The vision of the project is to empower women to live the lives they love, igniting their passion to make a positive contribution in the world. The project will empower women to make choices that improves their own lives and their children’s health and chances to survival and their welfare including marrying later and having fewer children. The empowerment of women is one of the solutions to the problems of inequality, subordination and marginalization that women face in the society. It is necessary that women have to realize their own nature and understand the value of their own existence. The depletion of the forest and tree crop, due to demands for fuel wood and timber activities has increased run off and soil erosion especially on derived watersheds leading to loss of soil nutrients, situation of waterways and damaged to fisheries. The Project when fully implement will try to embark on activities that will conserve the environment.
Solwezi district is among the areas most devastated by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the province had recorded an increase in HIV from 6.9 to 7.2 percent (ZDHs of 2013-2014 survey).it says the high disease burden in Zambia is compounded by high levels of poverty and high levels of HIV prevalence. Urbanisation and migration of people from other parts of the country into the province has greatly contributed to the increase in the spread of HIV. Dr Choonga said Solwezi district remained the highest in the province at 10.2 %. This is due to various factors such as the district being the capital of the province and the home of various large investments such as mines. High unemployment and alcohol abuse are also recorded. Solwezi District is highly infiltrated by all sorts of beliefs and unfortunate these very beliefs are used to oppress and disadvantage the young children ,immorality, disobedience of human rights, high defilement and rape crimes etc while the social conditions that contributes to Gender –Based Violence GBV in our country are complex and rooted in our divided past, the greater empowerment of women will go a long way to strengthening the fight against dependency on husbands ,fathers ,partners and family members has increased women’s vulnerability to domestic violence ,rape, abuse and murder.
The reality is that many of these women are more likely to stay in the abusive relationship because they fear being left destitute and homeless. Moreover, the culture of violence against women in our society is often manifested at a young age as it is reflected mostly in our rural communities.
The situation for many women is also often worsened by poor access to education, as well as reproductive health risk, society’s restrictive gender norms, discrimination in employment and lack of support systems
Vision Statement
To empower women to live the lives they love, igniting their passion to make a positive contribution in the world.
Mission Statement
- To lead, inspire and mentor women to embrace their power, purpose and value and to take responsibility for their relationships.
- We lead with wisdom, knowledge, and good judgment, making sound choices and decisions based on truth and honesty.
Statement of Purpose
Unlike any other provinces of Zambia, North-western province is one of the rich provinces in terms of natural resources, such as minerals, running rivers, land and other resources and trade opportunities. It has 4 trade boarder points that could be utilized for business venture. The province produces a variety of nitrous foods such as beans, soya beans, cassava, groundnuts, yam and also pure honey. The province experiences the long rain season though it is once a year. This makes the rivers and streams to have water throughout the year. Despite of all the riches in the province, the indigenous people seem not benefits as indicated by extreme poverty in the region. Most women, youth and elders are involved in unproductive activities such as beer drinking, prostitution, marrying out their children at an early age in order to have income.
Not only that, school dropout is high because parents have no better source of income to continue taking their children to school. High case of GBV due to high unemployment resulting into women entirely depend on their husbands to put the food on the table, in turn men take advantage of the situation and begin to abuse their women. Solwezi district in particular was known for providing accommodation business where every youth and women used to get employed, but now that the business has gone down. The mines have also stopped employing under qualified youths hence the province having increased youth unemployment.
In order to help reduce the high poverty, cases of GBV, alcohol abuse, prostitution, unemployment levels, child marriages and other illicit behaviours, XXXXXXXX feels putting up a project that will see women and youth engage in agriculture, on key commodities that will include, soft grains, horticultural crops, cash crop products such as tomatoes, mushroom grow, onions, poultry and aquaculture as well as improving on the production of locally available crops not only concentrating on agriculture art and designing is one of our project. We so that some of youths have got knowledge but just lack support. Taking advantage of rivers that do not dry up, simple irrigation can boost high production of crops year-round without waiting for rain season. This activity can easily create a continue income generation for the families and also manage to take their children to school. XXXXXXXX feels can create a greater shared opportunity, prosperity, and responsibility to the community.
Justification of the Project
When women have economic empowerment, it is way for others to see them as equal members of society. Food crop production and livestock also offers ways to provide empowerment for women .This allows women to function in business society which in turn empowers them to do more in their communities .The project will empower women to make choices that improves their own lives and their children’s health and chances to survival and their welfare including marrying later and having fewer children .Critically ,this program also increases women ‘s awareness of their human rights and their confidence to assert those rights.
The empowerment of women is one of the solutions to the problems of inequality, subordination and marginalisation that women face in the society. It is necessary that women have to realise their own nature and understand the value of their own existence. When they realise their own nature, they will have confidence and will participate in decision making independently.
Women are key managers of natural resources and powerful agents of change. Women are often more directly dependent on natural resources, with responsibility for the unpaid work of food security, water, fuel and shelter for their household.
Not just victims, women have been and can be central actors in path way to sustainability and green transformation. Founded in 2017, XXXXXXXX is a humanitarian organisation whose aim is to help women escape poverty (fight poverty) XXXXXXXX places special focus on working alongside poor women because, equipped with the proper resource’s women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty, women are here of community-based effort to improve education, health and economic opportunity. XXXXXXXX project will be involved in loaning out goats, hybrid chickens (free -range chickens) to the identified vulnerable families. These chickens will then be given to other families as loans once the hatched chicks are having matured. Goats will also be loaned out alongside hybrid chickens, she goats once given birth to the he kids (doe) then she goats will be given to others community members to benefit after giving doe.
XXXXXXXX believes this kind of project could see a lot of vulnerable farmers and women and youths benefit more as there are no job creation for them, some have lost hope in cultivating or harvesting maize as a source of income looking at flow price of maize which is not matching with cost inputs needed to grow maize. Chickens and goats at current prices especially free range if community members are trained on how to keep free range birds, we believe this project can help and create more business for the community to have consistent income generating venture than maize. XXXXXXXX believes that in as much as the nation is striving to reduce poverty level through formal employment, inform sector should also be given an opportunity to be oriented in self-reliant type of investment, such as promotion of poultry farming of free-range chickens which is less costly, goat keeping and other agribusiness such as cash crop products; tomatoes, mushroom grow, onions which can easily be sold and its market is usually readily available.
XXXXXXXX is looking forward to take this opportunity to help improve and change lives for poor people in the community for better through engaging the community in agriculture activities such as keeping of free-range chickens and goats, cash crop products and other kinds of entrepreneurships programs. This will be first kind of the project in striving hard to attain the Seventh (7) National Development Plans 2030
Beneficiaries/ Product
Beneficiaries of the project shall be identified through conducting a community survey; this shall be carried out by the trained persons through the use of questionnaires. the results shall then be used to plan. The beneficiaries who will be identified, the project shall provide mentorship to ensure that the would-be beneficiaries understand the projects importance to their lives and the community as whole.
Project activities shall be organized and implemented in a chronological manner and at different levels of the beneficiary status so as to ensure impact creation. At the community level, activities shall include creating awareness, communication and educating targeted women between the ages 20-50 years. Mostly these are involved in organisation of all things necessary at house as head of the house or a wife to take care of children and other dependants. At this level, most age group are the most vulnerable in the community and are easily abused above all drug abuse, prostitution, early marriage and other elicit behaviours, usually these ages are responsible for providing food, shelter and other necessities that can make their lives.
Monitoring and Evaluation
Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) of project’s operations and impact will be essential to determine whether the project is meeting its objectives effectively and efficiently. Results obtained from M&E will be used to mobilize continued financial support and political support for the project. Monitoring and Evaluation will create an opportunity for learning and the lesions learnt will be fed back into the programme on an ongoing basis. Monitoring and Evaluation will be based on the logical framework which sets out all the indicators for assessing progress. We will embark on collecting baseline information from the proposed project area, in collaboration with the District Agricultural Office Staff and partners within Zambian District for purposes of setting benchmarks. On the whole, the approach taken shall fall under the following lines:
Monitoring
Data collection for monitoring purposes will be an ongoing process based on data collection tools which will be developed before the start of the project. Currently all departments at Selected Foundation are required to produce monthly reports using given formats as a monitoring process. Project staff will be at the fore front of all monitoring process and they will ensure that together with our partners they capture all the required data and prepare monthly reports. Quarterly project monitoring visits shall be organized and conducted by the senior project staff to assess the progress and these will be done in partnership and collaboration with local authorities and community agricultural volunteers. The progress of our intervention will be monitored and data collection shall be simplified to retain only minimal indicators such at the implementation and result level.
Reviews
Based on the information in the monthly monitoring reports participatory quarterly reviews will be conducted involving all staff that are directly involved in project implementation. These reviews will assess the achievements and strong points as well as challenges experienced and learn lessons from them. The lessons learnt will be fed into the plans for the subsequent quarter. Annual review meetings shall also be conducted involving all our partners, district officials, community agricultural workers and volunteers, and local leaders within the project area.
Evaluation
Evaluation will help us to address ongoing activities (for instance, how well the program’s implementation and results are functioning and whether women that are targeted are experiencing changing. At the end of each year there will be a one-day participatory review of the project involving all partners and representatives of beneficiaries from all sub-counties. This review will be based on a project status report with input from partners and community agricultural volunteers. This will be an evaluative review of the project and lessons learnt from the process will be used to review the plans for the subsequent year. This Action, Learning and Planning process ensures that the people who are involved with the programme on a day-to-day basis are involved in its review and evaluation. Guidelines for the participatory performance assessment will be prepared by selected Foundation. An external evaluation facilitated by an external consultant will be conducted at the end of the period to assess project effect or impact and to learn lessons.
Organizational Information
Founded in 2017, XXXXXXXX is a humanitarian organisation whose aim is to help women escape poverty (fight poverty) XXXXXXXXplaces special focus on working alongside poor women because, equipped with the proper resource’s women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty, women are heard of community-based effort to improve education, health and economic opportunity.
The XXXXXXXX Project has carried out similar project in the past in one or more of the operational communities there was a seed bank project which involved over Two thousand Five hundred (2,500) tomatoes plant and five hundred plants of cabbage but was scotched by sun due to lack of water pump and other vegetables fields. The capacity of the institution will be developed to high level to able to handle management of the project. XXXXXXXX will carry out the projects in the following chiefdoms chief Musele chiefdom , Mumena chiefdom,kalilele chiefdom ,kapiji Mpanga chiefdom ,Mujima Nzovu chiefdom and Mukumbi , the project will operate as indigenous project meaning supported by local people , each chief will spearhead the project in his chiefdom so as to enable subject understand the importance of the said project to them XXXXXXXX will provide support ,supervision ,monitoring and Evaluation of the progress of the projects and consistently orientation of the subjects so as to ensure successful implementation of all activities . XXXXXXXX will have trained officers who will be undertaking field visits to bring reports on the progression of the projects and identify from time to time where there is need to improve. XXXXXXXX will conduct an assessment in the above-mentioned chiefdoms in order to identify the families who are in need of support and be pressed as first priority to receive the mentorship. For the Foundation to improve its performance in the projects to be set in the mentioned areas, it will have to train extension officers who be collecting data from the field. The information collected will help the foundation to analyse where the projects meeting its objectives. These field officers their responsibilities will be to work closely with the beneficiaries and other officers in the areas of the project’s implementation. In addition, the foundation will train the unskilled members from the community those with knowledge of sewing in tailoring and design, thereafter loan them some tailoring machines while the skilled persons will be trained in entrepreneurship projects.
Past Activities
Since the formation of the project in 2017, the executives have engaged in concretizing and sensitizing the entire membership on their roles and active participation on rural development. This sensitization campaign culminated in the registration of the Five (6)
In addition to the above, the project will embark on food crops such as rice, cassava, sweet potato, vegetables and keeping of free-range chickens.
Planned Activities
Depending on the availability of funds, the project intends to embark on the cultivation of 450 acres of major food crop and the raising of livestock (goats).
In addition, incoming generation scheme (Agro-processing) will be introduced so that the cassava produce by project members could be processed into high quality mealie meal.
Activity Schedule
Project Support Duration
The project is soliciting assistance for a period of three (3) years. Thereafter it will be in position to finance its operation from the revolving fund that will be established.
Project Beneficiaries
The direct project beneficiaries would be the project members and their household members from the project village. A total of 2,120 women farmers and their families would benefit directly as follows:
Project Methodology
The methodology to be adopted by the project is the participatory approach. The XXXXXXXXProject will operate in the villages. These villages will have three groups/ Associations. The project will operate a communal farm at the project headquarters at the same time distribute available inputs and livestock to the project beneficiaries. These inputs will be recovered and recycle to other beneficiaries until all project members are being serviced.
Fulfillment of the Priority Needs of Beneficiaries
The project will try to address lack of the most appropriate agricultural input to restart normal production activities. These inputs include farm equipment, seeds, planting materials, and livestock. Other priority areas to be addressed are:
- Lack of the capacity to provide agricultural support services
- The neglect of the women in development activities.
Beneficiaries Participation and Contribution
The project beneficiaries will participate in the identification and planning of the project. Since it deals with their economic well-being. During the implementation of the project, beneficiaries would contribute the:
- Unskilled labour
- Local materials (sticks, stones, sand etc.)
- Land for the cultivation and construction of animal sheds.
Implementation Strategy
The under mentioned strategies will be carried out to achieve the set objectives:
- Community mobilization and sensitization for the further understanding of the project.
- Training of XXXXXXXXProject executive and animators on the planning, implementation, monitoring and management of especially agricultural project and livestock.
- Registration of targeted beneficiaries (Women in farming families within the operational communities).
- Purchase and distribution of viable seeds. An identified donor and the trained executive of XXXXXXXX will ensure that certified seeds approved by the seed board are bought.
- Provision of food for work to assist the farm families in the hunger period and protect the seeds from been eaten. A would agency will have a memorandum of understanding with XXXXXXXXProject to supply food to every certified farmer who is involved in farming.
- Purchase and distribution of livestock (pigs, sheep, Goat and free-range chickens).
- Supervision, monitoring, reporting and evaluation of project activities.
Project Sustainability
It is expected that with the provision of funds, the project will be able to achieve its objectives. The maintenance of the project will enhance by two (2) types of account that will be established. In addition to these, the resurrect expenditure would be met from the revolving fund, after termination of donor fund this will enhance the project continuation after donor funding is terminated.
Impact on Environment
The depletion of the forest and tree crop, due to demands for fuel wood and timber activities has increased run off and soil erosion especially on derived watersheds leading to loss of soil nutrients, situation of waterways and damaged to fisheries.
The Project when fully implement will try to embark on activities that will conserve the environment.
Role of Women
Women produce 60% of the food crop requirements and handle the processing of food crops such as rice, cassava and groundnut. In addition, women are responsible for food preparation, childcare, and house management, which influence their time and energy for agricultural activities.
Institutional involvement of women in the project area development is very minimal. There is the need to integrate them into mainstream development, which requires an expansion of the scope for knowledge and skills. There are many areas where women development programmed with varying objectives can be implemented such as this project.
Project Replicability
- This project when fully implemented will serve as a model/ pilot project, which will be replicated in other areas of the Chiefdom and the province.
- Program coordinator will spend 100% of their time providing direct service to the participants training and sensitizing the woman on the goat keeping, poultry and entrepreneurial skills sensitization. This individual’s annual salary is and will be covered for the 12 months of the contract.
- The program coordinator will travel around the community visit/sites attend meetings and trainings conferences, meet with partners and visit families.
- Rent $100 a month $100×12 months = $1200 monthly rent and utilize cost is necessary for the site location to provide the services and activities.
- Women must struggle hard to feed themselves and their children because lack of sustainable sources of income for the household, women depend on an unprofitable micro enterprise to feed their families.
- Once the sewing machines will be purchased. The women will gain skill and will be equipped to do the tailoring at zero fees cost. This will target the girl child school dropout at primary and secondary level
- Once computer package including printer, scanner and programs will be purchased. The computer will be based in the women centre and will be used for the training /women ‘s learning centre and one computer will be used to develop and maintain client database in addition performing administrative work connected to this program.
Attachments
Attached here-with is the projected income statement for the project showing the expense summary, salary and benefits and other emoluments
Donor Visibility and Acknowledgement
Project acknowledgement. In order to accord proper acknowledgement to donors for providing funding, a donor logo would appear on all relevant donor project publication including and among others, project hardware and vehicles purchased with donor funds. Any citation on publications regarding projects by donors would also accord proper acknowledgement to donors.
Donors visibility in the project will be accorded by displaying of logo, flags and by also allowing them to conduct independent project assessment. quarterly report will be sent to them as a way of showing how the money which is being invested is used. minutes for the meeting held to discuss the projects review will be issued out to each donor supporting the project.
