About Burundi Empowerment Project
Empowerment project was initiated and launched by Jean-Paul ,a social work student at the university of Auckland in 2013. Jean-Paul has a track record in humanitarian agencies particulary the United Nations association of New Zealand, citizens Advice Bureau , Refugee Council of New Zealand, RAS New Zealand and others. Knowing what vulnerable refugees children go through, Jean-Paul along with his kiwis colleagues launched the Burundi Empowerment ,the project has provided school resources to 600 children in Africa.
Burundi empowerment is a community –led project, which aims to support vulnerable children with school resources in Burundi/ Africa. As a community project, we engage with the local community, sponsors and stakeholders in order to provide hope and resilience to vulnerable kids in Burundi. Click here to see the project video
Burundi Empowerment project main objective is to ensure that unaccompanied children, orphans and widows with minors are empowered with basic education skills in order reach the potential. The project aims to make difference with minimum cost by providing the resources to orphans, unaccompanied children and widows with minors in order to be able to participate socially , economically and become good citizen.
In addition, the Burundi Empowerment project aims to provide the school resources and sponsors community-led initiatives as well as capacity building projects. Likewise, the project is mainly based on three principles namely empowerment, effectiveness and efficiency . The Burundi Empowerment Project team and supporters believe that the education is fundamental to ensuring that people have the basic skills and ability to fully contribute to sustainable economic growth and leadership for their countries. The project sponsors trust that every child can reach their potential provided that they empowered with the resources they require.
The project vision : Our vision is to ensure that unaccompanied children, widows with minors and orphan children are empowered and equipped with skills , knowledge and education they require in order to help them complete elementary school. The project seeks to strengthen led-community projects and build a village of hope through the capacity-building programs. This will be achieved through our unique approach ,which is to engage directly with the local community members.
The project principles include empowerment, effectiveness and efficiency.
Empowerment: We believe that providing the school resources , is essential because it helps vulnerable kids to achieve their potential. We also believe when vulnerable kids are well supported ,they can eventually take control of their future. Thus, the project objective is to strengthen the children’s ability and resilience to complete the primary school.
Effectiveness: We strive to make our project both innovative professional ,and we take into consideration the accountability, transparency including the best practice and positive outcomes through the evaluation and research.
Efficiency: Burundi Empowerment aim to make difference with minimum cost by providing the resources to orphans, unaccompanied children and widows with minors in order to be able to participate socially , economically and become good citizens. The project is mainly focusing on education . We believe every child can reach their potential provided they empowered with the resources they require.
Evaluation: One of our principles is to evaluate the effectiveness of the services we fund. The evaluation is crucial for many reasons. First, we want to ensure that the support reach to real people by applying the concept of “what works” into practice. Importantly, we follow up each project we sponsor and require a progressive report regularly just to prevent any misuse of the fund. In some occasion , we directly contact kids thrigh the school management to ensure the donation reaches the vulnerable kids.
Burundi empowerment project Theory of change
The Burundi Empowerment Project aims to work with alongside all stakeholders in order help the orphans and vulnerable kids in Musave to reach their potential. The project will continue fundraising, exploring the resources required and take useful steps towards achieving the main goal, which is ‘empowering kids’. The theory of change believes that once when kids completed their studies, come back in the community and become professional in various domains and become future professionals who will give back the community and help children in the same situation.
Similarly, when the community members are supported, they’ ll take some steps, work alongside school and contribute to build extra classes that may be required. In long term, children who gain qualification or literacy skills will be able to generate income and create opportunity from their hometown. Even though children might not work in the same village, they will be able to generate income and create opportunity from their hometown. Importantly, school resources will prevent children from antisocial behavior and crime.
Burundi Empowerment project team believes that:
- If children complete their studies, they will come back in the community, become professional in various domains and give back to the community. In addition, they help children in the same situation.
- In long term, children who gain qualification or literacy skills will be able to generate income and create opportunities in their hometown.
- School resources will prevent children from antisocial behaviour and crime.
Why we support kids in Burundi?
Based on our research in January 2014, the Burundi Empowerment project identified the following facts:
- There were 65 around children for each class, making difficult for teachers to follow all vulnerable kids
- Teachers do not have enough school materials include but not limited: pens, crayons, markers, notebook paper, tape, index cards and poster board. Thus, it was practicable impossible for teachers to know when unaccompanied children are absent at school.
- Given that many children live in extreme poverty, it is important to distribute copybooks .
- The main challenge that face the vulnerable kids is the inability to afford the basic needs due to the extreme poverty.
- The community needs the re-reconstruction of Kigera primary school .i.e children study in the destroyed classes.
- . Some unaccompanied children are raised by their extended families who are unable to provide them the basic needs because of extreme poverty.
- Around 100 children don’t complete uniforms. In some situation, some had shirts without shirts.
- The figure provided by school management was 200 kids registered in one out three schools
- School students travel a long distance from home to school. i.e 5km or 10 km/ day.
- There is a great need of supporting unaccompanied children in Burundi villages because some of them dropped school and became street children. Likewise,many families struggle to enrol their kids to school due to the financial difficulties.
PROJECT MAIN OBJECTIVES
The Burundi Empowerment Project was initiated in 2013 with the objectives to empower disadvantaged children in Burundi to get basic education. The Project believes that ‘education is the fundamental to ensuring that people have basic skills and ability to fully contribute to the sustainable economic growth and leadership for their countries’. While it is not easy to achieve these values, Burundi Empowerment Project recognizes that the ongoing sponsorships is making a huge difference in life of vulnerable kids in Burundi villages. The project provides the school resources up to 600 children in January 2014
The United Nations conventions rights for the children state that children have rights to education and protection including the basic universal state-paid education, health care and criminal laws appropriate for the age. Child’s civil rights, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of the child’s race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability, color, ethnicity, or other characteristics.
Furthermore, the Education is fundamental to ensuring that children have basic skills and ability to fully contribute to the sustainable economic growth and leadership for their countries” (Mandela, 2008). The Burundi Empowerment Project team and sponsors believe that helping kids with the resources in order to complete the education is their rights and best interest.
Our objectives/ mission and Vision: Our vision is to ensure that unaccompanied children, widows with minors and orphan children are empowered and equipped with skills , knowledge and education they require in order to help them achieve their full potential.
Our priority: Our main focus is vulnerable people especially unaccompanied children, Orphans and widows with minors in Burundi. We hope to provide local community projects support and capacity building programs.Again this will depend on financial support available , we may extend this projects to other kids too.
How do we support: While many international organizations work along with national agencies , we strictly prefer to engage directly with local communities. In fact, once the donation is received , we invite the local services in order to lodge the expression of interest from local community schools.
The application process and donation delivery: The applications(service providers) are assessed according to the merit of our priority in objectives above. Once , the application is approved we inform the nominated service provider in writing . Note: In some situation we may rely on other stakeholders to deliver the donations/ or support. Furthermore, we may require the receiver to complete our terms and conditions of the donations in two months maximum. Remember , our project is still new and funded by people with reputation who want to see the real difference in people’s lives. Thus, we are so strict in transparency and accountability . In order to achieve good outcomes, we often require on -going and progressive report just for effectiveness as set in our terms and conditions and policies of the project.
Our model /Strategy and Approach (OSP) :Burundi empowerment focuses on holistic model. We believe that vulnerable children can only reach their potential if other stakeholders who play a significant role in their lives are included in service delivery. We also believe that in order to help them successfully, we need to understand the cause and underlines issues . In order to make social change and achieve the best outcomes, we incorporate the three triangle of Pyne (2006 into practice. i.e Reflective Therapeutic Individual reformist and socialist-collectivist analysis .
Reflective Therapeutic: we believe that vulnerable children circumstance are different and they need individual assessment. However, we often conduct further assessment with local community just to see the support available. If required we provide fund for some short term programs particularly leadership, mentoring and others .
Individualism reformist in Burundi context: children caseworkers try to find solution along with other services providers . Since all vulnerable children come from in collective cultures, often we require extend families, community leaders’ involvement in our services. In addition, we engage with other stakeholders especially organisation that provide social and educational services directly.
Socialist-collectivist analysis: Teachers examine the impact of policies , cultural norms and other social forces that prevent children to achieve their potential. Our strategy is very comprehensive ,effective and helps work with these children and families in hardship. We welcome any contribution that aims to help these vulnerable children in Burundi. If you are interested on our project contact Jean-Paul by e-mail jpbizoza@yahoo.co.nz , or simply complete the form below .
You can also make your donation to: Bank: ANZ Bank New Zealand Ltd Account name: Burundi Empowerment Branch Name: ANZ Bank, Account no: No: 06- 0177- 0237644- 02 .