Who are you trying to help? What issue are you trying to address?

Orphanshop (Orphans and Needy Students Hope Programme) is a community-based group registered in Dagoretti Division, Nairobi, Kenya which aims to support orphans and needy students by providing services, including provision of food, access to education, and vocational training and advice on HIV/AIDS prevention.

All through our work we have to face sad realities: HIV/AIDS keeps causing great stress in homes and especially urban areas. The number of orphans has increased which results in children being forced to seek shelter in the city slums and girls being exposed to sexual abuse.

Moreover, Riruta East is within the Capital City while Kawangware and Kibera Slums neighbor on the west (only 20km from the City Centre), making it attractive for even rural migrants orphans and/or families to stay and access the City Centre for begging. We have counted 200 orphaned families who have no food, school uniforms, or necessary life skills necessary.

By offering orphans a basic education, vocational training, good nutrition and health care accompanied with rehabilitation programmes and life skills, we hope to alleviate their burden, as well as their community’s. The youth are the face and future of the nation, so they need attention especially those under 18 years old.

Orphanshop is currently only able to provide food during lunch time at the school compound even though comprehensive support is what is really needed. Hence we are seeking funding to expand our services.

What is your project and how will it help?

The main goal of our project is simple: we want to support the 200 orphaned families with food stuff, school uniform, life skills for girls and boys, business training (salon and barbers shops), and the necessary equipment for their business (e.g. salon and barbershop equipment, tailoring machines).

We believe that investing in education and social infrastructure for children, women and anybody in need is one of the ways to break the cycle of poverty in rural communities and in the country in general.

Therefore, our project aims to provide:
-life skills in hair dressing for 40 girls, 20 girls in tailoring, 50 boys in barbershop trainings, 20 boys in “greening economy” skills (building domes for bio-gas digesters)
-funds to 50 orphans’ caregivers (grandmothers)

The girls will be trained at the Madona Salon, one of the oldest salons in the Riruta to avoid to travel to town and it will be cost effective. We have consulted, as a Committee of Orphanshop, the Madona Management and have agreed in principle to train the girls for six Months in Hair Dressing and Beauty, Nail Painting, Manicure pedicure and Customer relations. The trained Girls will be attached to Salons for 1 Month after training during which time they will be given money for lunch. After the salon attachment girls will be supplied with salon equipment to start businesses of their own.

During the same time, 20 girls will train in tailoring for six Months to be tailors. The project will provide them with a tailoring machine to start clothes repair and other services.

Moreover, our project also contains the training of 50 boys in Hair Cuts (Barbers Shop) for 3 months. They will be supplied with equipment to start businesses, and anothers 20 boys in Domes Construction and Bio-gas Digester Installation Skills to join the “greening economy” in the City. This will provide them with job skills to work with Bio -Gas Digesters Installers around the City and its environs.

But, since the orphans are under the care of grandmother caregivers, our project will also give seed money to 50 grandmother caregivers for the grocery business.

In additional, we will provide School Uniforms to 60 Orphans who are unable to attend School due to lack of Uniforms. This program will provide food for the 60 Orphans for one year covering breakfast and lunch.

But all this will only be possible with your help and support.

How can other people partner with you on your project?

Partners are needed to provide:
-Funds
-Provision of life skills
-External assistance (giving time to achieve the project)
-Volunteering
-Furniture and material to purchase salon equipment
-School uniforms
-Any other kind of material which can help us
-Etc.

They can also promote our work by writing and networking on behalf of the project to raise funds.

Mr.Zablon Ombati is the CEO and will write quarterly reports to sponsors.
All transactions will be done through bank accounts where three authorized persons sign. An auditor will also be appointed.

Please detail the resources that you need.

Training 40 Girls in Hairdressing for Six Months Sh.6000=Sh1,440,000.(US$16,941)
Training 20 Girls in Tailoring for Six Months Sh.4000 =Sh480,000 (US$5,647)

Training 50 Boys in Barber Shop Haircutting for 3 Months Sh.2000=Sh.300,000 (US$3,529)
Training 20 Boys in Dome Building Skills for 2 Months Sh.5000=Sh.200,000(US$2,353)

Provide Seed Money to 50 Caregivers : Sh.10,000=Sh.500,000 (US$5,882)
Purchase Salon Equipment for 20 Salons : Sh.50,000 =Sh.1,000,000 (US$11,765)
Purchase 20 Tailoring Machines : Sh.20,000 =Sh.400,000 (US$4,706)
Purchase School Uniforms for 60 Orphans : Sh.3500 =Sh.210,000 (US$2,471)
Provision of Food (Break & Lunch for 60) : Sh.150*365 days=Sh.3,285,000 (US$38,647)

Total Project Cost Sh.7,815,000 (US$91,941)