Another amazing and fantastic presentation for our members and guests. This time by Cinthia Damaris Santos, Manager of the Rapid Development (RD) Program for IPA in Copan Honduras. Pictured above is Cinthia followed by numerous screen shots from her presentation.
A bit about Cinthia. She had recently graduated college when a member of the Club in Copan Ruinas told her father that they were looking for a person to work for IPA managing some projects and they would prefer a bilingual person graduated from Mayatan so her father immediately though of Cinthia. And what a gem that IPA has in Copan managing the RD program.
The RD program has had 30 years of success in other countries. There are a number of Drivers involved in the program.
- Driver 1 - Human: Train new entrepreneurs with life skills. Social: Change “Poverty as a destiny” Financial: Encourage the participation of savings and credit groups.
- Driver 2 - Income; Objective: New enterprising people with life skills that they can be able to manage and improve their income through a business. Activity: Training, support and follow up. 20 business were started 4 of them were improved in RD1. 6 new business were started in 2019 in RD2 and we expect more.
- -Driver 3 - Health: Training on basic health attention during 6-8 months. Activity: Provide basic health attention in the community using a primary kit for emergencies and primary medicine for common illness.
- Driver 4 - Food and Agriculture Improve diets and agriculture techniques to. Activity: Silo programs, use of fertilizer, irrigation system and soil conservation. Training of nutrition, home gardens. Encourage families to maintain home gardens.
- Driver 5 - Education Improve education in communities through IPA Education programs. ** More children enrolled in school. Adopt a School; Adopt a Dream opening a middle school in case there is none; Student health fund; Mobile library and school furniture.
- Driver 6 - Infrastructure. Better community access, power, water and housing. Activities: Improve in priority order the community, building a middle school, connecting to power, new roads if government don’t support. Improve housing: first entrepreneur must show success to get a house improvement.
Cinthia outlined all of the basics about of the IPA program in the six Drivers. It's a great program and the reason for the success is the area is very safe commented Marty Peace from the Rotary Club of La Conner and a member of the IPA group who gave us a presentation recently. Marty and Peter Martin are going to Copan for ten days in November. Tracy talked about the need for Adopt-A-Student program as well as our Club Adopting a School. Many questions followed this really outstanding and very engaging program. Our Club is represented on IPA by Tracy, Kristin, Angie and Ilene.
Cinthia said that what she really likes to see is how IPA members and community people share which is a Foundation where the donor and the people who receive the help get to know each other and share. People feel connected the same as she does.