Partners in Aid
Encyclopedia
Partners in Aid is an aid organisation supporting projects in India, Bangladesh and the Philippines.
. In April 2009, Austcare affiliated with ActionAid
, becoming ActionAid Australia from June 1, 2009.
Early projects involved shipments of livestock, but during the 1980s Partners In Aid policies expanded to include community health
and economic development
. Current activities are facilitated through partnerships with locally registered, in-country NGOs.
When Austcare changed its name to ActionAid Australia after joining ActionAid International as an affiliate, the organisation previously known as "Action Aid Australia – For Those Who Have Less" changed its name to Partners in Aid.
, and Dr Cecily Neil, a sociologist who has written extensively about the development sector. The Rev Morris Lee of Symbiosis International is also an honorary advisor.
agency based in Narre Warren, Australia. The organisation finances small-scale community development
projects in Bangladesh, the Philippines and India, as well as running child sponsorship
programmes in India. They are a current signatory to the ACFID
code of conduct. Partners in Aid is also involved in groups such as Our Community
, which aims at capacity building
Australian community groups.
.
Partners in Aid assists with watershed management and child sponsorship projects at SEDS. SEDS was established with the aim of helping people living in the drought-prone area of Anantapur District in Andhra Pradesh
.
Also in India, Partners in Aid assists with the work of the All Bengal Women's Union. Originally established in 1932 by a group of local women to assist exploited women and children in Calcutta, the All Bengal Women's Union now has a variety of projects, ranging from an Old Age Women's home, to vocational training
, a primary school
, a children's welfare home and provision of counselling for children who live in the home.
in harmony with the environment.
Most years, the Jamuna River overflows. When the resulting flood water recedes, sandbanks appear. People move to the sandbanks in order to farm the "new land". The project aims to assist these people and has three components - education, micro-credit
and health.
The TTIS project aims to enable poor and marginalized men and women learn skills that could give them access to job markets that they would not otherwise have been able to work in. The sewing project of TTIS alone has equipped more than 2,000 women with sewing skills over the last decade.
province and was taken on by Partners in Aid as it was started by a former member of the Honorary Board.
Transfer of Ownership of the Action Aid Australia Name
The organisation formerly known as Action Aid Australia became Partners In Aid in order to assist Austcare in their affiliation with ActionAidActionAid
ActionAid was founded in 1972 as a child sponsorship charity when 88 UK supporters sponsored 88 children in India and Kenya, the focus primarily being to provide children with an education. Global accounts are now reported in Euros and in 2007 and 2008 turnover was close to 180m Euros...
. In April 2009, Austcare affiliated with ActionAid
ActionAid
ActionAid was founded in 1972 as a child sponsorship charity when 88 UK supporters sponsored 88 children in India and Kenya, the focus primarily being to provide children with an education. Global accounts are now reported in Euros and in 2007 and 2008 turnover was close to 180m Euros...
, becoming ActionAid Australia from June 1, 2009.
History of Partners in Aid
Partners In Aid was established in 1962 with the intention of providing support to rural communities in India and Bangladesh. Initially, the organisation had two paid staff. However, it now operates on a volunteer basis.Early projects involved shipments of livestock, but during the 1980s Partners In Aid policies expanded to include community health
Community health
Community health, a field of public health, is a discipline that concerns itself with the study and betterment of the health characteristics of biological communities. While the term community can be broadly defined, community health tends to focus on geographic areas rather than people with shared...
and economic development
Economic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
. Current activities are facilitated through partnerships with locally registered, in-country NGOs.
When Austcare changed its name to ActionAid Australia after joining ActionAid International as an affiliate, the organisation previously known as "Action Aid Australia – For Those Who Have Less" changed its name to Partners in Aid.
Current Partners in Aid Board Members & Advisors
The honorary board of Partners in Aid meets regularly to discuss projects and fund raising activities. The board members include Associate Professor Roger Hughes and Dr Graham Moore. Honorary Advisors include Joy Handley, who has written about Bangladesh and provides support with Partners in Aid's work with the All Bengal Women's UnionAll Bengal Women's Union
The West Bengal Women's Union was started in the 1932, when a group of women in West Bengal formed a cadre of like-minded women to help their helpless, exploited and victimized fellow women....
, and Dr Cecily Neil, a sociologist who has written extensively about the development sector. The Rev Morris Lee of Symbiosis International is also an honorary advisor.
Partners in Aid's Current Work
Partners in Aid is an international developmentInternational development
International development or global development is a concept that lacks a universally accepted definition, but it is most used in a holistic and multi-disciplinary context of human development — the development of greater quality of life for humans...
agency based in Narre Warren, Australia. The organisation finances small-scale community development
Community development
Community development is a broad term applied to the practices and academic disciplines of civic leaders, activists, involved citizens and professionals to improve various aspects of local communities....
projects in Bangladesh, the Philippines and India, as well as running child sponsorship
Child sponsorship
Child sponsorship allows an individual, typically in a developed country, to sponsor, or fund a child in a developing country until the child becomes self-sufficient. This could mean financially supporting the education, health or security of the sponsored child, or in some cases all of these...
programmes in India. They are a current signatory to the ACFID
ACFID
The Australian Council For International Development is an independent national association of Australian non-government organisations working in the field of international aid and development....
code of conduct. Partners in Aid is also involved in groups such as Our Community
Our Community
Our Community is an Australian social entrepreneurship body set up to build capacity in Australia’s 600,000 community groups. It has published a series of manuals on such issues as board management and charitable fundraising, has since 2004 organised annual policy conferences for the Australian...
, which aims at capacity building
Capacity building
Capacity building also referred to as capacity development is a conceptual approach to development that focuses on understanding the obstacles that inhibit people, governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations from realizing their developmental goals while enhancing...
Australian community groups.
Projects in India
According to the website, Partners in Aid works with two NGOs in India - SEDS (Social Education and Development Society) based in Andhra Pradesh, and the All Bengal Women's Union, in KolkataKolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
.
Partners in Aid assists with watershed management and child sponsorship projects at SEDS. SEDS was established with the aim of helping people living in the drought-prone area of Anantapur District in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
.
Also in India, Partners in Aid assists with the work of the All Bengal Women's Union. Originally established in 1932 by a group of local women to assist exploited women and children in Calcutta, the All Bengal Women's Union now has a variety of projects, ranging from an Old Age Women's home, to vocational training
Vocational education
Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...
, a primary school
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
, a children's welfare home and provision of counselling for children who live in the home.
Projects in Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, Partners in Aid works with an NGO known as Symbiosis. They support two Symbiosis projects - the Jamuna River Development Project (JRDP), and the Training and Information Support Program (known as TTIS). Symbiosis aim to promote human developmentHuman development (humanity)
Human development in the scope of humanity, specifically international development, is an international and economic development paradigm that is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. People are the real wealth of nations...
in harmony with the environment.
Most years, the Jamuna River overflows. When the resulting flood water recedes, sandbanks appear. People move to the sandbanks in order to farm the "new land". The project aims to assist these people and has three components - education, micro-credit
Microcredit
Microcredit is the extension of very small loans to those in poverty designed to spur entrepreneurship. These individuals lack collateral, steady employment and a verifiable credit history and therefore cannot meet even the most minimal qualifications to gain access to traditional credit...
and health.
The TTIS project aims to enable poor and marginalized men and women learn skills that could give them access to job markets that they would not otherwise have been able to work in. The sewing project of TTIS alone has equipped more than 2,000 women with sewing skills over the last decade.
Project in the Philippines
In the Philippines, Partners in Aid supports the Sinangpad Healthy Village Project. The project's aims include providing information for local communities to improve village sanitation. The project is located in KalingaKalinga
Kalinga is a landlocked province of the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. Its capital is Tabuk and borders Mountain Province to the south, Abra to the west, Isabela to the east, Cagayan to the northeast, and Apayao to the north...
province and was taken on by Partners in Aid as it was started by a former member of the Honorary Board.