Self-Help Project - SHP

For a critical multiyear effort, SHP is seeking to raise funds to alleviate poverty among 8 needy families in economically empowering their responsible to self-sufficiently meet their basic needs thanks to a piece of land, located in Mumosho village (15Km South from Bukavu on the national road No 5) for agricultural usage, while enabling their employment seekers to acquire leather craft skills and create jobs for themselves.

Because the income generated from beans and potatoes, we mainly producing for subsistence, are insufficient to support the education of our children, we opted for running a piggery to raise enough resources and realize these.

These businesses are gainful in Bukavu, since many people preferably buy low-cost hand made leather belts, wallets, shoes, bags than the expensive imported ones. There is a permanent shortage of pig-meat and its increasing high demand on the market is partially satisfied by costly imported ones from Rwanda

In the DRCongo, unemployment/joblessness and poverty are sensitive issues. There are enormous difficulties since the country is confronted to violence, catalyzed by militia groups, exacerbated by decades of government mismanagement, unsuitable political system and State controls, frauds and corruption paralyzing social and economic life, that substantially increase misery and poverty among its citizenries.

Thus, the education system has significantly been affected in constraining parents, not only to pay for school fees for their children, but also for the costly motivation (salaries) of their teachers (unpaid by the State). While rich families are successfully facing these conditions, yet poor parents fail to cope and that inevitably leads to the exclusion of their children from schooling.

Just months after his elections, in 2018, President Felix TSHISEKEDI made a pledge for freeing primary school of all the charges, but the government failed implementing it effectively, as it has been rebuffed by schools' entrepreneurs, since State officials misdirected the funds allocated thereto.

As the result, despite the help from international institutions and benevolent developed countries, up until now, as we are submitting this solution, any child whose parents are unable to pay for these costs, has not access to school in the DRCongo. 

The solution consists of:
1 Seek and secure a $ 7,950 grant support, to pay $2,200 for the first year the education of 11 children in primary and secondary schools; invest the balance of $5,750 to produce 40 pigs within 8 months and double (after sale) the start-up funds to $ 12,000
2. To deduct from the raised $ 12,000:
a) $ 2,200 and pay for the second year the education of our 11 children
b) $ 9,100 and reinvest for the production of 80 pigs within the second 8 months to raise $ 24,000 and save $ 700
3 To deduct from the increased $ 24,000:
a) $ 2,200 and pay for the third year the education of our 11 children
b) $ 12,000 to be shared by the 8 members, equivalent to $ 1,500 / family
c) $ 9,100 to be recycled for further round of production of 80 pigs and save $ 700
4 Beside the $ 2,200 to be paid annually for the education of our 11 children SHP will maintain a routine production of 80 pigs ($ 24,000) within every 8 months, as from the 17th moth of the project, and the distribution of $ 1,500/family-member at the end of each production cycle.

The solution beneficiaries are divided into three groups:
1 Its primary beneficiaries are made of the 11 children who are benefiting directly from the support for their education and the satisfaction of their basic needs until they complete their tertiary education.
2 Its Secondary beneficiaries are constituted by the 8 economically empowered parents of the primary beneficiaries whose parental capacities are strengthened to self-sufficiently support the education of their children, meet their basic needs and improve their living conditions in guaranteeing their future.
3 Its tertiary beneficiaries are all the venders who are benefiting through buying their goods (school material, food, uniforms, pig-foods), the schools and teachers who are getting paid for school fees and the required motivation (salaries), as well as the community members using the project's services / production (pigs, meat) on the market to satisfy their specific needs.
The solution serves the above mentioned individuals. It will positively impact their lives in that it will economically empower the 8 needy parents to self sufficiently support the education of their kids, meet their basic needs and improve their living conditions. It will help guaranteeing the future of the 11 children through their education for a better life for all.

The solution enables the 11 children hampered by poverty to access their right to school while supporting / empowering their 8 parents economically to meet their needs and improve their living conditions

The concept stage has been selected above since the solution is grounded on concept paper / proposal explore for it feasibility to positively impact our members' lives grounded on experiences that geared those ideas and their impact in other similar groups in our community.

Factually, we have learned how to bear and breed pigs, worked in farmers to take care of pigs of pigs, but we have never run our own piggery as requested in the selected solution.

It is therefor that we select the stage concept, since we went through a brainstorming and develop ideas that might organize our experience, the piece of land available, our volunteer human and technical resources to seek funds and make available material resources to kick-start a practical production to impact our families' lives.  

The submitted solution is an innovative approach since the majority of other groups working on resolving the problem are traditionally focusing on the political and legal root cusses, while SHP has a unique approach on alleviating poverty and economically empowering the parents of the affected children to cope with the situation by self-sufficiently resolving the problem durably.

For almost two consecutive decades pressure groups have gone through demonstrations and gatherings, legal actions, but all failed to bring about the change to the detriment of children from poor families who failed to access their constitutional right to basic education. It is therefore that SHP innovate the struggle by assisting poor parents to cope and enable their kids to school as the rest of children from rich families.

In addition, beside the contributions from its members, SHP will continue to save an accrued balance of $ 1,100 every 8 months, to assist / finance other poor parents in similar problems/conditions to replicate this model where it might be applicable like in Baraka, Bunyakiri and Kamituga cities. 

Our solution currently serves 8 poor parents, most of whom single women  with kids, and their 11 children.

After one year it will be serving the same group.

in five years it will be serving more than 500 poor families and 2000 children, since from the 17th month of the project, each member will be able to contribute $ 100 every 8 m0nths and the project will be saving $ 1,100 over the same period of time, to make $ 9,100 every 8 months.

This money will help to progressively increase the number of SHP primary beneficiaries, in that it will be able to pay for the primary education of 450 children / year equivalent to $ 200 / child / year   

6 needy parents (women) will run a piggery as volunteers caretakers / full time

2 needy parent (men) will work as volunteers security guards / full time

, while progressively improving their living conditions, until they finalize their tertiary education. it will enable each of them to get a minimum income of $ 1,500/month.

1 vet. Doctor will work for partial time under contractual arrangements.

1 Book-keeper will also work as volunteer / part time

For a critical multiyear effort, all our 8 needy parents (SHP members) have worked together to mainly cultivate beans and potatoes for subsistence.

Because the income we are generating is insufficient to cover the cost of our 11 children's education, we opted for training to acquire skills in breeding and bearing pigs to run a piggery, as well as in leather-needle craft to create jobs for ourselves and generate enough revenue to successfully satisfy our families basic needs and self-sufficiently support the education of our children.  

These 8 members are involved in all activities of SHP, as from brainstorming, drafting of the submitted solution and actively participate in the agricultural activities, marketing, selling of the produced beans and potatoes, and all have been trained in running the piggery and leather-craft, but we have not yet found a devoted foundation to take our program off the ground.

After our training, for more than a year, most of members have been employed by farmers to take care of pigs, while others worked for rich leather-craftsmen, to only get underpaid and exploited.  

All these facts put together are grounding our motivation to ensemble, exchange ideas, draft proposal and seek assistance to launch our own piggery and get rid of poverty for the sake of our children's education, to satisfy their basic needs, guarantee their present life and future.