What We Do
Women Empowerment
Expanding women’s economic opportunities
Through education, entrepreneurship, and vocational training, and we equip women with the knowledge and skills to earn an income and break into higher-paid employment sectors. In the workplace, we address constraints faced by women entrepreneurs, providing networking opportunities, mentoring, access to information and credit, and business management training. Working alongside local partners we foster environments where women can advocate for improved policies.
Increasing women’s rights and security
We work with individuals and communities to change norms that perpetuate gender-based violence and the exploitation of women and girls. We engage local authorities and civil society to strengthen laws, legal systems, and other response mechanisms to increase access to justice and improve service delivery. Another area we want to look at in the future is the fight against child labour and human trafficking. Helping Hand Foundation, plans to pioneer initiatives to combat child labour (especially in school going children) and the trafficking of women into the sex trade.
Promoting women’s participation in political and public life
At Helping Hands Foundation we empower women to engage in political processes, and equip women to be informed voters, active members of political parties, and successful candidates. Working with local authorities and partners we advance women’s rights and strengthen legal systems to reform policies that discriminate.
Gender equality
We are committed to advancing gender equality throughout our programs and institutional practices. The Foundation recognises the importance of gender-responsive international treaties and agreements, and incorporates gender analyses into project and program design, implementation, and evaluation through the Gender Smart Initiative.
Group Savings and Loans (GSL)
Group Saving and Loan Scheme (GSL)
Helping Hands Foundation Group Savings and loans Scheme is the mobilization of self resources (money) by individuals in variable amounts to contribute to a standing fund to be used by the contributors to address personal financial commitments and also social protection issues at individual group members.
Helping Hands Foundation uses this scheme as a Poverty Reduction Strategy for its membership. This initiative is used to increase individual, household’s income and also raise funds for businesses of economically active people. Helping Hands Foundation
encourages members to form themselves into groups of 25 per group (80% women) with aims and objectives. They develop their own regulations as how the group is to be governed (constitution) with a group name and address. Helping Hands Foundation
provides training on the concept of GSL, group formation, development of constitution on how to run (GSL) at group level. The groups are ran in cycles, the first cycle goes for 36 weeks with weekly amount for contributions as agreed upon by each group member they call shares. One person can buy not more than 5 shares.
After 36 weeks every member must have paid all loans and total amount is shared out after the 36 weeks. They can then start a second cycle. The GSLAs serves three purposes:
- It provides an alternative source of income to Marginalized women, who can tap into the contributed savings of the associations by taking loans and investing in other income generating activities like businesses or agriculture among others.
- The member who also become field officers can command fees from the training that they conduct for new GSLAs.
- GSLAs provide a readily available source of credit for members (mostly women) who would not be eligible for loans from financial lending institutions -like banks and other Macro Credit Institutions.
Helping Hands Foundation Group Saving and Loans (GSL) in Progress:
Skills Training
In Sierra Leone, women suffer from lower levels of economic and social empowerment, poorer investment in human capital and greater restrictions on access to labour markets in comparison to their peers in developed countries. In Sierra Leone, as in many countries in the developing world, women face several forms of gender inequality.
Despite improvements in literacy and school enrolment rates over the recent decades, the gender disparity in terms of economic opportunity has not improved significantly among the younger cohort of the population. Young women face a persistently disadvantageous position on the Sierra Leonean labour market.
Helping Hands Foundation Women Skill Training & Empowerment Project
Summary
The objective of the intervention is to generate meaningful, environmentally sustainable and economically stimulating self-employment for the project women living in the informal areas of Freetown and around, who are mostly involved in informal or vulnerable activities. The intervention offers skills training in entrepreneurship development for empowerment of women and life skills.
Challenge
The "Helping Hands Foundation Women Skill Training and Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Development Initiatives Program" aims to bridge the skill-gaps between the Project Women and Self-Employment Opportunities.
Solution
This program aims to improve economic opportunities for disadvantaged women by providing:
- Market-relevant skills training
- Entrepreneurship training
- Tailoring
- Hair dressing and Make-up
- Computer skills Mentoring
- Financial education
- Literacy
- Photography
Long-Term Impact
The key focus of this project is to be evident the optimum benefits (both tangible & non-tangible) of the target audiences (primary, secondary, tertiary) that would be produced by the development interventions. Here, the Intervention is meant for the women to follow T/Each - each one to teach one as a loop (multiplier effect). Net Impact is the increase in income of the Project Women with provision of 100% self-employment.
Hairdressing and Beauty Make-up Practicals
Certificate in Hair Dressing & Beauty Make-Up
Course Code no. HHF-SL 002
Duration of course - 1 yrs. & 6 months
Essential Theory hours - 100hrs
Essential Practical hours - 370hrs
Introduction to the course
In this modern time, people (especially women) are concerned about their appearance and thus pay great attention to their hair, body, dress & makeup. There has been a steep rise in people visiting beauty parlours/saloons/clinics for taking the services of beauticians for makeup hair cutting & setting, application of hair colour/dye etc. Makeup & hair dressing has become a part of daily life special among working girls & women. Thus one can find such parlours in every locality. This has created a great demand for trained personnel in beauty culture. There are good employment opportunities in this trade.
Keeping in view the modern trend in beauty culture and the demand for trained personnel, Helping Hands Foundation Sierra Leone has put together this course to include components like make up, bleaching, hair styling, cutting, dyeing, massage, colour/Mehndi applications etc.
Objective –
- To provide knowledge, information & practice in
- Latest trends in beauty culture and hair dressing
- Importance & type of make-up
- Eyebrow shaping, facials, bleaching, manicure & pedicure hair care/Cutting/Setting/Styles/Hair dye & swing, Mehndi application.
- Removing of unwanted hair.
- Body perfection, massage exercises & yoga.
- Work ethics handling different types of clients and mastering appropriate communication skills.
- Concern for health & hygiene.
- Develop positive attitude, responsibility & accountability.
- Entrepreneurship.
Entry Qualification –
No formal entry requirement but a good reading and writing skills is an advantage. At Helping Hands Foundation Sierra Leone all we try to encourage in our women is commitment and perseverance.
Job opportunities/Wage employment:
- Can be employed in beauty parlours/saloons/clinics to do the work relating to make up, hair dressing, massage etc.
- Can be employed as makeup man/women for performer (artists) in theatre/studios.
Self-employment:
Women can open their own small scale hair dressing and beauty shops at their own homes to begin with before they move out into shops and other buildings. They can get a job in small, medium and large hair dressing and beauty shops across the country.
Scheme of study – Weekly Classes
Weightage :- Theory – 15% Practical – 85%
Certificate in Bakery and Confectionary
Certificate in Bakery and Confectionary
Course Code no. HHF-SL 003
Duration of course - 1 year
Essential Theory hours - 89hrs
Essential Practical hours - 320hrs
Introduction to the course
Baking also known as dry cooking is, where heat is transferred to the food by hot air circulating around it. Baking is undertaken in oven to make cookies, bread, biscuits & cakes. These items are all time favorite with both the young and old the rural and urban. In the modern times with a great demand for ready to eat food, the demand for biscuits & cakes has increased many fold.
Objective –
- To understand the concept of bakery & confectionery & prepare to make it a vocation.
- Identify and take care of relevant tools masking devices equipment & raw material.
- To make various types of cakes, biscuits, breads, burgers, Swiss rolls, dough ruts, croissant & Danish pastries.
- To understand and master baric scientific principles involved in the art of baking & confectionary.
- To master the art of decorating cakes with icing (butter, cream, chocolates, glaze icing).
- Develop positive attitude, responsibility & accountability.
- Entrepreneurship.
Entry Qualification –
No formal entry requirement but a good reading and writing skills is an advantage. At Helping Hands Foundation Sierra Leone all we try to encourage in our women is commitment and perseverance.
Competencies:
1. Identify and learn the use and care of various tools, equipment and ingredients used for bakery and confectionery.
2. Master the different techniques and processes used in bakery & confectionery.
3. Make various types of biscuits, cakes, Swiss rolls etc.
4. Master the art of decorating the cakes with icing (butter, cream, royal, glace icing etc.)
5. Learn the techniques of making pastes, pastries etc.
6. Make breads (milk & brown bread), burger, rolls and fruits bun.
7. Become familiar with the modern methods of bakery and safety measures involved.
8. Identify take necessary steps to overcome the common faults likely to baked goods.
9. Develop marketing skills and become an entrepreneur in bakery & confectionery.
Job opportunities/Wage employment:
· Can be employed in in Bakeries across the counter.
· Can be employed as Baker in hotels and restaurants across the country.
Self-employment:
Women can open their own small scale bakeries at their own homes to begin with before they move out into shops and other buildings. They can get a job in small, medium and large bakery shops across the country.
Scheme of study – Weekly Classes
Weightage:- Theory – 15% Practical – 85%
Certificate in Bakery and Confectionary
Course Code no. HHF-SL 003
Duration of course - 1 year
Essential Theory hours - 89hrs
Essential Practical hours - 320hrs
Introduction to the course
Baking also known as dry cooking is, where heat is transferred to the food by hot air circulating around it. Baking is undertaken in oven to make cookies, bread, biscuits & cakes. These items are all time favorite with both the young and old the rural and urban. In the modern times with a great demand for ready to eat food, the demand for biscuits & cakes has increased many fold.
Objective –
- To understand the concept of bakery & confectionery & prepare to make it a vocation.
- Identify and take care of relevant tools masking devices equipment & raw material.
- To make various types of cakes, biscuits, breads, burgers, Swiss rolls, dough ruts, croissant & Danish pastries.
- To understand and master baric scientific principles involved in the art of baking & confectionary.
- To master the art of decorating cakes with icing (butter, cream, chocolates, glaze icing).
- Develop positive attitude, responsibility & accountability.
- Entrepreneurship.
Entry Qualification –
No formal entry requirement but a good reading and writing skills is an advantage. At Helping Hands Foundation Sierra Leone all we try to encourage in our women is commitment and perseverance.
Competencies:
1. Identify and learn the use and care of various tools, equipment and ingredients used for bakery and confectionery.
2. Master the different techniques and processes used in bakery & confectionery.
3. Make various types of biscuits, cakes, Swiss rolls etc.
4. Master the art of decorating the cakes with icing (butter, cream, royal, glace icing etc.)
5. Learn the techniques of making pastes, pastries etc.
6. Make breads (milk & brown bread), burger, rolls and fruits bun.
7. Become familiar with the modern methods of bakery and safety measures involved.
8. Identify take necessary steps to overcome the common faults likely to baked goods.
9. Develop marketing skills and become an entrepreneur in bakery & confectionery.
Job opportunities/Wage employment:
· Can be employed in in Bakeries across the country.
· Can be employed as Baker in hotels and restaurants across the country.
Self-employment:
Women can open their own small scale bakeries at their own homes to begin with before they move out into shops and other buildings. They can get a job in small, medium and large bakery shops across the country.
Scheme of study – Weekly Classes
Weightage:- Theory – 15% Practical – 85%
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