The Big Give 2018 is fast approaching. But before we talk about that, we wanted to give you an update on what we did with the money raised in the Big Give 2017.

Last year, with your support and in partnership with The Big Give, we doubled your donations and raised a grand total of £13,725!

Many thanks to everybody who showed their support for WellFound’s work in West Africa. With 100% of these funds going directly to project work, they went a long way indeed. We work with the most remote communities, often where no other charities work. By working in close partnership with the villages, we are able to bring about meaningful and lasting change. With the money raised last year, we worked in the remote islands off the coast of Guinea-Bissau and were able to provide long term solutions for issues like malnutrition, water-borne disease, gender inequality and lack of opportunity for women and young people.

By educating local women and young people on sustainable agricultural techniques and by investing in the necessary tools, seeds and fencing, we successfully sustained eight community market gardens. These gardens not only produce fresh vegetables to give families more balanced diets and tackle malnutrition, but also empower women in their communities.

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Due to their remote location, many people in the islands had never used a toilet in their lives. This caused a whole range of health issues and meant many people were contracting diseases which could have been avoided with education, materials and resources. We can now happily report that money from last year’s campaign allowed us to build 111 latrines across five villages in the islands. Installing latrines in remote communities does not only change lives, it can save them.

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And for the community of Ethigore on Galinha Island, we are in the process of installing a fresh water well. Very soon, the community will have this new source of water which will be safe and clean.

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Altogether, with the funds raised in The Big Give 2017 campaign, we managed to support 1,500 children, women and vulnerable adults. These communities now have fresh and nutritious vegetables, safe sanitation practices and facilities and clean, safe water for cooking, cleaning and drinking. Most important, however, is that with the resources, training and ownership by communities, we can be confident that future generations will continue to have access to these basic human rights and services.

Together, we have helped to make the lives of real people and those of future generations happier, healthier and more positive and we want to continue this again this year…. to make even more impact.

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