This document outlines a proposal for a joint public-private platform called Lovebridge to address poverty in Mauritius. It would target households living in impoverished conditions according to six criteria like income, housing, education, etc. Lovebridge would facilitate empowerment through these six pillars by connecting households with social workers, NGOs, companies, and volunteer families for long-term support. The proposal calls for scaling up Lovebridge nationally by enrolling thousands of households across regions and plugging in partner companies on a voluntary basis to fund support services and activities. Key performance indicators are identified to measure progress in empowering households and achieving the vision of contributing to eradicating absolute poverty in Mauritius through this collaborative approach.
2. WHY ARE WE HERE
• Budget speech ⇒ Parrainage project
‘LOVEBRIDGE’ as the platform
3. “REGIONS” AND “HOUSEHOLDS”
• “Régions défavorisés’ ⇒ ↑↑↑↑ concentration of “Households”
• “Régions défavorisés”:
a) Hardware ⇒ Infrastructure [roads/electricity/water/sewerage]
⇒ Sports & Social infrastructure
⇒ Housing?
b) Software ⇒ Households/Families
LOVEBRIDGE ⇒⇒⇒⇒ SOFTWARE
4. TARGET HOUSEHOLDS CRITERIA
A. 6 PILLARS
• Households living in “inhuman” conditions
1. Nutritional
2. ‘Employability’/Employment [Income]
3. Housing per capita
4. Education:
(a) Access
(b) Household environment
5. Healthcare
6. Attitude / self help
• “Vicious circle”
• Unable ‘alone’ = need Help
Per Capita criteria
a) Income
b) Housing
1 or more
basic needs
not met
Interlinked
5. B.BILAN ON “ABSOLUTE POVERTY” IN MAURITIUS
• ECHEC? IMPROVEMENT TREND??
• 8,000 families
∴ - Historical methods NOT ENOUGH
- Need new weapons/approaches
- Need ‘NATIONAL’ commitment/Synergies
6. EMPOWERMENT
A. EMPOWERMENT
‘’Give a man a fish…
B. 6 PILLARS
• Education
• Health
• Employability/Employment
• Housing
• Nutrition
• The right ‘Attitude’/self help
NB: (1)Target households must ‘aspire’ + ‘be willing’
(2) Empowerment v/s Assistanat
7. C. PARTICIPANTS IN THE ‘WAR’ AGAINST POVERTY
1.GOVERNMENT
2.BUSINESS COMMUNITY
3.NGO’s
4.CIVIL SOCIETY
TEAMWORK
NEEDSYNERGY
⇒⇒⇒⇒LOVEBRIDGE
8. PROJET LOVE BRIDGE [ 3 YEARS OLD ]
‘LONG TERM’ COMMITMENT UNTIL EMPOWERMENT → MORAL COMMITMENT
NO ‘FEU DE PAILLE’
FAMILLE
ACCOMPAGNATRICE
FAMILLE
BENEFICIAIRE
SOCIAL WORKER/
LOVEBRIDGE TEAM
LOVE
LA
CELLULE
- Cité Brasserie: 25
- EDC: 15
40
10. POURQUOI ‘LOVE BRIDGE’
A. LOVE
Amour = L’Autre avant Moi
Amour = Agir v/s Sentiments
Huge difficulties/challenges ∴∴∴∴ perseverance & commitment
L’Intelligence du coeur
B. BRIDGE
⇒ Two-way traffic
⇒ Nation building between 2 extremes
11. THE CONCEPT
Cellule 1 Cellule 2 Cellule 3 Cellule 4 Cellule 5 Cellule 8000
A1
S1
B1
A2
S2
B2
A3
S3
B3
A4
S4
B4
A5
S5
B5
A6
S6
B6
A = Accompagnateurs
B = Bénéficiaires
S = Social Worker
16. SOCIAL WORKERS & PROJECT COORDINATOR
• SOCIAL WORKERS [Unqualified]
− Full time / Flexitime
− Living in same ‘region’
− ‘Coaching’ & ‘Training’
− ± 1 social worker to 10 cellules
− The ‘bridge’
• PROJECT COORDINATOR [Qualified]
− ± 1 project coordinator to 5 social workers to 50 cellules [per region]
− ‘Link up’ to NGO’s
− Responsible for KPI’s
− Act as ‘accompagnateur’ if necessary
17. FAMILLE/PERSONNE ACCOMPAGNATEUR [PARRAINS]
• ‘Long term’
• A real ‘envie’
• Living in ‘proximity’
• Coached
• 51% accountable
Time spent per month ± 2 to 4 hours [per capita]
Team work with social workers
Need 8000 of them over time
18. BILAN 3 YEARS
REGIONS
NOMBRE ADULTES
VULNERABLES
NOMBRE ENFANTS
VULNERABLES
NOMBRE
ACCOMPAGNATEURS
TOTAL 67 108 81
• Education:
Tous les enfants sont scolarisés:
−48 enfants bénéficient d’un soutien scolaire
−13 enfants transférés dans des écoles adaptées
−19 enfants bénéficient d’un soutien psychologique
−13 enfants participent à des activités extrascolaires
19. BILAN 3 YEARS
• Emploi : 43 adultes ont trouvé un emploi, dont 24 un emploi stable
• Logement : 26 familles ont pu rénover leur logement/entamer des
démarches pour des logements sociaux
• Santé : 20 bénéficiaires → suivi médical pour maladies chroniques
• Nutrition : 14 familles sur aide alimentaire
• ‘Accompagnateurs’ ‘‘committed’’ to long term relationship
• 100% beneficiaries satisfised
Tried / Tested / Proven
21. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF
LOVEBRIDGE NATIONAL PROJECT
• ‘SPV’ under ‘JEC/MEF’
• Board members:
− Raj Makoond [Co Chair person] - Eric Adam
− Harold Mayer [Co Chair person] - Robert Fernando [Clinical Psychologist]
− Pradeep Dursun [ MEF] - Jacques D‘Unienville
− Danielle Wong - 3 other members
− Hector Espitalier Noël - Ministry of Finance representative [1]
− Anil Currimjee - Ministry of Finance representative [2]
− Dean Ah Chuen
• ‘CEO’ → report to the Board.
• The ‘seed capital’ → Government funds
24. LOVEBRIDGE NATIONAL PROJECT
VISION/MISSION/VALUES
VISION
Through Lovebridge, our aim, is to play an active
role (alongside Government, NGO’s and Civil
society) in the eradication of absolute poverty.
Our vision is to help empower & bring
autonomy to all willing households caught in the
poverty trap. We have a long term commitment to
that vision. Our vision is also to promote ‘nation
building’ by building bridges.
25. LOVEBRIDGE NATIONAL PROJECT
VISION/MISSION/VALUES
MISSION
Our mission is to deliver ‘empowerment’ & ‘autonomy’ to
target households through the 6 pillars:
Education
Employability & Employment [Income]
Food
Health
Housing
Positive attitude towards ‘empowerment’/self help
26. VISION/MISSION/VALUES
VALUES
• Love [Loving relationships]
• Humility
• Respect [both ways]
• Tolerance & patience & solidarity
• Courage
• Modern management methods
• Results driven in KPIs
• Commitment & perseverance [long term]
• Hard work
• ‘Substance’ over ‘form’ [Transparence]
Soft
27. OBJECTIVES OF LOVEBRIDGE/NATIONAL PROGRAMME
• Available to ‘all’ willing families
[10 districts of Mauritius]
• Sustain the project for at least 20 years
[1 generation]
28. KEYS TO SUCCESS + FUNDAMENTALS
• ‘Long term’ objective [20 years] → 1 generation
• Lovebridge not a “substitute” ⇒ A complement
• Companies involved ⇒ “voluntary basis”
• No smoke screen/window dressing in feedback on KPI’s
• Appropriate ‘leadership’
• Appropriate funding
29. TARGET REGIONS [PER DISTRICT]
• 2016 ⇒⇒⇒⇒ Start 1 or 2 regions per district
• Healthy competition between districts
for results
30. NATIONAL PROJECT ASSUMPTIONS & GIVENS
• No. of target households ⇒ 4000 to 8000
• 1 social worker per 10 to 20 households [to be fine tuned]
• 1 project coordinator for 10 to 15 social workers [to be fine tuned]
• Estimated annual cost ⇒⇒⇒⇒ Rs 15,000 to Rs 25,000 per households
[inc. Lovebridge structure costs]
• All Lovebridge staff to be stationed in sponsor company offices
⇒ Decentralised
• Financial requirements for ‘households’ ⇒⇒⇒⇒ funded by voluntary contributions by
companies:
⇒ Education
⇒ Crisis
⇒ Housing
⇒ Food-Nutrition
⇒ Health
⇒ Other miscellaneous
• Involve ↑↑↑↑ calibre ‘volunteers’ in project
31. ORGANIGRAM OF 1 DISTRICT/REGION
Households
Social Workers
Region Coordinator
CEO/
Central Organisation
District Board
- Chairperson - CEO
- Other ‘sponsor’ companies rep - National Operations
- Municipality/District Council reps - Coordinator
- Active/Relevant regional NGO’s - District Coordinator
- Lovebridge ‘family’ project reps
NGO’s Accompagnateurs
32. TOP KPIs
NEXT 10
1) Per capita income [work]
2) % employment [would < 9 months per eligible household]
3) % eligible children : < 18 outside education system
4) : en “échec scolaire”
5) % households : Too little “per capita” space for housing
6) : No “access” to water & electricity
7) : Minimum nutritional needs not met
8) : With “unsustainable debt”
9) : With “unmet” health care needs
10) : Where “loving relationship” established in cellule
11) : With ‘positive attitude’ towards empowerment/self help
TOP 3
1) % households ⇒⇒⇒⇒ Happy
2) % companies ⇒ Happy
3) % of ‘accompagnateurs’ ⇒ Happy
33. HOW COMPANIES PARTICIPATE IN LOVEBRIDGE [Plug in]
• Participation → Voluntary
• 3 categories ⇒ Gold/Silver/Bronze
• Ways of involvement:
− Host Lovebridge staff on site + logistics
− Participate in funds for target households [yearly budget volunteered at DCB].
⇒ Education ⇒ Housing ⇒ Emergency ⇒ Health ⇒ Food ⇒
Training/Coaching
− Propose employees to act as ‘accompagnateurs’ → 50% own time & 50% company time
− Sit on ‘District Board’ for 3 meetings a year to review progress & KPIs.
− Access to ‘HR’ staff for ‘small assistance’ of various nature.
− Sit on ‘crisis committee’ for region [in case of crisis].
− Any other suggested way/new ideas
Above to be fine tuned after consultations
34. CRITICAL PATH + PACE OF DEVELOPMENT
− Funds committed/SPV formed/Project ratified 30/08/2017
− Top management [± 15 people] recruited & trained 30/12/2017
− Operational plan drafted with Lovebridge Management
team
− 50 Social workers employed & trained [5 per district]
− Companies enrolled
− Surveys done in priority regions
30/06/2017
− Target households enrolled on programme by social
workers
⇒ By 30/12/2017
⇒ By 30/12/2018
⇒ Year 3 to 30/11/2019
⇒ Year 4 to 30/12/2020
1000
3000
?
?
The ‘Board’ will set the ‘pace’ of enrolment based on the above criteria
35. WHY LOVEBRIDGE SHOULD BRING RESULTS?
1. Direct/simple/pragmatic approach ⇒ Hands on
2. Tried/tested/proven ⇒ just scale up
3. Our Top 100 companies drive successful
organisations in much more complex environments
4. Decentralised approach ⇒ free of red tape.
5. Lovebridge not a ‘heavy burden’ on companies
36. SPIN OFF BENEFITS OF LOVEBRIDGE
1. ‘Nation building’ ⇒ Bridge between Have and Have not’s.
⇒Bridge between businesses and poverty
2. Contribute to ‘National unity’.
3. ± 300 to 500 jobs created.
4. Probably ‘unique’ PPP in fight against poverty → Global ‘role’ model
5. ‘‘Capitalism with a social heart’’
37. CONCLUSION
• Its ‘AMBITIOUS’ = in line with the size of the challenge.
• ‘Doable’ if ALL OF US ⇒ Government/Private sector
leaders put our weight; our will; and most importantly our
‘HEART’ behind it.
LET’S EMBARK ON THE JOURNEY WITH
‘LOVE’ & ‘DETERMINATION’
