Empower WAYUU women through handcrafted bags

Estimated Sponsors,

2021 has been another year full of challenges, living with COVID-19, getting back on our activities, and dealing with the economic difficulties the pandemic has left. During the past months our work hasn't stopped and we compromise with our cause. In our last report we told our sponsors about partnering with Colombia's national technical education institution SENA for better training on the mochila production and the opportunities on this market. This partnership opened the opportunity to expand the mochila project to the agricultural field. Our first step was researching the necessities the Wayuu community has. The results of the 344 interviews  were focused on the lack of economic opportunities in the region. In order to give a deeper solution to the problem in our partnership with SENA we designed and started a project focused on two main objectives: 1. Food sovereignty and 2. New forms of getting income. This expansion focused on three communities (Panerkishi, Kousalain and Onoulalia), where we provided the necessary materials to start working on the project. In addition to this we are keeping the labor of producing mochilas and providing the material and proper training to make them. Last June we traveled to the communities to distribute groceries to several families who have been hardly affected by the conditions they are living in. 

We truly thank the donors who are interested in and support our project even in difficult times, and Share Sarangbat and our communities pray for you and your family to keep healthy.

Estimated Sponsors

It has already been over a year since the outbreak of the corona virus. As the number of new confirmed cases per day in Colombia is close to 20,000 people, Quarantine national are continuing and our jobs in field are having difficulties. Also, as mochila sales have declined generally due to the global economic depression, most of Wayuu hand-crafts women are facing even more difficulties; They are selling their products to distributors even cheaper than before because of lack of reserve for their families. Because of these reasons, even though we could not be able to visit the village often, we also keep working to increase sales to generate stable income for our women; We are applying for an exposition in Bogota, and we are also making platform for sale on the Internet. We are also preparing to collaborate with SENA, Colombia's national technical education institution, to provide better and organized curriculum for Mochila production and agriculture.

Last December, I visited before Christmas and delivered Christmas gifts and groceries to the children in the 4 villages. Also, We constructed a deep well with solar pump in the community Koushalain. Before there was only a traditional well, which is not deep enough to provide sufficient water especially in the dry season and gives salty water due to geological reason. Therefore, it was impossible to have water for washing hands hygienically.

So we drilled a 120M deep well in the Koushalain and installed a solar pump. In addition, a water tank was installed to provide access to water even after sunset. After this,

Drinking water supply rate Increased (100%)

- The water supply rate before was about 33% (rainy season August-December), but the existing wells in the village were not deep enough and water is salty, so the drinking water supply rate was close to 0%.

- After installing the well, the supply rate of drinking water remains to be seen, but it is expected to be close to 100%, and it is possible to supply non-salt and potable water.

It could supply more than 25 times the recommended daily amount of WHO for about 120 people in the village, which is 1,260L of water per person per day (WHO said that minimum survival water amount per day is 20L, recommended daily amount is 50L)

Through sufficient water supply, it is possible not only to drink clean and healthy water but also to prevent waterborne diseases and coronavirus, in the COVID-19 pandemic situation,

Secure enough water for village farming education projects scheduled for this year.

We truly thank the donors who are interested in and support our project even in difficult time, and Share Sarangbat and our communities pray for you and your family to keep healthy.