Our Work

The Mo'assessa is a small, new organization. Starting from scratch gives us the opportunity to focus on the kind of development we believe in; small-scale, sustainable, culturally-appropriate and considered. The work we support reflects these principles, and is based wherever possible on primary research carried out by our team. In addition to focusing on grassroots, sustainable development initiatives we have been giving small grants to people who find themselves in difficult circumstances, to help mitigate the uncertainties people face here due to economic, social and climatic change. As our organization grows, we plan to maintain our commitment to steady-paced development projects that will be of lasting benefit.

Our five agreed areas for grant-making and projects are:
• sustainable development and job creation
• education
• health
• conservation of environment and heritage
• community capacity-building and social welfare

Listed under these headings, the following examples show the type of contribution we have made to date to individuals and community initiatives. Some have cost little or nothing, while others are a relatively substantial investment. Our priorities change as our understanding deepens of what local people bring to the table, and what they need us to bring. This section concludes by listing exploratory projects for which we know there is a need, and which we need help to realize in partnership with local people.

Sustainable Development and Job Creation

Mount Sinai Bedouin Wool Project (2008 -09)

We developed a project to investigate new uses for local wool. Wool is an under-used resource here. Many people still produce it, but it was formerly all used for tent-making. Now that almost everyone is settled in houses there is no tradition of using it to make clothes, despite the bitter cold of the mountain winter. We had the wool tested at the University of Manchester, who found it suitable for felting. Working with an expert felter, we have taught 20 Bedouin women in four villages to make warm clothing and blankets for their families, and for sale. We were careful to structure the project in an appropriate way, so that local women felt comfortable to be involved. We plan to expand the project to explore other uses for felt and the other types of wool available here.

Crop Diversification (2007 –08)

Traditionally, Jebeliya families have produced food for their families and for sale by growing fruit crops in their high mountain gardens. However, climate change has forced many people to abandon these. This grant helped a local grower to investigate alternative products that can be produced in the current drought, including honey and olives. While olives are not traditionally grown in large quantities here, they require less water than more traditional crops and could be an important resource for the future. We hope that learning from this grant will help minimise the risks involved for future growers who might want or need to switch to growing olives.

Olive Oil Press (2008-09)

We commissioned an olive-press from a local craftsman, enabling small-scale producers to extract their oil locally. This saves them a 1200-km round-trip to Al Arish, where the nearest olive-press is kept. There are many potential domestic and commercial uses for olive oil. Olive trees can also flourish with less water than other locally grown crops. Given the current drought, helping to make olives commercially viable can allow people to continue to tend their gardens in the traditional manner and can protect against fluctuations in the wage labour market. Since the press has been made available local growers have already begun to plant more olives, and the press looks set to be a great success.

Portable Drill and Generator (2009)

Lack of access to water is the major concern expressed by local people. Helped by donations from Egyptian donors, the Mo'assessa has purchased a portable drill and generator which can be borrowed by local people for expanding and deepening their wells. This will provide access to deeper water, necessary to allow people to grow fruit and vegetables to sell or to supplement their diet. Being small and portable, the drill will be available for use even by people in remote and inaccessible areas.

Education

Environmental Education for Bedouin Children (2007)

Bedouin children are eager to learn, but they often struggle at school. Girls rarely have more than a few years at primary school, and many boys have to leave at a young age to help bring in an income for their family. Thanks largely to BioMAP Egypt (www.biomapegypt.org) we were able to provide books, DVDs and drawing and writing materials so that one of the rangers in the St Katherine Protectorate - himself a Bedouin - could run out-of-school sessions encouraging boys and girls to learn, draw and write about their environment.

School Equipment and Exam Fees (2008, 2009)

Schools in South Sinai need many resources. The local primary school in St Katherine made an appeal for teaching materials, and the Mo'assessa made grants to them to equip their classrooms. We also paid the exam fees for 25 of the children who go there.

Health

Community Drinking Water (2007)

A resident of Wadi Sa'ab had dug a well and made a pool to provide drinking water for about 300 families in the area who had no access to a clean water supply; he had even made a pool for their animals to drink from. He needed a pump and covered tank to store the water hygienically, and we provided him with a grant in two stages to enable him to complete the work.

Suppressing Mosquitoes (2008)

Numerous residents of two local communities complained that they were severely affected by mosquitoes breeding in the nearby water treatment plant. We successfully lobbied for the Protectorate authority to tackle the problem, and will ensure the community has an ongoing voice in keeping the issue alive and the mosquitoes dead.

Drinking Water for Poor Communities (2009)

Thanks to generous donations received by our Board, the Foundation has been able to provide sixty families around the town of St Katherine with clean drinking water for a period of six months, free of charge. The remoteness of St Katherine and the on-going drought mean that drinking water must be brought in from outside the village. At around LE30 per month for 250 litres, the price of clean water is too high for many families to afford.

Conservation of Environment and Heritage

 
Support for Bedouin Musicians (2007)

Bedouin music and poetry risk becoming dying arts, but there are a few practitioners of both skills still around. Two excellent musicians found their ability to perform was hampered by the large hole in their shared ‘oud, a traditional instrument resembling a lute. We were delighted to get them a new one. In the future we hope to organize a festival of Bedouin music and poetry to help celebrate and perpetuate these talents.

The Jebeliya Camel Race (2007-9)

Traditionally every year, each tribe holds a camel race. The tradition had lapsed over recent years among the Jebeliya, but has been revived with our help. The race is an important focus of Jebeliya culture and pride, and we hope the tradition will continue into the future. We provided the running costs and the prizes in 2007 and twice in 2008/9, also using the events to launch the Mo'assessa and report on progress to the community. All the events have been successful, the most recent attracting over 500 people from seven tribes.

‘Land Day’ (2009)

The Mo'assessa recently joined forces with the St Katherine Protectorate to encourage local, school-aged children to think about waste disposal, conserving the land and the problems that rubbish can cause for the environment. Litter, especially plastic, is a real problem here. We sponsored a clean-up campaign in the wadis in and around St Katherine. The ‘Land Day’ was part of the international Environment Day celebrations in National Parks all over Egypt.

Community Capacity-Building and Social Welfare

Hardship Grants

Since our registration, our trustees have donated at least 15,000 LE in hardship grants. Many families here live in very difficult circumstances; fluctuations in climate and the tourist trade can make it difficult for families either to cope in the present or to invest in their future. We have been able to give small amounts of money for particular items such as medicines, food, or transport to help struggling individuals to cope with unexpected costs. There are always many cases of need worthy of small grants, and they can make a real difference.

A Fine New Camel (2008-09)

We were asked to help a 12-year old boy who, since the death of his father, has been the main breadwinner for his large family. Working as a camel guide - a demanding job for such a young man - he had saved enough money to buy his own camel. However, in 2008 an unknown disease wiped out over 80 camels in this area, among them his hard-earned animal. There is no insurance against this kind of problem here, and in this case it meant that half of his small income was again diverted away from his family towards renting a camel. Helped by staff and students from Nottingham University, we were able to replace his animal.

Food Distributing for Ramadan (2009)

400 families each received a Ramadan package of 10 kg of different food items including rice, fava beans, corn oil, butter, dried apricots, dates and sugar. The food was distributed in remote wadis around St Katherine. The families receiving the food parcels represent three different tribes of South Sinai.

Helping Children have Fun (2008)

Many Bedouin children have few or no toys. In addition to food parcels to help their parents celebrate Ramadan, we distributed small packages of toys to scores of Bedouin children. Both had been generously donated by Egyptian donors as part of their Ramadan giving. We also had the broken swings fixed in the village of el Marw, giving local children back their playground.

Work in Progress

All the projects listed below are in the pipeline: we are doing the groundwork, but need additional funding if we are to work with the community to make them a reality. Your help can make all the difference!

Palm Baskets in Wadi Feiran

Wadi Feiran is the largest oasis in South Sinai, with a relatively large population of Bedouin of different tribes. There is no tourism here, and a severe lack of job opportunities. The oasis is notable for its large number of palm trees, which provide a resource used by Nile Delta businesses to produce relatively cheap products that, ironically, are sold throughout South Sinai. We hope instead to produce some of these locally, providing work and income to people of Feiran.

Fairly-Traded Product Development

A big problem for Bedouin communities is the lack of secure employment, so we are exploring ways in which marketable products, such as olive oil (pictured), can be developed and made locally in a way that is appropriate for Bedouin people here. There are many marketable products produce d in South Sinai, including women’s beautiful embroidery and the olives, herbs, fruits and nuts grown in Bedouin gardens. The development of saleable products, locally made from local materials and that meet a known demand, is crucial for sustainable development. We aim to support social enterprises through which new products, as well as those coming from our wool project, can be sold to local and foreign markets.

Promoting Girls’ Literacy

Most Bedouin girls leave school at 12, and lose their literacy skills through disuse. This project aims to work with school leavers, who frequently spend time looking after the young children of their married sisters. It will train the girls to introduce pre-school materials to younger cousins and siblings, thus maintaining their own skills and preparing the little ones more effectively for their own schooling. Then when the time comes for the girls to marry, their own children will benefit from having more literate mothers. We have a small grant to kick start this project, but hope to develop it by creating a children’s library, for which we need funding and/or donations of good quality children’s books in Arabic or English.