User:Icgeneral

Invisible Children Bracelet Campaign
Millions of people in northern Uganda have been forced into camps where they suffer more than their share. Farmers by trade, they once relied on family land and seasonal crops to provide for themselves and their loved ones. But their relocation to IDP camps means that they must now rely on the insufficient rations of the international aid community.

The Bracelet Campaign combines the power of market-driven development with the lifelong benefits of education to create a peaceful tomorrow.

The bracelets are handmade from reed and recycled wire, and then packaged with a short film that tells the story of a child affected by the war. Our goal isn’t to simply offer a product, but a new perspective. A better understanding of the impact the war has had on millions of lives.

Invisible Children staff work together with community leaders to identify the most vulnerable people in a chosen camp, assessing their personal condition and history, and their family and home situation. Those chosen are trained in bracelet making and supplied weekly with the necessary materials. Current beneficiaries of the program include widows, formerly abducted persons, child mothers, people living with HIV/AIDS, disabled persons and other vulnerable groups among the internally displaced.

On average, each bracelet maker creates between 50 and 60 bracelets per week, earning a generous salary from each bracelet they make. Additionally, bank accounts are opened in the name of each beneficiary and money is deposited into these accounts each month in addition to cash payments made to the bracelet makers.

Current Numbers Koro: 65 Awer: 29 Heals: 23 Atanga: 28 Kica Ber: 7 Kampala: 27

Total: 179 Beneficiaries*
 * As of April 2008

http://www.wellspringinternational.org/projects.php?id=16 http://tnjn.com/2008/apr/20/invisible-children-highlight-a/ http://www.shepherdnetwork.org/uganda/index.html http://www.inlandempire.us/news/2005/12/invisible-children-brings-out-holiday.html