Recent Projects Funded

Peace Corps Partnership Projects (PCPPs):

www.peacecorps.gov/donate/projects

• Community Garden – $500

  • This project has created a functional garden in which the youth can learn how to care for and grow healthy food, and which will help provide food during youth programs such as Kids Club and other developing programs. In addition to having a reliable food source, participants will also gain an education in nutrition and basic gardening skills. 

• Strengthening Youth Skills – $500

  • The Ngihlomise Youth Skills Academy implemented a successful vocational training and infrastructure improvement project to equip youth with practical, income-generating skills and foster entrepreneurship in the Big Bend community.

 

• School Library & Safe Space – $500

  • This project focuses on the creation of a school library that also functions as a safe space for students at a rural high school in central eSwatini.  To date, the volunteer and her community have been working on the library and its security.

.

2024

She Power – Women’s Empowerment Conference – $500

She Power Eswatini works with local government authorities, rotary clubs, schools and churches to provide skill-building workshops.  She Power focuses its efforts on youth girls ages 15 to 24. The Conference reaches out to girls in the Northwest Manzini region.

Pasture Valley Farm and Children’s Home – Support for 40+ orphans – $500

These funds will be used to support the students in the new school year, January 2025. This includes the purchase of shoes, stationery, books, and uniforms for 40 Primary children and 10 high schoolers currently attending Nzongomane Secondary School. Pasture Valley is located near Nhlangano.

Fisher Talent Group – Providing opportunities for impoverished athletes – $400

These funds will be used to pay for the video photography program Veo Camera.  Fisher Talent Group builds player profiles through video and written reports and utilizes a database to promote their findings to a list of global football contacts.

Young Heroes Foundation – Shelter, schooling, medical support for AIDs orphans – $500 ($250 + match)

Young Heroes strives to make sure that the orphans and vulnerable children of Eswatini are healthy, safe, schooled, and in stable households.  Their programs range from monthly life-support grants and comprehensive healthcare to educational support, social protection and vocational training.  Young Heroes helps orphans and vulnerable children grow successfully into self-sufficient, healthy adulthood.  The monies donated this year have been dedicated to assist additional orphans become safely established in stable and supportive homesteads.

Peace Corps Partnership Projects:

• Youth-led goat raising project – $500

  • This grant aims to organize community youth, both in and out of school, to acquire skills in dairy goat husbandry and money management through hands-on experience raising dairy goats and producing marketable milk products. Participating youth will learn to use goat milk as a nutritional resource, manage their finances effectively, and reduce risky behaviors. The community has been actively involved. The project will collaborate with the Eswatini Dairy Board, which will support development and provide ongoing training after the grant period.

.    .    .    .   

• Youth-led business (chicken broiler project) – $500

  • The volunteer and counterpart will train a group of out-of-school youth in how to create and implement a business plan for the production of broiler chickens. This business is to generate income to help fight against poverty. Mantambe Youth Business Group, Shiselweni region.

• School library development project – $500

  • The reconstruction of an old library at Mlindazwe High School’s main goal to provide greater access to books and a comfortable place to study for the students so they are encouraged to spend more time researching, studying, and enjoying learning. Mlindazwe High School is in the Manzini Region near Bhunya.

2023

Young Heroes – Orphan & Health Care Support Organization – $6000

• Funds raised from Jack Conrad’s ‘Trek for Eswatini’ bike ride @ RAGBRAI 2023

  • In the face of the world’s highest rate of HIV/AIDS, Young Heroes ensures that the orphans and vulnerable children of Eswatini are healthy, safe, schooled, and in stable households.  Their programs range from monthly life-support grants and comprehensive healthcare to educational support, social protection and vocational training.  Young Heroes helps orphans and vulnerable children grow successfully into self-sufficient, healthy adulthood.  The monies raised by the “Trek for Eswatini” initiative have been dedicated to help additional orphans become safely established in stable and supportive homesteads.

Possible Dreams International – RPCV-led Girls Scholarship Fund – $500

Possible Dreams Int’l is a non-profit organization that partners with rural and remote communities in the Kingdom of Eswatini  to empower families and individuals living with extreme poverty, malnutrition and endemic disease.  In the case of this initiative, the funds went to support an RPCV organized scholarship fund for young women.

Fisher Talent Group – RPCV-led effort to identify gifted, but poor athletes – $400

Fisher Talent Group is a promotional database for marginalized African youth football players. It scouts rural Africa and discover talent in the community. Once discovered, it builds player profiles through video and written reports and utilizes a database to promote its findings to a list of global football contacts.  The funds above were used to employ a video photographer to help build up FTG’s soccer player database.

The Luke Commission – Healthcare Support Organization – $500

The Luke Commission runs mobile clinics in rural parts of Eswatini and has the healthcare faculty, Miracle  Campus, in Matsapha that includes an oxygen production plant.

Sandra Lee Centre – Orphanage for abandoned children due to HIV/AIDs – $500

The Sandra Lee Centre in Mbabane is an orphanage for abandoned children, many of whom are victims of HIV/AIDS. The Centre currently provides a loving and stable family environment for 28 children.

The children are all in need of sponsorship for their food, clothing and school fees, and many also require funding for medical treatment as a result of malnutrition, abuse and HIV infection.

Peace Corps Partnership Projects:

 

• College and work readiness workshop – $500

  •  The five-day workshop experience included implementing a “College Meet & Greet” Fair at Mabondvweni High School which included seven different local colleges and universities and an educational organization (i.e., Education USA); inviting a local organization (i.e., Likusasa Letfu) to train the students on CV/resume writing and job interview skills; college application practice, and a scholarship search information session.

• Income-generating cooperative – $500

  • This group of youth is a Cooperative, acting as an umbrella of different business sectors. There is goat meat production, broiler group (raising chickens for meat production), a tuck shop (grab-and-go food), and a community game-room. The Cooperative is located near Mkhaya/Siphofaneni.
    

………………                    …………..

2022

Vusumnotfo – Farmer Training Center – Maximizing rain water harvesting – $1,627

A new type of “rolled” gutter was developed and attached to the 10 buildings in the Vusumnotfo Community Training Center in order to collect clean water for the Preschool children, employees and trainees at the center. Two three-day workshops for local welders to learn how to construct and attach the rolled gutters were held.  Previously the center got its drinking water from the local river. Vusumnotfo now has quality guttering that supports the collection and storage of 60,000 litres of rainwater.

Vusumnotfo is located within the Lutheran Farmer Training Center in Piggs Peak and its goal is to build human capacity in 17 Swazi communities by strengthening skills at family and community level, in practices that support the development and learning of young children.

Bantwana Project (World Education Initiative) – Covid-19 Emergency Fund  – $1,500

This fund provides for emergency response services to children that would enable them to access health services (HIV, COVID-19), education, protection including legal, social support services, and food assistance not exceeding SZL 3,000/beneficiary. Support may include emergency transport fees, medical fees, consultation fees, legal fees, food hampers, and examination/tuition fees.

Possible Dreams International – Girl Education Fund (RPCV Anna Grady) – $2,700

These monies were used to support Possible Dream’s scholarship fund for girls education in Eswatini, an initiative led by former Eswatini Peace Corps Volunteers.

Young Heroes Foundation – Orphan and Healthcare Support – $1,500

Ten families have been identified and are being supported for 6 months with cash grants (July 2022-December 2022).  These are families that were made extremely vulnerable during COVID and civil unrest (job loss, forced to drop out of school, transactional sex work to pay school fees or buy food, breadwinner died or abandoned).  The majority of these beneficiaries are child-headed households.  These small grants are monitored by Young Heroes Life Support Grant Officers. Under YH’s guidance the funds must be used for: food, clothing, candle oil, and other necessities such as education and health care for the child.

Pasture Valley – Orphan Support – $1,500

These funds were used to support the schooling needs of students including shoes, stationery, books, and the many other costs associated with running a full time proper school at the orphanage. Pasture Valley is located near Nhlangano.

Swazi SHEROES – Young Women Skill Training  – $1,500

These funds continue FOE’s support for Swazi SHEROES’ programs through the Imbeleko Foundation in Manzini which is dedicated to providing sewing and craft skills to young women ages 16-19.  The products (bags and baby clothes) are being sold in Manzini.  Entrepreneurial training is being held to aid and inspire the young women to launch their own business.

2021

Young Heroes – Life Support Grants – $1000

FOE provided $1,000 to the Young Heroes to help support 67 children with Life Support Grants for 4-months between April-July.  These orphaned and vulnerable children are typically supported through funds generated from the in-person MTNBushfire concert that happens every May, however the MTNBushfire concert was not able to happen in 2020 due to COVID.   

The Luke Commission – Oxygen Production Plant – $1000

FOE provided $1,000 to The Luke Commission for the building of an Oxygen production plant.  This plant, the very first oxygen production plant in Eswatini, will supply critically-needed oxygen for COVID-19 patients. TLC’s plant will continue to provide its life-giving resource, supplying medical oxygen to HIV-patients, TB patients, snake bite patients and other critical care patients. Beyond serving TLC patients, the plant is equipped to fill oxygen tanks to supply nearby hospitals and clinics.

Swazi SHEROES Sewing and Design Production Workshop – $950

FOE provided $950 to Swazi SHEROES (working with Imbeleko Foundation in Manzini ), to train young women in sewing and handicraft skills in order to produce retail value products, as part of a skills and economic empowerment initiative. Swazi SHEROES is using sewing and handicrafts not only to teach practical, employable skills but also as an entry point to impart broader professional and entrepreneurial development. Funds were used to purchase sewing tools, notions, and hardware for the workshop. The sewing machines will be property of Swazi SHEROES to be available for this and future workshops.

2020

Young Heroes – Neighborhood Care Points (Litsemba Project) $1,000

FOE provided $1,000 to the Young Heroes Litsemba Project (Litsemba means “hope” in SiSwati) to assist vulnerable youth as the country fights against the devastating effects of the Covid virus. Young Hero empowers Swaziland’s most vulnerable youth through  life-support grants, healthcare, HIV education, prevention and care programs, educational support, and gender and economic empowerment programs. Their core program links sponsors with orphan families through monthly life-support grants sent directly via mobile money or their nearest local post office.

Luke Commission – Support for Covid Response – $1,000

FOE provided the Luke Commission $1,000 for assistance to rural communities as the country fights against devastating effects of the Covid-19 virus. The Luke Commission sets up mobile hospital sites in the remote parts of this small country, serving the unemployed, elderly, the children, and the ill.  Over 61,570 medical patients have been treated. The Luke Commission’s headquarters, Miracle Campus and farm is now in Sidvokodvo, south of Manzini. That farm grows crops and supplies food to their staff members, HIV patients, campus patients, and other non-profit organizations in Swaziland.  They are hoping to add a Staff Development Center and a Specialized Care and Surgery Center.

Bantwana Project – Mahaleni 2 Neighborhood Care Point Site  – $1,162

The Bantwana Initiative for Vulnerable Children (Bantwana) provides child protection, early education/ development, nutrition, and health services to vulnerable children ages 0-5. The Friends of Eswatini provided funds to help support the construction of a 10m x 8m structure for Mahaleni 2 Neighborhood Care Point.

Cabrini Ministries HIV/TB Crisis Response – $300

Cabrini Ministries Swaziland is a Catholic faith-based and community-based organization working in the Lubombo lowveld of Swaziland.  FOE assistance helped with HIV and TB services Cabrini provided to people in their target zone of Eswatini.

Possible Dreams International RPCV Girls Education Fund – $3,475

Friends of Eswatini continued to assist a group of Eswatini RPCVs (who served in the mid-1980s) who have generously funded scholarships for Swazi girls since 2019.  FOE handles the financial transfers to Possible Dreams International, which is an Australian non-profit operating in Eswatini.

2019

Peace Corps Partnership Program/Book Corner Library Project  – $250

FOE provided $250 to Book Corner, a project led by PCV Brianna Dickinson.  In short, this project provided English reading materials for a primary school. The Project included hiring a local carpenter make bookcases. The books will be provided by a Rotary Club donation. Then teachers and students expand the corner by painting and decorating. As a follow up, teachers, mainly women will be trained regarding how to use the books as visual aids in English classes and methods of improving English skills using the books such as reading, reading comprehension.

Peace Corps Partnership Program/Camp BRO – $200

FOE provided $250 via the Peace Corps Partnership Program to help fund the BRO (Boys Reaching Out) Youth Summit camp, organized by PCVs serving in Eswatini. The purpose of these camps are to help promising Swazi boys become men who can lead their country in a positive direction.By the end of the summit the boys will have improved their understanding of gender issues, relationships, fatherhood, and career and life success. This knowledge will continue to be disseminated in their communities and school through peer education.

Possible Dreams International RPCV Girls Education Fund – $2933

Friends of Eswatini assisted a group of Eswatini RPCVs (who served in the mid-1980s) who have generously established a scholarship fund for Swazi girls.  FOE handles the financial transfers to Possible Dreams International, which is an Australian non-profit operating in Eswatini.

2018

Pasture Valley Children’s Home Project – $1000

Friends of Eswatini sponsored a Swazi student, Thakona, through the Pasture Valley Children’s Home.  Our donation provided her with food, accommodation and training in entrepreneurship. This photo shows her receiving her certificate.  Pasture Valley Children’s Home has 45 children housed and cared for on a dairy farm. Thakona was enrolled in the The Ambassadors for Hope program associated with Pasture Valley.

FUNDZA Library Support – $345

FoE provided funds to FUNDZA, a literacy organization in Eswatini.  Fundza is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) whose mission is to raise the literacy rate and promote life-long learning among Swazi children. They partner with African Library Project to provide reading materials to school libraries in Swaziland. In addition to providing books, Fundza trains teachers in library management and in methods to improve literacy.  They provide and promote HIV/AIDS materials, run annual school debate competitions and train other NGOs on how to manage their Information Resource Centers. During their 30 year history, they have helped develop nearly 400 school libraries throughout Eswatini.

Young Heroes: Orphan Support and Healthcare – $1680

Through the Young Heroes program, FOS provided funds to support three orphans resulting from the AIDS/HIV epidemic in Swaziland and provided healthcare for three children with HIV/AIDS.  The Young Heroes Foundation, founded in 2006, aims to provide financial support for the provision of basic necessities for orphans in Swaziland in addition to providing HIV testing and care programs. Swaziland is home to the highest incidence of HIV/AIDS globally, illustrated by a staggering number of 70,000 orphans and 15,000 households led by children as reported by Aid for Africa.

Art Reach – Artists Workshops for Social Development – via PC Partnership – $200

FoE contributed toward these Artist Workshops that focus on the development of youth and other marginalized groups (e.g., women and girls, special needs individuals) through projects that address issues such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic, female empowerment, youth development, education, and gender-based violence.

2017

Books for Swaziland – via PC Partnership – $638

FoE provided additional funds for the Books for Swaziland project designed to establish new libraries or enhance existing school library facilities in rural Swaziland communities.

Camp GLOW (Girls Leading our World) – Let Girls Learn – via PC Partnership – $500

FOS continued our support of this PCV-led annual camp for empowering young Swazi women.

Goat Production/Income Generation  – via PC Partnership – $500

We provided funds for PCV Blake Smith’s Women’s Goat Enterprise Project through the Peace Corps Partnership Program. PCV Blake reported to us that, “All of the women have received their goats and are extremely thankful for your contribution. I have yet to see a group of women so happy in my community during my two years here. They are all breeding their goats and have started to supplement their income through the new livestock business. Personally, I know my host mother has been able to start paying tuition to send my sisi to the local preschool which they are both ecstatic about.  The money was well spent and is positively affecting women and OVCs in my community.”

Art Reach – Artists Workshops for Social Development – via PC Partnership – $200

FoE contributed toward these Artist Workshops that focus on the development of youth and other marginalized groups (e.g., women and girls, special needs individuals) through projects that address issues such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic, female empowerment, youth development, education, and gender-based violence.