Kandy communities
Shining Life Children’s Trust worked from 2010 to 2013 with a partner organisation, the Women’s Development Centre (WDC) in Kandy on a project to empower three communities in the Kandy District. The WDC is a respected organisation which has worked on many projects. These communities are:
CASE STUDY
A key element of the capacity building element of our on-going work in the Denmark village project is the provision of income generation training aimed to have a direct impact on welfare, standards of living and income in the targeted families and communities. To this end, we aim to improve the diversity of women’s income through a combination of skills development training and access to a microcredit lending scheme. By October 2012, 10 women in Denmark village had accessed the microcredit programme and were using the loans to launch a variety of income generation schemes for the benefit of their families and the wider community.
Two months ago, Sujatha (pictured) also accessed a small loan from the “Empowering Communities in Kandy District” project in Denmark village. This allowed her to purchase the cooking materials shown in the photo. Sujatha now provides breakfast and lunch packs to 25 employees at a local factory and is now also running a profitable business. Sujatha is the mother of a 3-month-old baby and receives support from her husband to ensure the success of the enterprise.
- families living on Pupuressa Levollon Tea Estate
- Ulupane School and adjoining Denmark village
- Kadugannawa Tamil School and a section of Nawula Village
Why are we working in these communities?
The initial research that Shining Life and WDC carried out indicated that there were the following problems in all three areas:
- a lack of primary healthcare and poor nutrition
- poor educations facilities including a lack of teachers
- some children work and education beyound the age of 15 is not seen as important
- weak family structure with lack of formal documentation and lack of self-confidence
- alcoholism and financial mismanagement in parents.
What are the main objectives of the project?
The main objectives are to improve access to education, improve awareness of health issues, sanitation and nutrition, improve the welfare of children, build up women's societies as a platform for helping the women to help themselves, and improve the environment of the families in these communities.
Who are the main beneficiaries of the project?
The main beneficiaries are the families living in the three communities listed above.
Click on the links to find out more about the project.
Click here to go to the Women’s Development Centre website.
