Botswana: Sewing Incubation-Good samaritan Organisation

Sewing Incubation Income Generating Project for Out of School Young WomenIn 2010 through GSA for Helping Hands organization, Ms Teemane established a sewing incubation for out of school young girls. The project was aimed at reducing poverty among young women aged 18- 24 years, in the areas of Selibe-Phikwe, Mmadinare, Tobane and Damochojenaa, by creating   job opportunities for them. Each year 10 young women with no sewing skills are enrolled into the project for 6 months after which, they are placed on attachment to gain work experience. In addition to the sewing training the organization also hosts workshops to equip trainees with business and life skills. In 2018 through the support of Botswana National Youth Council, 5 young women who graduated from the sewing project were placed on attachment at a comforter making firm.Sexual Reproductive Health Rights project - adolescents girls and boys are reached with ASRHR messages which includes also covers children's rights.We have ASRHR health clubs and we educate communities using chiefs as our advocacy target. All 100% of funding was used for gender as it is a gender-related project in nature.Budget and BeneficiariesThe organization expended £4275.30 in executing the project and was able to reach 17 women and 2 men as direct beneficiaries and 35 women and 30 men as indirect beneficiaries.Challenges and Lessons learnedThe project was met with resistance from some of the intended beneficiaries, who could not appreciate the value of the project because they considered sewing to be a basic skill with little value.Our sewing project was challenged in 2016 when the copper mine that was holding the economy of Selebi-Phikwe was liquidated. The prices for products including sewing materials and tools went high. Mitigation - We used our administrative costs and funds from fundraising to mitigate problem of increased prices.Another challenge is that in Botswana the donor funding is fading away as Botswana is an upper-middle income country. Mitigation - We developed a resource mobilisation strategy and we sought for funding from different partners. For example we requested funding from BNYC to fund our young people for attachment in a comforter making firm.The vision of the GSA is to have Empowered Communities contributing to Improved Livelihoods in Botswana by 2036. The mission of GSA is to promote health and develop skills of people socially, economically, physically and spiritually through life skills provision and community capacity building.Strategic Objective: Increased community awareness on women and decision making at all levels by reaching 16,000 community members in the participating villages by March 2022 as measured by head count register Core Function: Sustainable Livelihoods - the organization empowers communities and especially women and youth to build sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families.[embed]https://www.facebook.com/1429482710613094/videos/2258023737860328/ [/embed]