By Jennie Norman | Board Chair
In an effort to become more financially sustainable long-term we seek to expand the number of Rwandan women and children we serve with job skills and education. We have begun a major effort to seek grant support in addition to the support of our incredibly generous supporters like you. This year we applied for and received a Rotary International District Grant of $2000, our first ever! This grant helped support our work to create a shared workshop/retail space in Musanze for our dyers to collaborate more easily and so that we can sell their beautiful hand-dyed textiles within Rwanda and not only in the US.
Several members of the Rotary District that supported our grant application have encouraged us to apply for a Rotary International Global Grant in 2024, and we have begun work toward that considerable effort. When our founder Nancy went to Rwanda in September of this year, she and our Rwandan Board member Grace met with community members to talk about the needs of the people in the geographic area we serve, which is a requirement of the grant application.
Nancy and Grace, along with local Rotarians in Musanze, held small community meetings with a total of 20 local people. A mixed method of interviews and focus groups was used. When asked about the most pressing needs in the community, 70% of community members ranked food insecurity as the number one issue, followed by lack of jobs, and Insufficient affordable housing, both ranked by 65% of participants.
About 50% of participants cited education as a big challenge for many families and one of the leading causes of not finding employment as they lack the education and skills to perform the few jobs that are available.
These findings reinforce our commitment to the work of Rwanda-one4one. Our Umva project brings meaningful work for wages to mothers/caregivers, which helps put daily food on the table, pay for shelter, and helps send their children to a decent school.
Without your confidence and ongoing support, we would not be here to do this work - in this special holiday season, we send you our grateful thanks and best wishes.
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