Funding Area: Poverty Alleviation
Give Us Wings was founded by a small group of people from Minnesota in 1999 after they learned of the thousands of families living in extreme poverty and struggling to survive in rural Uganda. These people had few resources, but dreamed of building better lives for themselves. Give Us Wings was born with a mission to help Ugandans improve their access to quality health care, education and economic opportunities. Our programs are community-based and responsive to the needs of our partners. We provide services and training to women’s business cooperatives as they endeavor to build successful businesses and increase their household incomes. Through our Family to Family program, we send children from vulnerable families to high-quality boarding schools where their needs are met in an atmosphere conducive to learning. And we constructed and support the operation of a clinic in the rural village of Kayoro, where no health facility existed previously. The clinic now serves over 20,000 patients each year with an emphasis on pre-natal care and birthing services.
Projects We Support
Equipment Support for Buyemba Farmers Co-op Society
This specific grant request is for funds for a project with the Buyemba Farmers Co-op Society (BFCS) in Uganda, a group we have been working with for the past year. This co-op was started in 2019 by farmers who wanted to increase their income capability by working together to bulk their produce and identify more profitable markets in which to sell it. One of BFCS’ crops is cassava, a large root vegetable. Soon after their formation, members of BFCS received training from the Ugandan government to create cassava flour which can be used for a variety of gluten-free baked goods. GUW has been working with them to identify outlets for selling these products, along with successful ways to invest the profits. We are now seeking funds to purchase cassava flour processing equipment for BFCS. Members currently produce the flour by hand: grating the flesh of the vegetable, pressing it to remove moisture, and then grinding it into flour. It is a laborious and time- consuming process. Further, it is done on the ground meaning it is very difficult to keep the flour clean and pure. GUW is hoping to purchase three machines to do each of the tasks listed above: grating, pressing, and grinding. In addition, we will buy two electric ovens so that the products do not have to be baked over an open fire. All of this equipment will ensure a higher quality product and enable BFCS to produce significantly more goods in less time.
Support Dates: March, 2024 – Ongoing
Note: This information comes from Give Us Wings’ website and a brief description from their grant proposal.
