Caregivers especially grandmothers and mothers of the children are empowered with vocational skills aimed at enhancing sustainable livelihoods of inmates’ families. They are trained in business skills and financial literacy.
ROD NOT FISH PROJECT
If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. But if you give him a fishing rod, you feed him for a lifetime .
Rod not Fish is Wells of Hope’s sustainability initiatives, which are vital for continuing development.
Families of inmates go through appalling situations when their loved one is taken away from them. For the 81 families under our care, 89% of them did not have an Income Generating Activity (IGA) before joining the organisation. They could hardly provide their families with food, clothing, among other basic needs.
During one of their workshops in 2016, the caregivers in consultation with their committee and Wells of Hope, they requested to be equipped with vocational and business skills which they will use back at home in their communities so that they can be able to support themselves and their families back at home. So they decided to call the skilling project Family And Community Engagement.
Family And Community Engagement Initiatives;
- Financial Literacy; Caregivers are trained to understand how to make sound financial choices so that they can confidently manage and grow their money.
- Business Skills; Mothers and grandmothers of children with parents in prison are encouraged to be job creators.
- Saving and Investment; The families are encouraged and trained to be active in the Village Saving and Loans Associations (VSLA) in their communities.
- Vocational Skills; Caregivers, mothers and grandmothers are equipped with skills that can enable them sustain their families like sewing/tailoring.
PROJECT GOALS:
- To provide training for caregivers of children especially mothers and grandmothers to become self-sustaining and successful future business leaders
- To become a model that will provide training to the community thus creating transformation.
PROJECT ACHIEVEMENTS:
- Over 67% of the caregivers have an Income Generating Activity (IGA) and are involved in Village Saving and Loans Associations (VSLAs) in their communities