The Women of Pasua / Sponsorship

So where do you begin when you’re about to ask all your friends and family for money to support a few unlucky souls in Africa!?!

I started this post several days ago wanting to explain that with just over 10% of the world’s population, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 64% of HIV positive people resulting in 2 million deaths per year. That Sub-Saharan Africa has 90% of children under 15 living with the virus and that 12 million children here are orphans. Then I thought no, I don’t need to explain this to my friends and family as they are all quite aware how HIV and AIDS have ravaged this part of the world.

I then started to write about how fortunate we all should feel to live in the United States or other western countries where we don’t have to worry about unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation, whether or not we can afford to go to primary or secondary school, or having access to proper health care when we get sick. No, I thought, my friends already know just how lucky we are to live where we do.

What I want to focus on are the women of the Pasua ward in Moshi, Tanzania. These are women who suffer from HIV, have several children to support, have most likely lost the breadwinner to AIDS, and have very little hope of making a better life for themselves. These are women who live on less then $2 a day and are classified as extremely poor. Extreme poverty is prevalent in 20% of the developing world and in 45% of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is a reason for the many other problems which plague this part of the world including chronic hunger, child mortality, poor maternal health, and of course the high prevalence of HIV.

As you are all probably well aware by now, my time here in Africa has been focused in the area of micro-credit. I’ve come to see and realize the incredible difference that a small amount of capital can make for those who have the desire to make a better life for themselves but have no means to do so. My NGO http://www.mondochallengefoundation.org has taken a slightly different approach to helping the poor here in Tanzania. Our program through the help of donors provides a one time finanical grant to women living with HIV in order to help them start small businesses. Than volunteers like myself come to Africa to provide the business expertise and training which will help them begin and sustain a successful and thriving business. With access to antiretroviral drugs, the future for these women and their children is much brighter. Our hope is that the grant and business training will give these women the boost they need which will release them from the grip of extreme poverty.

Over the last couple months I’ve been helping 15 lucky women in Rau to start and maintain their own small business. The program has gone extremely well and is something I’m hoping to replicate with another 15 women in Pausa. My goal is to raise $2000 to fund the next round of potential business women in Pasua. I’d like to ask for your support in my goal to raise this money. Your sponsorship will be used to purchase the initial stock each woman will need to start their own small business.

In exchange for your support, I pledge to train and follow up with each woman as they start and run their own small businesses.

I pledge to train the Pasua community volunteers whom I now work with to maintain this project so that when I leave it will continue to function on its own.

To top it off I also pledge to climb Mt. Meru, Tanzania’s second highest mountain at 15,067ft (4566m) on one leg with no shoes blindfolded just to show you how serious I am about all of this. Actually, no chance but I will climb it and I am serious about all of this!

So, will you sponsor me on my climb and in doing so in my pledge to help the women of Pasua in their quest for a better life? Your donation will make an incredible difference in the lives of these women and they in turn will be forever grateful for your support.





To make a donation to this very worthy cause, please visit the following web site to donate with your credit card. http://www.justgiving.com/mondo/donate

Important: Please note three things.

1. The donation amounts on the web site are in English Pounds. 1 Pound = 2 US Dollars. So if you want to donate $40 US dollars, please select the 20 pound option.

2. In the box designated for "comments", please put my name in the box so Mondo Challenge will know which project your donation is for.

3. 100% of all donations received will go to the women of Pasua.

If you would like to make a pledge to the Women of Pasua but do not want to do it by credit card, you can send a check to my dad and he will be happy to deposit it on my behalf:

Ken Nelson
28540 State Hy 3 N.E.
Poulsbo, Wa. 98370

Thank you so much for your support!
David

(Pictures from around Pasua)















(Firewood anyone!?!)


(Pasua main street w/ Kilimanjaro in the background.)







(Pasua community volunteers)