PRIORITY #3 – Creating employment opportunities (especially for women)
Our third priority area relates to employment – reliability, predictability, and regularity of employment along with decent rates of pay are all factors influencing one’s economic participation and areas where we focus effort and resources. Economic participation and independence for women is a key priority for One Family At A Time. We know that the evidence shows clearly that if a woman is healthy and well and able to earn a decent wage, then the whole family and broader community will benefit.
Another program we deliver is in conjunction with Days For Girls Yarra Valley Chapter). Feminine hygiene kits are distributed to women of reproductive age to support opportunities to attend work. This is also accompanied by sexual and reproductive health education from qualified volunteers and local experts.
For more information on Days For Girls click here.
OFAAT Director, Jenny Jackson is the lead for this Priority Area and can be contacted on jenny@onefamilyatatime.org.au to discuss any ideas or offers of support.
Social Enterprises:
About 4 years ago we started a sewing school and employed an experienced Cambodian sewing teacher. This group is now proudly known as SEW FARE – Social Enterprise.
The group started sewing by hand to start with and learnt maths along the way. This was a great reminder for us of the value of education – you cannot sew to a pattern of cut fabric to a pattern if you don’t have basic maths skills.
Nowadays, the women of SEW FARE – social enterprise sew a beautiful range of items which are sold in our online shop and at various outlets in Cambodia, such as Babel Eco Shop and Peace Café – both in Siem Reap.
We welcome support from volunteers who contribute to teaching additional sewing techniques and patterns each year. If you are keen to help, please don’t hesitate to let us know!
Another of our successful social enterprises is Branching Out. This social venture sees passionate gardeners grow trees which we buy from them at fair prices. Not only does this program support income for the growers and their families, it contributes to the environment and climate also. Additionally, the Moringa trees grown by Branching Out growers are abundant in nutritional value and used widely in SE Asia. We highly recommend you try Moringa Tea – Delicious and nutritious! Over the years we have planted several hundred trees because of this innovative program!