Welcome to Hands for Development Foundation
Vision: Empowered communities, Transformed lives.
Mission: To contribute to the holistic development of poor and vulnerable communities, empowering them to achieve sustainable social and economic fulfillment.
What we do?
A Nonprofit, Nonpolitical, Non-Governmental international organization. Hands for development foundation is uplifting the social, economic and other human conditions of the poor and vulnerable by empowering them to realize their best potential through sponsorship, education & training, advocacy and economic empowerment. Our programmes include: Environmental conservation, Child development, Community Health Education, Human Rights Programme, women Empowerment (Livelihoods) and Communication programmes.
Our Approaches
In order to effectively achieve its mission, Hands for Development Foundation will continue to apply the following approaches to its work;
- Community Participation and Organizing: The Hands for Development Foundation model of delivering its mandate is through working with organized community groups, associations, and other civil society organizations as avenues to scale up desired changes in targeted communities.
- Local Philanthropy: Hands for Development Foundation works to encourage the growth and promotion of organized giving for continued sustainable development in Kenya. The goal is to empower and move communities from a mindset of depending on donor funding, to effective resources mobilization towards the execution of their prioritized projects.
- Institution Building: Hands for Development Foundation’s concept of sustainable community-driven development is pegged on the premise that well-capacitated groups are key instruments in scaling up and sustaining continuous transformative change.
- Partnerships and Networking: Hands for Development Foundation believes that the challenges of poverty cannot be achieved by one actor hence there is value in working in a collaborative manner with other like-minded organizations in addressing issues that affect communities and enhance service delivery.
- Policy Influencing: Policy influencing refers to the different actions taken by organized groups on an issue of concern, to influence decision making or to change a policy that brings about lasting change in the lives of disadvantaged people.
Our Values:
- Equity: Everyone deserves equal economic, political and social rights and opportunities.
- Respect: We respect the rights and dignity of every human being and community irrespective of their social standing.
- Integrity:We uphold transparency, accountability and efficiency in dealing with others and within.
- Collaboration:We work with others in a dedicated manner towards the achievement of common goals.
- Innovation:We build a reflection and learning culture as we strive to evolve and share best practice.
Our Thematic Focus
- Education
- Livelihoods/women empowerment
- Environment and Natural Resource Management
- Health
- Human rights
- Water & Sanitation
Where we work: areas of operation Nairobi, Samburu, Garrissa, Mandera, Turkana, Wajir counties in Kenya
Our History: The establishment of Hands for Development as a nonprofit, non-governmental international organization was initiated in the year 2020 by a Mother and daughter who come from a Somali community which is adversely affected by FGM/C and thus decided to create awareness and combat the negative impact of FGM/C, widespread poverty in the slums, human rights abuses such as extra judicial killings, forced evictions, forced disappearances and environmental degradation as a result of climate change and rivers pollution. There was also mistreatment of refugees. As such, they set about to building a lasting resource that was not dependent entirely on foreign aid that would enable and empower poor and vulnerable communities to develop the capacity to resolve their development challenges they face, in a sustainable way. There were forums for ideas exchange with like-minded persons, visiting communities in the slums, and holding Focused discussion sessions with community to highlight prioritized problem areas. All these were to determine community felt needs. The foundation closely worked with established community structures, religious leaders, chiefs during local barazas and other meetings with relevant stakeholders.
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Strategies:
- Resources mobilization: The organization will engage in activities aimed at securing new and additional resources. We will also strive to the making better use of, and maximizing existing resources. Resource mobilization is critical to Hands for Development since it will ensure the continuation of the organization’s service provision to project beneficiaries and support organizational sustainability.
- Networking: We intend to continue working with like-minded organizations to be able to enhance service delivery to our project beneficiaries. We will attend relevant symposiums, meetings and forums.
- Education & Training: We intend to hold education and training sessions for our project beneficiaries. Workshops and seminars will be conducted alongside exposure visits to make our project beneficiaries get new knowledge, skills and positive attitudes necessary to enable them engage in meaningful income generating activities as well as facilitating behavior change.
- Counseling: Both group and individual counseling sessions will be vital to help our target beneficiaries be able to cope up with their surrounding environment.
- Lobbying & Advocacy: Advocacy efforts will be both logical and flexible to achieve the desired project results. We will engage stakeholders and coalition members in early conversations about objectives and goals to achieve buy-in for the advocacy efforts, and assists the beneficiaries in articulating those goals and objectives.