BLESS aims at strengthening the economic livelihoods and environmental sustainability of marginalized members of Egyptian society.
The Economic Development Program seeks to ensure that women and men have a periodic income, which they did not have before or have increased their income by at least 20%.
The program offers:
- Vocational training and skill-building programs: to provide beneficiaries with vocational skills and abilities to qualify them to join the labor market.
- Entrepreneurship promotion workshops: to provide knowledge on how to start a project, including information about feasibility studies for projects, market study, and project management for both men and women.
- Financial literacy (FL) courses: to equip beneficiaries with the skills and abilities to manage personal finance effectively. Topics in these courses will include making personal finance choices, savings, budgeting, and retirement plans.
- Small and micro-loans for business startup and growth: to work on financing micro-projects through the revolving loan system to improve the income of target groups.
- Green economic activities: the program encourages the targeting group of youth, women and men by providing loans to start a project that contributes to protecting the environment.
- Job placement unit: to communicate with individuals and companies to find decent work opportunities for job seekers with a particular focus on disadvantaged groups such as women and people with disabilities.
In 2024, the Economic Development program facilitated income generation for 674 individuals, including 297 who started new businesses and 377 who expanded existing ventures, increasing their income by 24%. Key interventions included microloans, vocational training, entrepreneurship workshops, and job placement services. To meet growing demand, the program expanded nationally, with a particular focus on Greater Cairo.
The Rural Development Program: seeks to ensure that rural men and women increase their income by at least 20% through agricultural productivity or protecting livestock.
The program offers:
- Sessional agriculture courses: to provide farmers with various knowledge to help them solve the problems they currently or potentially face in agriculture.
- Follow-up visits for agricultural fields: to provide technical support to farmers to educate and equip them with the latest recommendations and technical methods in agriculture to increase production.
- Farmer field school: to guide farmers with a set of recommendations about taking the necessary measures to combat climate change and the methods of detecting and removing any disease or insect phenomena.
- Care & Management of Livestock course (including livestock insurance and animal vaccination): This course aims to raise awareness about the correct methods of veterinary care for animals (including poultry) and the importance of vaccinating their animals against epidemic diseases. This course also emphasizes the importance of livestock insurance.
- Practical application of sustainable food production methods: This activity aims to provide rural women with the necessary skills to improve their efficiency in modern food industries.
- Agricultural services: to provide farmers with agricultural machines and materials and create project models to aid in their agricultural and animal production, including fertilizers, seeds, fodder, medicines, and veterinary tools, and more.
In 2024, The Rural Development program improved agricultural productivity and boosted the income of 1,075 farmers, including 192 rural women, by 23%. This was achieved through 162 sessional agriculture courses, 133 follow-up visits to agricultural fields, and the establishment of five farmer field schools. Additionally, the program encouraged approximately 1,764 farmers to protect their livestock, further enhancing their income. As part of these efforts, 13,854 livestock were vaccinated, and 395 livestock were insured. The program also adopted eco-friendly techniques by implementing 13 composting applications for 421 farmers, providing them with natural fertilization for their lands.
Environmental Development program: encourages people to adopt eco-friendly techniques (rationalizing consumption of natural resources, biological pest control, agri-recycling management)
The program offers:
- Applied solar water heater samples
- Street lighting campaigns and Interior lightning campaigns with the use of LED technology, which is more rational in energy consumption than traditional lamps.
- Workshops for recycling management and energy rationalization: water consumption rationalization workshops, LED lamp repair workshops - practical applications (compost) – and recycling classes.
In 2024, Seventy-seven interior lighting campaigns were conducted for 13,967 participants and 27 street lighting campaigns for 84,858 participants, thirteen composting applications were implemented for 421 farmers, providing them with natural fertilization for their lands.
These achievements exemplify our commitment to sustainable rural development. As we look ahead, we remain dedicated to fostering resilient communities, nurturing the land, and creating a brighter future for all.
