 | | | | | |  | | | Vita Challenges 2011 | Upcoming Events in Ireland
Summer 2011 | | Spud Appeal 2011 | | Birr Bank Holiday Golf, May 2011 | Wellness Workshop No.1 :
Mindfulness Meditation
March 2011 | | 'Miracle' Moringa, Christmas Tree Appeal 2010 | | The Great Ethiopian Run 2010 | Women's Mini Marathon,
7 June 2010 | Women in Afirca Evening,
8 April 2010 | | We Don't Care Less | | 'Trees for Life', Marlay Park | Dungarvan Mini Marathon,
27 September 2009 | Laois Mini Marathon,
6 September 2009 | | Castlecomer Fundraising Classic, 28 August 2009 | | Monaghan Walk, 26 July, 2009 | | Women's Mini Marathon, 2009 | | Lyons Tea Charity Giveaway | | Buy a Miracle Tree | | 'Go Green with Vita' Recycling | | 'Angels for Africa' Campaign | | The Hibernian Orchestra/Vita Concert "Summer Promenade" | | Vita Launches New Name at Ploughing Championship, 2006 |  | | | | | |
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|  | | | | | | | | | 'Women Changing Lives in Africa'
- An Evening of Celebration
| Thursday 8th April 2010, 4.00 pm - 7.00 pm, European Commission, 18 Dawson Street, Dublin 2
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| | | Report by Tom Carroll
Celebrities, leaders of national organisations, country directors from Africa, Government officials and members of the press were among more than 200 people who attended the Evening of African Culture, organised by Vita at the European Commission offices in EU house, Dublin this month. The theme of the evening was on women changing lives in Africa, and how hunger and climate change affects everyone in the world regardless of their native country.
Smret Kashai from Eritrea , and a Vita volunteer, who was the delightful hostess for the evening welcomed the attendance which included people from various counties around Ireland and various African countries.
Smret, who speaks fluent English and Tigrinya and a group of women from Eritrea and Ethiopia performed local and national dances and showed off their spectacular national costumes. They demonstrated traditional coffee making and the award winning fuel-efficient stove known as the Saviour that is changing the lives of thousands of women and their families in Africa. Then they laid on a delightful meal of traditional African cuisine.
Eanna ni Lamhna, star of RTE One’s Mooney Show, and who is a member of the strategy and monitoring committee of Vita, John Weakliam, chief executive of Vita, Asfaw Merkuria who is Vita Country Director for Ethiopia, Iyassu Ghebrerufael, Vita Country Director for Eritrea and Salome Mbuguna, director of AKIDWA- the network of African women living in Ireland who is from Portarlington, spoke to the attendance.
In the audience were Fr. Norman Fitzgerald, co-founder twenty years ago with the late Fr. Kevin Doheny of Refugee Trust International, now Vita, Brendan Casey, formerly of AIB Bank, who is chairman of Vita and John Wallace, company secretary of Vita and former CEO.
There too were Vita board members Larry O’Loughlin, from Rosenallis, Co. Laois, who is area manager of Teagasc , Bobby Gahan, former deputy director general of RTE, Tom Barry of AIB Bank, Richard McQuillan, founding managing director of Xilinx with his wife Anne from County Wexford, officials from the Dublin Federation of the ICA and members of the Sisters of Mercy in Galway.
A high point of the evening was the presentation by a group from the Ballyouskill Friends of Fr Kevin Doheny of a giant cardboard cheque for Euro 9,000 to Vita. They had raised the funds from events held throughout the year. Ballyouskill, led by their chairman, retired Garda Sergeant, Frank Brennan are from the Laois Kilkenny border surrounding the quaint village of Ballinakill, the birthplace of Vita founder Fr. Kevin Doheny.
Addressing the attendance, Éanna nÍ Lamhna, who is a member of the Vita strategy and monitoring sub-committee said that the lives of the poor in Africa are linked to ours through the emerging issue of climate change. “Our lifestyles in the West have resulted in high carbon emissions which cause climate change. The people who pay the price are those people in the country where Vita works and who are afflicted by drought and famine.”
Salome Mbugua, director of AKIDWA- the network of African women living in Ireland, spoke passionately about the need to focus on helping to empower African women who are neglected and marginalised.
Asfaw Merkuria and Iyassu Ghebrerufael outlined the work of Vita in both Ethiopia and Eritrea and outlined to the audience the successes that had been made possible with the help of Vita’s supporters. The country directors thanked Vita supporters on behalf of project beneficiaries.
John Weakliam, chief executive of Vita, a former banker, who has lived in Eritrea for more than 12 years, thanked the European Commission and Philippe Carr and Deirdre Lynham for providing the venue for the evening. He also thanked Vita supporters and partners such as the Sisters of Mercy, the people from Ballyouskill and micro-grant donors who support Vita such as the Bank of Ireland, the ESB, Dublin City Council and the Irish Dairy Board amongst others.
He said that women in Ireland and women in Africa have much in common. They have common objectives of providing for their families and in attaining better standards of living and quality of life from scarce resources. Like the women of the ICA in Ireland who for over 100 years led thinking and development here, the women of many parts of Africa are now to the forefront of development there. They are now leaders in Vita agricultural and community-led projects that are funded by the EU and Irish Aid and impact on more than 100,000 people in Eritrea and Ethiopia. This is despite their often solitary work for their families while their men folk are absent on military service or seeking economic opportunities.
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Note: Eritrea and Ethiopia, where Vita works, are in the red category of the international global hunger index suffering widespread poverty and food insecurity. Both countries are among the five most economically vulnerable countries in the world. Eritrea and Ethiopia are among the six countries of the world with the highest Global Hunger Index. In Africa war and violent conflict have given rise to widespread poverty and food insecurity, says the independent report
| | | | To show your support for women in Africa, contact Teresa at: (01) 8820108/ info@vita.ie | | | | | | | |
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