The Liberian arm of The African T-Shirt Company

As we transition Robertsport Community Works to the local community, we're handing over the Liberian arm of The African T-Shirt Company to 100% local ownership.

Jallah Fahnbulleh of Graphics Palace International, next to the mosque on Newport Street, will be silk-screening our designs on t-shirts by hand from his shop:

Drive It Like It's UNMIL

The Ministry of Fun and Drink

Trying Small

 You can order t-shirts  in M, L, XL, XXL. Or, you can bring your own shirt and pay for him to silk-screen the design.

Jallah takes orders at jallah.fahnbulleh@gmail.com, by phone (077-022-611), or from his Newport Street shop, beside the mosque.

He’s learning to take orders directly, so I suggest being clear and following up a phone call order with an email or text message. Thanks in advance for supporting small business development in Liberia! And thanks to Old Star Radio for the open use of their designs.

Of course, this only works if you’re in Monrovia. And if you are, The African T-Shirt Company is having a final stock sale this week. This week only, we'll also be selling the following. Email me for the stock list. :>

Failed State

Mogadisco

Surf Liberia

OM Africa

Mama Liberia beach bag

Mama Liberia yoga mat bag

Mama Liberia bags at conferences!

For the last year, Mama Liberia bags have been a hit at international conferences, upping the style stakes when it comes to conference bags and making a serious difference in the life of the Co-op, which has scaled up to 60 women when these large orders come in.

Check out these very cool photos courtesy of the EBD Group, one of our main conference patrons. Don't the bags bring color and life? I think so. Email me about bulk orders for your own event. Our artisan silk-screeners can place your logo anywhere!

RCW budget: January - March, 2011

Here is the first of our now-quarterly budget updates. As we transition our projects to community ownership this year, we will do our best to keep them as accurate as possible. 

Robertsport Community Campsite

Income from campsite fees and tent rental (Jan: $310.00, Feb: $60.00, March: $130.00): $500

Expenditure on staff salaries ($130 for two staff per month): $390.00

Campsite sub-total: $110.00

Mama Liberia Sewing Co-op

Thanks to a big order from the EBD Group, you'll see our Community Fund grows nicely this quarter. Because of their order--and the way we've set up RCW projects to grow the Community Fund--we now have project money for beach cleanup, sea turtle rescue and other cool stuff the community might want to try their hand at (not to mention we'll be able to give out some more small business loans)...

Community Fund tithe from Mama Liberia Sewing Co-op $3,000.00

It's been a quiet quarter, as we've been focusing on running a tight ship on our existing projects so that they can become 100% community-led. We've been an NGO in Liberia for almost two years, so it's time for our starter projects to stand on their own.

Project summary

Robertsport Community Campsite: $110.00

Mama Liberia tithe to Community Fund: $3,000.00

Community Fund as of December 2010: -$151.90

Community Fund as of March 2011: $2,958.10

Glad to be back in the green!

Budget updates for November/December 2010

Yes, these are late! We had a tumultuous start to 2011, and these updates fell by the wayside to be restarted again...now. 

Thanks for bearing with us. Project updates included.

Surf Liberia

Because of events beyond our control that disrupted where and how we store our inventory, we've put The African T-Shirt Company on hold as it transitions to local project leadership. That means, unfortunately, that sales of Surf Liberia t-shirts are also on hold. Lucky for us, the Community Fund is a doing well and this temporary pause will not disrupt our sponsorship of local surfers.

We hope to see The African T-Shirt Company and Surf Liberia t-shirt sales back up and running in a few months, 100% Liberian run.

Robertsport Community Campsite

Income

Campsite fees and tent rental: $275

Expenditure

Staff salaries (Nov/Dec): $260

Rake: $10

Sub-total: -$5

Sea Turtle Rescue

We have yet to start official fund-raising for this project, but pay for rescued turtles on an ad-hoc basis out of the Community Fund. So far, we've saved five! The turtles show up in a wheelbarrow and we carry them, flapping vigorously the closer they get to the ocean, until about 10 meters from the shore. They pull themselves the rest of the way, gaining visible strength as they reach the ocean. The waves surge over them, and they disappear, hopefully never to be seen again!

If you'd like to donate specifically to this project, please email me!

Expenditure

Two adult yellow-bill sea turtles: $20
A hutch of 100 leatherback sea turtle eggs, which sadly didn't hatch although we followed all the directions: $10

Sub-total: -$30

Community Beach Clean-up

We've collected over 2,000 pounds of marine debris in less than two years and this project is going strong. Miriama, who's been cooking the volunteers' meals as a thank-you for their good work, is taking over project leadership in the coming months.

Expenditure

Volunteer meals (Nov/Dec): $60

Sub-total: -$60 

Mama Liberia Sewing Co-op

We are working on a very large bag order that will bring in much-needed money to the Community Fund, so stay tuned for our next budget update, when all will be well!

Summary

Robertsport Community Campsite: -$5.00
Sea Turtle Rescue: -$30.00
Community Beach Cleanup: -$60.00
Sub-total: -$95
Community Fund as of October 2010: -$56.90

Community Fund as of December 2010: -$151.90

The plan for 2011

Those of you who keep track may have noticed that we haven't posted a budget update in a little. We're moving to a more sustainable quarterly budget posting, starting now.

Also, 2011 will be the year of sustainability. Robertsport Community Works will turn two and it's time for RCW Directors to take a step back and let the community run things 100%. Sure, they'll make mistakes now and then, and I'm sure there will be a bit of drama every so often. But running their own income-generating projects is the only way these projects will work--really work, in a way that brings long-term income to Uptown, especially its young people.

We're taking on a more advisory role this year. We'll be there, but we'll be in the background (in our hammocks, I hope!). I look forward to updating you on how it goes!

The Co-op photo shoot

Thanks to the generosity of the U.S. Ambassador's Self-Help Fund, the Women's Sewing Co-op has funding for a website which we plan to launch in early 2011. As part of the marketing effort, we enlisted the help of a brilliantly talented photographer friend. The Co-op photos she took last year helped launch the group's international sales, and I'm thrilled she was able to work with us again.

Here are some teasers from the shoot. As you can see, the women enjoyed themselves.

The African T-Shirt Company goes local

When Nate and I first started The African T-Shirt Company to raise funds for our Robertsport-based community NGO, we did things quick and simple. Website? Try Google Sites. Photos? Bring out the digital camera and let's talk some against the wall when the sun is out. Modeling? No one's around--let me go wash my hair.

A year and a half later, and we have a staff of plenty at Tides and a gorgeous rooftop balcony with a view of West Point and the Atlantic. So, we reshot our classic designs and added a few new ones.

Here's Alfred Lomax, in a photo picked up by B-spirit!, the Brussels Airline in-flight magazine. They give it out free at their office in Monrovia, so it has a large local readership.

A new design from Old Star Radio, here's the Ministry of Fun and Drink...


And because Maryedeh of the Tides kitchen enjoyed having her photo taken so much...

You can see the rest--and buy shirts--here.