Order & donate via

Support our projects in Ecuador

Background – In February 2007, Jakarta was overwhelmed by its worst floods in five years. The water-levels rose by up to five metres. More than 260,000 people were forced to abandon their homes. The small textile companies, which had set up shop in the districts of Cipulir and Ulujami, were hit particularly hard. Many of them lost their machinery and entire inventory, as well as their files and records. Even before the flooding, the economic situation of these small enterprises had not been particularly healthy. They are producing for the local market, in which the profit margins are small. For members of the weakest social strata, such jobs in a small enterprise represent one of their very few sources of income. To prevent an even greater descent into poverty, it was vital that these enterprises were swiftly brought back into operation. Now, the enterprises must be given enough support to enable them to take on more workers and thus reduce the poverty levels.

The Project – Due to Swisscontact’s reconstruction project, the textile firms have been able to raise their income almost back to the levels they enjoyed before the flooding. This has allowed them to re-employ most of the staff that had, in the meantime, been laid off. More than 800 machines have been repaired and 370 enterprises have been re-equipped with new machinery. In addition to this, the small entrepreneurs themselves have been receiving further training in the installation and emergency repair of the machinery.

To enable them to better protect themselves from the consequences of any future natural catastrophes and other risks, Swisscontact has in close collaboration with the Allianz Insurance Company developed a product that is specifically tailored to meet the needs of these small enterprises. The aim of the second phase of the project is to improve the productivity and competitiveness of the small enterprises. Entrepreneurs and their employees are receiving support to improve the quality of both their produce and their administration. In addition, the marketing of the produce is being fostered by encouraging the various firms to launch collective sales actions. Should a firm require any additional machinery, Swisscontact will help them to secure the necessary financing. Thanks to the project, the small enterprises are now able to become more competitive. This has enabled them to create 400 new full-time and 200 new part-time jobs, thus achieving a sustainable reduction of poverty in parts of Jakarta.

Our donation account

BW Bank 600 501 01
Account 2234 111

We kindly ask you to use the project title as reference on your money transfer form. We will be pleased to issue a donation receipt. Therefore send us an E-Mail with your contact details to the address germany [at] swisscontact.net

Here you can read more about the different possibilities to support Swisscontact Germany.