Another Successful Year for RHTO – Our Annual Report Overview
**Nota: ita bele mós lee istoria ne’e iha lian Tetun iha RHTO nia Blog.
July is the time of year when RHTO is busy completing annual reports and audits for the financial year just finished. We have looked back on the July 2014 to June 2015 period to see what went well, and what we can still improve going forward. In this Blog Post, we want to share what we found. You can also read our full Annual Report here.
What we did
We helped more people with disability go to school and receive training. We increased accessibility of 17 schools around Timor-Leste, through the provision of ramps, handrails, wider doorways, and accessible bathrooms.
We gave crucial livelihood support to people with disabilities and their families, to help them start or expand small businesses and increase their income and independence. We now support 17 self-help groups, through training and microfinance loans.
We supported people with disability to have better access to water and sanitation. We helped to install accessible bathrooms and taps in 7 public places (such as Sede Sucos) and in 19 houses where people with disability live.
And, we continued to strengthen the disability awareness of mainstream development partners and government representatives. Our Training and Inclusion Officer has provided training to a total of 289 participants. This helps to make sure that it is not just disability-focused organisations that are considering and including people with disability, but all agencies involved in development.
Photo: RHTO staff and The Leprosy Mission Australia staff.
What we learnt
During the 2014-15 reporting period, RHTO has worked to strengthen reporting processes, collection of data, and monitoring of activities. Through these processes we are actively tracking our activities to ensure we are providing support to members in a way that is connected and effective. For example, when we refer a person with disability to the national rehabilitation centre in order to receive a wheelchair to assist their mobility, we also undertake an accessibility assessment of their house and school, in order to ensure that the member can benefit from the assistive devices they have received. If we only provide a referral without the connected support and follow-up, this will not have a good outcome.
What we want to do better next year
RHTO wants to better support self-help groups to increase their skills around business management, and group governance. Next year, we will aim to support peer learning opportunities, where members of a successful group can visit and talk to members of a group in a different location which is new or has not yet established processes.
The way RHTO engages with representatives of the church in Timor-Leste is also something we want to do better. We have recognised the important role church leaders play in the community, including guiding community opinions and actions and disseminating information. We want to get better at engaging with church representatives and organisations in the future.
Our project, which is supported by The Leprosy Mission Australia and the Australian Government's aid program, has one year remaining. RHTO is confident that our staff, who have all now been working with the organisation for a number of years, have the capacity to implement the project over this final year and achieve the targets and objectives we set out at the beginning. During the upcoming year, we want to be better at keeping all our partners and supporters updated on our progress. So, please keep visiting our Blog and please contact us with your comments and ideas.
