By Bill Brower | GlobalGiving Field Program Officer
Bill Brower is a Field Program Officer with GlobalGiving who visited our partners’ projects throughout South and Southeast Asia. On June 10th he visited a Prajwala complex in Hyderabad, which houses several social enterprises. His “Postcard” from the visit:
Prajwala rightly restricts visitors to their shelters for trafficking victims, but I was able to see part of their holistic rehabilitation approach: A workshop housing several small-scale production facilities. Most of the organizations I’ve met with are tackling one aspect of a complex problem; Prajwala has grown quickly over the years and now has the resources to provide a comprehensive response to sex-trafficking in Hyderabad. In addition to initial interventions, advocacy, education, healthcare and counseling, Prajwala places a lot of emphasis on rehabilitation and reintegration. Economic reintegration in particular often seems not given proper due but Prajwala seems to be doing a good job of it, with opportunities that go well beyond the typical tailoring or craft-making.
Prajwala chose trades—metalworking, carpentry, printing, binding—which are traditionally dominated by men and which have a viable commercial market. The facility was clean and seemed well run. The products I saw—desks, bunk beds, notebooks, pamphlets, workbooks, screen prints—looked professionally made. Clients thus far are mostly schools. The enterprises are not currently profitable but Prajwala is hoping they soon will be with a concerted marketing push to corporations, hospitals, etc.
I saw plots of land where, in the off-season, the women grow vegetables to sell to other Prajwala canteens. I thought this a very good sign—that they sell the produce to other parts of the organization. It reflects the entrepreneurial foundation needed to make these businesses sustainable.
Dr. Sunitha Krishnan, co-founder of Prajwala, says that the human component leads the structural in their organization. So donors can rest assured that their contribution toward this new building is going to an organization with the capacity to take full advantage of it.
What are your thoughts?
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