project has inspired other innovative income generating ideas, including training and teaching women valuable skills in clothing alteration and sewing. This has also provided the necessary knowledge and capital to own and operate their own small tailoring businesses through the Tailoring their Futures project. This project allows women and girls who previously lacked or struggled with obtaining a source of income to have a means of providing for themselves and their families.

RUGLI sees this initiative as an opportunity to even the playing field for women, in what historically has been a male dominated industry in this region of Uganda. By providing women with the knowledge and skills to enter this space, RUGLI is working to break down barriers in the tailoring profession and provide a sustainable source of income for those in need of economic empowerment.

Recently, RUGLI Executive Director, Biira Mary, updated us on the progress of the project, and the great impact that it is having on the lives of women through a number of inspiring stories and testimonials.

Read on to hear the stories of the women who are hard at work, tailoring their futures and taking success into their own hands with the help of RUGLI:

Barbara’s Story:

Barbara is a RUGLI trainee who has greatly benefited from the Tailoring their Futures project. She is a widow, and in 2006 lost her job and found herself with no means of supporting herself and her daughter, Katrina. She heard about Rwenzori United Group for Life Improvement (RUGLI) from a friend, and applied for the tailoring/design course. Over the past few months, Barbara has gradually grown her business and she now shares a workshop with another woman and rents a stall in the market in Kasese a couple of days a week to sell her garments.

Barbara started out making one dress at a time because that was all she could afford. She gradually earned enough money to buy more materials and increase her stock. Barbara is now able to pay for her daughter’s school fees from the money that she earns through her tailoring business. Katrina is doing really well at school and she hopes one day to become a doctor.

Doreen’s Story:

Doreen, a now dedicated and ambitious tailor and entrepreneur, has seen significant improvement in her business and has recently begun selling additional materials in her store.  Doreen started her tailoring business with the capital she received from Rwenzori United Group for Life Improvement (RUGLI) and with the profit she’s earned, she started grain selling from Kiburara to Bwera, and Kikorongo downtown where she has made much more money.  

When she started, she profited from tailoring and began grain selling, but now it is the other way around — she gets profit from grain selling to support her tailoring business and now she earns double the profit.  Doreen still continues to trade grains to the 3 downtowns in Kasese District.   As a woman, she faces many challenges including theft and other security  issues, but her growth cannot be challenged. Even though she is in an industry mainly occupied by men, she has managed to compete strongly and equally.

Mbambu Jolly’s Story:

Jolly, a recipient of training and assistance from RUGLI and Rockflower, has gradually developed both her skills and business while her capital and stock have increased. The more active she is in her business, the more skills she gains. Jolly’s success comes from her ability to create fashionable items that her customers are excited to purchase. Sometimes, her customers bring her designs and she is able to copy them and make her bestselling clothes. Because of her business she can now afford to smile and has the ability to support herself— she has purchasing power and independence.

Musoki Martha’s Story:

Martha operates her business near the Mawa market. She has managed to gain valuable customers because of her innate customer service skills. Martha also adds value to her business by buying second hand clothes that she upcycles and sells at a higher price. Martha has turned her shop into a workshop where she also teaches those that want to learn how to create a tailoring business or how to use a sewing machine. She earns income through instructing others, which adds to her profits.

Martha’s work is not without its challenges though. One issue that she faces in her work is that some customers are unwilling to pay after their tailoring is completed. Additionally, poverty in the area makes it difficult for people to purchase new or upcycled clothes, and many opt for cheaper, secondhand items, which detracts from Martha’s business. These challenges, despite her innovative business ideas and hard work, make it difficult for Martha to afford her rent. However, Martha plans to continue pushing and innovating until her business truly succeeds.

Biira Agatha’s Story:

Agatha has been an extremely successful trainee of RUGLI’s tailoring project. As a result of the skills she gained from working with RUGLI, Agatha is currently employing four girls in her shop who help her with the daily running of the business.

Agatha is proud of the growth and success of her business, even after facing the challenge of a broken sewing machine that nearly forced her to halt operations. Agatha has since fixed her sewing machine, and is proud to report that some of her goods are exported to South Sudan where there is already a booming market for her items. Her business is extremely prosperous, and she is seeing a lot of changes in her life. Agatha is able to pay school fees and rent, and she now trains other women from different areas in her trade.

These stories are testimony not only to the strength and hard work of these inspiring women, but to the reach and impact of the work done by RUGLI. This project, which continues to gain momentum and success, still requires further funding. RUGLI hopes to expand this program, and continue empowering women, but requires more sewing machines, materials and space to do so. Please consider donating to Rockflower, so that we can continue to support this project, and ensure that RUGLI can help even more women break the cycle of poverty, and gain financial independence through tailoring.

Clean Girls Soap and the call for collective action on the prevention of Child Marriage in Zimbabwe

We have featured the work of Women Advocacy Project, Zimbabwe, several times over the five years that they have been a Rockflower partner. However, after a recent zoom call with the Catalyzer Collective, it felt important to mark the many milestones that have been achieved by WAP and to recognise the single-minded focus, grit and determination it takes to prevent early child marriage in the communities where they work.

Constance Mugari, Founder and Executive Director and Mr. Akenga Dickson Mnyaci, Deputy Director of WAP, spent over an hour sharing the daily challenges they face in this endeavor but more importantly describing for us the enormous strides they have made in addressing the myriad of barriers to preventing child marriage.

WAP was created by a group of women from the surrounding communities of Harare in response to the lack of attention on issues affecting women and girls, especially the pressure to marry at a young age. By committing to promoting and protecting the rights of vulnerable and marginalized women and girls in communities through advocacy campaigns, providing safe spaces through local club meetings and more recently, through the creation of their soap making brand Clean Girls Soap, WAP ensures that the girls are front and center in the effort to improve their lives and those of their families. The creation of Clean Girls Soap has provided a source of income as am alternative to child marriage being the only solution out of acute poverty. Through the education and training of the girls on how to make and distribute Clean Girls Soap, they have developed new professional skills providing a pathway to future prosperity that would otherwise be blocked.

Rockflower’s Catalyzer Collective, a group of individuals committed to supporting and promoting the work of all Rockflower partners meets once a month to speak directly with partners and hear of their progress. In the last meeting in April, the Collective members were able to learn about WAP’s work, the challenges being met, the progress being made, and more importantly the hopes and plans for the future.

One of WAP’s greatest skills is their ability to reach out to funders and organizations who will understand and appreciate the long term benefits of the work they do. Rockflower’s partnership with WAP began in 2016 and we continue to support them in whatever way is needed. WAP has since gone on to attract significant support from The Advocacy Project, who really deserve the credit for ensuring that Constance and Dickson were given the technical support for their ambitious goals. Action for World Solidarity and most recently Together Women Rise (formerly Dining for Women) and several others share in this collaborative investment into the dreams of Constance and the Girl Ambassadors which will translate into a shared vision of future possibilities.

To date, WAP has completed the first phase of the “Clean Girl Soap Making Project” and has now moved into phase two. In phase one, the organization worked with 40 girls selected from two of WAP’s girls clubs. The girls learned to formulate, produce, package and sell 6,330 bottles of premium dish soap to over 15 local shops. The organization has received an official business certificate for “Clean Girls” and are in the process of receiving their product certification from The Standard Association of Zimbabwe. They have also invested in a solar energy system that will generate enough energy to power their soap processing facility. As a result of phase one, each girl involved in the soap making process was able to earn $21 USD of income.

Many of the girls involved in the program were unable to afford school fees and had to abandon their education. They were struggling to help provide for their families in an area with an unemployment rate higher than 90%. Before the intervention of WAP, many were in a situation that pressured them to marry very young in order to relieve the financial burden on their families. Perhaps the most significant result of WAP’s work is that 80% of girls involved with WAP have re-enrolled in school.

The parents of the girls involved in WAP’s Soap making project have also been extremely grateful and amazed by the results of the program.

One mother shared the following with WAP, “I want to thank WAP, particularly our Chitungwiza ambassador Evelyn. I met her when she was visiting her girls and I told her that I wanted my daughter to also join her club. Ever since my child joined her team, she has improved a lot, especially during the lockdown. They were not going to school but they were always occupied with something to do. Also, the income generating project they are doing has empowered her so much. I no longer worry much about her pocket money. She is now able to buy things for herself, like clothes, sanitary wear and things she desires to have as a girl. Many thanks to WAP for their great work. My daughter has completely changed even in character and she is now different from many other girls in the neighbourhood.”

The organization reported on the immense challenges they faced as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, writing, “The girls could not meet as everyone was required to stay at home. The WAP team could not move easily from one community to another as the Police had mounted checkpoints almost on every route leading to Harare's central business district, stopping cars and turning away pedestrians who had no authorisation to be in the area. Hundreds of people who failed to comply with the restrictions were detained. Women and girls were restricted from going to fetch water at the nearby water sources in their communities. Many poor families suffered from shortage of food supply and lack of disinfectants.”

Although the organization continues to overcome challenges related to the pandemic, they have been able to continue the weekly meetings of their local clubs, and continue production and sales of Clean Girls Soap. Currently they are also struggling with providing a means of transportation for the women and girls, but are working to secure a new vehicle for this.

The future for WAP continues to look bright, considering the sheer scale of determination that exists both at the leadership of the organization and within the girls themselves. Their major goal moving forward is to secure a factory, (either through renting or purchasing) to enable them to grow Clean Girls Soap into a nationwide, and perhaps even an internationally recognized brand. In the shorter term, their goal is to produce 38,000 bottles of soap in the next year and create a greater revenue stream to both provide sufficient salaries to the women and to reinvest into the organization to create a self-sustaining model.

Overall, WAP has made great strides in not only addressing and preventing child marriages, but in providing underserved women and girls with education, a supportive community, employment, income, and a chance at experiencing higher self-esteem. Perhaps the most notable of metrics, is that of all the girls involved in the program, none have married under-age, and a great number have returned to their education. The passion and determination of the organization’s leaders has made this all possible, and the Rockflower Catalyzer Collective feels proud and blessed to have had this opportunity to connect with Constance and Dickson and looks forward to encouraging and supporting their continued growth and success. Perhaps this is best summed up by long-time Collective member, Taylor Washburn.

“I look forward to the day when I am buying Clean Girl Soap from Zimbabwe in my local supermarket!”

Reflections on completing the "Weaving with YWISD" Project

Rockflower is pleased to announce the completion of the successful “Weaving with YWISD” project created by Youth and Women Initiative for Sustainable Development (YWISD), based in Uganda. This twelve-month project sought to improve the lives of 200 women in the Wakiso sub-county by providing educational training in weaving (baskets, handbags and wallets) and entrepreneurial skills.

The dedicated women of YWISD were able to achieve and even surpass all of the goals set forth at the onset of the project. These goals included:

• Promoting gender equality by empowering young women
• Reducing dependency among women by equipping them with income generating skills
• Reducing the number of chronically impoverished women by 80% in the Wakiso sub-county
• Positively impacting the environment by creating reusable replacements for polythene bags

Of course this project was not without its challenges. The biggest obstacles faced by YWISD in implementing this project were the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and their struggle to meet requests of the growing number of women looking to learn these skills. Due to COVID-19, the project was paused temporarily, but was able to later resume with guidance from healthcare workers. The work became even more critical at this point, as many were facing even greater economic hardship in the pandemic.

YWISD also faced an overwhelming number of requests to learn weaving skills, and they expanded their training to include not only young women and girls, but older women as well. However, their resources limited them in the number of women they could train. The organization is looking to scale the program moving forward, and are utilizing the help of the women who have already been trained to spread the knowledge they have learned in their communities.

The women involved in this project have faced an overwhelming number of struggles including extreme poverty, unemployment, a lack of education, single motherhood and many have been personally impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. These women have now been provided with the skills necessary to support themselves and their families for a lifetime. The knowledge gained from this project is also being shared by participants in an effort to empower as many women as possible to achieve financial independence.

Nakatumba Joan, a twenty-one year old participant in the program explained, “I have been home for the last 3 years ever since I dropped out of school due to lack of school fees. I had never had a chance to learn any practical skills to change my life. People in this village have never taught anyone for free, but through YWISD and the help of Rockflower I am grateful for the skills which I acquired. I have already begun earning by selling my products. The market is readily available, and many people want my products. I also want to train as many youth as possible with the skills I have acquired so that they can overcome poverty too.”

Overall, this project drastically improved the lives of the 200 women who have been trained in weaving and entrepreneurship, and these women are continuing to pass forward the skills they have learned. Looking ahead, YWISD will continue to monitor the success of participants and will continue growing their program in other parts of Uganda. They plan to find new markets for women to sell their products in, and to diversify their training to include shoe-making. Rockflower is deeply inspired by the work of the women at YWISD and looks forward to their continued success in empowering women to overcome poverty.