Welcome to Sewaid International!
What is Sewaid?
Sewaid is a program which offers selected women in very poor countries the opportunity to not only learn to sew, but to also provide them with the machines, equipment and skills they need to start a small home business in dressmaking or alterations and repair.
The Program
The program is run by our founder Mr Tony Castley, and closely supported by his family business Sewgroup International. Additionally most programs are run in conjunction with Rotary International as Tony is very involved with Rotary and has found that the Rotary connection is vital to the success of the programs in Third World countries.
The Sewaid program is primarily a teaching program and we rely heavily on our wonderful volunteer teachers who donate their time and expertise as well as fund their own travel to each program. But we have so much fun, and the experiences are unforgettable; but most of all we have knowledge that we have helped women escape from shocking poverty, and given them the skills and equipment where they can make a better life for themselves and their family.
Volunteer Teachers
If you are a sewing or craft teacher or you believe you are capable of teaching these skills, you are welcome to sign up as one of our Volunteers. (See the Volunteer teachers page). We are currently have openings for projects in Sydney, Kiribati, and Uganda.
Donations of fabrics, sewing supplies, money
If you would like to donate fabrics or other sewing suppliers please contact us. Unfortunately we do not accept second hand sewing machines unless they are very late models. We like to supply only new machines on our programs which make the teaching and service so much easier. However one exception, any old hand machines are reusable, for in countries where there is no power, we can still put these to good use.
If you would like to make a donation of money, please use our donate tab
RAWCS
Our projects are registered with:
Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS)
RAWCS No. 22-2006-07 Worldwide