Ford Announces College Community Challenge Winners in Kenya

Ford Announces College Community Challenge Winners in Kenya

July 29, 2016 • News

Hundreds of street children in Kenya will receive skills development and mentoring and more than two dozen local farmers are set to benefit from a cooling food storage programme as a result of two Ford College Community Challenge (C3) grants, part of Ford Motor Company’s expanding charity presence in Africa.

The C3 program runs in collaboration with Ford Motor Company Fund, the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company, and Enactus to empower communities to become more sustainable, and improve working and living conditions.

The winning proposals came from the Enactus teams from the University of Eldoret and the University of Nairobi. Each team received USD 1,000 to implement their community empowerment projects.

“The Ford/Enactus C3 project forms part of the global Ford C3 Building Sustainable Communities Project Partnership, which is a collaborative and innovative student-lead initiative that addresses an urgent, unmet social need or problem in the community,” said Rob Johnston, General Manager: Sales and Aftersales Sub Saharan Africa region.

“This is the project’s second year in Africa, and is now active in Brazil, Germany, Ghana, Morocco, South Africa and the United Kingdom where local communities have benefited and been uplifted in significant, meaningful ways,” Johnston added.

“The Enactus teams from University of Eldoret and University of Nairobi were selected to be part of the change-makers in society for the third cycle of the Enactus Ford C3 program. These important projects, like in the first two cycles, will go towards providing solutions to challenges and empowering the community in a significant way,” Winnie Nanjala, Deputy Director & Business Development Manager of Enactus Kenya added.

The team from the University of Nairobi aims to empower over 300 ‘street children’ each year to improve their livelihoods, while the University of Eldoret project focuses on developing a cooling food storage system that will assist approximately 25 local farmers. Both community projects will receive funding and support through October 2016.

The will reduce food waste and protect the income of farmers by designing and building solar-powered cold rooms to provide an affordable storage solution. The team’s design includes low-cost materials and sensor-based technology that can monitor the storage environment and alert users via SMS to changes in temperature and humidity. Farmers can subscribe to the cold room daily, weekly or monthly, allowing them to store their food all year-round at an affordable price.

The University of Nairobi Enactus team will partner with local rehabilitation centres that serve street children. The aim of the project is to create handcrafts, such as wall hangings, handbags, clothes, and jewellery, using mostly recycled material that can sell with generous profits to financially support rehabilitation efforts while providing a creative outlet for the participating youth. The team will train caregivers and youth while engaging in mentorship and follow-up programs with the youth.

University students have to take the leadership role in these Enactus projects, from design to implementation, and the teams are encouraged to think innovatively and creatively about what it means to build a sustainable community.

Both teams will submit a Final Impact Report in October 2016 to detail the success of their projects.

Enactus is a global non-profit organization that brings together students, academic professionals and business leaders who are committed to using entrepreneurial action to improve lives. It mobilizes over 1,700 university programs in 36 countries across the globe.

An annual series of regional and national competitions provides a forum for teams to showcase the impact of their outreach efforts and to be evaluated by executives serving as judges. National champion teams advance to the prestigious Enactus World Cup to experience excellence in competition, collaboration and celebration. The 2016 Enactus World Cup will be held in Toronto, Canada, from September 28-30.

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