Lightening the Burden of Life: The Need for Support
Social Entrepreneurship, Empowerment and Cohesion Project Notes || July, 2024
Modern People's Burnout
Even if we want to be very successful in our business life, in our endeavors, or at least appear to be, there are times when we feel powerless and alone.
We think that we are carrying the burden of the world and that only we can carry it. If this is the case, we need to change something. It could be the way we do business, the people we share our responsibilities with, or increasing our support mechanisms.
The Most Basic Need: Receiving Support
By nature, human beings are physically and psychologically in need of help and support.
Who has supported us from the moment we were born until today? Our parents, siblings, relatives, teachers, friends, those who guide us, those who inspire us even if we don't know them, role models, true leaders, personalities who show the right path...
We Walk Together, Not Alone
As we struggle under the pace of the modern world, we have worked hard, with a tendency to think we are stronger than we are. Yet there is no journey in life that we can personally complete. When we reach the destination, the only thing we want to see with us are our friends with whom we can celebrate the end.
And development is only possible when we receive strength and support from others.
An individual who receives support has the opportunity to support others. This state of mutual sharing and cooperation strengthens social solidarity, makes society more harmonious and paves the way for development.
We Grow Stronger with Support
The SEECO Project is built on recognizing and supporting the benefits generated locally. We aim to multiply our support in the region to increase social impact. Happily, examples of support and solidarity are increasing day by day.
Ms. Meral, one of our beneficiaries, produces chocolate covered date snacks. While she was thinking about how to utilize the accumulated date seeds, they met Ms. Hala during the SEECO training. Ms. Hala started to prepare healthy and environmentally friendly coffees with the date seeds she received. Having received support from the SEECO Project, the two women started to support each other. Receiving support increases the capacity to give support.
We have grown up with proverbs that teach us that individual efforts have limits and that acting together is necessary to achieve greater things. The SEECO Project grows with the support we provide to our potential beneficiaries with a focus on social entrepreneurship. These supports meet needs such as training, grants, machinery and equipment. We believe that every support will provide holistic benefits in terms of social development.
What Happened in the Field in July?
The Beneficiary Selection Committees held throughout June and July were completed. Business plans from Gaziantep, Adıyaman, Kilis, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Adana, Mersin, Hatay, Osmaniye, Kahramanmaraş and Mardin were evaluated by the committees and the beneficiaries who were entitled to receive grants were determined. In this process, we are approaching the end of our Grant Program, which was opened for the first time in the Eastern Mediterranean and Çukurova regions and for the second time in the İpekyolu, Karacadağ and Dicle regions.
Grant Program Updates
In addition to our beneficiaries who will start the procurement process after the contracts in the second cycle, the machinery and equipment purchases of 41 beneficiaries who were entitled to receive grants in the First Cycle have been completed. This step is of great importance to increase the viability of our projects and to ensure that our beneficiaries have the resources they need.
Experience Sharing and Cooperation Meetings
We believe in learning from each other in our projects and that is why we support experience sharing meetings between both project implementers and beneficiaries:
Şanlıurfa Meeting: Karacadağ Development Agency and İpekyolu Development Agency came together in Şanlıurfa to share their experiences on monitoring and procurement process under the first component of the project.
Mardin Experience Sharing Meeting: In Mardin, the first and second cycle beneficiaries came together in an Experience Sharing Meeting. Participants from different sectors and entrepreneurship stages had the opportunity to network and exchange information.
New Project Signatures
Dicle Region: "Agricultural Technologies Joint Use Center and Ecological Agriculture School" project was signed with Ömerli District Directorate of Agriculture. The project aims to ensure the development of farmers in modern agricultural techniques, improve farmers' skills in the use of machinery and equipment, and increase efficiency in agricultural production by transforming agricultural production into mechanized production.
Çukurova Region: "Local Products Production, Packaging and Digital Promotion Workshops" project was signed with Kozan Municipality. This project will enable Kozan's unique local flavors to be produced and packaged with modern techniques and delivered to a wider audience.
Erdemli Municipality: "Pastry and Barista Social Enterprise Academy" project was signed. The academy will provide training and entrepreneurship opportunities for cake and coffee enthusiasts.
Mut District Governorship: "Mut Olive Processing and Training Center" project will be implemented. This center will work to process Mut's world-famous olives and train experts in this field.
Supporting Women Entrepreneurs and Local Production
We are working hard to support local women entrepreneurs, increase local production and build a stronger community. With the support we provide to our women entrepreneurs, we continue to support them in realizing their projects and supporting social development.
As SEECO Project, we continue to work for social benefit with the principles of Teamwork, Community Participation, Collaboration with Stakeholders, Trust and Solidarity.