Hello, hello! Today, we’re introducing you to someone truly special. Meet Abdalla—a Yemeni entrepreneur living and working in Hargeisa, Somalia. In May of 2015, Abdalla came to Somalia with his two brothers, Abdirahman and Zakaria. The family was fleeing instability in Yemen. Back home, Abdalla was a perfume and incense salesman, but when he left, he brought nothing more than himself and his two brothers. To get by, the brothers started a business selling Yemeni curries. But as time went on, Abdalla wanted to return to his roots, selling perfumes and incense. He restarted his business and was selling perfumes and scented oils. We loved the way Abdalla, Abdirahman and Zakaria all supported each other and their businesses, so we wanted to see what we could do to support the whole family. One of the things that Abdalla explained—while his brothers nodded along—was that buying oils is the most cost-prohibitive part of their work. If you want to make a profit off oils, you have … [Read more...] about Oil in a Day’s Work

Today is our third and final day with Ikran and Shrukia, the mother-daughter duo who are running their own beauty salon out of their small house in central Hargeisa. We spent the last two days supplementing their makeup supplies and hair equipment, but today, we’re taking a slightly different approach. Since our first discussion, Ikran and Shukria had been asking about the potential to purchase a refrigerator. While we might take for granted how ubiquitous they are, not everyone in Hargeisa has one. Ikran and Shukria thought that a new fridge would help them stand out from their competitors. They would be able to store specialty makeup and other beauty supplies that require refrigeration, as well as offer their customers cold drinks and other snacks to consume while they received other services. So to wrap things up with this dynamic duo, we took them out shopping for a refrigerator that would be able to meet their needs. The two were all smiles when we finally left … [Read more...] about Let’s Cool Things Down

Welcome back to Somalia! We’re spending another day with Ikran and her mother, Shukria, working to give their salon the small boost that they were looking for. They offer both hair and makeup services, so yesterday, we spent the day buying makeup supplies that would help boost their offerings and attract new potential customers. Today, we’re focusing more on the hair side. Ikran dreams of eventually owning her own salon outside of their house. She wants it to be a one-stop shop for all beauty needs. Until she gets her own place, she’s using the house to practice her skills and get to know customers who could refer others later. But Ikran is lacking some of the equipment she needs to offer the services she wants to provide. So today, we’re heading out to another store to pick up some hair appliances. They already had hair straighteners and curlers, but they really needed a new blow dryer and a hair steamer. Ikran and Shukria picked out the perfect tools, and they also … [Read more...] about Do Your Hair Toss

Hello, hello! The Changemakers 365 team is still in Hargeisa, Somalia, but we’ve left the orphanage. We’ll spend the next few days working with Yemeni and Syrian refugee entrepreneurs. We’re starting this next set of projects with Ikran and her mother Shukria. Ikran is a student at the local university, studying business management. But though she’s still learning, she’s already trying her hand at running a business! As a mother-daughter duo, Ikran and Shukria run a beauty salon out of their house. They primarily offer hair and makeup services for clients attending weddings, graduations, and other big parties. But they’re limited in what they’re able to offer because they don’t have all the necessary supplies. As Shukria told us, “we don’t make a lot of money from our hair and makeup work because we can’t offer a lot of the services that our clients request.” To help remedy this, we took Ikran and Shukria out shopping for additional makeup that they could use to attract … [Read more...] about All Made Up

Welcome back to another day in Hargeisa! It’s our second-to-last day working at the orphanage that homes and schools over 400 children. Today, we’re focusing on some of their scholastic needs! The orphanage’s on-site school had plenty of books for the students to use and learn from, but they were missing exercise books, pencils, and erasers. Without these, the students could read along just fine. But they couldn’t write in the books to hone their writing skills like their teachers had hoped. So, we decided to pick up a few boxes of exercise books, pencils, and erasers for the teachers to distribute and use in their classrooms! Our Hargeisa staff was careful to pick out the most exciting exercise books, with covers of nature and wildlife, to make their writing classes even more fun. The kids will be writing with ease in no time, and we can’t wait to read all they have to say! If you’d like to support doing the doable and making change each and every day, make a donation … [Read more...] about Reading and Writing

Hello hello! It’s our third day working with the orphanage near our office in Hargeisa, Somalia. Today, we’re focusing on warming these kids up—in style! When we think of Somalia, we tend not to picture cold weather. It’s hard to imagine pulling cozy sweatshirts over our heads to warm up. But even though it tends to be hot in Somalia, in the cooler rainy seasons, the evenings can be brisk! So, even in Hargeisa, a soft and warm sweatshirt can sometimes be the perfect accessory. The kids living at the orphanage all have a nice set of clothes to choose from each day. But it’s just the basics, and they don’t necessarily have the most exciting wardrobes, either. A couple of our staff thought it would be nice to supplement the things they already had, to jazz up their options and help keep them warm! So today, we got them some cozy sweatshirts they’d be able to wear on those brisk evenings in Hargeisa, or to cuddle up in when feeling sick. We had a handful of kids try on the … [Read more...] about Cozying Up

Today, we’re back at the orphanage in Hargeisa, a place near and dear to the Alight staff. With over 400 children living at the orphanage, there are tons of needs to meet. But as any parent will tell you, you can never have too many diapers! But at the orphanage, it’s hard for the staff to keep a healthy stock of each diaper size, which means they're often forced to make do with diapers that just don't fit right. We wanted to make sure that going into the new year, our staff had all the materials they needed to give these kids the care they deserve! So, we filled up the back of our truck with diapers and brought them to the orphanage. We made sure to get a variety of sizes, ensuring that all the kids can be taken care of. Our staff loved knowing they could start the year out with this important need met. Plus, the orphanage staff were thrilled to see others get pumped up about diapers! Here’s to a clean and healthy year. If you’d like to support doing the doable and … [Read more...] about Nappies in a Bunch

Welcome to Hargeisa! We’re back in Somalia, working with our team here to do the doable. Even though we don’t have traditional programming in the city of Hargeisa itself, we have an engaged staff with big hearts and commitments to their community. One of the groups they’re most committed to is an orphanage in the city, which helps house and school over 400 children up to 21 years old. There are lots of kids, so the orphanage has diverse needs. But some essentials, like milk and formula, are always in demand! Many of the children are under the age of one, with the youngest being just a few weeks old. This means they’re constantly resupplying their milk and formula reserves to ensure there’s enough to go around. So, we decided to help make sure they had enough of a supply for the next few months! Now, each child will have access to the milk or formula most appropriate for their age. One woman working at the Orphanage, Annab, told us, “people say only the rich can afford … [Read more...] about Formulating a Solution

Hello again from Somalia! Asia, Osman, Jon, Steph, Betty, and me (Joseph!) are on a trip of a lifetime, the Trip Around the World! Our team is going borderless, visiting different Alight country programs across the globe. It's all about making new connections, learning from each other, and becoming Alight together! We're in Hargeisa, Somalia, where we're hanging out with the Alight team here and getting out into their community to do the doable. Today we're headed to an orphanage, where kids and teachers alike could use a little extra TLC. Zahra is the head teacher at the orphanage. She's been here for nine years. "I came to work here when I learned that they didn't have a teacher!" she told us. "I want to give them a better future. They need to not feel like they're abandoned." Her favorite subject to teach is the history of Somaliland, so that they can see where they come and where they are now. "Even talking about this now gives me such joy!" One of the things … [Read more...] about Growing Up

Welcome to the Trip Around the World!! I'm your host, Joseph Kyobe. And I'm with my fellow travelers from Alight: Asia from Somalia, Betty from Rwanda, Osman from Sudan, and Jon and Stephanie from Minnesota. Me, I'm from Uganda. This trip is all about coming together to learn about Alight's country programs literally around the world, and building relationships with our teammates everywhere. It's all about being borderless - we are one WORLDWIDE team, working together to be the very best for the people we serve. First stop - doing the doable together in Somalia! Here we are in Hargeisa, Somalia, with our Alight teammates. We sat down to chat with our colleagues about what we might do together during our visit. One of the things they were most passionate about? Supporting the local mental health residency facility. The facility was running low on a few things - things like soap, sanitary pads, and new clothes for their residents. The Alight team in Hargeisa was moved … [Read more...] about Trip Around the World