Skills Development, which is located in Nairobi, Kenya and Georgia, USA is currently working on two initiatives. For the first initiative, Skills Development works with school girls from high-risk neighbourhoods, encouraging them to play soccer. Playing a sport not only allows the girls to become disciplined, but also motivates them to achieve greater things. The really novel aspect of this program is that the girls are also taught how to make soccer balls to generate an income, giving them more possibilities for the future. This initiative has generated a lot of interest from schools that are interested in purchasing the balls. The money generated from the balls will be reinvested into the business as well as put into an account for their education. SDSR is currently looking for sponsors for the ball making project.
For the second initiative, Skills Development is working with Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, and the Ministry of Health to develop a program to help women living with HIV-AIDS. The Ministry of Health will supply the women with medicine and Kenyatta University will provide skills training allowing these women to develop marketable skills. The women will form a network of women living with HIV-AIDS, where the network will fundraise to get the capital needed for the women to start small businesses. The end goal of the network is to become a village bank and that’s why Skills Development thinks it’s very important to be a part of TIAW.
What’s next for Skills Development? According to Catherine, “We’ll continue to live our mission of helping women and children living in third world countries break the cycle of poverty.”
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