Projects
AZPA carries out projects and engage in operations in pursuit of its objective of eliminating poverty from Africa
PROJECT POTFOLIO:EXPORT-LED-POVERTY-ERADICATION-PROGRAM (EPEP)
At the leather and garment cluster at Aba, AbiaStateThe poverty challenge confronting our country can only be overcome through the concerted effort of the government, civil society and citizenry. To contribute to this, we undertook a poverty eradication program meant to build the capacity of the economically active poor (those in SMES and cottage industries) to grow their businesses, expand and create employment. Hinging our strategy on the capacity of export to enable enterprises expand through larger supply orders, technology transfer and quality standards we adopted the export-led-poverty eradication program (EPEP) to expand their capacity to participate in the global economy through export.The purpose of this program is poverty eradication.
Goal: to enable SMEs create employment and reduce crime and instability.
Key outputs: co-operative incorporation certificate from Abia state government, Exporter registration certificate from Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC); American export training certificate from AGOA Nigeria office, export training certificate from NEPC, Clean certificate of inspection (CCI) as proof of actual export of leather product, Appointment letters as proof of added employment due to the program.
Location of program: Aba, Abia state.
Number of beneficiaries: 10.
Strategy: promoting export of SME manufactures
CURRENT PROGRAMS/ACTIVITIES
The Africa growth opportunity act (AGOA) export path to the United States. To be able to take advantage of the opportunities presented by AGOA exporters need meet entry requirement contained in the act. To achieve this AGOA center in Nigeria organizes trainings for exporters on entry requirements. AGOA is sponsoring the cooperative to participate in it.
We have sent exhibits of the cooperatives product to the AGOA Center in Lagos. This exhibit, is when it survives quality test, used for sourcing buyers for the products.
We are cooperating with UNIDO common facility center Aba to provide quality assurance service for the cooperative to assure international quality for its product and ensure acceptability for the product in the us market.
TRADE AS THE CENTRE PIECE OF OUR ANTI POVERTY STRATEGY
Export can have an immediate and tangible impact on people’s lives. They can generate employment and higher income, increase government revenue to provide more service to the poor, contribute to women economic empowerment and help deal with environmental challenge. Global market is a powerful means of addressing poverty, raising livelihoods in a sustainable manner and promoting entrepreneurship.
We made it the centerpiece of our war strategy because it present a participatory approach that enable poor people to, with little support, work their way out of poverty while earning livelihoods that sustain growth and employment generation.
PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS
We engage in continuous publicity campaigns both singly and in cooperation with other organizations to educate and motivate ordinary people to take action against the root causes of poverty.
Africa is at the moment, the only region unlikely to meet MDG at target time. Over 20% of the children still die before their fifth birthday. While global poverty is said to have declined from 41% in 1980 to 21% in 2001, in Africa it rose to…. 70% people still believe on less than $1 per day.
CORRUPTION: corruption is one of the major causes of poverty in Africa. Resources meant for economic development are siphoned to private pockets depriving the poor necessary social services. Close to 70% national resources in Nigeria is said to have gone to waste and corruption.
POOR INVESTMENT CLIMATE: the world bank stated that “a good investment climate is central to growth and poverty reduction. A vibrant private sector creates jobs and services needed to improve living standards, and contributes taxes necessary for public investment in health, education and other services.” YetAfricaeconomies are bedeviled with poor investment climate, performing poorly in the world bank’s ease of doing business ranking.
