Omilling’s former child-soldier problem is a complicated one! Astrid Wang and Lunde Arneberg from the Oslo School of Architecture & Design are returning to Omilling to construct Mario primary school in November. The plan A – is to build one classroom, girl-pit latrine, and a teacher’s house. They are busy re-designing the school’s structure to match village’s standard. Fighting against decades of marginalization and intense state of poverty that spawn the practice, it is sometimes hard to imagine there is a way to help. Funding… Read More
Meeting in Omilling, South Sudan
Work on the Mairo Primary School is at a new stage! Last August, Astrid Rohde Wang and Lunde Arneberg from the Oslo School of Architecture & Design, and I visited Omilling to meet with the villagers. The Traditional Authority has approved the building plan and the community has already taken the ownership of the project. The two volunteers visited the donated plot and measured the site where the school will be built. The villagers gave a helping hand, and also assisted in searching for the red soil discovered… Read More
GlobalGiving’s ‘Baby Shower’ One-Day Miracle
UPDATE: Due to the overwhelming support of GlobalGiving’s donors, we’ve raised our funding goal to $14,074 to save even more mothers and babies. I am over joyed to report that GlobalGiving’s participation in our rally to throw a baby shower for our Onura clinic in South Sudan has raised nearly $4,000 so far in less than a day. Our Onura Maternal Survival Project has gone from being one of our least supported projects on GlobalGiving to being fully funded (between May 2010 and yesterday, donors had only given… Read More
Welcome to the World, South Sudan
On July 9, 2011, planet Earth welcomed its newest country. Having declared independence after a decades-long civil war, South Sudan is a newborn nation full of promise. South Sudan is the 193rd player in the United Nations playground, its 6-year old government is learning to run, and its even starting to tweet from @RepSouthSudan! Up until now, moms in Onura village have been dying in childbirth because the midwives delivering babies lacked simple sterile supplies. What better way to celebrate the birth of a nation… Read More
South Sudan Gains Independence on July 9!
Five days after the United States celebrates its independence, South Sudan will become the world’s youngest nation. Decades of brutal fighting have decimated South Sudan’s already fragile infrastructure. Little more than 120 doctors and fewer than 100 registered nurses care for 8 million people. The result: the people of South Sudan are suffering. With one of the world’s worst maternal mortality rates, women face a 1 in 7 risk of dying during pregnancy. A young girl in South Sudan is 3 times more likely to die… Read More
Celebrating Norway’s Constitution: Happy May 17!
Each year on May 17 Norwegians fill the streets with cheers and flags in celebration of Norway’s constitution, adopted in 1814. It sometimes happens that foreigners inadvertently walk out of Oslo’s main railway station and stumble into the capital city’s May 17 parade. Either they then join in, or they run for cover and exit the country muttering about total chauvinistic madness. There may well be an element of madness about Norway’s May 17th celebrations, everything being relative. The event commemorates the Norwegian Constitution, signed… Read More
No Flowers or Jewelry, Just Water without a Walk
Like hundreds of thousands of people around the world, you will wake this morning and twist a knob, granting you access to a stream of warm water. You might then proceed to make a call to your favorite flower shop and/or gift store and ask them to prepare something fit for a queen for your mother on Mother’s Day. You would like your mother to feel every bit of a queen today. If she is not that far from you, you may opt to take… Read More
No Tribe is Superior & No Tribe is Inferior
I’m deeply saddened that more than 1,000 people are dead after clashes between South Sudan’s army and militias. The unrest reminds me of the speech Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia gave in 1963 before the United Nations. Here’s the English translation, which was popularized in a song called War by Bob Marley: “That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned: That until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation; That until the color of a… Read More
Reproductive Health, Sexual Rights & South Sudan
Reproductive health problems remain the leading causes of death for women of childbearing age worldwide. The impact is far worse in developing countries, which also have high fertility rates. Besides terrible reproductive health outcomes, these counters score poorly in poverty and education outcomes. South Sudan is no exception to this picture. The long civil war between the North and the South made reproductive health a crisis for South Sudan’s women, many of whom are widows and girls who had their sexual and reproductive rights abused… Read More
New Volunteers to Redesign Mairo Primary School
Work on the Mario Primary School—which will give hope to war orphans, former child soldiers, and other vulnerable children in Omilling village—is racing along! I recently met with Astrid Rohde Wang and Olav Lunde Arneberg, two students from The Oslo School of Architecture and Design, who have volunteered to redesign the school’s structure at village Standard. For several months nothing was happening on the project, keeping the door closed for hundreds of vulnerable children to ever receive an education. Behind the scenes, the Hope Ofiriha team was busy working to find out… Read More
University of Zambia Donates Soil Block Machine
The Technology Development and Advisory Unit at the University of Zambia has donated a hand-press interlocking soil block machine to Hope Ofiriha to build the Mario Primary School. The donation—which ultimately will help educate hundreds of war orphans, former child soldiers, and other vulnerable children—is wonderful in so many ways! Production of interlocking soil-compressed blocks is environmentally friendly because very little water and cement and no firewood are used to make them. It is also much cheaper than buying and transporting manufactured ones because they are produced locally with local soil and… Read More
Distant Relatives: St. Patrick’s Day & South Sudan
Today, all eyes and thoughts are on Europe’s third largest Island best known for potatoes, Shamrocks, and the reason for the season: St. Patrick’s Day. It has, however, not always been all bliss for the country that produced the Saint of the day, St. Patrick, as mass starvation, disease, and emigration during the Potato famine coupled with decades of violence between Catholics and Protestants brought much civil unrest. Though St. Patrick’s Day is not that popular in Africa—save for Catholics attending Lent Mass, who take… Read More
100 Women Become Beekeepers in Onura
Hope Ofiriha’s Onura Beekeeping Project has raised $3,328 on GlobalGiving, and the results are just terrific. The project is running very well under the guidance of the village’s woman project manager and her team at the Onura Women’s Beekeeping Association. Women’s businesses are growing steadily larger and the local economy is also expanding noticeably in Onura sub village where the project is running. The beekeeping project will provide local women with the opportunity to learn a sustainable agricultural skill and earn an income to support their… Read More
Hope Ofiriha Named a GlobalGiving ‘SUPERSTAR’
I have exciting news. Thanks to our generous donors, Hope Ofiriha is listed as a SUPERSTAR on GlobalGiving’s new Partner Rewards Program. This is the highest level that an organization can reach on GlobalGiving! As you may remember, we only became a permanent member of the GlobalGiving community just over a year ago. During the December 2009 Global Open Challenge we raised $4,093 from 51 unique donors for our Omilling HIV-AIDS Project , just getting us over the required $4,000 in donations and 50 unique donors threshold. Since then, we have raised… Read More
Diversification & Dedication Make Us Special
Diversification and dedication is what makes Hope Ofiriha’s team so special. Our energetic team of two employees and 15 key volunteers is the driving force behind our ground-breaking success. The team is far from being homogeneous; its members come from a variety of backgrounds but share a common belief in eliminating poverty through literacy. At Hope Ofiriha, diversity is considered an advantage rather than an obstacle. Individuals put aside their differences to work harmoniously as a team. Age, race, education, and ethnicity hold no boundaries…. Read More
Referendum Update: Bye-Bye Jalaba for Good!
As you know, millions of south Sudanese went to the polls two weeks ago—many for the first time ever—to make a historic vote on the future of our country. Together, the south Sudanese decided whether to form our own nation or to remain part of Sudan. My mother, brothers, sisters, and I voted for separation, and I travelled to Sudan to participate in this historic moment (visit the Sudan Referendum album on Hope Ofiriha’s Facebook page to see more photos). I campaigned and mobilized people around Magwi County to vote… Read More
Pigs for Education Project Fully Funded
Thanks to our generous donors, phase one of our Pigs for Education Project is fully funded! The more than $1,000 donated will buy 30 pigs for Omilling village’s six most destitute families who are eager to send their children to school. Giving pigs to widows and their destitute families will provide a much-needed income boost to help pay for vital basics like food, medicines, and shelter. More importantly, the boost will prevent young children from having to drop out of school to help earn money… Read More
Don’t Want to Bring Gloom & Doom to Holidays
I don’t want to bring gloom and doom to your holidays, but I do want to make sure all our supporters are aware that we are less than three weeks away from a referendum vote that might partition Sudan and start a return to bloodshed. If you don’t mind interrupting your holidays to learn more about this potentially dire situation, the Sydney Morning Herald has put together an excellent multimedia website about it entitled Sudan: Referendum of Hope. Former Sudanese child soldier turned rap star, Emmanual Jal, has set up… Read More
Happy Saint Lucia’s Day to All Our Friends
Happy Saint Lucia’s Day to everyone in Scandanavia and around the world! Hope Ofiriha wants to send warm wishes and thanks to all of our supporters, donors, child sponsors, partners, volunteers, and everyone else playing a role in our success. Just as Saint Lucia was said to have brought food to hungry people during a famine, you gave a hand up to struggling South Sudanese women and children. Your hand up fed the hungry, gave life-saving medicines to the dying, and gave hope to widows… Read More
Inspired Gifts That Help Children in Need
Around the world, many people are celebrating the holiday season. Whether you’re putting up a Christmas tree, menorah, or kinara, please consider inspired gifts that help children in need. Instead of exchanging token presents, such as soaps, fruit cakes, or candles, you can put your money to good use and sponsor a child. As a child sponsor, you and your loved ones can help save a child from a life of extreme poverty. Your sponsorship will not only pay the fees necessary for your sponsored… Read More
Happy Thanksgiving from Hope Ofiriha
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in the United States and around the world! Hope Ofiriha wants to send a most sincere thank you to all of our supporters, donors, child sponsors, partners, volunteers, and everyone else playing a role in our success. Together, we are making a huge difference in the lives of South Sudanese women and children struggling to build a better future for themselves, their families, and their community. Enjoy this special day of Thanksgiving and remember that we could not do this work without… Read More
10 New Microloans Given to Women Refugees
Thanks to kind support of our Uganda Microloans Project, Hope Ofiriha is pleased to announce that it has granted loan to ten (10) new additional women to start their income generating business. With their ability to generate income and save profits these women can better protect themselves and their children in areas of poverty, education, and heath. In the six months to come these women will invest in the education of their children by paying school fees through profits earn from their businesses. During the… Read More
HIV-AIDS Project Makes Remarkable Change
Hope Ofiriha’s Omilling HIV-AIDS Project has made a remarkable change increasing the number of people knowing their HIV status. In Omilling Sudan, 1 out of 5 is HIV-infected. If people can find out their status, they can take necessary steps to remain negative or access care, and treatment services if positive. To further this goal, Hope Ofiriha made a decision to expand HIV-awareness campaign and counseling availability by visiting HIV-experts. Integrating HIV-awareness program into local health services allows local volunteers to offer testing and counseling as… Read More
Give Children a Chance to Go to School
The great World Cup football tournament is kicking off today at 4 p.m. with the host country opening against Mexico. I cannot wait! I wish my team (England) was on slightly better form but am still hopeful! There is also something we can do to create a lasting legacy that could see millions more kids receive an education. South Africa President Jacob Zuma has just announced that he will hold a global leadership summit during the World Cup. The aim? Push leaders and football fans… Read More
June 16 is a GlobalGiving Bonus Day
From 00:00:00 to 23:59:59 on Wednes, June 16, 2010 (Eastern time/GMT-4) ,the GlobalGiving Bonus Day will offer a 50 percent match for your donations. Additional cash bonuses of $1,000 each will be awarded to the top project that generates the largest amount of money and the top project to solicit the greatest number of unique donations. Please make a donation to Hope Ofirha through GlobalGiving by clicking here, on June 16.
GlobalGiving Global Open Challenge a Success!
Thanks to you, our generous supporters, Hope Ofiriha has been invited to stay on GlobalGiving website and is now officially a permanent member of the GlobalGiving Community. We look forward to your continued support and participation in GlobalGiving‘s online marketplace for giving. Without your support, we could not have won a spot on GlobalGiving’s site. The $4,093 raised for our Omilling HIV-AIDS Project came from 51 different donors during the December 2009 Global Open Challenge, just getting us over the required $4,000 in donations and 50 unique… Read More
Urgent Appeal: 300 Children on Waiting List
Hope Ofiriha has granted a year scholarship to both Jolly Achol and Justine Okello to study at Rubaga Primary School in Uganda. There are 300 South Sudanese children living in slums on outskirt of Kampala on our waiting list. These children want to be at school but can’t afford the fees. Please visit our Keep Impoverished Refugees in School project page to learn more and make a donation.
Urgent Appeal: Childbirth Delivery Bed for Onura
Each year, many women die in childbirth in the Onura sub village. Virtually all these deaths are due to a lack of childbirth facilities and hemorrhages, which is a common cause of maternal mortality worldwide. Bleeding can be controlled in a clinic but, without one in Onura, it is a death sentence. Our aim is to provide traditional midwives a childbirth delivery bed to save lives in a local post where most births and maternal deaths take place–well beyond the reach of hospitals and government health services. … Read More
