“Children need to come off the streets.”

Technical and vocational training institutions are also playing an increasingly important role in preparing people for the labour market in Africa. In Kenya, there is a skills shortage in modern manufacturing technologies, for example in the field of CNC machining. With its ‘Ensinger Africa Academy’ in the capital Nairobi, the Ensinger foundation is committed to improving graduates' chances of entering the labour market and meeting the industry's need for skilled workers. 

Teachers are trained in the theory and practice of CNC machining technology in close cooperation with vocational schools. The measures include the qualification of teaching staff, the procurement of the necessary materials and the maintenance of the machines.

This project is co-financed by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

Malawi Freunde Rottenburg supports sustainable development projects in one of the poorest countries in the world: in Chilumba, a town in northern Malawi, the association uses private donations to support the Tawuka School, a sewing school for women and a further education programme. In addition, health centres and toilets have been built and agricultural projects with solar-powered irrigation have been implemented for 150 families. The Wilfried and Martha Ensinger Foundation helped to finance a kindergarten and an IT training centre and will provide long-term support to Malawi Freunde Rottenburg.

In the Nigerian village of Nimo, the construction of a primary school and a secondary school was supported. The two well-equipped facilities are now attended by several hundred children. In addition, a drinking water well and the purchase of medical equipment were financed in Nimo. The foundation has supported this project for more than two decades.

In Bangladesh, Ensinger foundation funds are used to finance lessons for several classes at the Asad Motiur Anandalok primary school. The children come from families living in extreme poverty. The school's sponsor (NETZ e.V.) and several partner organisations also provide medical care for the pupils.

In addition, over 750 families in disaster-prone regions of Bangladesh are supported in developing climate-resilient agriculture with livestock farming and adapted seeds. Women are given the opportunity to earn a sustainable income and organise themselves in village groups to achieve common goals through training and start-up packages. 

In the Indian state of Jharkhand, the Ensinger Foundation has been supporting innovative projects of the Torpa Rural Development Society for Women for many years, which improve the development prospects of an indigenous minority in this remote region. The TRDSW organises a good school education in English and supports the tribal children with additional instructors and village helpers.

The projects in Maharashtra also aim to improve the living conditions of families in the long term. Women who are organised in self-help groups receive interest-free loans, which they use for their agricultural and craft training and to set up their own businesses, thereby gaining status, respect and decision-making power in their families. 

In addition, children of migrant workers who stay in Maharashtra for only six months receive schooling and medical care.

The Nuestra Señora del Pilar school in Jerusalem's Old City receives hardly any state funding. The pupils cared for by the religious order Misioneras Hijas del Calvario come from poor, sometimes broken families who cannot afford to send their daughters to school. Donations from the Wilfried and Martha Ensinger Foundation are used to pay for building maintenance, pay teachers and purchase teaching materials.

In Erechim in southern Brazil, the foundation, in cooperation with the aid organisation CECRIS, has financed the construction of simple homes as well as the education and care of children and young people to help families from the favelas escape the poverty trap. 

Martha and Wilfried Ensinger were already involved in Erechim before setting up their foundation. In the meantime, the Ensinger Foundation has withdrawn from this aid project so that the funds freed up can be used for development co-operation in other countries. 

In Haiti, the Wilfred and Martha Ensinger Foundation supports the work of Dr. Anke Brügmann, who looks after an orphanage with medical care and a primary school in the small town of Beaumont. After several natural disasters and due to ongoing political unrest, many people are in need of help. The foundation is involved in this region in order to give the children prospects for the future. The young people from the orphanage continue to receive support and education even after they have finished school.

In Ukraine, aid is focussed on orphans in Kiev and children and young people from the Chernobyl area. Thanks to the Wilfried and Martha Ensinger Foundation, chronically ill children from socially disadvantaged families receive diet food that would otherwise be unaffordable. 

In Jablunitsa (Carpathians), needy children can spend their holidays in a children's recreation home. The Ensinger Foundation has also co-financed a mother and child home and a centre for the elderly.