ANNUAL REPORT
January 2017 – January 2018
DSD, Department of Solidarity and Development
INTRODUCTION
The DSD was formed in January 2017 and comprises of three members, sisters Agnes Mwakazi (Uganda/Kenya/Congo), Rosa Viscay (Colombia/Panama/Peru) and Veronica Blake (USA). We work with support from a lay advisor Sarah Smith-Pearse, who also serves as the point of coordination for every day administrative matters. The department forms part of the General Bursary and sister Vielka Rivera, the general bursar, oversees our work.
The aim of the DSD is to re-establish the work of what was known as the “Development Office” and to “encourage and develop projects with SMR sisters and other related organisations that benefit and empower poor and marginalised communities”. This is our mission.
Our vision is “to contribute to a world of justice and compassion where human dignity and the safeguarding of creation are manifest as an expression of the tenderness of God’s love”.
WHAT WE HAVE DONE DURING THE YEAR
This first year has been a time for establishing the department and defining the basic structure of how we work. We have produced a website and a leaflet that give information about how to apply for funding and what type of projects are eligible. We have developed formats and guidelines for project proposals and reports. Looking ahead, we hope that all the provinces and regions will contribute photographs and stories about their projects, so that we can make the website a place where everyone can participate and contribute their sharing and learning.
PROJECTS SUPPORTED
During the course of 2017/2018, the department has supported projects, directly and indirectly, in Uganda, Kenya, Congo, Peru and Ireland. Five projects have been funded so far:
In addition, we have helped our sisters in Peru and Ireland to develop project proposals, which we hope will lead to funding.
We have had the good fortune to receive several offers of funding from external donors. The work in Congo is supported by a parish in Sweden in two separate grants. The three projects in Uganda are funded by a donor in Spain. And we are hopeful that another Spanish donor will support the work in Peru. In this area of donor relationships, the role of the general bursar has been very important and helpful.
As the services of the DSD become better known, we hope that other regions and provinces will also get in touch and use our services for developing ideas for projects, writing proposals and/or fundraising.
We are aware that some sisters may be involved in projects that are not mentioned in this report. We are hoping to produce a chart of all the SMR projects around the world, as this was done some years ago and was very well-received.
WHAT HAS GONE WELL
Our sense is that the sisters involved in the projects are enthusiastic, energised and committed to the good running of the projects and deeply desiring to offer their best in responding to the needs of poor and vulnerable people.
The projects are targeted towards people in great need, including orphans, elderly people, unemployed young people and women.
In the case of Bisanje, there is an interfaith dimension, whereby Muslim families as well as Christians are encouraged to participate and benefit, and we feel that this is important as a way of building a sense of one community.
The projects build on the skills and experience of the sisters who have training in areas such as pharmacy, teaching, administration, which helps to ensure the good implementation of the work.
Some of the positive aspects of the work in La Ensenada, Peru are the participation of many lay volunteers from the surrounding area and the coordination with local bodies, such as the university, which encourages its students to volunteer and lend their technical expertise.
The process of planning the projects in the Uganda/Kenya/Congo region has been a good training experience for some of the sisters. Through a personal visit to Kagoma and Bisanje by two members of the DSD team, the local sisters gained greatly in their confidence to write funding requests and budgets. One sister was then able to help another sister who was preparing a project for Kibera, Kenya, which was a nice added benefit.
The DSD team have also increased their learning by assessing the project proposals together and reading each other’s feedback.
We feel that our decision to start small and see the first projects as pilot experiences was good and worthwhile. It has enabled these first projects to serve as training opportunities and shown how much can be achieved with humble amounts of money. A funding limit of USD 2,000 per project was established for new projects which, after the first year, would have the possibility to increase in size, depending on their successful implementation. In the case of Congo, a positive first report has already resulted in the offer of a further USD 1,000 from the parish in Sweden.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED
As regards the projects, we are finding that internet communication with rural communities can be difficult and, as a result, there have sometimes been delays in receiving and returning funding agreements and reports.
For some sisters, WhatsApp is sometimes much more user-friendly than email and we need to take that into account in our way of communicating.
Sometimes the spoken word is easier and less intimidating than the written word, as shown by the agile way in which we produced the first report for Congo through a phone conversation and some photos sent via WhatsApp.
As the DSD, we could perhaps do more to publicize the services that we would like to offer – using the leaflet and website as a means for that.
LOOKING AHEAD
Looking ahead, we hope to broaden our outreach and provide support to more regions and provinces during the coming year.
The existing projects will be moving into the reporting and evaluation stage and that will provide us all with new learning.
Some of the DSD advisors have suggested a need for more training for themselves and for the sisters who are implementing projects. The question is how best to provide this, and various models are possible, for example, workshops, project visits and online resources.
Through the general bursary, we hope to continue to develop our links with external donors and nurture those relationships in the long term.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we feel happy with the progress of the department over this first year and hope that we have served the congregation well. For all of us, including the DSD team, the sisters working directly in the projects and the general bursary, this has been a learning experience as we establish our ways of working and fine-tune the details. We look forward to the year ahead and the challenges and invitations that it brings.
DSD team, 13 February 2018
January 2017 – January 2018
DSD, Department of Solidarity and Development
INTRODUCTION
The DSD was formed in January 2017 and comprises of three members, sisters Agnes Mwakazi (Uganda/Kenya/Congo), Rosa Viscay (Colombia/Panama/Peru) and Veronica Blake (USA). We work with support from a lay advisor Sarah Smith-Pearse, who also serves as the point of coordination for every day administrative matters. The department forms part of the General Bursary and sister Vielka Rivera, the general bursar, oversees our work.
The aim of the DSD is to re-establish the work of what was known as the “Development Office” and to “encourage and develop projects with SMR sisters and other related organisations that benefit and empower poor and marginalised communities”. This is our mission.
Our vision is “to contribute to a world of justice and compassion where human dignity and the safeguarding of creation are manifest as an expression of the tenderness of God’s love”.
WHAT WE HAVE DONE DURING THE YEAR
This first year has been a time for establishing the department and defining the basic structure of how we work. We have produced a website and a leaflet that give information about how to apply for funding and what type of projects are eligible. We have developed formats and guidelines for project proposals and reports. Looking ahead, we hope that all the provinces and regions will contribute photographs and stories about their projects, so that we can make the website a place where everyone can participate and contribute their sharing and learning.
PROJECTS SUPPORTED
During the course of 2017/2018, the department has supported projects, directly and indirectly, in Uganda, Kenya, Congo, Peru and Ireland. Five projects have been funded so far:
- Uganda 001: Kagoma – a health and nutrition project for elderly women
- Uganda 002: Bisanje – a health, housing and nutrition project for elderly people
- Uganda 003: Bisanje - education and vocational training for older orphans affected by HIV
- Kenya 001: Kibera – equipment and materials for a vocational training centre
- Congo 001: Beni – education and counselling for children and young people
In addition, we have helped our sisters in Peru and Ireland to develop project proposals, which we hope will lead to funding.
We have had the good fortune to receive several offers of funding from external donors. The work in Congo is supported by a parish in Sweden in two separate grants. The three projects in Uganda are funded by a donor in Spain. And we are hopeful that another Spanish donor will support the work in Peru. In this area of donor relationships, the role of the general bursar has been very important and helpful.
As the services of the DSD become better known, we hope that other regions and provinces will also get in touch and use our services for developing ideas for projects, writing proposals and/or fundraising.
We are aware that some sisters may be involved in projects that are not mentioned in this report. We are hoping to produce a chart of all the SMR projects around the world, as this was done some years ago and was very well-received.
WHAT HAS GONE WELL
Our sense is that the sisters involved in the projects are enthusiastic, energised and committed to the good running of the projects and deeply desiring to offer their best in responding to the needs of poor and vulnerable people.
The projects are targeted towards people in great need, including orphans, elderly people, unemployed young people and women.
In the case of Bisanje, there is an interfaith dimension, whereby Muslim families as well as Christians are encouraged to participate and benefit, and we feel that this is important as a way of building a sense of one community.
The projects build on the skills and experience of the sisters who have training in areas such as pharmacy, teaching, administration, which helps to ensure the good implementation of the work.
Some of the positive aspects of the work in La Ensenada, Peru are the participation of many lay volunteers from the surrounding area and the coordination with local bodies, such as the university, which encourages its students to volunteer and lend their technical expertise.
The process of planning the projects in the Uganda/Kenya/Congo region has been a good training experience for some of the sisters. Through a personal visit to Kagoma and Bisanje by two members of the DSD team, the local sisters gained greatly in their confidence to write funding requests and budgets. One sister was then able to help another sister who was preparing a project for Kibera, Kenya, which was a nice added benefit.
The DSD team have also increased their learning by assessing the project proposals together and reading each other’s feedback.
We feel that our decision to start small and see the first projects as pilot experiences was good and worthwhile. It has enabled these first projects to serve as training opportunities and shown how much can be achieved with humble amounts of money. A funding limit of USD 2,000 per project was established for new projects which, after the first year, would have the possibility to increase in size, depending on their successful implementation. In the case of Congo, a positive first report has already resulted in the offer of a further USD 1,000 from the parish in Sweden.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED
As regards the projects, we are finding that internet communication with rural communities can be difficult and, as a result, there have sometimes been delays in receiving and returning funding agreements and reports.
For some sisters, WhatsApp is sometimes much more user-friendly than email and we need to take that into account in our way of communicating.
Sometimes the spoken word is easier and less intimidating than the written word, as shown by the agile way in which we produced the first report for Congo through a phone conversation and some photos sent via WhatsApp.
As the DSD, we could perhaps do more to publicize the services that we would like to offer – using the leaflet and website as a means for that.
LOOKING AHEAD
Looking ahead, we hope to broaden our outreach and provide support to more regions and provinces during the coming year.
The existing projects will be moving into the reporting and evaluation stage and that will provide us all with new learning.
Some of the DSD advisors have suggested a need for more training for themselves and for the sisters who are implementing projects. The question is how best to provide this, and various models are possible, for example, workshops, project visits and online resources.
Through the general bursary, we hope to continue to develop our links with external donors and nurture those relationships in the long term.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we feel happy with the progress of the department over this first year and hope that we have served the congregation well. For all of us, including the DSD team, the sisters working directly in the projects and the general bursary, this has been a learning experience as we establish our ways of working and fine-tune the details. We look forward to the year ahead and the challenges and invitations that it brings.
DSD team, 13 February 2018