FOOD DISTRIBUTION
MYANMAR'S FOOD CRISIS
Currently Myanmar is facing a devastating food crisis.
Families are searching desperately for possible income in order to feed their families. They searching for income opportunities to feed their families, and when there are no possible opportunities families turn to violence, assault and robberies, survival sex and child labour….all for a bag of rice.
In addition to this, there is no law enforcement to protect families from robberies, rape cases, trafficking and murder. Leaving most families in the slum areas fearful for their lives.
The loss of food has led to complete social collapse, women turn to street prostitution, men join gangs or become thieves, children turn to thievery or collect plastic bottles for recycling.
This is a desperate situation…
In the communities where each centre is located, hunger and thirst are at the forefront of people’s minds. Every day, our food and clean water programs provide nutritious food and clean water to people in the community. Within our 12 centers, our teams regularly serve around 10,000 families in Yangon slum areas.
Currently Myanmar is facing a devastating food crisis.
Families are searching desperately for possible income in order to feed their families. They searching for income opportunities to feed their families, and when there are no possible opportunities families turn to violence, assault and robberies, survival sex and child labour….all for a bag of rice.
In addition to this, there is no law enforcement to protect families from robberies, rape cases, trafficking and murder. Leaving most families in the slum areas fearful for their lives.
The loss of food has led to complete social collapse, women turn to street prostitution, men join gangs or become thieves, children turn to thievery or collect plastic bottles for recycling.
This is a desperate situation…
In the communities where each centre is located, hunger and thirst are at the forefront of people’s minds. Every day, our food and clean water programs provide nutritious food and clean water to people in the community. Within our 12 centers, our teams regularly serve around 10,000 families in Yangon slum areas.
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SUPPORT GROUPS
Over the last 2 years, we have had to rethink how we can best support the most needy and poverty-stricken areas of Yangon. With the February coup and the Delta variant, there has been widespread desperation and a call for community support. We have witnessed the nation shift into a state of communal desperation and trauma, and have seen a great need for support at both an individual and family level as well as on a community-wide scale. This led us into creating a network of bespoke support groups, which cater to the needs of individuals and like-minded people groups within the areas where we are working. These groups work both independently and in conjunction with each other to form a network that benefits entire communities.
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Support groups are incredibly versatile and valuable for community based humanitarian and prevention work: they can be tailored for prevention work against trafficking and debt, counselling work for domestic issues, microfinancing and advice to start new businesses and individual youth, men and women empowerment groups. They also help to facilitate peace, teamwork and community as each group shares food with each other following the support group sessions and encourages new members once they join.
Through developing a network of like-minded groups this allows us to impact a huge number of people with limited staffing and costs.
New Hope now operates over 260 support groups every week, these are detailed below.
Through developing a network of like-minded groups this allows us to impact a huge number of people with limited staffing and costs.
New Hope now operates over 260 support groups every week, these are detailed below.
DEBT AWARENESS GROUPS AND DEBT REDEMPTION
In the slum areas of Yangon, no one feels safe. This lack of authority has empowered gangster groups to take over. They now operate freely in these impoverished communities, particularly acting as loan sharks to extort money from local families, threatening them with violence and even murder if they do not pay on time
Crippling debt is one of the main issues in all of the communities New Hope serves. It is what traffickers target, by promising to pay off debts in return for female family members, and is the main source of revenue for violent gangs in the area. We are currently running debt awareness groups in the 12 communities we are reaching in addition to a redemption program for families in desperate need. |
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Through this program New Hope supports families in planing their long term recovery from this socio-economic collapse.
This film tells the story of three families who have been apart of this program.
This film tells the story of three families who have been apart of this program.
SEWING SKILL TRAINING
Community centres address the challenge of unemployment by providing skills training. One of the main long term programs New Hope runs is sewing training . This training program is an avenue to encourage entrepreneurship and give participants a competitive edge as they apply for jobs. Helping men and women develop tangible skills that empower them to obtain meaningful work is having a long-term impact on our communities.
Our sewing program not only teaches women how to make clothing, but the course is also an entry point for many women who will join one of our Women’s Transformation Groups after completing the training. Many women who complete the sewing program will go on to start their own small businesses that are often based out of their homes. Last year alone over 300 women graduated the New Hope sewing program. |
EDUCATION PROGRAM
According to The Human Rights Council report, approximately 46% of households in Myanmar are in poverty. Children continue to bear the brunt of the many crises Myanmar is facing. The UN estimates there are 1.2 million displaced individuals and refugees in Myanmar, nearly half of whom are children. In addition, the UN confirms that 7.8 million children are out of school, and a significant percentage of them are reportedly abducted. It is warned that there will be an increase in child abductions and the trafficking of children as all political and judicial structures collapse. Therefore, we are now increasing our children’s program and are currently working on warning parents, caregivers, and children, as well as preparing for this coming danger. |
Our trained staff lead education and awareness program for children in each center area in addition to support groups to address the trauma of the last 3 years with political and social instability causing catastrophic damage to their community, family and individual well-being and safety.
TRANSFORMATION GROUPS
The women and girls of Myanmar are paying a heavy price for the conflict and economic instability sweeping the country. Women and girls have long experienced widespread discrimination but are now being increasingly exposed to survival sex, trafficking, debt bondage and food insecurity.
In the Transformation Group, women learn about hygiene, receive anti-violence training and learn how to start a small business. They are also given tools to help them start building savings, and they are educated on loan programs. Transformation Groups begin the process for women to become income generators and decision makers. They become empowered women. Their daughters become empowered daughters, and so the cycle continues. To date we have 140 women registered as part of the saving program across 9 different transformation groups. |
COMPUTER PROGRAMS
In today’s age of technology, having basic computer skills unlocks a whole new world of job opportunities. Access to computers is limited in the communities where our centres are located, so we provide a computer training program for young adults. Having a skill set that includes computer proficiency gives these young adults a competitive edge as they apply for jobs.
In the last year 300 students have completed the computer program, with 60% of those students going on to get a computer based job. We now operate the computer program in 6 of the community centres. Training includes learning to use Microsoft office softwares as well as learning to type in both Burmese and English. |