In 2007, Egide Dhala from Spirasi and Salome Mbugua from AkiDwA met for the first time in Brussels at the 2007 Meeting of People experiencing Poverty while attending a workshop on poverty experienced by migrants in Europe. 3 years later, they were founding together an organisation to provide support to women’s groups in Kenya and Congo.

These two representatives from Ireland had the opportunity to discuss the work they were doing with vulnerable migrants, especially on gender based violence and with women who struggled to integrate into Irish society as a result of profound trauma from countries of origin. They thought that they could extend the skills, experience and resources they have developed in supporting and empowering migrants to their home countries, as the wide majority of people who have suffered from abuse and persecution may not be able to move to safe places such as Ireland and would be condemned to live on the margins of the society. They began a consultation process with different migrant community groups and in 2010, founded Wezesha.

Read more on the Wezesha organisation set up by Salome Mbugua and Edige Dhala to provide support from the African diaspora in Ireland to women’s groups in Kenya and Congo: http://www.wezeshadada.com/