THE German Embassy Manila supports local communities through its small-scale development projects. Pangarap Foundation Inc., a nonprofit organization that works with street children and out-of-school youth, was the recipient of an embassy small-scale project grant.
Two designated parks in a resettlement community in Dasmariñas, Cavite, were furnished with playground equipment funded by the embassy. The beneficiaries of the project are former urban-poor residents from a reclamation area in Pasay City. While the entire resettlement area is home to more than 7,300 families, more than 500 families in the immediate vicinity now benefit from the embassy-funded playgrounds, which provide a safe environment for their children.
Representatives of Pangarap Foundation and the local community were present when German Ambassador Thomas Ossowski visited the project site to officially turnover the playground equipment to the barangay of Paliparan.
The embassy project also included the support of the local day-care center through the purchase of toys and learning materials, as well as the renovation of its child-friendly sanitation facilities. In addition, Pangarap Foundation operates a feeding program at the day-care center, which provides daily lunch for 100 malnourished children. The German Embassy also supported this initiative by funding kitchen utensils and equipment used for the feeding program.
Small-scale projects are local initiatives financed by the Federal Foreign Office through the German Embassy and are implemented through nonprofit entities. Through quick and direct assistance, the projects aim to directly improve the quality of life among the poorest sectors of society.
To qualify for funding, the project should include a sizable number of beneficiaries, par nership contribution from the proponent organization, be completed within the same year, and thereafter sustained by the proponent organization.