Grantee Profiles
Ekupholeni, South Africa
Ekupholeni is a non-profit organization in Katorus, South
Africa that provides mental health services to their
community. Their programs focus on psychosocial impact
of violence, trauma, abuse and the HIV/ AIDS pandemic. Ekupholeni utilizes mental health development programs addressing youth at risk, gender violence and HIV/AIDS
and bereavement to provide holistic mental health care to
the community. A
cross cutting income generation project supports sustainable livelihoods of
clients in the various programs on a needs basis.
Recently, Ekupholeni launched a Kick-Start Program for the teenagers and young adults that have
been emotionally and psychologically stabilized through the
psychological intervention groups to move into a bridging
program that affords them the opportunity for skills
training, apprenticeship, further studies or micro-business depending on their
abilities. Kick-Start is a "transitional" program
that
assists participants to become re-integrated into
their communities with not only psychological but also material and
economic resources. Such further intervention is necessary to
break the long-term cycles of poverty and deprivation and the associated
helplessness by empowering/transforming our youth to become as self-sufficient
and productive as is possible.
Grants:
- September, 2008 - $5,000 for establishment of the
Kick-Start Program. GPA is very
interested in the holistic approach to youth development Ekupholeni takes in
the community where they are working.
Few organizations use mental health and transition programs to serve
youth and mentor them through a critical time in their lives.
Grassroot Soccer, South Africa
Grassroot Soccer (GRS) is
a South African based, not for profit organization. Its mission is to use the
power of soccer in the fight against AIDS by providing African youth with the
knowledge, skills, and support to remain HIV free. Founded
by former professional soccer players in 2002, GRS trains African soccer stars,
soccer coaches, teachers, and young peer educators in the worlds most
HIV-affected countries to deliver an interactive HIV prevention curriculum to
youth. GRS focus its efforts in delivering an innovative education
program to and by youth. The curriculum focuses on
building basic life skills that help young people – men and women - to adopt
healthy behaviors and live risk-free. Through a series of interactive games,
activities, and discussions students gain a tangible understanding of core
messages related to HIV/AIDS and get a chance to practice the skills necessary
for sustainable behavior change.
Key topics in the GRS
curriculum include healthy decision-making, avoiding risks, building support
networks, reducing stigma and discrimination, increasing knowledge about
testing and treatment, addressing gender issues, and assessing values. After
having completed the curriculum the students graduate with a ceremony. GRS
graduates are also given tools such as Extra
Time Magazine, which is a unique communications tool that includes messages
and interviews with many of the World’s top soccer stars. It also reviews the
topics covered in the GRS curriculum and provides a tool for the graduates to
serve as peer educators by sharing their knowledge with the community
at large.
Grants:
- July 2008 - $5,000 for Grassroot Soccer program in Port Elizabeth,
South Africa. GPA was interested in
becoming a funder of GRS so we might benefit from the excellent learning
approach of this well-designed and evaluated program. Our African advisors also
thought the program might be usefully extended to other countries where we make
grants.
Kenya Tourism Concern, Kenya
Kenya Tourism Concern is a registered NGO in Kenya whose objective is to promote the positive aspects of tourism be they social, economic,
cultural, political or
environmental, and minimize
negative impacts on the local
people.
Kenya Tourism Concern engages in advocacy efforts on
behalf of voiceless and highly
exploited indigenous people located in high tourism areas of
Kenya. Kenya Tourism Concerns
activities focus primarily on youth who are affected by the tourism industry in
a variety of ways including sex tourism.
Kenya Tourism Concern assists homeless youth by offering them education
and raising awareness about
HIV/AIDS. Through
their targeted intervention
efforts, they sponsor our youth
vocational training as an alternative to prostitution and
other harmful employment. Kenya Tourism Concern also advocates for conservation efforts
and protection of the environment and wildlife.
Grants:
- July 2008 - $5,000 health education and vocational
training for young women to give them alternatives to prostitution, increased
self reliance, income generating activities.
GPA funded Kenya Tourism Concern because of their innovative approach to
addressing community issues associated with the tourism industry. Also a factor was their focus on providing
education and training to young women who have few other alternatives. GPA hopes to learn more about the benefits
and drawbacks of the tourism industry in Kenya and share innovative solutions
with other grantees.
UZIMA Foundation, Kenya
A Foundation is a catalytic youth-serving organization focused on youth 
empowerment that stimulates young men and women to define, plan for and act to experience improved quality of life. Their mission is to create social space and promote an enabling environment for Youth Empowerment that facilitates access to decision-making opportunities for young women and men, for holistic improvement of the quality of their lives and their communities. UZIMA operates over 100 UZIMA youth groups with 20,000 members. These groups are located in three of the eight provinces of Kenya, namely Nairobi, Nyanza and Western Provinces. The work of UZIMA is supported locally by members of their Board, Trustees and Friends of UZIMA; they have also received funds from the Ford Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, UNFPA, USAID, World Bank, IFC through their Grassroots Business Initiative, and GPA.
Uzima is the Kiswahili word for wholeness of Life, life in its fullness, the abundant life. This is the life that UZIMA wants to see among the youths of Africa. This explains UZIMA's holistic approach to youth development. Programs include but not limited to Reproductive Health, Economic Empowerment, Peace, Justice and Leadership as well as Environmental Care
Grants:
- July 2007 - $5,880 for preparing land for youth agriculture project.
- January/February 2008 - $10,000 for non-violent conflict resolution work with UZIMA youth and assisting UZIMA Youth to volunteer in internally displaced persons camps.
- Report from the Malesi Kinaro, Executive Director of UZIMA: Jared is an AVP facilitator in Kisii and coordinator of the Uzima Foundation: "Jared is walking in the air. He just finished chairing a meeting that brought together District Commissioners, Members of Parliament, and elders from Kispsigis and Kisii. He says it went so well he doesn't think fighting will continue. We have been working to see this day when we make the first step. AGLI, through FPCD (Friends for Peace and Community Development), AGLI's partner in western Kenyan, gave 108,000/- ($1550) for this and Uzima gave 40,000/- ($575). The journey is still long and much money needed."
- Report from Miriam Were, Co-Founder of UZIMA and GPA Advisory Council Member: It brought tears to my eyes when on rertun Malesi and Fred shared some of the brave acts our UZIMA Youth carried out. In one case, they were threatened of being hurt themselves because they were talking to both sides. But they managed to get the two fighting sides together to "talk together" and so for people to know that when they move from one group to the other, it is not passing gossip but finding bridges. AND IT WORKED!
- View highlights from UZIMA's report on their response to the crisis in Kenya on their website or click here to view the report in pdf.