Women
Since its inception in 1993, the Lambi Fund of Haiti has supported projects run by women. To understand our motivation for this emphasis, you have to understand the situation that poor women in Haiti face. As the song lyrics highlight, their responsibilities are many and varied. Household tasks are extremely labor intensive, and almost all of them fall to women and girls. They cook over charcoal fires, wash clothes by hand, and tote water for drinking and bathing. Haitian women also play a central role in Haitian agriculture. Alongside men, they plant and harvest crops and raise livestock. Most Haitian women must find ways to earn an income, too. They find work in factories, as domestic help and particularly as vendors in the open air markets where the poor shop. Moreover, many women raise their children alone, with little or no support from a man. Mothers go to great lengths to send their children to school, sacrificing to pay fees, as they want so badly to provide their children with a brighter future. Whatever wages they earn go towards feeding and educating their children.
Women Organize
The sheer amount of work which women undertake can be exhausting but, amazingly, many also dedicate themselves to community projects as well. As they organize themselves, they develop workable solutions to address the difficulties they face. With little financial means or education but great determination, women's organizations, and women within larger mixed groups, approach the Lambi Fund for the assistance they need to turn their plans into reality. We support their efforts because we know that by supporting women, we are also directly supporting their families and their whole communities.
Grain Mills
The task of milling grains, such as corn and millet, falls to women. Once milled, the grain can be fed to their families or sold in the marketplace to raise money for household expenses. Women in rural areas of central and northwestern Haiti faced daunting challenges in accomplishing this task. Because there were no mills in their small villages, they had to transport the grain, on foot or by pack animal, to mills that were often many hours' journey away. Once they arrived, they were often pushed aside, and merchants with larger amounts of grain were served ahead of them. The women developed proposals for motorized mills or multiple small manual mills which their organizations would operate. With Lambi's assistance, the women now collectively own and run the mills; they have access to the service they need close to home, and no longer have to endure the rudeness of the male mill owners.
Processing Harvests
Also in Haiti's northwest, women working in cocoa production found it to be anything but sweet. Speculators ensured that growers could never make more than a few cents per pound of produce. A federation of more than 75 regional women's cooperatives in two communities asked for Lambi's help to purchase handmills to replace the traditional method of grinding cocoa beans by pestle. The handmills speed up processing, thus creating a higher quality product ready for market, and giving the women direct control over their own production.
Moving Forward
Lambi also facilitates conferences and seminars for poor women from around the country, where they learn about their legal rights and recognize the indispensable role they play in society. They are able to reflect together and encourage each other in the struggle for justice. Through these projects, women earn more money and their work load is reduced. Moreover, they develop as leaders who strengthen the grassroots movement. By supporting the Lambi Fund, you reinforce the people who are the center posts of life in Haiti. As Haitian women move from poverty and oppression toward liberation, they are bringing the whole country with them.
