Billions of foreign dollars spent in Africa.

No significant impact.

Something must change.

The recognition of one fundamental truth changed everything.

There are thousands of well-meaning Aid organizations across Africa, nonprofit NGO’s, religious missions, and foreign aid from countries around the world. Yet the result has been to sustain people in their poverty and drain the continent of its valuable resources.

It is a complex dynamic struggle; most aid workers of all stripes are sincere and well meaning. At VCI we first faced the fact that change is not happening. Visiting and surveying villages and towns and city slums across Africa we found that by every measure of health and wellbeing, infant mortality, and average life spans, there had been no significant improvement in the past 100 years across the continent, especially in rural communities. VCI joined these failed attempts over a period of many years. Thinking along with our partners in the donor community, that “this time it is different” when we were simply repeating the same principles and getting the same failed results. The perfect definition of insanity. Finally, we arrived at a key understanding of the Human endeavor. All adults are created to solve problems, starting with their own. You cannot treat adults like children. If you give them everything they need to succeed, they will fail.

Children need enablement to properly develop into healthy adults. But adults, no matter how distressed, must design, implement, and create their own solutions.

VCI Facilitates
True Community Empowerment

VCI was created and operates from the unorthodox and highly effective standpoint that Africans can solve their own problems using the resources they have on hand and without dependence on humanitarian aid.

It is a radical idea, still largely rejected in all humanitarian efforts today. Sudden disasters, natural and man made, often require unrestrained and massive assistance. There is a to time provide food, shelter and clothing. But endemic poverty cannot be cured by traditional means. The seeds of empowerment must be watered carefully.

The spark that ignites the power of creativity must be lit within the heart and person to person within the community. After 17 years VCI has proven that in distressed communities solutions that are not created and owned within the community are never sustainable. It is not about getting an agreement between the donor and recipient about what the community wants, or even about what the community needs. It is about orchestrating a process that transfers power on day one to the community and allows them to succeed and fail while moving forward in the normal process of building healthy and wealthy lives.

VCI is all about the community transfer of power. We equip people the members of the community to become agents of change, utilizing principles and practices that empower vulnerable populations to thrive.

As a result, thousands of communities across Africa are now thriving.

The Facts

For several hundred years Africa suffered the humility of foreign domination that gave no consideration to the humanity of the most valuable resource on the continent. People.

Entire people groups were enslaved, leadership was culled out of the population, and the Master/Servant relationship was enforced in a brutal and deadly manner. The end of the colonial era was not a process of gradual disengagement, but abandonment.

Strong Africa leadership emerged quickly replacing the exiting colonial powers. At the same time the U.S. and Russia began to pour billions of dollars into Africa thinly disguised as Aid, but in fact was simply alliance building with no real oversight over the funds. Exiting colonials paid billions in reparations with the same lack of oversight, and corruption along with generations old tribal rivalries quickly infected the continent. Infrastructure collapsed leaving power grids, coordinated water networks and road systems in disrepair and collapsed states.

Whether planned or not, this left the vast and rich African land resources, the richest in the world, an easy target for exploitation. First world production of cheap high-tech products relies significantly on the continued exploitation of Africa, and Africans.

Foreign intervention always leads to perpetual states of chaos, bad governance, civil war, and dependence.

“In all kindness, everything we do, everything we have done as donors has perpetuated the mentality of enablement.”

GRANTH ROM

The Post-Colonial Era has only perpetuated the first world myths, and the culture of enablement. In the words of Granth Rom, “In all kindness, everything we do, everything we have done as donors has perpetuated the mentality of enablement. It is a dilemma because we are convinced that if we stop we will be responsible for the genocide of nations. Yet by some peoples’ thinking we have already so enabled some populations that there is no turning back.”

At VCI we understand that the catalyst necessary to effect change is to foster people’s natural capacity to solve their own problems. VCI OPOS facilitation awakens the hearts of folks to begin in small ways to make changes that quickly grow into dynamic improvement.

All we have to do is stand back and stay out of their way.

The Method

OPOS. Our method of transferring power across our five major programs, is organized around Outcomes where we ask the participants; “What do you want to achieve?”, Practices; “what will you need to do to achieve the Outcome you desire?” and Open Space, where the participants create an agenda, break into small groups, and decide how to work together to solve the problems they have decided to tackle.

We have eliminated the foreign approach to problem solving by opening the eyes and minds of the amazing capacity of Africans to be creative and initiate change from within.

Only Africans can solve the problems of Africa. Just like only you can own the solutions to your own challenges.

We come only where we are invited. OPOS can take a few hours or last a few days. It can start again any time, everyone is welcome, everyone has a voice. Whomever shows up are the right people, whatever happens is the right thing.

There are times in the phases of life for all of us where we need some help with “what’s next”?

OPOS is a decision making action plan and covers five areas of life.

Outcomes for Life

Outcomes for Children

Outcomes for Teens

Outcomes for Seniors

Outcomes for Business

The first four all focus on the same goals. We want everyone to be Safe, healthy, living in a loving home, to be learning, and have economic security. Without the first four, the fifth is not sustainable. Without the fifth, the first four are not sustainable.

There are five principal areas that are fundamental to all healthy communities around the world. Every healthy community, and every member in every stage of life must have access to effective Sanitation, Nutrition, Health Care and Awareness, Education, and Economic gain.

We begin by inviting everyone in the community to come to a town meeting.

In every community there are people of influence. Our most important participants throughout the life of the program are the most vulnerable members of the community. We consistently find that once the poor and disenfranchised become engaged and active, radical change occurs in the community.

But change is a process of engagement and influence. In every community there are people of influence. They are often not the identified leaders, they are simply people who everyone listens to, usually doing well, and have good life disciplines and behaviors. OPOS starts with them.

OPOS Phases

The Results

By embracing the concepts of no help, no aid and no outside interference, VCI OPOS flies in the face of conventional wisdom, and it works.

Sometimes it is something as small as more sanitary living conditions and sometimes it is something as big as a village-wide fish-farming project. Or a community commercial garden, or of dozens of small businesses that provide employment while remaining faithful to the idea that the resources they produce care for not only themselves but their neighbors as well.

In 17 years, VCI has seen its OPOS program take hold in thousands of villages across 15 countries. Increasingly, the program is spread and shared from village to village by word of mouth and without the need of VCI facilitators. Our aim is true multiplication.

The best testimony to our success has been a radical reduction in infant mortality, and disease reduction, thousands of orphans returned to ancestral homes, an increase in economic security, and the spreading of the good news as nearby communities are replicating the principles of empowerment.

Donations to Village Care International are used solely to support our African facilitators with a small living wage and to provide them with a means of transportation and communication. VCI has no administrative deduction from your donation. All donations are allocated to empowerment projects in Africa.

The Latest from our
Initiatives Across Africa

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Vable Community Initiatives Ghana, update!

The team facilitated OPOS training at Nsakyi community.

It was an interesting interaction where the people were able to identify the effects of; Poverty, abuse and diseases on the community.
However, it is instructive to note that, the people were able to also highlight ways and means by which they can raise their standard of living on their own in order to overcome all of this challenges as mentioned above.

Now that is exactly what OPOS is meant to achieve, help communities to identify their challenges and be accountable and responsible for solving them using their ingenuity and the available resources around them.

This way, it is more sustainable and consistent for over a period of time and can be replicated across neighboring communities too.

Success is usually achieved by the little things we do if only we will be committed and consistent. vcinitiatives.org
... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago
Vable Community Initiatives Ghana, update!

The team facilitated OPOS training at Nsakyi community. 

It was an interesting interaction where the people were able to identify the effects of; Poverty, abuse and diseases on the community.
However, it is instructive to note that, the people were able to also highlight ways and means by which they can raise their standard of living on  their own  in order to overcome all of this challenges as mentioned above. 

Now that is exactly what OPOS is meant to achieve, help communities to identify their challenges and be accountable and responsible for solving them using their ingenuity and the available resources around them.
 
This way, it is more sustainable and consistent for over a period of time and can be replicated across neighboring communities too. 

Success is usually achieved by the little things we do if only we will be committed and consistent. vcinitiatives.orgImage attachmentImage attachment+2Image attachment

Viable community Initiative update , Ghana!

Team Ghana facilitated OPOS training at Katapor community, Ghana.

The training was well attended by the community members and also quite interactive.

We asked questions around challenges bedeviling the community and what in their own opinion, can be done to address these challenges using affordable and accessible resources within their community.

This forms the basis for discussion with the community members suggesting solutions themselves.

Using OPOS methodology, it makes sense to them why the need to task themselves to cooperate and work in unison to address their challenges in order to be able to achieve the basic outcomes for life through simple home practices.

We strongly believe that this community will utilise this opportunity to better their communities and homes.

Shatter Conformity, Spark Transformation! vcinitiatives.org
... See MoreSee Less

2 weeks ago
Viable community Initiative update , Ghana!

Team Ghana facilitated OPOS training at Katapor community, Ghana.

The training was well attended by the community members and also quite interactive. 

We asked questions around challenges bedeviling the community and what in their own opinion, can be done to address these challenges using affordable and accessible resources within their community. 

This forms the basis for discussion with the community members suggesting solutions themselves. 

Using OPOS methodology, it makes sense to them why the need to task themselves to cooperate and work in unison to address their challenges in order to be able to achieve the basic outcomes for life through simple home practices. 

We strongly believe that this community will utilise this opportunity to better their communities and homes.

Shatter Conformity, Spark Transformation! vcinitiatives.orgImage attachmentImage attachment+3Image attachment

Village Care Initiative update, DR Congo!

The Congo team facilitated OPOS training in Congo with emphasis on child education and home based activities.

They identified that, communication and attention makes a positive impact in a child's education.

They encouraged parents to create time to listen and appreciate the little efforts of their children and motivate them with cheering and affirmative words.

As parents, you're your child's first mentor as kids look up to their parents for guidance and direction in life which contributes to their personal, emotional growth and development.

Shatter Conformity, Spark Transformation! vcinitiatives.org
... See MoreSee Less

2 weeks ago
Village Care Initiative update, DR Congo!

The Congo team facilitated OPOS training in Congo with emphasis on child education and home based activities.

They identified that, communication and attention makes a positive impact in a childs education. 

They encouraged parents to create time to listen and appreciate the little efforts of their children and motivate them with cheering and affirmative words.

As parents, youre your childs first mentor as kids look up to their parents for  guidance and direction in life which contributes to their personal, emotional growth and development.

Shatter Conformity, Spark Transformation! vcinitiatives.orgImage attachmentImage attachment+1Image attachment
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Help Us Change Lives Forever

VCI has no administrative deduction from your donation.
All donations are allocated to empowerment projects in Africa.