Africare
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Africare is a non-profit organization specialized in development aid for Africa. Africare was founded in 1970 as a private non profit organization. Since that time, communities in 35 nations Africa-wide have benefited from direct Africare assistance. During the fiscal year of 2004, Africare supported more than 150 programs in 26 African countries.
For 35 years, Africare has been helping Africans improve their quality of life, their personal well-being, and their world. The NGO employes staff largely indigenous to the countries and to the areas where it works. Africare creates an environment where children are educated and nurtured, families have adequate food, shelter, clothing, and health care, natural resources are protected, women are empowered, people are healthy, and communities live peaceably. Yet none of these objectives can be realized without working toward them at all. Recognizing this connectedness, and integrating its development programs accordingly, is Africare's strength.
Africare's programs address needs in the principal areas of food security and agriculture as well as health and HIV/AIDS. Africare also supports water resource development, environmental management, basic education, microenterprise development, governance initiatives and emergency humanitarian aid.
Each year, Africare presents the Bishop John T. Walker Distinguished Humanitarian Service Award (BWD). The award is named for the late John T. Walker, the first African-American Episcopal Bishop of Washington, DC. At BWD 2006, Africare saluted the Honorable former president William J. Clinton for his outstanding contributions to peace, justice, and economic opportunity worldwide.
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[edit] Organization
Over the course of its history, Africare has become a leader among private, charitable U.S. organizations assisting Africa. It is the oldest and largest African-American organization in the field.
President: Julius E. Coles
[edit] Mission and Vision
Mission: Africare works to improve the quality of life in Africa.
Vision: Africare works in partnership with African communities to achieve healthy and productive societies. Africare's approach places communities at the center of development activities. Africare believes that only through strong communities can Africa feed itself, appropriately exploit its natural resources, educate, care and protect its children, promote the economic well being of African people and live in peace.
[edit] Early History
Over the course of its 35 years, Africare has become a leader among private, charitable U.S. organizations assisting Africa. It is the oldest and largest African American organization in the field. And Africa is Africare's specialty. In 1970, when Africare was founded, West Africa was in the midst of one of the most severe droughts in its history. Animals were dying. Crops could not grow. Villagers were fleeing their homes in search of water. Millions of human lives hung in the balance.
Among those providing help--medical aid to the Maina Soroa Hospital in Diffa, Niger were 17 American volunteers, led by William O. Kirker, M.D., and Barbara Jean A. Kirker, who named their group "Africare". (The Kirkers themselves had been working in Africa, to improve African health care, since 1966.) Eventually, they needed more support. Diori Hamani, then president of the Republic of Niger, appealed to the United States on the effort's behalf. He went on to pose a broader question: Why don't black Americans, whose ancestors came from the continent, respond to the needs in Africa?
It was to C. Payne Lucas, among others, that President Diori Hamani addressed his appeal. Lucas was then the director of the Peace Corps Office of Returned Volunteers in Washington. He had served previously in Niger and knew the president from that time. Dialogue ensued. What emerged was a concept for a new breed of assistance organization: progressive like America, culturally respectful like the Peace Corps and, uniquely, multiracial in origin as well as Africa wide in scope.
In 1970, Africare was incorporated in Hawaii, with Kirker as its founder and first president. In 1971, Africare was permanently re-incorporated in Washington, D.C.; Lucas became the executive director (later, that title changed to "president"), and Kirker joined the Board. In addition to Kirker and Lucas, other incorporators were Oumarou G. Youssoufou, a Nigerien diplomat, and Joseph C. Kennedy, Ph.D., then at Peace Corps. The original concept of a "new breed of assistance organization" had become a reality.
A $39,550 budget, a U.S. headquarters in the basement of Lucas's home and one project in Niger hardly signaled an impressive start. But Africare's founders loved Africa. They envisioned what Africare could become. They also had the tremendous drive needed to pursue their dreams for their new organization and what it could do for the continent of Africa.
In the beginning, Africare concentrated on helping to alleviate the effects of severe drought in West Africa. By the mid 1970s, Africare had shifted its emphasis to development programs in the areas of food, water, the environment and health--expanding in the late 1980s to include microenterprise development, governance, basic education and, tragically, HIV/AIDS response. Africare provides emergency humanitarian aid as well.
[edit] Recent History
In mid June 2002, C. Payne Lucas retired after 31 years as president and Africare welcomed as its third president, Julius E. Coles: a 28 year veteran of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the first director of the Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center at Howard University and, most recently, director of the Andrew Young Center for International Affairs at Morehouse College.
At Africare's founding in 1970, President Diori Hamani of Niger noted,
"The task undertaken by Africare is as immense as the continent of Africa itself, which must confront problems unimaginable to people who have not lived in African settings."
By 1997, Africare had expanded to the point where President Nelson Mandela of South Africa stated,
"I regard Africare as one of America`s greatest gifts to Africa. Your work, in every corner of our great continent, has sustained our own commitment to building a strong and free Africa."
[edit] Noteworthy Accomplishments
To date, Africare has delivered more than $540 million in assistance—representing over (2,000 projects need to update) and millions of beneficiaries—to 35 countries Africa wide. Today, Africare’s 150 plus programs reach families and communities in 25 nations in every region of Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Africare has been a pioneer in village based rural development in Africa.
In the area of health, special achievements have been in child survival, river blindness control, malaria prevention, national level pharmaceutical management and HIV/AIDS response at the grassroots. Africare has constructed thousands upon thousands of wells and irrigation systems, bringing safe, reliable water supplies to some of the most isolated, desertified communities in Africa. Food production, food monetization and food security continue to represent major focal points of Africare’s workCas does assistance to small scale entrepreneurs, from edible oil producers throughout Southern Africa to women farmers and women owned co ops Africa wide.
In Zambia, where it has worked since 1978, Africare has touched several hundred communities in every corner of the nation. It has been especially effective in helping rural groups, particularly women and youth, to develop the capacity to generate income and to support community needs. These initiatives have encouraged the cultivation and processing of sunflower seed into edible oil, renewable use of forest resources and marketing of honey and furniture, support for orphans and vulnerable children, mobilization of adolescents to educate peers about HIV/AIDS and development of community schools.
• Africare has worked on the front lines of almost every humanitarian emergency in Africa for 34 years: the Sahelian drought of the 1970s; the Somalia refugee crisis and the Africa wide drought of the 1980s; since the 1990s, crises brought on by warfare in Angola, Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Burundi and elsewhere; and since 2002, the resurgence of widespread famine in Southern Africa and the Horn (revise and update)
Throughout Sierra Leone's ten-year civil war (1991-2001) as much as one-fifth of the population were internally displaced (IDP). Africare's intervention began with addressing the immediate food and medical needs of the IDP population, and subsequently promoting self-reliance and self-sufficiency of that population. Activities have included farmer self-help assistance, child immunization, and health care for pregnant women. The restoration of human dignity and the independence of those who were physically, psychologically, and economically affected by the war was a direct result of Africare's intervention. Africare continues to address the basic needs of the vulnerable population through its USAID-funded CORAD project. Through CORAD, Africare has been able to improve health conditions and re-establish livelihood's through agricultural activities for vulnerable women and children. Africare has used the inclusive model of organizing and empowering village-level groups that include members who represent every segment of the community.
• Africare has provided a working bridge between Africans and African Americans. Before Africare came into being, African Americans donated relatively little to Africa (except through the church) because there was no single agency that truly sought to create a bridge to "the motherland". Africare set out to create that bridge, and it has had noteworthy success. Among Africare's most loyal donors have been African-American churches, community groups, social clubs, sororities and fraternities, and more. Sums donated by African Americans have ranged from annual individual gifts of $10 or $25 to the African-American Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority's total giving, over 15 years, of $1.4 million. Through numerous Africare-sponsored events, African Americans have had the chance to learn about Africa and to get to know African people. From the other side, through its African Diplomatic Outreach Program, Africare has arranged monthly discussions between the African diplomatic corps in Washington, D.C., and top-level American experts in fields of concern to Africa. The meetings have facilitated working relationships between African ambassadors and their U.S. counterparts, in turn advancing Africa's cause.
[edit] Work
[edit] Area
[edit] Region
[edit] Special Event: Bishop Walker Dinner(BWD)
Bishop John T. Walker Distinguished Humanitarian Service Award
BWD is a major fundraising event of Africare every year.
[edit] How to Help Africa
President of Africare, Julius Coles, wrote words "10 ways you can help Africa" as Black History Month was nearing its end.
1) Read The more you know about Africa, the better you can motivate others to help. Read a survey of African history, stretching back the dawn of humankind more than 200,000 years ago. Read a book about black African leaders, from the Kushite pharoahs of ancient Egypt to the giants of 20th-century independence (Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Leopold Senghor of Senegal, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and many more). Follow African current events on Web sites like AllAfrica (allafrica.com), BBC News/Africa (news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa) and CNN/Africa (www.cnn.com/WORLD/africa/archive).
2) Teach, Learn If you're a teacher, plan a lesson or special project about Africa. If you're a parent, look for a fun "African experience" your family can share. If you're a student, do a research paper on Africa or start an Africa Club with your friends. If your school has African students, have a special assembly and ask them to speak.
3) Write Voice your views and perspectives on Africa-related issues. Write a letter to your senator, a member of congress, or state or local government official. Share your concerns with companies engaged in Africa. Author a guest editorial for your community of school newspaper, or a posting to your favorite internet message board.
4) Speak If you've traveled or worked in Africa, give a talk to a group you belong to. If you've never been to Africa, arrange for an African immigrant who lives in your community to speak.
5) Travel If you have the means, visit Africa. Consider a group trip: traveling in groups can can add to the fun as well as reduce the costs (group discounts are often substantial). As much as possible, do business with African vendors for transport, lodging and tours. While in Africa, absorb the beautiful scenery and cultural sites--but also take the time to meet local people, learn about their lives and understand the development challenges that they face. Finally, stay connected, and committed, once you return home. For example, if you visited a drought prone country, involve your friends in raising funds for water wells.
6) See, hear, eat ...enjoy! African culture is accessible in most American cities. You can see an African film (Afrique sur le Seine, The Gods Must Be Crazy) or a film about Africa (Hotel Rwanda, The Lost Boys of the Sudan, Cry Freedom). Attend a performance of African music or dance. Visit an African art museum. Eat at an African restaurant. Enjoy and appreciate the incredible variety of cultures that are “African” and share those experiences with others.
7) Meet Almost every city and many smaller communities in the United States are home to first-generation Africans. Find opportunities to meet your African neighbors, to learn from them and to invite their participation in local organizations. Reach out especially to new arrivals, who might welcome your help finding housing and jobs and generally adjusting to American life.
8) Invest You may be in a position to invest in an African business or to join a group of investors with African interests (there are growing numbers of African investment funds you might want to explore). On the other hand, even the simple act of buying African artwork here in an American store helps to support the artists and their families, in Africa. Depending on where you work, you might also engage your employer in African investment or trade.
9) Donate Make a charitable donation to one of the many reputable organizations assisting Africa. Your gift may be large or small. Usually, you can give online. You can support special projects or offer to help “where needed most” in Africa. You can give individually; you can organize a fund raiser; you can give in your workplace. (To donate to Africare, please visit our Web site at www.africare.org or call us at 202.462.3614)
10) Share Send this article to 10 other people and ask each to pass it along to 10 more. And ask every recipient to help Africa during 2005 in one of the nine other ways presented above. (To e-mail this article, copy it from the Africare Web site at www.africare.org)
[edit] List of notable awards and honors
1975 Africare's president received honorary doctorates from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (1975), and Fisk University for Africare leadership.
1980 - 1990 Africare President C. Payne Lucas received National Orders of Benin (1990), Cote d'Ivoire (1984), Niger (1980), Senegal (1982) and Zambia (1986)Cthe nations' highest awards for humanitarian service.
1980 The Capitol Press Club selected Africare's president, C. Payne Lucas, as its Humanitarian of the Year for his leadership of Africare.
1983 Africare's president, C. Payne Lucas, was a member of the American delegation to Geneva, led by U.S. presidential appointee Shirley Temple Black, which convened a donors' meeting to discuss the famine in Somalia.
1984 President Ronald Reagan presented Africare's president, C. Payne Lucas, with the Presidential End Hunger Award.
1986 The Phelps-Stokes Fund presented Africare with the Aggrey Medal for accomplishments in establishing enduring links of friendship and cooperation between the United States and Africa.
1990 Africare was the first recipient of the Land Grant College Distinguished Bicentennial Award.
1991 Africare's president was the first African-American recipient of the American Political Science Association's Hubert H. Humphrey Public Service for Africare leadership.
1993 Africare's president, C. Payne Lucas, was appointed to the Board of Directors of the African Development Foundation.
1995 Africare's president, C. Payne Lucas, led a White House mission to Rwanda and Burundi to explore ways to reduce the tension between Hutus and Tutsis.
1996, 1998 - 1999 The U.S. Embassy in Angola has twice recognized local Africare employees with its annual humanitarian award. The award's first recipient, in 1996, was Pedro Siloka, the provincial coordinator of Africare programs in Bie Province. Siloka survived the 18-month "battle of Kuito" and organized emergency feeding centers that saved several hundred lives. The second Kuito employee, Diogo Castigo, was honored for his work in late 1998 and 1999, when fighting resumed.
2000 The Washington Capital Area chapter of the United Nations Association cited Africare's emergency relief work in Angola.
2001 The Greater Washington Urban League presented Africare with the Ronald H. Brown International Community Service Award.
2001 The National Conference on Black Philanthropy presented Africare an award for Outstanding Achievement in Philanthropy.
2001 The Magic Johnson Foundation, Inc., honored Africare for helping African children affected by HIV/AIDS.
2002 The Southern Christian Leadership Conference honored Africare for supporting national civil rights and humanitarian endeavors.
2003 The Amistad Achievement Award was given to Africare President Julius E. Coles by the Amistad Research Center at Tulane University, for contributions to the African continent.
Current: Africare has been ranked a “Three” Star Charity by Charity Navigator, America's premier independent charity evaluator.
Current: The American Institute of Philanthropy has designated Africare as one of its "Top-Rated Charities".
