We have plans to overcome housing barriers by using many different ways, first of all in 2020 we created a savings group educating the community on how to be financially smart.
By setting up a smart and realistic goal each year, for example:
• The First goal for all is to build or to buy your own house.
• Startup their own business,
• Buying their family cars depending on what they want to do each year.
UEG teaches how to: Budget, to invest showing skills and giving knowledge to effectively deal with their money to reach their goals.
UEG has designed a micro-finance project for saving money to help to empower the community.
After consultation with the community this was preferred as a good start up.
The saving program is in its fourth year.
At the beginning money was saved according to everyone’s income, deposits were weekly.
The minimum saving amount is fixed at $50 which increased according to the capacity of participants income.
Everyone was eligible as long as over 16 years.
To date there have been 27 members
Women from refugee backgrounds have endured numerous hardships and faced significant challenges throughout their lives. Many of them struggle with a low sense of self-worth due to a lack of formal education or training, and often feel excluded from the broader community. At UEG, we are dedicated to uplifting and inspiring these women by painting a positive and empowering picture of their lives.
Through our Empowering Women program, we bring together women from diverse backgrounds and provide them with the opportunity to learn new skills. Our training sessions focus on art design, sewing, and hairdressing, offering practical knowledge that can lead to meaningful employment or entrepreneurial opportunities.
The impact of our program is evident, as we have already witnessed the transformation of several women in the community who have gained independence and self-reliance through their newly acquired skills. However, due to our current limited resources, we are unable to reach as many women as we would like. We aspire to bring together a larger community of women and provide them with the support and empowerment they deserve.
We provide support with kindergarten and daycare enrollments for children from African refugee backgrounds. This includes discussing options with parents and supporting them to complete and submit applications for kindergarten and daycare, sometimes for multiple children. We also follow up on the enrollments once they are submitted to provide any further support and advocacy for the families.
At an adult level, we also assist individuals in accessing GOTAFE's English program. Daycare enrolment is often a necessity for studying parents with young children.
We provide advocacy for people living with disabilities. This may involve follow-up with doctors so that the person can be registered with the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). We also liaise with services to ensure that all individuals in the African community who are living with a disability are supported in their registration process with the NDIS, should they choose to do so.
Finding suitable employment can be a significant challenge for new arrivals. At UEG, we actively engage with local employers and job search agencies to connect our clients with job opportunities in Shepperton and surrounding areas. By understanding the needs of both our clients and employers, we facilitate the job placement process and advocate for the successful integration of refugees into the workforce.
