Self-Help International

The mission of Self-Help International is to alleviate hunger by helping people help themselves. Self-Help works to alleviate hunger by assisting the rural poor, small-scale farmers, and related enterprises in developing countries. We help them become self-reliant in meeting the needs of families and communities through training, education, leadership development, and other forms of assistance. Self-Help is not a relief organization — our focus is on development and sustainability to improve the quality of life with dignity.

Headquartered in Waverly, Iowa, USA, Self-Help is currently operating sustainable development programs in Ghana, West Africa, and Nicaragua, Central America. Given our current resources, our objective is to expand our services to new communities within those two countries before expanding into other countries in need.

Current programs in Ghana include:

• Micro-credit loans and business training for women business owners
• School feeding and nutrition programs in Ghanaian schools
• Infant health and nutrition programs for mothers
• Teen Girls Clubs focused on helping young women stay in school and get a good education
• Agricultural training programs for farmers and recent graduates of agricultural programs at local universities

Current programs in Nicaragua include:

• Clean water system installation and training for community water systems
• Micro-credit loans and business training for women business owners
• Agricultural training programs for farmers and promotion of high protein seed variations

Current work in the Iowa community:

• Outreach and education to the local community and surrounding areas about global inequality and international development (schools, religious organizations, etc.)

Types of volunteers needed:

• Graphic designers to help create publications about programs
• Event planners/volunteers to help carry out events
• Students or people willing to educate schools (classmates, entire grades, etc.) about global inequality and international development
• Volunteers willing to help with basic administrative tasks
• Accounting volunteers
• Almost any other type of task (we can always use the extra help)