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Project Grant Profiles

Generous donations made through the World Day of Prayer have enabled WICC, the Canadian coordinator, to fund a variety of programs and initiatives in Canada and around the world which speak to the Council’s four areas of focus and priority: justice, women’s issues, ecumenism and the growth of women’s spirituality. The following are profiles of organizations supported by WICC grants.

Iziko lo Lwazi Craftworkers, Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa

This non-profit organization provides employment and education for women living in Cape Town’s Imazamo Yethu informal settlement.  It began as an adult literacy program, offering free English lessons in the library. Learning is a luxury when families need food so this project was developed to enable students to earn while learning.

The Xhosa women chose papermaking as their project. Raw materials – waste paper from the local recycling centre and Spanish reeds were freely available and easy to come by and the equipment needed in the early stages was minimal. A large tin bath was purchased, frames were donated, a pounding stick was unearthed in the wood pile and the project was underway.

The project  has since moved to the local Community Cultural Centre where the women  now make a wide range of hand-made papers, cards, beadwork and gifts which are sold locally and at several overseas outlets. They also have a website at www.izikoll.co.za

Iziko lo Lwazi Craftworkers have received support from the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada  in 2007.

Horizons of Friendship and the “Mélida Anaya Montes” Women’s Movement (MAM)

Horizons of Friendship (www.horizons.ca) is a Canadian international development organization committed to combating poverty and injustice in Central America and Mexico. Horizons works with local partner organizations in grassroots programs of sustainable development, education, rights promotion and political advocacy. In Canada, Horizons raises awareness on global issues and works with Canadian organizations at the local and national levels to bring about positive and lasting change.

Horizons of Friendship has supported the work of the “Mélida Anaya Montes” Women’s Movement (MAM) in El Salvador since 2001 in defending the rights of women factory workers; this project has received the support of the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada (WICC). The goal of this project has been to defend the rights of women maquila (sweatshop) workers in El Salvador by increasing their leadership capacity in labour, social and economic themes and by forming alliances of political advocacy to ensure compliance of labour regulations. Project components include training women maquila workers to become leaders who in turn promote women’s rights among their peers, and implementing communication campaigns to educate maquila workers on their rights and how to denounce labour violations.

For a current listing of projects which received grants, click here.