Community Projects
By purchasing Dsenyo handbags and accessories you are supporting community development projects in Africa. In addition to our main mission of creating stable jobs for women and artisans, Dsenyo also gives 3% of SALES back to the communities in which we work.
If you have purchased a Dsenyo product, please CHOOSE which of the following projects you would like the contribution from your purchase to go towards.
Dsenyo currently helps fund the following youth-focused projects. In Malawi, a country where life expectancy is 47yrs and 54% of the population is under the age of 18, the youth are not only the hope and future of the country, they are also the current leaders. Dsenyo believes that supporting the health and education of youth in Malawi is an extremely important priority in creating a bright future for the country.
Ungueru
(Luwinga, Malawi)
Ungueru is a community center, library and computer lab in a small neighborhood north of Mzuzu, Malawi. The center is providing computer classes, access to litterature and HIV/AIDS education to local youth and their families. Education truly is one of the keys to poverty alleviation, and Ungueru is doing more than its share towards this effort. Ungueru is run by a Malawian board of directors and is funded by donors primarily in Ireland.
Dsenyo has chosen to fund this organization becuase our founder, Marissa, and her husband Jon worked directly with Ungueru while living in Malawi. Jon taught internet workshops and served as an honorary board member and Marissa coordinated book donation efforts to the library. They have seen first-hand how the community of Luwinga has greatly benefited from Ungueru's services.
Ekwendeni Youth AIDS Center
(Ekwendeni, Malawi)
The Ekwendeni Youth AIDS Center is run by the Central Church of Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) in Ekwendeni, Northern Malawi. The center provides activities and HIV/AIDS eduction for local youth. Some of the clubs include drama, music, paper making, games, and life skills. The center leads HIV/AIDS stigma reduction campaigns in an effort to raise a better understanding of the disease, and builds teams of youth that provide home-based care for community members sick or dying of AIDS.
Dsenyo is funding the Youth AIDS Resource Center because Marissa, our founder, worked with this organization while living in Malawi. Marissa taught handmade egg tempera paint workshops with youth in the papermaking club. The CCAP is leading the most committed and effective development efforts in Northern Malawi and Dsenyo would like to support the youth through the church.
Malawi Northern Region Women's Soccer League
(Mzuzu, Malawi)
The Malawi Northern Region Women's Soccer League is an active organization with about 12 teams and has been running for over 6 years. The teams consist of girls and women ages 15-26 from Mzuzu and Nkhata Bay. Several of the teams are associated with high schools while others are independent club teams sponsored financially by wealthy individuals or foreign donors. Because the vast majority of players come from economically marginalized families, they don't have appropriate equipment and often play in skirts and without shoes.
Dsenyo has chosen to sponsor teams in the Malawi Northern Region Women's Soccer league because Marissa co-coached Prison United, a team of Malawian youth, with their fabulous coach Kennedy Mbewe. She was extremely impressed with the level of skill and fitness at which her girl's played despite the challenges of uneven ground, no shoes, etc. In addition, like here in other parts of the world, being part of a team and attending training sessions proved to be good for development of a health self-esteem, leadership skills, and self-empowerment.
