Supas Peshmerga Campaign MISSION

APRIL - JUNE 2015
RWANGA
FOUNDATION
United Nations, Delegation
Visit Rwanga Community
Supas Peshmerga film
Supas Peshmerga
Campaign
MISSION
Rwanga’s mission is to provide services,
design policies and build capacities to
enable easier access to education and
improve its overall standard in Kurdistan
and the greater global community.
Rwanga Team Building
On May 29, 2015, Rwanga’s Head of Sports Sector led a day of team building for the foundation's staff atop the
famous Korek Mountain. The team summited the mountain of 2,127 meters and enjoyed a much deserved lunch
after hiking while sharing stories and of course a rest while taking in the incredible vista that the mountain affords.
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Financial Aid to Martyrs’ Families Continued in
Sulaimani and Halabja
International Sports Day
In continued attempts to support martyrs' families, The
Foundation has begun the support of families based in
Sulaimani city and Halabja, while also including areas of
Said Sadiq, Penjwen, Sharbazher, Sharazwr and Dukan.
Staff from the Sports Department traveled to Qushtapa
and Baharka camps to provide a physical education class
to around 60 school children, including instruction to
teachers during International Sports Day.
Rwanga and German Partner LOG Deliver to IDPs
In association with Luftfahrt ohne Grenzen (LOG), Rwanga distributed aid to IDPs based in Rwanga Community in
the Duhok governorate. Provided essentials included mattresses, blankets, milk, baby diapers, clothes, pillows, shoes,
solar lights, biscuits and water.
Later, Rwanga’s Sulaimani office, based on a request from GEC - Sulaimani, supplied Immediate Response Rations
(IRR) of food to 540 IDPs settled in the villages surrounding Qaradagh District in Sulaimani. Aid was again provided
by the German organization LOG to assist IDP families.
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United Nations, Delegation Visit Rwanga Community
Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator of the United Nations in Iraq, Dominik Bartsch, along with other members of
international organizations (IOs) and local government met at Rwanga Community to evaluate facilities and conduct
family visits. Bartsch complemented the organization and operation of Rwanga Community.
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Rwanga foundation released a much anticipated short film that highlights the Peshmergas’ determination and
personal reasons of why they have chosen to defend Kurdistan. People living in Kurdistan are also shown
expressing their appreciation for the sacrifice Peshmerga make every day to protect and serve the country.
Rwanga Increases Cooperation with Aid Sent to Kobani and Syrian Refugees
Rwanga Foundation distributed non-food items to
German Partner Organizations
refugees from Kobani and Syria which included supplies
The
German
Association
for
International
Cooperation (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale
Zusammenarbeit – GIZ) will soon finish and inaugurate
several projects inside Rwanga Community which will
have a capacity to host 24,000 IDPs. Additionally, GIZ is
pleased to soon open a school for the IDP population
in Rwanga Community. The project will feature 12
classrooms and accommodate 360 students and have
access for the disabled.
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for 840 persons in Darashakran Camp as requested.
Rwanga has actively supported Syrian refugees in
Kurdistan since 2013. Darashakran currently hosts
approximately 10,500 persons.
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Duhok Job Fair
Rwanga and 20 other NGOs, organizations and companies participated in the Duhok Job Fair which was sponsored
by the University of Duhok.
The foundation believes strongly that preparing youth in Kurdistan for the private sector is of utmost importance as
the public sector has grown to be overloaded with employment. Various free training sessions focusing on capacity
building, marketing, CV writing, interview skills and entrepreneurship will be provided in accordance with Rwanga's
focus on education.
Environmental Awareness: Anti-Littering Campaign
Two teams from Projects Department distributed 5,000 flyers and garbage bags to families traveling for picnicking
near Shaqlawa, Sheraswar, Tawska, and Hiran.
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Director of Rwanga Delivers
School and Water Projects Completed in
Constructive Capacity Building to Youth Sulaimani
Director, AbdulSalam Medeni, recently gave thought
leadership talks on the role of civil society in capacity
building, and how youth can enable themselves to excel
in academics. Multiple presentations/forums were given
in various cities, which included Halabja and Koya.
A six-classroom primary school built in Said Sadiq
district received an offical handover ceremony. Rwanga
recognized the completion of two separate water
infrastructure projects in Sulaimani’s Maluma and
Parazan villages.
Erbil Job Fair
In light of encouraging employment among youth and skills development, Rwanga Foundation took part as
Diamond Sponsor at the Erbil Job Fair 2015. Erbil Manpower organized the fair in Erbil which hosted attendees such
as the Representative of Prime Minister’s Office, Ali Sindi; Mohammad Qadir Howdiyani, KRG Minister of Labor and
Social Affairs; Governor of Erbil, Nawzad Hadi, and US Consul General Joseph Pennington.
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International Children’s Day
In coordination with Red Crescent of UAE, a portion of 5,000 toys (total) were delivered to Baharka Hawcharkh
elementary school outside the city of Erbil. The toys were distributed to a total of 750 students during the morning,
and the effort continued to other schools throughout the day in surrounding areas of Erbil.
Environmental Awareness: Green Zone & KidZone
Anti-Littering Campaign
Projects Complete
Continued
Two teams from Projects Department distributed
thousands more flyers and garbage bags the past two
weeks to families traveling for picnicking. The handouts
are a part of an ongoing initiative to educate on proper
waste disposal.
Rwanga Foundation completed two major projects
in Rwanga Community; green space park and the
KidsZone which consists of a football pitch, a basketball
and volleyball area, a playground and an educational area
(library, music room, art room, computer lab).
Locations: Sulaimani and Duhok. Pamphlets were
distributed at picnicking sites, security checkpoints and
at various stops beside major roadways.
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Sulaimani governorate projects
- Shahidan Primary School benefits 230 families by
providing local educational accommodation to mitigate
unnecessary/risk-prone travel; and to give growing student
numbers access to education. The school includes six
classrooms -- a decision which was determined by the
needs of the community with approval of the relevant
ministry of education.
- Rwanga’s new playground in Sirwan (sub-district) Town
Centers public park will create a safe and vibrant place for
approximately 2,500 children to play, that is at a distance
from main streets/intersections.
- Along with the recreational area for children, Sirwan
sub-district also received a football pitch to improve the
quality of recreational life for residents.
- Muluma Village of Chwarta District in Sulaimani is
a rapidly growing community and has nearly doubled
in number of families within the past several years.
A new water network extension project for Maluma
village will accommodate an increase of 80 households.
The network merely replaces and expands an existing
network for the village.
- A second water network extension was implemented
in Parazan village (Chwarta District, Sulaimani) to aid 60
families. In the past, residents have had to walk multiple
times per day to retrieve cans of water from sources far
away from the village.
- Greza, Kani Panka and Kani Spika villages located in
Said Sadiq District are some of the poorest villages
in Kurdistan. With a total of 1,294 families across the
three villages, there is a large youth population which
Rwanga Foundation felt should have access to sports
and recreation. A complete lack of suitable space/fields
led Rwanga to construct a football pitch which can be
utilized by a total of 1,300 youth.
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Supas Peshmerga Campaign
In March Rwanga Foundation initiated an international
humanitarian and patriotic campaign to highlight
support for the families of Peshmerga. The campaign
comprised several aspects to focus support which
included:
1.)
Financial donations to Peshmerga martyrs’
families, whereby a total of 1,200 families will receive
equal donations in the amount of $1,000.00USD. The
contributions to families began in March and were first
issued in Sulaimani governorate. Donations are still
being issued throughout Kurdistan.
2.) Creating and furthering public awareness -- using
various medias -- of the Peshmergas’ various hardships
and strengths. Furthermore, that various ways of
support should not rely solely in the hands of the
government or a single organization, but from as
much of the community as possible.
3.) Using social media platforms to gain reach and
promote our message to various audiences. Chiefly,
the hash tag campaign, #SupasPeshmerga, continues
to enable people across the world to highlight
their gratitude and support to Peshmerga for their
commitment in defending against terrorism.
The idea quickly gained traction and was an instant
success,. Supporters have continued to submit photos
of their support through the end of the second quarter.
At this point nobody is expecting the online social
media trend to fizzle out anytime in the near future.
Consequently, Rwanga plans to provide thousands
more in kind to enable more people to show their
support.
Timing can be everything. Following the wristband
donation, Rwanga reinforced the #SupasPeshmerga
campaign by producing a short film which was
aired on local television networks and other media
platforms globally. The film was produced to showcase
the undeniable humanity and courage of Kurdistan’s
dedicated citizens serving the Peshmerga forces.
The secondary impetus of the film was to boost the
morale of Peshmerga forces by showing the immense
appreciation that so many people across Kurdistan
have for ultimately keeping us safe.
In an effort to highlight and create awareness of the
Peshmerga’s sacrifices for the sake of defending the
country, Rwanga will continue to direct initiatives at
specific times to support Peshmerga and their families
Rwanga Foundation donated 30,000 SupasPeshmerga
wristbands to designated distribution centers
throughout Kurdistan, while volunteers and supporters
brought more to people across the Middle East,
Eurasia, Europe and the United States. Recipients of
the wristbands have been encouraged to post their
photo wearing the wristband using the hash tag which
Rwanga’s PR & Media Department upload to online
platforms.
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A wise man once said, “The best time to plant an oak tree was 20 years ago!” It was more than fifteen years ago when
I first read this this quote and it continues to amaze me whenever I read it. I keep hearing that youth are the future
of any nation. I surely agree with this idea but I see that we are misusing this concept. While we are saying youth are
the future, we are not preparing them for that future.
Preparing youth? This might also be misunderstood and misused. Because who should claim (why should we
claim?) that they have the right to prepare a generation? Well, the best expression might be partnering with youth
in shaping the tomorrow that they will lead. This process is not the role of a specific ministry or organization, it is a
collective effort made across all sectors of society. It is an effort that should lead to society paving a path for youth.
The process should create systems to make sure youth explore their potential continuously, opening different
opportunities, including employment.
Some of the main groups that are effective in this process are families, schools, universities, Ministry of Culture
and Youth, and NGOs focused on youth. Open channels among these main entities are essential to create on
going open and frank discussions on youth with the participation of young people themselves. There should not
be any judgment or restriction on those discussions because it is an exploration for the benefit of the future. After
envisioning the future and studying the possible directions while designing the path and participation, providing
the necessary skills should be the central outcome of those discussions.
So if society seeks to grow a foundation for the future while developing the human civilization worldwide, they
needed to start planting 20 years ago! The second best time to plant is now.
Contributed by Executive Director, AbdulSalam Medeni
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