Soroptimist International is delighted to announce that an additional £25,700 has been raised by Soroptimists towards Project SIerra! This was SI’s quadrennial project (2007-2011) in Sierra Leone, carried out in partnership with Hope and Homes for Children.
In 2003 Sierra Leone celebrated its first year of peace in over a
decade. During the ten-year civil war 500,000 people were murdered,
raped or left with horrific injuries and over half the population was
made homeless. Lone women or frail grandparents still head many
households and more than 70% of the population are unemployed.
Life expectancy for women is 42 years and nearly a third of all children
die before their fifth birthday.
As a result, a legacy of poverty is destroying thousands of lives, homes,
communities and families every year. By providing healthcare, counselling,
education, vocational training and access to childcare, Project SIerra
is improving the lives of some of the most deprived women and children in Sierra
Leone.
What is Project SIerra doing?
- Improving the health and life
chances of thousands of deprived women and children living in abject poverty - Promoting stability and
self-reliance in post conflict society - Providing education, training,
small business and life skills support to enable families to become
self-sufficient and support their children - Building the capacity of local
childcare professionals and create models of excellence that can be shared with
other countries in Africa - Enabling more children to grow up
in a caring family
By strengthening families at risk of breakdown, helping young
children living on the streets return home and empowering vulnerable
young mothers, Project SIerra has enabled more children to grow up in a
caring family environment – giving them the opportunity to fulfil their
potential. Thank you to those who have continued to support this project, even after the £1,000,000 target was reached!
"Please pass on our thanks to everyone for their continued support. To exceed an already very ambitious target in the current climate is truly extraordinary. Thank you."
– Hope and Homes for Children, 2012
About our partners…
Hope and Homes for Children works in ten countries across Europe and Africa, supporting the world’s most
vulnerable children and families. It
took Soroptimists just four years to raise £1 million for the charity, with the
funds being spent in Sierra Leone on joint venture entitled, ‘Project SIerra: a Family and a
Future’.This additional £25,700 will continue to support the work of Hope and Homes for Children in Sierra Leone, continuing the great work of the past four years.