Rooted Wisdom Africa

Programs: Enterprise development: overview: the second programming block of into your hands-africa is enterprise development. Enterprise stimulates income generation and self-sufficiency through smallholder enterprise projects where participants learn valuable business skills and generate revenue to cover their financial needs. The organization supports family units, students, and community members through projects in farming or animal husbandry. Participants of this program receive business and animal husbandry training courses, veterinary services or agricultural advisement and an enterprise project in piglets/chickens, seedlings, or coffee/mango plants. The impact of this project is immediate and sustainable for the family and also for future generations of families who are increasing their financial sustainability and food security. To date, projects have included send-a-piglet-home, send-a-chicken-home, send-a-goat-home, clonal coffee and mango projects. Individual projects provide sustainability for future project beneficiaries through a pass-on system where a portion of the earnings from the original project is given as reimbursement to the organization in the form of plant seedlings or animals. Income generated through this project allows the beneficiary to expand their business in addition to supporting incurred family expenses such as health charges, school fees, and other relevant costs. Beneficiaries are supported through initial training workshops, mentorship opportunities, veterinary services, and top-off trainings that include best practice training of their project. Beneficiaries are responsible for providing an acceptable shelter for the animal or clearing the land and digging holes for agricultural-based projects. In 2017, into your hands-africa distributed 237-enterprise project to students and families.

education: overview: the organization supports a formal education program by partnering with secondary schools in order to achieve key goals in matriculation, retention, graduation rates, academic performance and school income. An agreed-upon memorandum of understanding between the school and into your hands-africa determines the partnership. All schools receiving a block grant must demonstrate strides in operating independently over time. The organizations current partners are st. Denis secondary school and st. James secondary school in makando, uganda. Into your hands-africa support students of all grade levels with an emphasis on girls education. Successful students who complete senior 4 grade level can apply for an additional scholarship to continue their studies at a vocational level. This is an opportunity provided to less than 5% of the ugandan student population. In 2017, into your hands africa launch a new education program with secondary students from st james secondary school coined the life skills program. Life skills programming features expand vocational and technical training, especially for girls in rural economies so they are able to start their own businesses, support their families, and stimulate local business. Each student is provided with an opportunity to start her own business over the course of four years through professional development trainings and a livestock project. The ultimate benefit of the program allows students to self-fund their tuition beyond high school. All in all, in 2017 115 students received scholarships and/or life skills workshops from into your hands-africa. Additionally, this past year into your hands-africa expanded its vocational training program to a total of 48 students. The vocational training program aims at boosting vocational education as a means of overcoming high unemployment rates by providing opportunities for hands on, skilled education that allows youth to compete in the job market or become job creators themselves. The program encourages students to return to the village and serve their communities once they graduate. This year the organization partnered with four vocational schools in fields of farming, primary teaching, hairdressing, electrical technician, and veterinary services. Based on a 100% graduation rate from the first cohort of students, into your hands-africa anticipates further expansion of this program in the near future. In an effort to support schools in becoming accredited, into your hands-africa also provides an educational infrastructure program that supports capital improvements to partner schools. Past projects have included water and sanitation facilities, construction of school buildings, development of sustainable energy solutions, and the acquisition of information technology. This past year, into your hands africa partnered with st james secondary school to construct a school-based business project in the form of a pig farm. The pig farm is located onsite and is used to teach students an invaluable trade for future business ownership as well as provide an opportunity for the school to earn additional income that would supplement operational expenses for the school including teacher stipends, housing allocations, school materials and supplies. The st. James pig project will rear pigs for food consumption and project expansion in addition to providing a new market for local farmers to purchase organic fertilizers for their mango, coffee and matooke plantations.

community: overview: enterprise activities must occur within a supportive social context; as such, the third programing block of into your hands-africa is the community development association (cda) program. Self-sustainability, empowerment, and community leadership are the organizations top priorities. With this in mind, into your hands-africa encourages the community members to establish their own community development cooperatives in partnership with local stakeholders and community leaders. The cda program supports a shift from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture and animal husbandry by featuring three key elements: educational workshops and vocational training; (2) home visits where participants observe other successful enterprise development activities; and (3) internships and mentoring where participants have the opportunity to apply what they have learned in workshops and home visits. This program has contributed to the economic health and vitality of the community while supporting food security and expanding local organic farming practices that occurs in a supportive context. Over the past year, into your hands-africa has supported more than 1,050 community members participating in the community development association program across 70 villages in ndagwe and kisekka sub counties. In 2017, iyha also launched a women's enterprise training program focusing on marginalized poverty level females with little to no formal education. This project increases access to opportunities for young women, which in turn increases the pipeline of educated girls/women, who grow into actualized women and become leaders in their communities. This project supports entrepreneurial and vocational training for ugandan females so they learn and cultivate the skills needed to become self-sustaining, employed citizens. Iyha's distinctive approach combines classroom education, business exposure and workable skill building upon mentorships and group support with other successful women entrepreneurs. These elements along with ongoing support from iyha on-the-ground staff work in tandem to support success and improve the local community economy. Project partners have developed a unique curriculum that incorporates the feedback and visioning of the very women who will be served so that it is relevant to their specific needs. It features women entrepreneurs leading younger women creating generational changes to impact the community in future years. The program allows all women to participate, regardless of their past educational attainment. Through this work, women are empowered to create their own businesses, to become financially self-sustaining, and to break social and economic barriers for the next generation of girls. In 2017, the womens enterprise training program supported over 99 women through individual business training workshops.