Blankets may seem like simple items to many of us. But for many people around the island, a warm blanket is simply more than they can afford. Millions of day laborers, displaced families, rural villagers, homeless individuals, and others dread the cold months. Even in normal circumstances, many of them can hardly afford to provide food and other necessities. Winter adds even more expense.

We are receiving an increasing number of requests for warm blankets in the various areas around the island. Our supply does not meet the huge budget.

In cold climate areas, our contacts report that blankets can mean the difference between life or death for impoverished people like day laborers or the homeless. “Their houses, Iron sheet, and wood have no heating systems, and water run under their feet and inside their house during raining as they don't have a concrete floor,” they shared.

Wintertime brings misery for Jean,* a  father. Heavy rain and Cyclone Jean and his family from their hometown to a damp, concrete room. With his calloused hands raised and tears choking his voice, Jean told our contacts, “I stand daily in the square of the village, waiting for someone to ask me to do any kind of work. . . . all I care about is bringing food to my family.”

Life becomes even more difficult for the family during winters. Without a stove or warm clothes, Jean’s three children huddle under one worn blanket to keep warm.

When Jean and his family received warm clothes and provisions from us after the cyclone, his wife’s grateful words touched our contacts’ hearts. “No one has thought of us before,” she said. “May God protect you as you have protected my children from the cold and brought warmth and dry to their bodies and hearts.” Christine’s nine-year-old daughter exclaimed, “I just can’t believe I will get some new and dry clothes today with this good food.”

 our goal is to provide 500 blankets for impoverished people this winter. If you would like to help, your support will be a blessing and show God’s compassion. One beneficiary said, “I am unable to buy even a single blanket this winter season. But the believers were concerned for us and gave us this blanket. May God bless you.”

Yeshua Fellowship’s approach to Grassroots Development is grounded in several obligations. These include the principles of impartiality and independence, staff security and beneficiary protection, and sustainability,1 as well as what is known as Christian humanitarian aid. An Aid is a help or support that demands attention, an unavoidable obligation in the achievement of something. Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance commitment to respond to people victims of natural disasters and man-made disasters. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity. It may, therefore, be distinguished from development aid, which seeks to address the underlying socioeconomic factors, which may have led to a crisis or emergency.

ABOUT US

The Yeshua Fellowship is set out into four main objectives to provide their support.

 - Community Awareness Programme

 - Evangelize with national and international support - Rights Dissemination

 - Social Support and Response, Community Development

 - Youth Empowerment

Core programs/services/activities of organization

• Human Rights Support
• Family Empowerment through domiciliary visits
• Counseling and Psychosocial support
• Advocacy and referrals
• Educational support
• Food support
• Training activities (staff exchanges, workshops, development of training modules)
• Mutual learning, cooperation activities, exchange of good practices, peer reviews, development of ICT tools…
• Awareness-raising activities, dissemination, conferences, …
• Support for main actors (key NGOs and networks, member states' authorities implementing union law,)
• Analytical activities (studies, data collection, development of common methodologies, indicators, surveys, preparation of guides…)

Details of programs and projects relating to case management, psychosocial support and accompaniment of vulnerable groups implemented by the organization over the past two years

Despite continuous efforts from Government and civil society, as evidenced by various reports, many families and

children are still exposed to different types of dangers and vulnerabilities in the country. Absolute poverty may be

rare in Mauritius, but inequality is growing in Mauritius and relative poverty increases keep increasing. Mauritius

is a small island with the same social issues or needs cut across the different communities where the program

intervenes. The socio-economic impact of the pandemic affected the most vulnerable as well as women through:

· Poor households having difficulties in accessing basic provisions.

· Unemployment in the informal sector where the majority of vulnerable individuals or households belong during the lockdown fell by 89,200.

· Increased incidents of domestic violence by 33%, with 93% of the cases perpetrated against women.

Yeshua Fellowship is making a continuous effort to respond to changing conditions of Mauritian society and to accept new challenges in the interest of the welfare of its target group.

The association responds to the needs of children, youths, and families at three levels:

 At the micro-level through:

-Individual case management addresses the needs of children, youth, and families for empowerment. At this level, the project will provide systematic family accompaniment through domiciliary visits and case assessment,

- Family and individual development plan

- Psychological support and counseling.

- Adapted and individualized education programs for vulnerable children and youth.

- Youth empowerment and developmental opportunities, career guidance. social skills and exposure to the work environment.

- Opportunities for improvement of revenues and income through entrepreneurship, job hunting, and reskilling.

- Short term or emergency direct material support - food, clothing, improvement of livelihood

· At meso level, it responds to needs at the community level. The project focuses on capacity building and encouraging more synergy among stakeholders (CBOs, NGOs, and local institutions amongst others) as presently most of them are working in silos in different communities. These stakeholders work in different sectors but need more coordination for the target group to effectively tap their services that will improve their situation. It will also seek to develop comprehensive partnerships supported by the Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) and network with identified stakeholders for the protection and promotion of child rights as the number of child abuse is on the rise each year.

· At the macro level, it advocates so that the target group benefits from national schemes provided by the Government (Marshall Plan against poverty, registration in the Social Register of Mauritius). It will also seek to influence policy decisions specifically on:

- maximum efforts to be made to promote family strengthening, reunification, and reintegration of children who are currently separated, back to their biological or immediate families.

- Implementation of the Children’s Bill with a more comprehensive and modern legislative framework with a view to addressing the shortcomings of the Child Protection Act and giving better effect to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

- Sustainability and fund development in partnership with Government Impact of the program as of the end of 2021

· 17 Families registered in the program living in squatting areas in the program have obtained their houses

· Emergency food and counseling support to 634 families during lockdown in 2021

· Smooth partnership with Mauritius Police Force towards respect of Human Rights

· Awareness with more than a thousand community members and indirect beneficiaries of Human Rights including Mauritius Police Force Officers

· Platforms running smoothly in more than three locations. Community volunteers are to handle human rights and family empowerment follow-ups.

· Empowerment of 33 Youths through a partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports (Duke of Edinburgh awards)

· Youths have participated in international competitions

· 90% of pass rate for children accompanied in education