OUR PROGRAMS
The Focus of Our Efforts
The James127 Foundation economically empowers single mothers, youth, and women living with HIV/AIDS. The sewing program is a fifteen-month course that teaches advanced sewing lessons. The program's goal is to give the women skills to gain a job and provide for their families. During the training period, the women will take three National skills tests at six-month intervals through NITA. With the passing of all three tests, the women graduate from our sewing program as certified Kenyan tailors. During the training program, we provide:
Monthly food and household staples.
Transportation money.
Their sewing machine to take with them upon graduation.
Upon graduation, the women are given small startup funds to start their businesses or work for another company.
BASIC TRAINING
Building Confidence and Hope
The Foundation conducts the first fifteen months of training on non-electric machines that the women take with them upon graduation. Three exams are conducted through NITA (National Industrial Training Authority) to provide the women with National Certification.
ADVANCED TRAINING
Business Skills and Development
fter basic training, the trainees are given advanced training at the Diani Shopping Center site. There, they are trained on electric machines and given production experience. The trainees learn about pricing, costing, business development, entrepreneurship, marketing, and sales. At this point, the trainees have access to the market and interact directly with local clients.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Creating Community
Research shows that women are more vulnerable than men due to gender-based social norms and economic, religious, and cultural constructs that often marginalize and exclude them. Prostitution is rampant in Kenya, and many women resort to this option and put their children into the industry to make money for the whole family. The Foundation focuses on breaking the cycles of poverty and desperation in families and provides alternative routes to provision and safety.
