What’s New with Asali!

Oh what a year it’s been! We are excited to share an update on programs, partnerships, and other important things Asali has been up to since our last newsletter. Although the past year has been difficult for many of us worldwide, we also have some things worth celebrating. In the past year, we have developed new partnerships, strengthened existing ones, opened up new opportunities for our local leaders, and most importantly, secured new funding for Simba’s programs. Below are a few highlights from this past year that we are happy to share with you: 

Simba’s Footprints Community Center

• We continue to support the local team at Simba’s Footprints Community Center as they grow and expand their impact on the wider community. The center now reaches over 1,000 children and adolescents through its education- and recreation-based programming as well as its health initiatives. 

• Saidi, Simba’s first Asali-funded scholarship recipient, graduated his program in 2020 as a licensed electrician with two job offers! We are so proud of his hard work over the past three years and can’t wait to see what’s next.

• Simba’s music program is booming, with a waiting list of students wanting to join. This past year, an additional room was renovated to accommodate an expansion of the program. Asali partnered with Musary, Inc, another Massachusetts based nonprofit with an amazing instrument-borrowing program, to bring more instruments to students at Simba’s. Want to learn more? Check out our shoutout in the Boston Globe! 

Local leaders do it better: This has always been our belief and it’s why we are committed to investing in Simba’s leaders and their professional development. This past spring we helped the Executive Director of the center, Charles Godfrey, enroll and participate in a Social Impact Incubator run by the Segal Family Foundation. This seven month intensive training brings together 23 innovative leaders from around Tanzania to network and learn skills on capacity-building, strategic planning, leadership, and much more!

Capacity-building: When our local leaders have access to funding, resources, and professional development opportunities, they can expand their local impact. This winter, we worked with the Simba’s Team to apply for a grant from the Women Fund Tanzania organization. This grant will allow the team on the ground to have more dollars (roughly USD15,000) to strengthen their women’s education, health, and entrepreneurship programing. 

Monthly donor program: We want to extend a special thank you to our monthly donors! As a donor-funded organization, having consistent support is invaluable. It ensures the long-term success of our partners, helps us better budget for our activities, and builds accurate yearly operating budgets for Asali and our partners. So, whether it’s five dollars or 25, we ask you to consider becoming a monthly donor!

Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more regular updates!

Love and Honey,

The Asali Bees (Margot, Sophie, Amy, Pam, Charlotte and Margot)