The W/NP shipment to Nicaragua in May of 2003 was a colossal success measured in terms of delivery speed and recipient appreciation. As many of you know from articles submitted by the Appleton/Chinandega, Clintonville/Boaco, and Oshkosh/Condega Partners in the last newsletter, words seem inadequate for so many of our Nicaraguan friends as they receive your gifts of love and express their joy, admiration, and gratitude.
Your monetary contributions, along with your equipment donations, are the life-blood of the organization as well as our Partner City and Learning Centers networks. Thanks to your generosity, we can continue to supply technical skills and learning opportunities to people throughout Nicaragua.
Through the Learning Centers, it is our goal to provide hands-on, vocational skill-building opportunities to rural Nicaraguans. Disenfranchised women, in particular, are able to explore their potential as they acquire self-sufficiency, dignity, and employment within the Learning Centers environment. Opportunities range from developing sewing skills to managing small businesses. This community-based, training program allows the participants to remain in their homes and neighborhoods, rather than migrating to urban areas to work as housekeepers or in sweatshops.
The Micro-Lending Program is available to those who have been trained through the project and who desire to build a small business of their own. These funds assist with start-up costs including the purchase of equipment and provide prospects where none existed before.
Our shipments are routinely scrutinized by Nicaraguan Customs Officers who are concerned about infringement upon the Nicaraguan economy. Government officials tend to be particularly critical of goods coming into Nicaragua that are also produced there. This is seen as having a negative effect on their manufacturing and sales sector by negatively impacting the employment and business opportunities for their citizens. Additionally, Nicaraguan Customs is now requiring that all health care/medical supplies and equipment be packed in separate containers, regardless of its final destination.
Suggested donation items include:
- medical equipment (including hospital linens, patient and staff gowns, walkers, crutches, wheelchairs, hospital beds, exam tables, etc.);
- computers and related equipment (minimum Pentium processor);
- musical instruments and music;
- sewing/craft supplies;
- sewing machines (electric and treadle);
- sergers;
- commercial baking and confectionary equipment;
- dental equipment;
- optometry equipment;
- spanish reading or technical training books;
- sports equipment;
- tools;
- emergency equipment;
- school supplies.
Items to avoid include:
- liquids of any kind;
- chemicals;
- food;
- clothing (except nurses', hospital, or sports uniforms);
- disposable hospital linens and gowns;
- goods with expiration dates within six months or less.
Please make sure that all accompanying manuals, instructions, and parts are clearly marked, bagged, or boxed and included with your donation. Please pack like items together and clearly mark boxes with their contents and recipient. Use only W/NP approved printed labels and forms. Also, please provide itemized lists of your donations including their value and weight and to whom thank you letters should be sent, complete with address and contact information.
Marking boxes and giving contents lists may seem trivial, but this information is vital when shipment applications are submitted, final reports are compiled, governmental documents are completed, and the goods are being received and distributed.
At the close of 2002, Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners of the Americas, Inc. had 75 active Learning Centers throughout Nicaragua and 431 people registered in training classes. In 2003, those numbers have grown, due to donations like yours and the dedication and commitment of the Nicaraguans themselves. They are eagerly searching for hand up, not hand out, opportunities. Your donations of technical equipment, medical goods, and training materials provide those prospects. Thank you for helping us to provide those opportunities!
