Midway Report

1. Who you are and why did you decide to become a poverty fighter

I am Santiago José Massano and I am from Argentina. I decided to become a poverty fighter for two reasons: because I really like to help people to have a better life and because I want to learn how to do that so I can do it in my own country.

2. Your project and your achievements during the first 2 months

My project is in Itiúba on Bahia state in the northeast of Brazil. The project leader is Mauro. It is a brand new child aid project that begins in 2008.

We have done until now a lot of things:

a- Every week I give English classes in Itiuba for people of all ages. I give two hours of classes.

b- Every week I give computer classes in Itiuba for people of all ages. I give two hours of classes.

c- Every week I give English classes for the area leaders in my village. I give twice a week one hour each day.

d- Every week I give theater classes for young people in my village, Cacimbas. I give two hours of classes.

e- Every week I give singing classes in another community next to mine. I give one hour every Sunday.

f- We have done 9 vegetable gardens.

g- We have organized 4 community cleaning actions.

h- We are participating in the meetings to organize a free market in Cacimbas.

i- I had interview 12 families to know their reality.

j- We solve part of the water problem in Fazenda Sao Bento getting a cistern from the city government.

k- We organized the community of Sao Bento to dig a water whole.

l- We do a cinema session every Saturday afternoon in our community as an entertainment activity for youths and children.

m- I got a donation of U$S 460 dollars from Anna Willinsky in USA to buy material to start the vegetable gardens.

n- We started a micro credit project to allow the families to improve their life conditions buying fence for the gardens, water filters, etc.

o- We are participating in the organization of children’s day party.

p- Every Sunday we participate of the meetings at HUMANA’s office discussing the problems, finding solutions and giving new ideas.

q- We are creating a blog to promote hand crafts that a group of woman from a community close to the one we live do.

r- We participated in the special weekend organized by HUMANA’s staff to encourage the people working at the project.

s- We participated in local associations meetings to know better our community.

t- We participated in a HUMANA’s action intended to increase the number of families being part of the project.

u- We made a raffle to raise money to increase our micro credit project. We ask our students in Itiuba to sell the raffle.

3. Status of the family task list

Here the project is organized in a different way. The project leader ask us to use the task list just as a guide but we do the things that we think are more needed at this particular reality and also, we do the things that are possible tacking account of the lack of money and human resources in our community. Our area has 6 agents working together with the area leader but just two of them really work, the rest are over there for political reasons. Our project leader tried to unit all the association’s presidents and political sectors working together for the community; but in our community just two of them work.

4. Action weeks – results, impact on the community and plans

Every single week here has been an action week for us. Every week we have an activity that involves a group of families: cinema, doing vegetable gardens, community actions, meetings.

5. Plans and goals for next 2 months

a- We are planning to increase the founds of the micro credit project to reach more families. The next projects are going to be: buying water filters, do a chicken project.

b- We are planning to give some nutrition and sexual education classes at the schools in our community.

c- We are planning to give fruit trees and moringa trees to the families.

d- I am planning to do a final presentation with my students of theater and singing classes.

6. Challenges and problems and how have you solved them

a- The first challenge was the house. It was not in conditions to live so we ask help from HUMANA staff in our community and we improve it.

b- Second challenge was putting HUMANA staff in action in our community. It was hard to do the interviews because we didn’t know which families should we interview and sometimes no one was there to tell us.

c- The third challenge was the lack of money. The project was with no money at all so there were no salaries, no money to buy a table and chairs and no money to work. After two months talking with IICD Michigan head master, our project leader and the country director we solve the money problem. I got a donation from USA that allows us to buy material to start working with the families.

d- The fourth challenge was political issues. The project depends on government money which converts virtually the NGO in a GO: governmental organization. Most of the decisions we take and the activities we do must be approved in some way by the city hall, if not the mayor talks with the governor and then the money don’t come. So, we have to be very carefully and very polite with all the people participating in politics over here. That include some agents that should work in our community but in reality don’t work. Even though, we can not fight with them because of the political issues.