In July 2015, 8 organisations in West Bengal joined us partners on Hummingbird Raise Programme. Hummingbird Raise is a collaboration between Hummingbird Foundation and Equal Community Foundation.
Some of these organisations will implement ECF’s Action for Equality programme (AFE) and some will be a part of the programme to learn about the approach; understand and form plans on how to embed this approach in their existing work.
We will be working with these partners till June 2017 and provide them non-financial and financial support (for 4 of these organisations) for doing this work.
- Sahay was set up in 1989 in West Bengal as an implementation partner of Children International. It supports children in the areas of health and nutrition, education, and reproductive and sexual health. They will be implementing the Action for Equality (AfE) programme in 4 communities in the blocks of Diamond Harbour and Sonarpur.
- Sundarban Social Development Center was set up in 1986 in West Bengal. It intensively works with women, children, youth, and senior citizens in the areas such as health, prevention of child trafficking and early girl-child marriages. They will be implementing the AfE programme in 8 communities with settlements of minority communities in the blocks of Mandirbazar and Dhanurhut. (http://www.ssdcindia.org.in/)
- Sanlaap was formally established in 1989 in West Bengal. Their primary focus is on child protection and rights, women’s rights, trafficking and building capacity of government and non-government organisations in these areas. They are implementing the AfE programme in 8 communities in Basirhat I, Kulpi, and Gazipur blocks (http://www.sanlaap.org/)
- Dhagagia Social Welfare Society was established in 1995 in West Bengal. They are primarily involved in prevention of trafficking of women and children, promoting health and education in communities. They are implementing the AfE programme in 8 villages in Sandeshkhali I & II blocks to support and complement their existing programmes on child trafficking.
- Rupantaran Foundation was set up in West Bengal in 2009. They primarily work with the youth on various social issues to prevent child marriages, providing education support, gender discrimination, and violence. They are implementing the AfE model to complement their existing initiative with both boys and girls in the blocks of South 24 Parganas and Kolkata.
- New Alipore Praajak Development Society was formed in 1997 in West Bengal. Their interventions are extensive and are focused on child’s right to protection and child’s right to education. They will adopt learnings from AFE to support their existing work with boys.
- Seva Kendra Calcutta was set up in 1973 in West Bengal. Their focus is on empowerment of the youth through their programmes on education, promoting gender equality, awareness on trafficking, early marriages, and safe migration, and health. They are currently forming plans to embed the approach of engaging boys and men in their existing work.
- Sabuj Sangha was formalized in 1975 in West Bengal. Their interventions focus on child education and protection, women empowerment and livelihood, water, sanitation and hygiene, and health and nutrition. They will adopt learnings from AFE to support their existing work.
We recognize the great potential of our partners and are committed to a close collaboration to make these organisations leading actors that will engage boys and men to prevent gender-based violence in West Bengal.