USAID Ejo Heza: A Brighter Future for Rural Rwandans (video)
USAID Ejo Heza: A Brighter Future for Rural Rwandans A healthy, prosperous, and bright future. That is what most people want for themselves, families, friends and community. The USAID Ejo Heza program aimed to achieve just that by helping Rwandans reach their full potential. In Kinyarwanda, the language of Rwanda, “Ejo Heza” means “A Brighter…
Read MoreA Community Approach to Better Public Health in Rural Liberia
A Community Approach to Better Public Health in Rural Liberia By Russell Sticklor This artilce originally appeared in USAID’s Global Waters. Residents of Lofa County’s Vahun district in Liberia gather to discuss strategy for sustaining recent local sanitation improvements. Photo Credit: Global Communities Liberia is no stranger to difficult times, having weathered a devastating Ebola…
Read MoreGlobal Waters Radio: Sanitation Behavior Change in Liberia
Global Waters Radio: Sanitation Behavior Change in Liberia This interview originally appeared on Global Waters Radio. “When you’re looking at behavior change projects, it is very important to have it locally contextualized.” —Piet deVries, Senior WASH Specialist Piet deVries is Senior WASH Specialist and Liberia Country Director for Global Communities, a Maryland-based NGO with programs in more…
Read MoreMultipurpose Cooperative Entities Challenge Cooperative Sector in Uganda
Multipurpose Cooperative Entities Challenge Cooperative Sector in Uganda By Richard Mujuni, Program Officer, DESIGN team, Uganda This article originally appeared on the Global Cooperative Learning Platform. One of the major impediments to growing cooperative structures in Uganda is born from the multipurpose nature of our umbrella organizations. For example, in Mubende (just west of Kampala), there is…
Read MoreBuilding More Resilient Communities in South Sudan
Building More Resilient Communities in South Sudan The USAID-funded Promoting Resiliency through Ongoing Participatory Engagement and Learning (PROPEL) program, implemented by Global Communities and Catholic Relief Services, is bringing together communities and strengthening their capacity to drive their own development through harnessing their own resources, leveraging other donor-funded programs, and advocating for additional support to…
Read MoreThe Cooperative Movement in Kenya: When a Sector Comes to a T-Junction
The Cooperative Movement in Kenya: When a Sector Comes to a T-Junction By Johnson Kithendu, Co-operatives Specialist & Country Lead, Global Communities, Kenya This article originally appeared on the Global Cooperative Learning Platform. In 2010, Kenya changed its entire constitution after many years of advocacy, activism, and frustrations. The Constitution of 2010 is hailed by many…
Read MoreOur City, Our Say: Including All Voices in Local Governance in Ghana (video)
Our City, Our Say: Including All Voices in Local Governance in Ghana (video) The Our City, Our Say program, funded by Making All Voices Count, worked to increase citizens’ participation in local governance in the metropolitan area of Sekondi-Takoradi. Working with the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA), the program to improved public service delivery by increasing…
Read MoreM&E for “Collaboration, Learning and Adapting” in PACE
M&E for “Collaboration, Learning and Adapting” in PACE By Joanna Springer, Research & Evaluation Technical Specialist, PROPEL; Brett Sedgewick, Technical Advisor for Food Security & Livelihoods; Patrick O’Mahony, Chief of Party, PROPEL Introduction A project’s M&E activities serve a variety of purposes and constituencies, including beneficiaries and stakeholders, project management, the donor and headquarters. How often…
Read MoreIncreasing Revenue for Municipalities: Lessons from Global Communities’ IncluCity Program in Ghana
Increasing Revenue for Municipalities: Lessons from Global Communities’ IncluCity Program in Ghana Building on previous efforts by the Government of Ghana, the World Bank and many other international donors, the Global Communities’ IncluCity program in Ghana, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, helped two municipal governments increase their internally-generated revenue, fiscal autonomy and the ability…
Read MoreNairobi Schools Continue to Grow from Green Apple Day of Service
Nairobi Schools Continue to Grow from Green Apple Day of Service By Ann Wahinya Originially published on the US Green Building Council Website Ann Wahinya is the program coordinator for the Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-Free, Mentored and Safe (DREAMS) program, which is implemented by Global Communities in the informal settlements of Nairobi. Global Communities is an international development organization working with communities around…
Read MoreGlobal Communities Celebrates World Water Day in Liberia
Global Communities Celebrates World Water Day in Liberia Bong County WASH entrepreneurs and PACS staff. By Alex Keimbe, Global Communities Liberia World Water Day offers a global reminder of how critical freshwater is for life, as well as how limited our supplies are. This special day was started 19 years ago as a way to…
Read MoreCelebrating Water Heroes on World Water Day Photo Essay
Celebrating Water Heroes on World Water Day Photo Essay by USAID’s Global Waters The theme of this year’s World Water Day celebration — “Water and Jobs” — speaks to the central but often overlooked role water plays in the workforce and in communities around the world. In recognition of the many ways safe and adequate water supply and improved…
Read MoreGlobal Communities: Partnership with Peace Corps
Global Communities: Partnership with Peace Corps Since 2010, Global Communities and Peace Corps have had a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), working together to help strengthen communities’ capacities across the globe. Collaborating in the placement, training, and support of Peace Corps volunteers in development projects managed by Global Communities, the agreement has helped volunteers receive training…
Read MoreHFC-Boafo and Global Communities Launch New Youth-Focused Financial Products
HFC-Boafo and Global Communities Launch New Youth-Focused Financial Products By Katie Deierlein, Communications & Learning Officer, Global Communities Ghana Accra, Ghana – HFC-Boafo, a microfinance institution in Ghana, recently launched a suite of new financial products with Global Communities as part of the Youth Inclusive Entrepreneurial Development Initiative for Employment (YIEDIE, Twi for “Progress”). The microfinance…
Read MoreA Community-based Approach to Increasing the Peace in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements
A Community-based Approach to Increasing the Peace in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements By Selline Korir, Director of the Kenya Tuna Uwezo Program This article originally appeared in the Horn of Africa Bulletin Violence and conflict have always threatened vulnerable communities, but in a world defined by globalization, urbanization, and other developments fueling the rapid movement of people across…
Read MoreA Day in a Life of a Cooperative
A Day in a Life of a Cooperative Matt Feldman, Visiting International Professional in Rwanda and Uganda, August 2015 Worldwide, the rural poor face similar constraints to generating income. Livelihoods are predominately based on small-scale, low productivity agriculture and farmers often lack the resources and knowledge to improve productivity and access more lucrative markets. The cooperative…
Read MoreDeveloping a Strategy to Engage Private Sector in Rwanda
Developing a Strategy to Engage Private Sector in Rwanda Marcela Valverde, Visiting International Professional in Rwanda, June-July 2015 Working with vulnerable populations in Rwanda, Global Communities gained considerable experience in building public-private partnerships (PPPs) to address the issues confronting the community and government institutions already functioning in that country. Building on these experiences, under the Improved…
Read More“Pride for the Family:” Stories of Successful Reintegration in Rwanda
“Pride for the Family:” Stories of Successful Reintegration in Rwanda Ishema Mu Muryango (‘Pride for the Family’ in Kinyarwanda) was a two-year program funded by USAID’s Displaced Children and Orphans Funds (DCOF). The program goal was to safely and sustainably reintegrate children living in institutions in two districts of Rwanda back into their families or communities, and…
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