Madagascar/ La Francophonie with vulnerable Malagasy women

On February 15, the OIF Representation for the Indian Ocean took part in the official closing of the "Herim'po" project run by the Maisons des Enfants association in Antananarivo, which had received financial support from the "La Francophonie avec Elles" fund.

The "Herim'po" project helped vulnerable mothers and young women in Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar.

Following a survey of 241 women in the underprivileged Antohomadinika district, 98 young mothers and housewives benefited from capacity-building to enable them to find decent, sustainable employment and achieve socio-economic autonomy.

The young women were able to receive vocational training in a sector of their choice, with the Centre de formation professionnelle pour les femmes, an organization under the aegis of Madagascar's Ministry of Technical Education and Vocational Training. At the end of the project, eight young women were placed in internships and 21 others found salaried employment as machinists, seamstresses, hairdressers or in the hotel and catering trade.

An income-generating activities competition was also organized to reward the best entrepreneurial projects proposed by beneficiaries. Six winners were awarded seed capital and equipment to enable them to start up new activities as self-entrepreneurs.

Economic empowerment

Patricia, one of the competition winners, spoke at the ceremony. Married with two children, she expressed her satisfaction at having been able to open her sewing workshop thanks to this support. She now hopes to be able to make a lasting contribution to her family's needs thanks to this activity and this new source of income.

The national head of Maisons des Enfants warmly thanked the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) for its support of the association via the "Herim'po" project as part of the^3rd edition (2022) of the "La Francophonie avec Elles" fund. This initiative was a first experiment for the association, enabling it to support the mothers of the children it cares for towards economic empowerment and professional integration.

Its success also lies in the many strategic partnerships Maisons des Enfants has forged with other French-speaking civil society organizations and local authorities. Three organizations that benefited from the "La Francophonie avec Elles" fund were partners in this project: ECPAT France, a French child protection NGO and member of the ECPAT International network (winner 2020); the NGO ECFORME (Études, Conseils, Formation, Entreprenariat), in the Urban Community of Antananarivo (winner 2021); and KOLOAINA, a Malagasy association founded in 2003 (winner 2022).

Since its inception, the "La Francophonie avec Elles" fund has financed some thirty grassroots initiatives in the Indian Ocean, contributing to the economic empowerment of over 5,000 women in the Comoros, Madagascar and Mauritius.

Source: lecourrier.vn/