Beaders Eradicating Poverty

Posted by Sandra Williams Jun 19, 2007

Ugandan women make beautiful beads from recycled paper and all profits go towards community projects that help people escape poverty by generating income.

Kakwanzi Power is the newest group of beaders and they have 40 members. 39 of them are women who were recruited from Infectious Disease Institute and are living with AIDS. One is a man named Nickolas who had his home bulldozed to make room for an apartment building. They used to make less than two dollars a day but now make $145.00 a month. Kakwanzi Power means precious bead power and I think they're an inspiring example of success.

Another example of how BeadforLife assists individuals is the story of Concy and Grace who were orphaned after their mother was killed by a drunken man. BeadforLife sponsored their education in honor of their mother Lilian who was one of the first women who learned how to make paper beads for BeadforLife.

BeadforLife is guided by the following principles: (from BeadforLife mission)

1. Creating jobs through local partnerships is a more sustainable approach to poverty eradication than providing aid. Rather than become dependent on handouts from abroad, the beaders build their skills and long-term capacities through meaningful creative work.

2. Concerned citizens in resource abundant countries care about the issues of extreme poverty and are willing to get involved.

3. Paying our beaders fair trade prices allows them to meet their daily economic needs. Investing 100% of our net profits in community development projects for impoverished Ugandans allows for a long-term sustainable future.

4. Forming partnerships between North Americans and Ugandans beaders enriches all of us.

Ways to help:

• You can support BeadforLife by hosting a BeadParty It's a great way to help extreme poverty, support fair trade and have fun with your family and friends. After you register, about a week before your party date you will be sent price lists, African music, recipes and about 150 different beaded items.
• You can also help by purchasing jewelry from their BeadforLife store. Their beads are made from paper sources such as old magazines and calendars. The jewelry is suprisingly sturdy because they varnish it and use screw clasps to fasten the jewelry. They also sell beautiful jewelry bags and loose beads.
• Donations to BeadforLife are accepted here and go towards eradicating poverty in Uganda. BeadforLife is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (tax ID: 20-1683139)

Read the article on Women, Children and Poverty