Menschen helfen e.V.
In accordance with our mission statement, we also use our entrepreneurial success to help other people.
That is why we founded ‘Menschen helfen e.V.’ – a non-profit association that aims to help people in a difficult environment lead a fulfilled life with prospects for the future.
Jobs for Africa – sustainable aid stops refugee flows
It is in this spirit that ‘Menschen helfen e.V.’ is active in Africa. The current focus is on supporting the ‘House of Skills’ of the Evangelical Church in Gambia. A donation to the Evangelical Church of Gambia made it possible to buy a 20,000 m² plot of land on which the necessary buildings are now being constructed piece by piece and the required infrastructure is being created. The project is managed by a German-Gambian team.
‘Menschen helfen e.V.’ is recognised by the tax office as a non-profit organisation and therefore entitled to deduct donations. We are supported by private donors and repeatedly apply successfully for public funding.
If you would also like to contribute to the work of “Menschen helfen e.V.” with a donation, please feel free to contact us personally at any time.
At “House of Skills” in The Gambia, young people can complete vocational training based on the German model.
There, young people receive dual training in professions such as bricklayer, painter, electrician, car mechanic, industrial mechanic, carpenter, metal worker, baker and in busines administration.
After the training, they are employed in the companies of House of Skills or haveexcelent opportunities on the limited Gambian labour market.
Therefore these young people are equipped with an economic basis to build their lives in their home country. In this way, we contribute to counteracting the causes of flight and offer refugees willing to return a training position or a job.
One successful example is the Sunshine Bakery, which was launched in 2017 in cooperation with the ‘Brot gegen Not’ Foundation. Here, high-quality baked goods are produced and successfully sold. In the meantime, five apprentices have completed their training. Three apprentices were employed at the Sushine Bakery and two got well-paid jobs at the Banjul mill. Currently, another eight apprentices are being trained.
Soon, a 400-square-metre car workshop will start its work.
Gradually, more handicraft workshops will be established.
Jobs for Africa – sustainable aid stops refugee flows
Agritech Development Ltd, a social enterprise, has been our partner in Tanzania since 2014.
In Muheza, we supported a private-public partnership with the Muheza municipality (Tanga province) to restart an old farm. A sisal farm was built on 4,200 ha of the old Kibaranga Estate. We helped to lay the foundation so that up to 500 jobs can be created in the coming years.
In the Korogwe community, we supported the construction of a small factory where local smallholders can have their sisal leaves processed into fibres. On the one hand, we helped to create direct jobs in fibre production, and on the other hand, the small farmers in this project are offered fair prices and direct, fast payment for their goods.
For a Maasai tribe in Morogoro, we drilled a well to ensure the supply of clean drinking water for people and animals. We also helped to organise child care for this tribe. As a thank you, we were invited to a Massai festival, for which several cows were slaughtered and the warriors performed their traditional dances. An unforgettable experience. At the same time, we negotiated with the elders and were able to include a training block in the festivity, on how to prevent HIV infections.
In Korogwe, a well was drilled which not only supplies the small company but also provides the neighbours with good drinking water.
The aim of our work is to use not only our capital but also our knowledge to create jobs in Africa. In this way, we help people to lead a life worth living and to earn an income from which the family can live. We also want to create a social environment in which parents can make their children strong for life. This includes kindergarten, extracurricular education and a functioning basic health care system. All of this has to be done in a sustainable manner, in that the projects can independently raise the necessary funds within the framework of an economic activity and are not dependent on donations.
We have been firmly anchored in the sisal business for 50 years – previously with a spinning and weaving mill for sisal fabric and sisal carpets in South Africa as well as at several locations in Europe and Asia where we produce sisal polishing discs for the pre-polishing of metals.
We have achieved a lot in the last few years in a difficult environment.