Romain Sion

Entrepreneur · Impact investor

FR

Let’s meet

Tag: School

  • Friends International Set to Turn Street Kids Into Business Owners

    Friends International Set to Turn Street Kids Into Business Owners

    👋Friends International was founded 🚀25 years ago by a French 🇨🇵social entrepreneur, Sebastien Marot. This NGO 🌠can be considered as a social enterprise. Their mission is clear: protecting marginalized children 👦👧and their families and training👨‍🏫 them with professional skills leading to a full time employment 👨‍💼in Cambodia 🇰🇭& South East Asia. We have been impressed by the professionalism of the teams and their structured processes from the care of distressed families 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦to full time job placement.

    Last year with Friends, it was: 5 countries in South East Asia / 6000 children supported to go to school📗 / 1400 young people accompanied to be employed / 7700 parents supported in the care of their children🌠🌠🌠

    Saving Lives: When a youth in distress is identified within a community, the “Saving lives” teams provide a fast⏭️ & straight forward support (drugs💊, health⚕️, violence issues💥…) and perform an assessment on how they could support him in the best way.

    Building Futures: A professional training is then proposed to young people👦 by the team “Building Futures”. 7 high potential job tracks💼 have been identified on which they have built training programs coupled with the launch 🚀of real businesses. Students and teachers work together in classrooms and then practice in “real-life” environment. In Phnom Penh🇰🇭, Friends launched the Futures Factory, where a restaurant🍴, a hairdressing salon💇, a beauty salon❇️, a fashion retail concept store🏪, a welding business🥽, an electricity company and a garage 🚗coexist together. By setting up social enterprises across 5 countries, young people👦👧 are trained with the right skillsets, while self-financing 30% of the budget💰 of the organization. It’s amazing, isn’t it? Once they pass their degree🎓, which is recognized by the state, Friends helps them to get a job thanks to their network of partners. We have checked the list🗒️ of requests from Friends’ partners, it’s a long one, well-done! ;-)🌠

    Romain Sion Marine Sion Cambodia
    Friends International Cambodia
    Friends International Cambodia
    Romain Sion Rithy Thul
  • Benoit Created The Khmer Braille For Blind Children In Cambodia

    Benoit Created The Khmer Braille For Blind Children In Cambodia

    👋Do you know the life ⚕️expectancy of a Cambodian🇰🇭 child becoming blind in the 90’s ? 2 years! 😢Benoit is the founder👨‍💼 of Krousar Thmey (“New Family”) a leading NGO 🚀based in Cambodia supporting blind and deaf children👦👧. Becoming blind or deaf in Cambodia was like a death ☠️sentence because there was neither support nor infrastructure🏢 to address those problems🔃. Most of them were left behind or hidden in houses🏠.

    Benoit started his career 💼as a financial controller at Accor Hotel🏢 in Bangkok🇹🇭. He had a comfortable 🛋️and hassle-free life😀. However, everything changed in the early nineties when he visited a Cambodian refugee 🏚️camp in the eastern part of Thailand. Shocked😲 by the living conditions, he quit everything to launch🌠 Krousar Thmey 🌠and support Cambodian refugees in Thailand.

    After the peace 🏳️agreement, he relocated to Cambodia 🇰🇭to support abandoned children👦 with a focus on blind and deaf children. Education 👩‍🏫was the key priority. To face that challenge⛰️, they developed a Khmer version of braille and they started teaching sign language. After huge efforts💦, Benoit opened schools🔠 across the whole country and employed up to 🚀400 staff.

    This year, 2700 children have been supported by Krousar Thmey 😀😀including 300 young blind and 750 deaf children✌️. Today, they can be extremely proud because after almost 30 years of co-development with the Cambodian government, the prime minister of Cambodia👨‍💼 agreed to take responsibility for all the schools and teachers, the entire structure being transferred to the ministry of education👩‍🏫. It is a major success😋, a great example of real development being achieved with a national programme of education being started and developed by a private NGO 👍and being transferred to the government, which is now in charge of the continuation of those schools.

    🌠🌠🌠At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world.🌠🌠🌠

     

    Benoît Krousar Thmey 4
    Benoît Krousar Thmey 5
    Benoît Krousar Thmey 7
    Benoît Krousar Thmey 3
    Benoît Krousar Thmey 6
    Benoît Krousar Thmey 2
  • At 21, Immaculate Already Knows How She Will Give A Better Future To Her 6 Sisters

    At 21, Immaculate Already Knows How She Will Give A Better Future To Her 6 Sisters

    😉This meeting with Immaculate was unforgettable🌠. From her tiny 10-square-meter shelter🏚️, she explained to us her plan to get out of poverty🎯. She was only 21 years old and already had a clear idea 💡of how to build a brighter ☀️future for her sisters 👧, with a realistic plan.

    When you come from a slum like Kibera in Kenya🇰🇪, you are disadvantaged from the very beginning. Unemployment 👨‍💼👩‍💼reaches levels as high ↗️as 80%. The major pain points we identified were the lack of mentorship👩‍⚖️, the lack of financing💰 and the lack of a network🕸️. When there is no success story 🚀within a community, it is almost impossible to envision a better life and make plans to achieve it.

    It may seem counter-intuitive, but motivated💪 teenagers👦 do not need massive funding💵 or support to get a job that will change their lives. The main question is how NGOs design✏️ their programs to be as efficient as possible in terms of time ⏰and money. For example, Carolina for Kibera builds a lot of mentoring into its programs to empower🌠 young people, and it works.

    With CFK🌠, Immaculate received mentorship and training in graphic 💻design, which enabled her to get her first internship💼. This internship turned into a full-time job😀, which now allows her to pay for her accounting📊 classes. Once she receives her diploma👩‍🎓, she will be able to support 6 people. This indirect impact is massive when the initial support is carefully adjusted. It is inspiring🌠 to talk with young leaders who already show such maturity.

    🌠🌠🌠At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world!🌠🌠🌠

    Immaculate Caroline For Kibera 2 Romain Sion
    Immaculate Caroline For Kibera 3
    Immaculate Caroline For Kibera 4
    Immaculate Caroline For Kibera 5
    Carolina for Kibera 7
    Immaculate Carolina For Kibera 6
  • Celestine Convinces Pregnant Mothers To Give Birth In Healthy Environments

    Celestine Convinces Pregnant Mothers To Give Birth In Healthy Environments

    👋How would you react, as a pregnant 🤰woman, if hospitals ⛑️turned you away when your baby 👶was about to arrive? It seems so far from what we experience in countries such as France 🇨🇵, where I am based. Once again, we are so lucky🤞. When I was in Kenya🇰🇪, I witnessed several situations where pregnant women had been turned away by up to 4 public hospitals🏥 before reaching the mission-driven Tabitha Clinic.

    Maternal 🤱and child 🧒👧mortality are still major issues 💥in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa, located in the south of Nairobi, Kenya🇰🇪. Carolina for Kibera, an impactful🌠 NGO fighting🔥 to alleviate poverty in Kibera, created the Tabitha Clinic🏥⚕️. It provides quality, affordable 💰and accessible maternal and child health services. Every year, it supports thousands of mothers 🤱and children and gives hope to a community 🤩that has almost no access to public health services.

    We had the chance to meet Celestine and her husband 👫on their way to a new ultrasound at the Tabitha Clinic. Celestine was expecting her 4th child 👶and she was worried😟. A few weeks earlier, she had been bleeding 🆎and could have lost her baby. At the Tabitha Clinic, she received proper care💉 from mission-driven 🚀doctors at a subsidized price 💰she could afford.

    Celestine mentioned three main challenges⛰️ for pregnant women in Kibera: district hospitals are too expensive💰, it is complicated to reach the hospital by public transportation🚊 when the baby is coming, and security 💥is an issue, especially late at night🌌. This explains why many women still give birth at home, in dangerous⚠️ and extremely poor sanitary conditions. Celestine has now decided to join the Carolina for Kibera🌠 staff to share her experience and convince pregnant women 🤰to be followed at the Tabitha Clinic.

    🌠🌠🌠At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world!🌠🌠🌠

    Kennedy Carolina For Kibera
    Kennedy Carolina For Kibera
    Celestine Caroline For Kibera 2
    Célestine Caroline for kibera 1
    Celestine Carolina For Kibera 5
    Celestine Carolina For Kibera
  • Enkhjin, CEO of GerHub – Innovation to Fight the Most Pressing Issues of the Ger Areas in Mongolia

    Enkhjin, CEO of GerHub – Innovation to Fight the Most Pressing Issues of the Ger Areas in Mongolia

    👋Did you know that every year hundreds of children 👶die ☠️in the Ger areas due to pollution🌫️ & sanitation 🚽issues? GerHub is a non-profit social enterprise that uses innovation 🚀to support local communities in the Ger areas. Their main projects focus on researching🔎 and developing affordable ways to modify and modernize the Mongolian ger 🏠 to meet the housing needs of Ger area residents.

    Almost 40% of the population of Ulaanbaatar lives in Ger areas, which are semi-formal, unplanned housing🏠 areas around the city. Ger is the word for the Mongolian round, tent⛺-like nomadic dwelling. The main identifying factor of the Ger areas is that none of the households are connected to the core infrastructure of central heating🔥🌡️, running water🚿, or plumbing. Imagine what happens when temperatures dip below -40°C🌡️ and there is no public sewer for the toilets. For example, during the winter❄️, when hundreds of thousands of households use their coal heating at the same time, the air becomes so polluted that you cannot even see 15 meters 🌫️in front of you.

    GerHub addresses these issues through innovation 🚀and partnerships with international🌎 universities. For example, they are currently testing a new insulation 🧱method which is easy to install and affordable 💰for everyone. They also put a lot of effort into training the younger generations👧🧒 with programs raising awareness about ways to improve living conditions in the Ger districts.

    Here is an interview with Enkhjin, the CEO of GerHub: Link

    🌠🌠🌠At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world!🌠🌠🌠

     

     

    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 3
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 5
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 6
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 7
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 2
    Romain Sion Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 4
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 9
    Enkhjin Batjargal CEO Ger Hub 8
  • From Fashion with Tom Ford and Yves Saint Laurent To A Social Business Supporting 100 Women in Turkey

    From Fashion with Tom Ford and Yves Saint Laurent To A Social Business Supporting 100 Women in Turkey

    👋Have you ever been in a situation where you could not just stand by and do nothing?🤷 15 years ago, Izabela Szeliga started a promising 🚀career at Yves Saint Laurent👚, dealing with world-famous🌠 fashion designers such as Tom Ford and Yves Saint Laurent himself. However, after falling in love♥️ with a Turk🇹🇷, she decided to quit everything and start a new life 👍in Istanbul.

    After getting married👰, she had a high-risk pregnancy🚨. Without knowing if the baby would survive😟, she had to lie down🛌 as much as possible. To pass the time, she reconnected with an old passion: crafting cuddly toys🧸. The baby👶 was finally born in perfect health ⚕️and Izabela decided to create a small business with the launch of a direct-to-consumer toy brand.

    To hire her first employees👩‍💼, she posted a short ad📢 targeting mothers🤱 looking to work from home. The result was stunning🌠🌠… She received more than 3,000 applications by email 📧and over the phone☎️. Izabela discovered that thousands of women were desperately🙏 looking for additional income💰 to make ends meet. Izabela’s mission🚀 shifted from a profit-based business to a social one, providing sustainable jobs with fair pay to stay-at-home 🏘️mothers.

    That is how BebeMoss was born as a responsible toy brand✔️. Every toy provides a fair trade income to a woman in need. Today, Izabela employs more than 100 mothers🌠 in Istanbul, Turkey🇹🇷, including 28 refugees from Syria 🇸🇾who are working hard to provide necessities for their families👏 while they rebuild their lives in a new country. www.bebemoss.com

    🌠🌠🌠At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world!🌠🌠🌠

    Romain Sion Izabela Bebemoss
    Izabela Bebemoss 2
    Izabela Bebemoss
    Child Atelier Bebemoss
    Bebemoss Toys
    Atelier Bebemoss
  • Belinda – From Slum To a Career of Professional Footballer

    Belinda – From Slum To a Career of Professional Footballer

    👋Now a professional 🏟️footballer⚽, Belinda has not forgotten🔙 where she came from. Every day, she goes back to train🏃‍♀️ with her former team🏁.

    Based in Kibera🇰🇪, the largest urban slum in Africa, she wants to empower and teach younger kids👦👧. Belinda is 19 years old and the third of four children👨‍👨‍👧‍👦. When she was younger, she did not want to waste🙇 her time doing nothing. That is why she started playing football🏟️.

    When she heard about Carolina for Kibera’s Queens team, she joined! CFK is a local 🌠NGO that uses sport 🌠as a powerful 💪tool to build community resilience and prevent violence💥. It builds social skills and establishes positive🌞 social norms that protect adolescents from negative influences.

    From Monday to Friday📅, they train. On Sundays, the girls attend talks about their interactions with the community👩‍🏫. For example, they are taught what to do if they are raped💥.

    Last year, CFK took part in a tournament 🏟️where Belinda was identified as 🌠a great talent🤩. After a strict selection process, Belinda was offered a professional contract🚀 and a place as a full-time player with the Mathare United team.

    Every day, Belinda goes back to train with her former teammates to share her skills and show that it is possible to make it! Only 19 years old, and she has already made giving back a priority!

    🌠🌠🌠“At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world”🌠🌠🌠

    Belinda CFK Porfessional Footballer Romain Sion
    Belinda CFK Porfessional Footballer Romain Sion
    Belinda CFK Porfessional Footballer Romain Sion
  • They Teach, Empower, Console, Encourage, Teachers are True Heroes

    They Teach, Empower, Console, Encourage, Teachers are True Heroes

    Teachers 👨‍🏫are a cornerstone of our society. We all remember a great teacher who encouraged us during hard⛰️ times, who told us that we could make it, or who punished 😢us for a reason we only understood a few years later. They are true 😎💪heroes!

    I will never forget my discussion with the head teacher of the Lindi School, located in a very poor slum. Surprisingly, this school was a haven of joy🌞 and cheerfulness🌈. After a warm welcome from 50 young & lively children👦👧 at the entrance gates👋, I had the chance to sit down for a few minutes with the head teacher. He shared some frightening figures🔢 with me: out of 200 children, only 2 had passed their final exams, and none of them could pay the high school fees. They had one book 📚for up to 10 children. He was struggling to pay💰 the other teachers’ salaries.
    However, his mission 🚀has remained intact for the last 20 years: to do his best 💪to provide as much education👩‍🏫 as he can to his pupils. If he does not, no one will. I was really impressed😀🌠 by this man, who has been fighting 💥for more than 20 years and has never given up!

    🌠🌠🌠“At our own pace and scale, everyone can aspire to change the world”🌠🌠🌠

    Lindi School Romain SionLindi School 2Lindi School 3Lindi School Romain Sion

    Lindi School Romain Sion
    Lindi School Romain Sion