We held our 2015 annual Stakeholder meet with End Poverty and the Rajasthan villagers in February 2015. Feedback on progress was very positive. We have just held our 2016 meeting and will report very soon
We promote sustainable rural tourism in the Tijara Villages. We started with an Ecological Survey of the area which identified bird life, natural history, historic buildings and other features of interest. One of the key outputs of work to date is a ‘Guide to the Tijara Villages’ which provides an introduction to the area.
We initially set up two handicrafts centres with 60 women registered to make pouches bags and quilts. In the past year each centre has produced over 1000 pouches. Several women have earned over R1000 per month in each centre. Recently we have set up five more centres.
We focus on villages in Tijara, Alwar District in Rajasthan. The average household is about 8 members. 70% of the people are Muslims from the Meo community and 30% are Sikhs and Hindus. The community is mainly engaged in agriculture and dairying. 40% live below the poverty line. Apart from agriculture most do not have the education or skills for other jobs,
Education
We have trained more than 1200 adolescent girls since 2010 through the GEN / End Poverty education programme. They had all missed out on mainstream education but now have had an opportunity to learn to read write and count.
GEN and End Poverty (EP) undertake activities to improve infrastructure and access to government services in response to demand from the villagers. We have encouraged the formation of Village Development Groups (VDGs) to enable issues to be raised and discuss priorities for development at a village level.
GEN works at the community (grassroots) level to support and empower individuals and groups to identify their community goals. We then help them achieve them. GEN’s main partner now in India is END POVERTYwhich we helped set up in 2009.
Working with grassroot NGOs and the most disadvantaged villagers to contribute to the elimination of poverty.
Charity Commission Registration No. 1101193 Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee No. 4620446
Our latest Newsletter focuses on craft work and our 2014 Annual Report has full details of our programme last year
Our GEN supporters
We are really grateful to our major supporters, without whom we would not be able to undertake our work
Miss KM Harbinson Trust
Open Gate Trust
The Public Health Action Support Team (PHAST)
The Saga Charitable Trust
CB and HH Taylor 1984 Trust
and our many individual supporters who have given more than £6000 through individual donations, sponsored fundraising walks or our crowdfunding campaign earlier this year
