Annual Report & request for donations

“Alheri gadon barci ne.”   Hausa proverb

A kindness is never wasted.

Dear Friends of Niger Members,

Isn’t it true that during your time in Niger you were the recipient of countless alheri? Certainly, we would stand up and attest that Nigeriens are some of the kindest people we have ever met!

You and I represent a tiny fraction of the population that knows anything at all about Niger. From having lived and worked there, we have a better understanding of what life is like in Niger and what the needs are. We care about the humanitarian toll that poverty takes on individuals, families, and communities – many of whom we know and consider dear friends.

Friends of Niger offers a way for you to continue to support effective life-changing development and humanitarian work even after your time there has ended. Your donations support vocational training for youth, solar electrification of health clinics, and biocontrol of millet-boring pests, to name a few.

The reports and pictures we receive from the Nigeriens who successfully implement these projects, and from the participants and recipients themselves, are a testament to the work that the Friends of Niger is doing to support Nigeriens and Niger.

Our mission is to promote and support sustainable development efforts in Niger, and our new FON Board of Directors is looking forward to continue fulfilling this mission in 2022! Many of our projects target women and children aiming to improve economic opportunities, nutrition, and health. Please take a few minutes to read the informative 2021 Grants Report and contact us if you would like to learn more or get more involved.

This year, one of our generous donors is planning to give $10,000 and challenges you to support this work by donating as much as is comfortable for you – no matter the amount. We are truly grateful for and count on your continuing support of Friends of Niger!

Your gift can help in so many ways.  Please write a check and mail it to PO Box 452, Haverford, PA 19041; or go to our website at www.friendsofniger.org and donate via PayPal by clicking on the “DONATE” button. Your gift to the Friends of Niger is tax-deductible and makes a real impact on families in the country we love.

Please do it today.  Please donate and touch someone in Niger. A kindness is never wasted.

Please see our 2021 Annual Grant Report HERE.

Thank you so much for your past and future support.

Sincerely,

Amy Wilson, President         John Baird, Past President
Friends of Niger, president@friendsofniger.org

October 31, 2021 Grant Deadline

October 2021 Call for Proposals

Friends of Niger is announcing a Call for Applications to close October 31, 2021.  Thanks to our generous donors we are able to offer small grants to support local initiatives in Niger.  Grants are awarded in spring and fall based on a competitive review process.

THE BASIC INFO

Friends of Niger (FON) awards small grants to support projects that directly benefit the people of Niger.  Grants range between $500 and $5,000.  Funding for grants comes from donations of members and supporters of the Friends of Niger organization.

Applications for funding must be received by OCTOBER 31, 2021.  All eligible applications will compete for available funding, based on how well they score.  The next application period is planned for spring 2022 (details to be announced).

FON gives priority to projects that:

•           Address a locally identified need

•           Are feasible and likely to be successful

•           Benefit many people.

•           Have community support and contributions

•           Have a plan to sustain the benefits into the future

•           Build local capacity and leadership 

À toute personne intéressée :

Les Amis du Niger (Friends of Niger, ou FON) est une organisation fondée par des anciens Volontaires du Corps de la Paix avec but d’initier et de promouvoir des activités portant sur le bien-être du Niger et du peuple Nigérien.  FON a élaboré un nouvel processus compétitif pour le financement de projets, et nous lançons actuellement un appel de projets.  Nous prévoyons deux cycles par an d’évaluation et d’accord de projets.  Les applications ne seront considérées que pendant ces deux périodes.

Toute application pour cet cycle actuel doit être soumise au plus tard le 31 octobre 2021.

Nous vous invitons à consulter les renseignements à notre site internet : www.friendsofniger.org/grants/grants2021   Nous vous encourageons de communiquer cette information aux autres qui peuvent s’intéresser à soumettre une application pour un don de FON.

GO to:       www.friendsofniger.org/grants/grants2021

 

Four Grants awarded

Friends of Niger is thrilled to announce funding for a new round of projects totaling approximately $16,250*.  Project selection was accomplished through our new, rigorous competitive process.  Many thanks to our “Friends of” group colleagues, including Nepal, Tanzania and Burkina, and the Portland OR RPCV group, who shared ideas and information about how they select and fund projects.  We cobbled together all the best ideas and we think our maiden voyage was a success.  We received 22 applications for funding from a variety of groups and a wide range of projects.  After sorting out 3 that did not meet basic eligibility criteria, a team of 12 volunteers reviewed and scored the remaining applications. Following lively debate and discussions, 4 applications were selected for funding.  Those that were not selected received feedback on what we liked about their proposals and how they might be more competitive next time.

Many thanks are also due to JoAnn Lewis and Alix Barstow Fedoruk who contributed lots of thoughtful, constructive input to the new process. And HIP HIP HOORAY for the review team members:  Mary Abrams, Ismaghil Ag Moussa, Steven Anderson, John Baird, Kimberly Dixon, Alix Barstow Fedoruk,  JoAnn Lewis, Dane Miller, Yari Rabiou, Cheryl Turner, Pamela White, and Amy Wilson.

*Please note $ amounts shown here reflect the amount requested in cfa and are approximated in dollars; actual amounts are dependent on exchange rates. 

PROJECTS ACCEPTED FOR FUNDING July 2021

Tchizamene Clinic Solar Batteries & Beds, Organisation Vie et Développement ~ $3,175

Organisation Vie et Développement demonstrated their cooperation in 2020 by implementing a FON small grant-funded emergency response project, providing medical supplies in the Agadez area.  This successful proposal will replace 12 year-old batteries for the solar array for the health clinic and purchase 10 beds and mattresses.  The clinic serves about 10,000 people in the Village of Tchizanmene, Commune of Dannat, Agadez Region.  There are two nurses, one midwife and her assistant at the clinic.  The batteries will improve capacity for refrigeration of essential medicines.

Bangiya Elementary School Desks, Bangiya Village Cooperative ~ $1,401

The Cooperative in the village of Bangiya near Zinder has been awarded funding to supply a new classroom with desks.  This project follows the successful implementation of a classroom construction project previously funded directly by individual members of FON in December 2020.  FON Board member Yari RABIOU has already delivered the funds for this project and visited the site while he was visiting in country in July 2021.  The grant will fund the purchase of 30 table-benches for the Bangiya elementary school.  (A video will be uploaded soon).

Sécurisation contre la chenille mineuse de l’épi du mil. Potentiel Terre ~ $4,855

Potentiel Terre will implement a program to breed and reintroduce an indigenous wasp that attacks millet boring insects.  The program will also provide training so that it can carry into the future with local people producing and distributing the wasps.  As many as 20,000 households hope to benefit from a reduction of crop loss in the commune of Mokko.

Vocational Training for School Dropouts, Incarcerated and Unemployed Youth. Centre de Formation des Artisans de Maradi ~ $5,000

The Centre de Formation des Artisans de Maradi is working with prison officials to provide youth training in various vocational programs.  A 13-month program will be delivered for up to 20 participants for approximately $350 each.  Training will include literacy, technical writing, basic accounting and entrepreneurship to the trainees.

In other project news –

A $10,000 grant to Kirker Foundation/Niger last year helped cover costs for ground transportation and delivery for a significant shipment of medical supplies.  As with previous shipments, the medicines and supplies were selected in close cooperation with the Ministry of Health to ensure they are used appropriately throughout Niger’s health care system, greatly expanding the capacity to meet the needs during the pandemic.  A video of the shipment being received in Zinder can be viewed at https://youtu.be/PkIlrYKbRxY

Horticultural center to open in Libore 2022

The Dov Center will train horticultural technicians to support agricultural cooperatives across Niger, increasing food and economic security for 50,000 farmers, their families and communities over 5 years. Tom & Patsy Lightbown, Niger 1965-67 invite you to join them in helping to furnish classrooms, cafeteria and dormitories.

Read more about the center DOV Center.

Announcing Grants available

PROJECTS / PROPOSITIONS DE SUBVENTIONS

The Friends of Niger is an organization founded by Returned Peace Corps Volunteers to initiate and support activities related to Niger and its people.  Friends of Niger is calling for proposals for a new competitive grant making process.  We have established two grant review cycles per year.  Applications will only be considered for funding during one of these two grant periods. 

All applications to be considered for funding in the next cycle must be received by May 31, 2021.  A second review period will be announced later this year. 

Les Amis du Niger (FON) accordent de petites subventions pour soutenir des projets qui profitent directement au peuple nigérien. Les subventions peuvent varier entre 500 $ et 5,000 $. Le financement des subventions provient des dons des membres et des sympathisants de FON.

Les demandes de financement doivent être reçues avant le 31 mai 2021. Toutes les demandes admissibles vont compéter pour les fonds disponibles en fonction de leur score.

Une deuxième période de demande est prévue pour novembre 2021 (détails à annoncer). www.friendsofniger.org/grants

Tribute to Irma Poots

We note the passing of Irma Poots, who was affectionately called “Poots” by her Peace Corps cohort in the Zinder region.  She was a public health volunteer serving from 64-66 in the Niger III group. Here is a tribute and enjoyable ode to volunteer service by Linda Schulman:

Excerpts from a letter written to the daughter of Irma Poots, (Niger III 64-66 Public Health) from Linda Schulman (64-66) . . . . .

I’m writing to you with my deepest condolences for the loss of your mother, who was a light spirit who buoyed my own on many occasions.

This is what came to mind as I contemplated what her loss meant to me:

When I think of your mother, an image comes to mind and that is of her standing beneath a towering giraffe, puckering her lips as if to let the animal know that she loved him and the giraffe bent its neck down as if to say he shared her affection. This snapshot, and I am sure a photo exists somewhere, was taken shortly after our arrival in Niamey in the early 1960s. I remember thinking that your mother had special powers relating to animals or maybe that people from Iowa might possess special abilities with animals that city folk like me did not have.

As you know Irma, who we affectionately called by her last name, “Poots” and I went on to become Peace Corps roommates in Zinder, the ancient capital of the newly anointed Independent “Republique du Niger”. We were both clueless as we tried to take on the mantel of Peace Corps Volunteer in what was then a truly exotic world to each of us. We might as well have been on the Moon or Mars. But fearlessly, or I should say, undaunted, we sallied forth and tried to perform our PCV duties to the very best of our abilities.

The first thing we did in order to make ourselves part of the neighborhood, so to speak, is to invite both Nigerien neighbors and PCVs residing locally, to a gathering at our home, which featured African “Piment” stew.

I don’t remember what the other ingredients were, but the hot pepper, “piment” is difficult to get out of one’s mind, even all these decades later. I remember everyone left happy and satiated, but with smoke issuing from their nose and ears. Figurative of course, but I recall that even our African neighbors could barely tolerate the spicy heat of our culinary attempt at making new friends and influencing people. All took it in good graces and with no small amount of amusement because we had naively added whole peppers, when only the very tip of one is necessary for making a good, hearty and very spicy African stew. So we blew our first endeavor as Peace Corps volunteers, but managed to save face somehow. Luckily the people with whom we interacted daily, both in our neighborhood or “quartier”, and in at the “Dispensaire” where we dispensed powdered milk to infants and pregnant mothers, thought highly of us, just by virtue of the fact that we were PCVs.   More accurately, I would say that they regarded us with admiration for our idealistic efforts, but with no small degree of amusement.

I have many other memories to share with you, like the time we visited the “Sultan” with his colorful entourage dressed in red and green, which stood out from everyone else, who mainly wore white, I presume to mitigate what could only be described as intense African heat. This did not include women, who generally wore colorful “pagnes”, that truly brought out their grace and beauty. Your mother and I wore these on occasion to the amusement of both Nigerien men and women, who clapped their hands in pure delight.

We, of course, felt very elegant, as we attempted not to trip over our long skirts, causing the whole thing to unravel and cause great embarrassment. This never happened, I am happy to say. I do not recall if we wore African attire on this occasion, but I seem to remember that my knees were showing below my hemline, which to African sensibilities is somewhat “risque”.

There were the everyday decisions to make, like whether to paint a room purple or a more mundane color. Surprisingly, we both agreed on purple, with relatively little argument. I think we both thought it was just great, in fact. I remember that others thought we had odd tastes, but we were oblivious. We felt free to be ourselves in this foreign environment no matter what. There was the day that we were each given motor “bicyclettes” and went tearing through the maze-like passageways of Zinder, without a care in the world. There were a few raised eyebrows needless to say.

We were invited to “soirees” at the homes of expats.  The French and the Lebanese were our favorite hosts and hostesses. It was my first taste of Lebanese food, which was a melange of both French and middle-eastern fare, that was definitely a palate-pleaser. We lived a life that was both opulent and exciting within a context of severe hardship that was often hard to reconcile. It was bitter sweet, like life, and it was often a bit quixotic and frustrating. Your mother dealt with the latter with a light shrug of her shoulders and arms flung out in semi-amazement as she uttered the time-worn expression: “C’est L’Afrique!”

Weaving all of these memories together, I see your mother’s lovely face shining through and still teaching me how to be humble, light-spirited and earthy all at the same time. I am grateful to have shared these experiences with her and to have known her under these very special circumstances that I still regard as one of the big highlights of my life.

Love, Hadija (Linda)

Sue Rosenfeld In Memoriam

Friends of Niger acknowledges the passing of our colleague and friend to so many, Sue Rosenfeld, who spent many years in Niger. We are sharing this brief obituary from her brother Josh below and we invite you to share your thoughts using the comment function on this page.

Sue Rosenfeld, 72, a New Jersey native who spent the majority of her life as an educator in Africa, passed away on October 10 in her home town of Niamey, Niger, after a lengthy illness. A native of Elizabeth, New Jersey, and the daughter of two teachers, her international adventures began when she spent a year abroad studying in Perugia, Italy while attending Dickinson College, where she graduated in 1970 and majored in Classical Studies.

She left for Africa in 1977/8 to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer in Joal, Senegal, and would live in Africa for the rest of her life. After years in Senegal Sue was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship and moved to Bujumbura, Burundi, where she would remain until she moved to Niamey. She taught English at the American Cultural Center and served as the coordinator for Boston University’s foreign study program in Niamey until the program was terminated in 2010. She remained there as a teacher and educator until her death.

One of her students in Niamey was Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). “Our program director, Sue Rosenfeld, once told us that students who apply to the Niger program are ‘self-selected’”, Ocasio-Cortez said in a March, 2010 article in Boston University’s Daily Free Press. “In other words, young students who make the commitment to spending four months in the Sahel of West Africa tend to have a thirst for adventure that is not easily quieted by concern.”

In addition to her roles with the Peace Corps and Boston University, she spent much of her life teaching English as a second language (TESOL).

A serial correspondent, she communicated on a regular basis with hundreds of friends, colleagues, students and family around rather globe, many of whom commented on her ability to bring diverse and unlikely groups of people together. She is best-remembered for her willingness to mentor and aid others, including assisting several African students to attend college in the United States.

She is survived by her brother, Josh, who remains in Elizabeth, and her long-time companion Ahmadou Mbaye of Dakar, Senegal. She is the cousin of author Judy Blume and also survived by her dogs, and Bebe, a chimpanzee she cared for in Niamey.

Her body will remain in Niamey, while her soul remains in all who knew her. 

The outpouring of memories about Sue and the impact she has had will be recorded below.  It is worthy to note that Sue was a member of the Friends of Niger Board beginning in 2006 as the Niger Liaison.  In that capacity for many years Sue helped guide the activities and investments which FON made in Niger.  One of the traditions that Sue began was to provide the National Hospital Pediatric ward with chewable vitamins that had been hand-carried over to Niger by FON members and other travelers. 

EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE NEEDED IN AREAS IMPACTED BY FLOODING IN NIGER

Friends of Niger,

Heavy rains, extreme flooding starting in August, and the collapse of the dam near Niamey have led to severe property destruction, displacement, malnutrition and now the spread of malaria in many parts of Niger.  As of September 15th, 71 people have died due to drowning or injury, and over 350,000 have had to leave their homes.  The most severely impacted regions include Dosso-Tillabery, Niamey, Tahoua, Maradi, Zinder, and Agadez. 

Friends of Niger has reviewed proposals from 6 reliable non-governmental organization partners to support their relief work.  In view of the urgency of the situation, FON plans to send at least $1,000 to each of these NGOs.  With your extra help we could send more to each group to be used to address urgent needs such as: impregnated mosquito nets, emergency food, and medical aid.  How many mosquito nets and supplies can we send? Can you help?

Friends of Niger focuses its energy and resources on sustainable development activities, but also recognizes the importance of responding to emergencies such as the current one.  Please give generously now to support this work! The online donations page is at http://www.friendsofniger.org/donate/donate-via-paypal, or you may mail a check payable to Friends of Niger, PO Box 452, Haverford, PA  19041. 

We are fortunate to have some Board Members with strong connections to some of the most flood-affected areas, in Niamey, Maradi, and Agadez.  They have agreed to act as Project Monitors with partner NGOs.

  • Association pour le Développement de l’Éducation et la Sauvegarde de la Santé (ADESS), in Mont Bagzam, a remote rural community in the Agadez Region. 
  • CONUSA (Conseil des Nigériens aux USA), of which Seybou is president, and Yari is a former officer.  CONUSA has already independently raised over $14,000 towards their flood relief efforts in Niamey. 
  • Cadres et Étudiants du Niger (CEN), working in Niamey. 
  • Alliance des Jeunes pour un Développement Endogène (AJDE), a medical team in the University district of Niamey working in coordination with a Nurse Volunteers team.   
  • Association HIMMA, which FON has previously supported in ongoing Cholera prevention and microfinance (grants) programs in Tibiri and Gabi in Maradi Region. 
  • Organisation Vie et Développement-Tedhilt, in the Agadez region. 

With your help, FON can send more funds to address urgent needs, without taking away from our support of projects that build Niger’s capacity in a long-term way.  Possibly we can send a second distribution to our partners in a few weeks. We will also work with them to support preparedness for the future, as such floods become more common every year.

Thank you very much for responding to this emergency,

John Baird, President
Friends of Niger

Flood response donations welcomed by Friends of Niger.

Friends of Niger is currently reviewing several requests from organizations for flood assistance and we hope to provide some support through them to those in need soon.

The Nigerien expatriate group CONUSA has already raised over $2,000.

To donate now, you can either go to http://www.friendsofniger.org/donate/donate-via-paypal/ to use PayPal, or write a check payable to Friends of Niger and mail to: Friends of Niger PO Box 452 Haverford, PA 19041.

Thank you for lending a hand at a critical time. Fonda goy and Merci.

FLOODING update as of Sept. 7, 2020

Three months of pounding rain in Niger have left 65 people dead and affected nearly 330,000, while several areas of the capital Niamey remain underwater.

The ministry of humanitarian action and disaster reported that as of September 7, 51 people had died when their home collapsed in the floods, and 14 had drowned.

The worst-affected regions are Maradi in the central south of the country, Tahoua and Tillaberi in the west, and Dosso in the southwest.

At least 10 of the deaths were in the capital Niamey, where the rain caused the Niger river to breach its banks, municipal authorities said.

Flooding last year claimed 57 lives and affected 226,000 people nationwide.

Website of the Friends of Niger