Last month was April, which only meant one thing in Thailand – Song Kran! This festival marks the start of the traditional Buddhist New Year in Thailand, and one can look forward to a joyous occasion filled with water fights and much fun. Being the hottest part of the year, these water fights are a great way to stay cool!

Source: Bangkok Post

Now that the splashing is finished, we’d like to announce some updates to the team at the UPLift Initiative. We are happy to welcome Ko Lin, our newest staff member, to the team.  Ko Lin recently finished his work at Wide Horizons project management school, and served as a financial literacy trainer on the landfill over the last few months with us.  He is motivated, excited and ready to get to work!
Ko Lin, financial literacy trainer and the latest addition to the  UPLift team

We have started speaking to the women again about their future plans and goals, and we will begin the process of translating the finance modules into Burmese.

Over the next month, we are also looking to train a community-based organization of ethnic Palaung members to conduct their own financial literacy training for their staff.  This will lay the foundation for future trainings at the Shan State in Burma.

As part of the Project Inspire Financial Literacy and Social Entrepreneurship Program, the UPLift Initiative is working with a Burmese migrant learning center near the landfill community in Mae Sot, Thailand to improve children’s nutrition and their rights to education.

The first thing you would notice when out on a trip to the landfill is the dust. There is dust here, dust there, dust everywhere.

The road from Mae Sot that winds through villages and sugarcane fields are full of potholes, an indication that the dry season has arrived. Travelling in the back of an open truck, all you’d notice (other than the clanky noises from the truck hitting bump after bump) is the huge amount of dust in the air. Although the local municipality sprays the roads with water to alleviate the problem, their visits are too few and far between to be of much help.

However, the bumpy trip is well worth it.  On the way to the landfill, you’d come across a school called “Sky Blue”. Despite having heaps of waste as its backdrop, the name of this school reflects its optimism and mission, and is symbolic of how children at this school have their entire lives wide open in front of them, much like an open sky. The school also represents their aspirations to reach up high, towards a future filled with opportunities for growth and knowledge.

One reason why we decided  to work with the landfill community on financial literacy is because of the large number of children living there. Some of them attend school, while the rest stay behind during the day to pick recyclables with their families. The mere concept of getting an education is a great luxury, so the children who do attend try their hardest, and their parents need to save and budget their money in order to send them to school.

As part of our goal for the program, we have been working with Sky Blue School to introduce a milk and fruit nutrition program for their students. Every weekday, each student would receive a packet of milk and a piece of nutritious fruit to supplement their lunch, which usually comprised of curry, vegetables and rice.

We will also be measuring the student enrollment numbers till June to see if the added benefit of nutrition can convince parents to send their children to school. Thus far, we have received positive feedback from the students and are excited to meet this goal.

Every day, the dust will rise and fall back down – that much does not change. However, ensuring that as many children as possible have a right to proper education, nutrition and safety will change, and we are hoping that we will make that difference.

The first Hapinoy Samahan meeting was held in Kawit, Cavite on 31 January. It was led by Raquel Agahan, a Hapinoy community store owner. In this video, Raquel prepares for the inaugural session with Kawit’s Provincial Supervisor, Princes Pena. The sari-sari storeowners are also seen enjoying one another’s stories, and getting busy with the learning session.

All in all, the first Samahan Meeting was truly a success!

It has been a very busy month here in Mae Sot, Thailand!  The UPLift team has been working with Wide Horizons project management school to plan and implement five financial literacy trainings for Burmese women living on a landfill in Thailand.

Pictures (and videos) say more than words, so here are some candid snapshots of the training process!

A team-building exercise which encapsulates the message of a need to plan for the future

Identifying short-term, medium-term and long-term savings goals

Who needs a training room when there is bamboo nearby?

Informal trainings provided a comfortable atmosphere for women to learn and discuss issues important to their community.

These women are preparing for a Market Session, an activity that provides them with an opportunity to use the skills and techniques acquired from the Financial Literacy trainings. At the end of the session, they get to take home real life goods and items!

Having completed the training sessions, the women can now head home with new goals, inspirations, and problem-solving ideas for their community. Moving forward, the next phase of the project will be to work with women who have innovative business ideas, and assist them in launching their own social enterprises.

The “Samahang Hapinoy” is a network of stores and community of Nanays (mothers) who meet bi-monthly during Samahan Meetings to discuss their learning experiences and share their life stories with one another.

Samahan is a Filipino term for group, association, organization or team.

Last month, Hapinoy community store owners were shown a video introduction on Samahan meetings and their new role as Samahan leaders.

Hapinoy’s community store owners have started holding regular meetings with their smaller Sari-Sari store members. This was started with the aim of developing a local Hapinoy membership network, and to reach out to more Sari-Sari store owners.

We hope that these meetings will be fruitful for the Sari-Sari store owners, and that it will better equip them to establish sustainable businesses so as to provide themselves with a regular source of income.

We also believe that these meetings would be beneficial for the mental and emotional well-being of the Nanays in building up their self-esteem and confidence.

On the whole, we strive towards generating greater awareness of micro-entrepreneurship in the Philippines and seek to encourage Filipino citizens to do their part in supporting these small businesses.