We've worked in partnership with Find Your Feet (FYF) for a good few years, and initially supported a project (SABLA) in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. Our partnership model is aimed at encouraging open and honest discussion, so when FYF suggested we move our funding to support a project with the NGO Pepus instead, (as they'd found alternative long term funding for the project we had helped get off the ground), we agreed. 

We began three years of commitment at the end of 2005, and we are delighted that it has been tripled by the EU in a matched funding arrangement. The project is providing training and support to enable over 650 families to build stable livelihoods, and increase their crop yields through sustainable and environmentally friendly farming methods.

It also promotes education and raises awareness of health related issues, especially for young women and girls. To create long term change, it is hoped that the empowered, marginalised community members will be equipped and motivated to become actively involved in local government structures.

Find your Feet (FYF) is a charity working with vulnerable families living in India and Malawi. This project is working with Pepus, an NGO based in the Allahabad district of Uttar Pradesh, which focuses on raising the living standards of targeted communities by increasing agricultural production, employment opportunities, education and health standards.

They conducted a baseline survey in 27 new villages early in 2007, and the results showed that the majority of families survive on an average income of just £17 a month and farm plots of land that are just 0.25 hectares of infertile soil. The sustainable farming practices that Pepus is teaching group members are proving vital in enabling families to make the most of their land.

In addition, large numbers of men continue to be forced to migrate in search of work in brick kilns and the results over the last few years have highlighted the importance of Pepus' work to support group members to improve their harvests and set up small businesses.

For the last two years, the innocent foundation has been supporting FYF and their partnership with Pepus to help raise the living standards of 650 marginalised dalits, (the lowest of the Hindu Caste system), from 30 villages.

There are four main ways in which it aims to do this - through raising employment opportunities and agricultural production and by helping communities establish education centres for underprivileged young women. In addition to learning vocational textile skills, the girls are taught basic literacy and are educated in reproductive health issues.

A final strand of the project addresses the fact that there is a lack of awareness of entitlement to government services and how to access them. Pepus continues to raise awareness of rights and support women to become actively involved in their community.

A key element to the success of all of this is the setting up self-help groups (SHGs), through which members are building the skills, confidence and community cohesion to ensure that real progress is made and continues after the life of the project.

All four main areas of the project are doing extremely well. So far this year:

• In the last six months, 17 new SHGs have been formed taking the total to 60.
• 397 women have now learnt to sign their name and 104 women are learning how to read and write. While this sounds a small achievement, it has a huge impact on their independence and their ability to provide for their families.
• Three new adolescent girls' education centres have opened allowing young girls to learn stitching, knitting and handicraft skills, as well as basic literacy.
• Two awareness-raising workshops (1 for men and 1 for women) have been held to sensitise migrant brick kiln workers and their partners about HIV/AIDS.
• All SHGs are involved in regular saving and credit activities. To supplement this, a revolving fund has been distributed to 32 groups.
• 80% of the loans have been used to improve agricultural production eg. buying seeds, installing irrigation facilities and buying manure. 20% of the loans have been used by group members to set up small businesses that include grocery and cycle repair shops.
• An agricultural expert gave training and advice to SHG members on adopting low-cost eco-friendly farming techniques that boost crop production.
• Two more compost pits have been put in place by group leaders to demonstrate the effectiveness of compost to other members. There are now four in total which have produced 10,000kg of compost, which is being used for the cultivation of a variety of crops including potatoes, onion, watermelon and wheat.
• A veterinary health camp was held. 100 animals were examined, prescribed medicine and vaccinated. Participants were also given advice on disease management.

To ensure the sustainability of the project work after funding ends, Pepus has supported the SHGs to form cluster groups (each cluster group represents 10 SHGs) and an umbrella federation (which represents all SHGs). SHG members will be elected to positions within the cluster groups and federation.

Cluster groups will represent the interests of all SHG members to government and local organisations. It is planned that, after sufficient training and capacity-building, the federation will eventually take over the running and financing of the project so that activities can continue without Pepus' support.

This recent update highlights that Pepus has witnessed "the confidence and awareness-levels of women in the community to have considerably increased ever since they have joined the SHGs. This has resulted in their enhanced recognition and improved involvement in decision-making processes both at home and in the community."

We have had lots of great reports on the real and tangible difference the project is making. Here are some of them:

Gudi Devi, Roshni Swajeevika SHG

Efforts to raise awareness to entitlements have led to 41 wall writings, which is a popular way to disseminate information, painted in selected locations in the project villages. The writings relate to issues including gender equality, the importance of education, new farming methods and the need for environmental conservation.

As a result, four group members are now receiving disability benefits and a number are receiving old-age pensions.

"During a meeting, it came up that group members weren't receiving the old age pensions and widow benefits they were entitled to. Together with some group members, I went to meet representatives from the Gram Pradhan (village government structure) to ask them to give my fellow group members their benefits. They didn't help us. So, I went to the Kaurihar Block Representative to complain.

After my meeting, the Block Department ensured that the Gram Pradhan distributed the pensions and now my fellow group members are receiving the benefits they deserve."

Rekha's story:

With a young family to support, it is vital that Rekha and her husband earn a good income. However, without their own land it has been a hard struggle.

Rekha's husband has been forced to migrate for five to six months a year to another state where he has worked in the brick kilns. When he is away, the burden of supporting the family falls to Rekha. In the past she has only able to find work as an agricultural labourer for around 30 to 40 days a year, leaving her unable to provide her family with the most basic necessities.

By working with Pepus, Rekha has been able to access the training, loans and support she needed to build a better future for her family.

"When I was an agricultural labourer, I desperately needed extra income to meet my family demands. Two years ago, I took a loan of 3,000 rupees (£35) from Pepus to buy a cow but it died after one year.

In my village, Pepus was running a girls' education centre and while I'm no longer a teenager, Pepus staff encouraged me to attend the centre. There, I learnt tailoring skills and after six months I completed my training.

I then took a loan of 1,500 rupees (£18) to buy a sewing machine so that I could start a small business. Now, I'm able to boost my income by sewing clothes. I make about an extra 500 rupees (£6) a month and that means that I can buy better food and can educate my children."

www.fyf.org.uk

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