Council General launches “Strategy-25” Project
This initiative focusses to reduce poverty in the 25 poorest countries in the world
The Council General International (CGI), always concerned about providing better services to our Vincentian grassroots, and in total unity with the United Nations in reducing poverty and social inequalities, has just launched the Strategy-25 Project.
This project was developed by Bro. Arthur Schultze, coordinator of the International Twinning Commission (ITC), at the request of brother Renato Lima de Oliveira, 16th President General International, and it will be a priority in these last two years of this mandate.
CGI used the following criteria to identify the 25 needy countries. a) extreme poverty (countries of less than USD 2.00 per day); b) nations that are receiving little or no funding; c) several member countries with high levels of extreme poverty but they are currently in receipt of reasonable income and acceptable levels of funding; d) countries that are both twinned and not twinned; e) countries with 25% of the people who face extreme poverty; and f) other member countries considered by CGI due to special reasons.
“With this project, the wealthy countries in our Confederation will be able to better direct their generous donations to better focus on the real needs of these 25 countries, which are considered by the World Bank the poorest in the world. If we want to build a real charity network, we need to help those most in need, otherwise we will never achieve the equality so dreamt of by our founders and by all the inhabitants of this planet”, stressed brother Renato Lima.
The Council General International, through its solidarities departments (International Twinning Commission and Commission for International Aid & Development) will work together to enhance the Strategy-25 Project in these places: Ethiopia, Burundi, Madagascar, Guinea Bissau, Rwanda, Central African Republic, Sierra Leone, Togo, Ivory Coast, Senegal,
Liberia, Mali, Eritrea, Sao Tomé & Principe, Mozambique, Congo Brazzaville, Cameroon, Chad, Eswatini, Angola, Namibia, South Sudan, Haiti, Venezuela, Honduras, and Pakistan.
“Poverty is defined as not having enough material possessions or income to cover a person’s basic personal needs, sometimes so extreme where a person lacks food, clothing, and shelter. So, the Strategy-25 Project was created to best assist the neediest by our Society for the next years”, explained Bro. Arthur.
There will be key areas we need to focus on and implement to enjoy success with the Strategy-25 Project: community-based projects; social and educational projects; providing both twinned and non-twinning member countries with financial support; growing communication between twinning coordinators, donors and receivers; identifying new donor countries; and encouraging current donor countries, if possible, to grow their contributions.
“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will reward them for what they have done” (Proverbs 19, 17).
