PUSIR
WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION
“PEACE, DEVELOPMENT AND EQUALITY, PUSIR GRANDE”
PROJECT: STRENGTHENING OF FAMILY MICRO PROJECTS
1. LOCATION
• Province: Carchi
• Canton: Bolivar
• Community: Pusir Grande
2. BENEFICIARIES: 34 families from the Pusir Grande community.
3. BACKGROUND
In the period 2013 - 2021, FEDICE has carried out 7 projects for a value of $106,785 that were invested to finance family micro-projects (agricultural and commercial). The capital and interest that has been generated during this time belong to the BRIDGING CULTURES foundation of Fort Worth, Texas. The reimbursable fund that each family has received has been increased from $200 to $750. The increase in the fund that is invested in Pusir Grande grows due to the reinvestment of the interest that has accumulated year after year.
On the other hand, we must mention that in these 8 years of work, the number of women decreased from 50 to 34. The main reasons for this decrease are:
1. Failure to pay the reimbursable fund
2. Failure to attend meetings, trainings and community activities, and
3. Voluntary withdrawal.
The following table shows the growth of the capital delivered in Pusir Grande.
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TYPE OF PROJECT:
The current project is agricultural and commercial. 94% of women will invest the money to plant or maintain crops such as: Pepper, beans, avocado and pickle.
On the other hand, the remaining 6% will buy merchandise and invest in the sale of food.
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OBJETIVES
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General Objetive
Garantizar lacontinudad de la sucesión productiva de losdiferentesmicro-proyectos familias de las mujeres integrantes de la organización.
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Specific Objetives
1. Provide a reimbursable fund for each family in the group.
2. Training in activities of local interest.
3. Carry out the monitoring and evaluation of the results achieved by the project.
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DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROJECT
The activities that will be carried out will be the following:
a) Delivery of resources: Each family receives $750 to invest in their productions. For the capital they will pay an interest of 12% per year ($90). At the end of the project, each family will end up paying $840. The recovery is expected in 4 dividends of $210 each (Capital and interest) each quarter.
b) In the second month, the review of family investments is planned. In this stage, the purchases and expenses made by each family are verified. The visits to carry out in each land or business. It is estimated to do this activity in 2 days.
c) From the third month to the 10th month, workshops on three themes will be held: 1. Weaving, 2. Embroidery, and 3. Jewelry. Each topic it will carried out in three classes, one per month.
Each class it will be in 3 hours. Mrs. Margarita Fonte de Pijal will be in charge of the (workshops) trainings. In the 11th month, we will have an open house where Pusir's colleagues will exhibit the works they have learned to make in the workshops.
d) Finally, in the 12th month, we will proceed to evaluate the results achieved by the project. For this we will apply a participatory evaluation. The main parameters to be analyzed are: 1. Payment of reimbursable fund and interest, 2. Attendance at training, 3. Compliance with activities proposed in the schedule, and 4. Decision making.
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FINANCING
To obtain the value of the project, the most representative product of all the family projects is used, in this case it is the pepper.
According to the information collected in February 2021, we have the average cost of production per 3000 meters of land is $1,653 (labor, seeds, fertilizers and transportation).
With the $750 FEDICE fund for the year 2022, 45% of the total required for the first production can be financed. It is estimated that the useful life of the pickle plant is one and a half years and that it can be harvested every two and a half months. In addition the care and use of chemical products for the percentage of production that decreases with each harvest; for this case we use a decrease of 20% in each harvest.
For the 2022-2023 project, a financing of $31,835 is required, which will be invested in: reimbursable fund for family, training, and mobilization.
The table above shows the distribution of the investment based on:
1. Delivery of 34 reimbursable funds of $750 for each of the 34 women who make up the group.
2. There will be 13 meetings (1 preoperative, 1 follow-up, 9 training sessions, 1 open house and 1 evaluation)
3. The interest they pay for the fund is 12% per year ($90 for every $750).
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MONITORING AND EVALUATION
The monitoring of the projects will be carried out in the field or place where the activities are carried out.
Information will be collected regarding:
1. m2 of land.
2. Purchases: Raw material, merchandise, seed and fertilizers.
3. Labor.
4. Type of crop.
5. Place of sale.
6. Last sale price: maximum and minimum.
The data will be recorded in videos, photographs, interviews and other tests for the verification of the results obtained.
The evaluation of the processes and results of the project will be through the intervention of the 34 families and the FEDICE technicians.
The results will allow us to make decisions regarding to:
The continuity or not of cooperation in the community. In the first case, we will establish lessons that must be applied in the future. On the other hand, if the decision is not to continue, the justifications for making this decision will be obtained.
WOMEN UNITED
HOUSING PROJECT 2019
ADAPTATION OF HOUSING 2018
The houses in Pusir Grande are built with blocks and a mixture of sand and mud rather than cement, which is already melting only 15 years after construction. In addition, this fact means that it would be easy to tear down houses. Another problem of the community is that many do not wear shoes, causing them to contract infections.
We made aa agreement with them that they are responsible for tearing down and clearing the ground in a “minga” (community workday), before the builder comes. In addition, they need to start looking for a place where they can stay during construction process.
Rocio ´s House:
Dangerous / harmful aspects of the house:
- The roof Is fabric that has holes, meaning that it does not protect the family from the elements.
- The potatoes are on a bench and the floor with shoes and other things. You have to protect the food from the bacteria that exists on the floor, they must store the food in a clean and protected place.
- The refrigerator does not work, there is no place to store and protect the food
- It is very difficult to access the bathroom, it seems very fragile, and could easily fall.
- There was no soap anywhere. Not in the bathroom, shower or kitchen. This indicates that they are not bathing well or washing their hands
- There is no good place to put clothes to protect it, creating more clutter in the house
- You cannot walk in the rooms because the beds occupy all the space.
- She now has 3 children living there with her.
Elvia´s house:
Dangerous / harmful aspects of the house:
- Mud floors that are almost impossible to clean and disinfect.
- Again, there were potatoes and a melon on the floor that is not sanitary.
- The house is not isolated or sealed so insects and natural elements can enter the roof.
- To wash everything (dishes, hands, clothes), they use the same rock that is not sanitary.
- There's no water in the bathroom so there's no way to get rid of the waste.
- There are 5 people living in a two-room house and a kitchen.
Recommendations for houses in Pusir
• Promote the wearing of shoes.
• An insulated and durable roof to protect from weather and insects.
• Store food in a clean and protected place.
o They should NEVER put food on the floor.
• If possible, fix the refrigerator or add a new one to protect perishable products.
• Put the bathroom on the same floor as the rest of the house.
• Use soap, shampoo, and deodorant.
• Put soap in the kitchen sink to wash dishes and hands.
• Add or fix cabinets to store and protect clothing.
• Make rooms large enough to put in a bed and have space to walk.
• Put wood or ceramic flooring that is easier to clean.
• In the house of Elvia, add a sink, fix the bathroom, and possibly a place to wash clothes (not to use the same rock for all these things).
The houses in Pusir Grande are built with blocks and a mixture of sand and mud rather than cement, which is already melting only 15 years after construction. In addition, this fact means that it would be easy to tear down houses. Another problem of the community is that many do not wear shoes, causing them to contract infections.
We made aa agreement with them that they are responsible for tearing down and clearing the ground in a “minga” (community workday), before the builder comes. In addition, they need to start looking for a place where they can stay during construction process.
