Shopping to Benefit Africa

The other day when Jake brought in the mail, there was a wonderful surprise waiting for me in an enveloped package. It was this beautiful bag that a friend had sent me:


This isn’t just any bag. When my friend bought this bag, she actually had made a life-changing purchase! Let me explain. The girl that makes these bags brings home fabric scraps from her frequent travels to Ghana! Then, she turns the fabric into bags/purses and other items. She then sells her bags on www.etsy.com and donates the proceeds to impoverished schools in Ghana that are run by this organization: www.futureleadersofghana.org. This is so cool, not to mention I LOVE THIS BAG! Since you already know that my purses are usually a little on the large size (large enough to fit a baby doll and a youth sized basketball) this will surely become my purse! I also will use it for a beach bag this summer, and my tote for the tournaments that will house all of our toys, coloring books, and kiddo necessities for days spent at the gym. When I opened up this package the scent of the fabric literally took me back across the oceans right smack to Ghana. Yes, this fabric still has a Ghanaian scent! It is certainly traditional, and as the girl who makes the bag says ‘How cool is it to think that somewhere on another continent someone is wearing a dress cut from the same fabric that is on your purse?!’ To get to this bag on Etsy type in ‘Hip Tribal Print Purse’ in the search bar and it should take you there.

Well, getting this bag was so exciting, and it made my mind start thinking about all of the other places that I know of in which you can purchase an item and the proceeds benefit an African cause. Here are a few more:

Amani Africa (http://www.amaniafrica.org/index.php)
Remember me telling you that if you teach an African woman to sew it would CHANGE her life completely because she would be able to provide for herself and her family? Well, this project is living proof. Per the website: Amani ya Juu (which means “higher peace” in Swahili) is a sewing-marketing-training project for marginalized women in Africa. The main center is located in Nairobi, Kenya with sister centers in Rwanda and Burundi. The project serves two purposes. First, Amani gives African women the opportunity to improve their sewing and marketing skills. The women gain experience in purchasing, bookkeeping, skill training, quality control, management and design. Second, Amani aims to sow seeds of peace in the hearts of the women as they grow in community and in their faith together. As part of the daily activities at the center, the Amani women participate in singing, praying, Bible study and visiting one another in their homes. Amani is committed to fair trade, providing a just pay and holistic development, which contrasts dramatically with the unjust conditions these women are confronted with outside of Amani. As the women learn practical skills to improve their quality of life, they also experience God’s healing, moving them beyond their traumatic and difficult pasts. Among other things, the income Amani provides allows these African women not merely to survive, but to meet basic health care needs, education for their children and adequate housing.
Pretty sweet, huh? Over Christmastime I was sent a link to their store, specifically regarding these cute African dollies:

If we were adopting a girl, purchasing one of these dolls would be a MUST on my list of things to have for her. Funny because right before I was sent this link, I had actually just purchased a doll very similar to this on Pottery Barn for Jayla for Christmas….only I paid an overpriced amount, and the proceeds didn’t go to anything great except for Pottery Barn to make more overpriced items! :) The Amani store also sells many other beautiful items such as bags, jewelry, home décor/kitchen items, etc….all of which you can order online. Here is the link to their shop: http://www.amaniafrica.org/ashop/index.php

The next shopping opportunity that came to my mind is right up the road from my house located in Ames, IA at Burgie’s Coffee & Tea Company (located on South Duff). The owner, Steve Burgason, is a family friend of ours. His son Jordan used to play for Jake and is now playing college ball at Lipscomb in Nashville, TN. Steve’s store has partnered with Ames Highschool and Global Builders to raise money for schools in Uganda. When you purchase a bag of their Ugandan Bugisu coffee beans the proceeds will go to this cause. He does not have an online store, but if you live in the area, stop by his store to purchase some and find out about all the awesome things Steve is doing to help Uganda….through coffee!

My mom also noticed a lady selling these baskets http://www.africanbaskets.biz/index.html at the farmer’s market in Des Moines last summer. These baskets are made in the village region of Bolgatanga in Northern Ghana and are made out of Ghanaian Kinkanhe Straw. This straw gets transformed into beautiful baskets through basket weaving technique.

Bolga Basket International also operates on fair trade prinicples and the Ghanaian families who weave these baskets are paid wages that exceed the local rate. BBI also plans on developing a fully equipped weaving center in Ghana which would include all of the necessary weaving materials in-house, an on-site school and free transportation to and from outlying villages. Purchasing one of these baskets provides a family in Africa with a brighter future! They do not have an online store, but if you keep your eyes peeled this summer, I bet you will run into someone selling these!