Members of the carpenters association have organized themselves to procure their raw materials in bulk and store them jointly thus improving their bargaining power and reducing costs.
Quick Impact Programme for Refugee Zones: Community Based Production Centres & Community Rehabilitation Projects with Skills Upgrading in Forest Guinea
Duration: May 2007– December 2008
Budget: US$1,095,039
Implementing Agencies: UNIDO, WHO, UNICEF, UNHCR, WFP
The civil conflicts of the 1990s in neighboring Sierra Leone and Liberia transformed Guinea into one of the largest refugee hosting countries in the world. With widespread poverty and food insecurity already overwhelming the economy, the influx of refugees placed significant strain on the limited resources of Guinea. In particular, host communities in the Forest Guinea region – where large refugee, returnee and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) resided – faced a growing number of challenges stemming from lack of access to social services including potable water, sanitation, health and education facilities; the destruction of infrastructure, loss of property and land for agricultural activities; and growing poverty.
By improving access to social services, restoring infrastructure, and strengthening the productive capacities of those living in the Forest Guinea region, the programme aims to reduce tensions between host communities and refugees. Specifically, the programme helps to create income-generating opportunities that collectively benefit host communities, refugees, returnees and IDPs. The programme seeks to do this by setting up Community-based Production Centers (CPCs) that are tasked with providing intensive skills-upgrading training courses, bolstering collective self-help entrepreneurial initiatives, and restoring community infrastructures. Ultimately, through communal management of the CPCs, the programme advances social cohesion and strengthens the capacities of those living in the Forest Guinea region.
KEY MATERIALS
Programme Summary
Beneficiary Stories