The Member-Designated Projects Program provides the opportunity for Friends of Tanzania (FOT) Members to identify and designate funding for a specific project with an organization of their choosing. Frequently, these are projects within a village or area in which the Member served or worked as a Peace Corps Volunteer or with another non-profit, or otherwise has some connection. Before funding, Member-Designated Projects are reviewed and recommended for approval by the FOT Projects Committee, with appropriate deference to the Member-Donor, particularly if they have experience with the village or entity that is undertaking the project in Tanzania. In many cases, Member-Designated Projects are renewed annually by the Member.
To learn more about how you can sponsor a Member-Designated Project, Contact Us.
Member-Designated Projects have included a wide range of projects with varying grant amounts. More recent examples can be viewed below.
Recently Funded Member-Designated Projects
2023
$30,000 — Support of Hope for Girls and Women.
This Tanzania non-profit runs two safe houses in the Butiama and Serengeti Districts of the Mara Region of Tanzania. These safe houses shelter and support those fleeing female genital mutilation (FGM), child marriage, and other forms of gender based violence. $20,000 of this grant will be used for operating costs to support the safe houses. The remaining $10,000 will be used to fund an income-generating project at the safe houses. This project is funded by the generous support of the Tommie Lee Hulme Foundation.
2022
$5,500 — Lutengano Scholarship — School, Girls Scholarship Program—Mbeya Region.
The Lutengano project has been supported by FOT for over a dozen years. During that period the project has provided over 120 scholarships to support girls who have graduated from Lutengano primary school and have entered secondary boarding schools. In addition to addressing financial need, the girls must have achieved good grades and have participated in citizenship activities. Over time, many have gone on to complete higher education degree programs, and one of the recipients is now a judge on the High Court of Tanzania.
2022
$2,500 – Uswaa Girls Scholarship, Kilimanjaro. Shetty Foundation.
The funds were used to sponsor one deserving, high-achieving female from or with educational connections to Uswaa Village or the Machame region of Tanzania for school fees for university (or college) per year. Every year, hard-working and incredibly deserving students, especially young women, in the developing world are forced to stop their studies due to lack of funding for school fees.The purpose of this scholarship is to sponsor one female Tanzanian student to study in University annually who demonstrates academic excellence and financial need for their
education. Given the underrepresentation of girls and women in higher education, in addition to the structural and cultural barriers that exacerbate this severe underrepresentation, this scholarship is aimed for young women, especially those pursuing STEM fields. The scholarship funded tuition, room and board in university. This project will expand to include an additional student in future years.