NGOs with community-based projects receive funding |24 January 2018
Seven non-governmental organisations with community-based projects ranging from environment, arts, agriculture and youths, have received funding for their respective projects from the United Nations Development Programme’s Small Grants Programme. The total sum of the grants is US $275,000.
This was during a signing ceremony at the department of foreign affairs’ conference room yesterday with Mauritius-based United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) resident representative Christine Umotoni, who called on President Danny Faure at State House earlier during the day to present her credentials.
Also present at the ceremony were two UNDP local representatives ‒ programme manager Roland Alcindor and national coordinator of the GEF Small Grants Programme Seychelles, Lindy Bastienne, who coordinated the whole signing ceremony.
Wise Ocean got US $42,402 for its in-school marine educational programme and it was Ben Taylor who signed for them. David Rowat signed for the Marine Conservation Society (MCSS) who got US $49,998 for its community-based coral reef rehabilitation system project. Water Smart Farms is the community project brought forward by Sustainability 4 Seychelles with a total sum of US $45,000. It is about installing solar powered pumps for farmers at the Val d’Andorre farms to stop their dependency on fuel hence reducing their cost of operation. The project is also aimed at helping them collect rain water and to derive water from existing boreholes. As they were pumping the water to their farm using fuel pump, S4S will help them with solar-powered pumps. It was Mrs Marie-Therese Purvis who did the signing.
Georges Camille with his project ‘UP’, signed for the Seychelles Arts Project Foundation (SAPF). His project is aimed at passing across positive messages through art on huge billboards, posters that will be posted in public places. The total sum for his project is US $50,000.
Seychelles Youth Aims Hub (SYAH) has come up with a project called ‘Accountability Advocate for SDG 13’ and it received US $20,600 for that and its chairperson Kalsey Belle signed the documents.
‘Turning the Tide on Marine Debris’ is the project brought forward by The Ocean Project Seychelles and signed by Zara Pardiwalla for US $27,000. Selby Remy from Green Team with a project entitled ‘Protecting against Marine Species Invasion’ received US $40,000.
“The programme which we are doing, nothing will mean anything if the community doesn’t own it. If they don’t do anything it becomes like a white elephant which will be a nice document somewhere, a good policy. Even if it is good for them if they don’t own it, they don’t participate, nothing changes,” said Mrs Utumoni.
She said the small grants programme is one of her dearest ones. Before joining diplomacy, her main work was community-based, something she said she loves a lot. Therefore, she added that it is nice when the programme interferes with actions. Mr Umutoni described the concept notes as very interesting.
“It’s all very creative and innovative. I think for an island like this one it is not enough that the vision of this country’s economy is going blue or ensuring sustainability and climate change, or using your water or your resources wisely, it won’t make sense if it remains only in the president’s thinking and dreams. I think it will make sense when the youth, the women, community, everybody owns the vision,” she said.
Mrs Utumoni said it takes time for people to understand that climate change is a threat, it is going on.
She added that every action that we do would contribute to make it worse or better.