ZONTA PROJECTS
Zonta Service and Advocacy Projects
Clear principles are applied when deciding upon Zonta projects. The causes we support are:
Advocating for gender equality
Ending gender-based violence
Ending child marriage
Expanding access to education
Promotion of status, education, health, justice, equity and welfare of women and girls
All of our projects must directly benefit women and girls and demonstrate accountability for funds invested.
Providing practical support to local women and girls
Thanks to amazing support from fundraising, grants from various organisations, including Central Coast Council and donations from Friends of Zonta, Elderslee Foundation and Colgate, we provide personal and household items to needy families. Local refuges are a beneficiary, as well as women starting up again, often with no possessions.
Other service projects include Christmas gifts, toys and clothing for children and other items as needed.
Birthing Kits Packing Days
In partnership with Birthing Kits Foundation Australia, the Zonta Club of Central Coast has packed over 50,000 birthing kits in the past ten years, helping to save the lives of mothers and babies in developing countries.
Hosting the Zonta Club of Central Coast’s Birthing Kit Packing Day stands as one of Zonta Club of Central Coast’s key initiatives, showcasing our commitment to making a meaningful impact on a global scale. The Zonta Central Coast Birthing Kit Packing Day is one of the largest organised Birthing Kit packing days in NSW.
Zonta Club Central Coast organises the Birthing Kit Packing days every 2 years. They purchase the kits, often over 2000 at a time, secure the venue, volunteers, and coordinate the event. The most recent Birthing Kit packing day was held at Central Coast Grammar School, Erina Heights, where 2400 Birthing Kits were packed by over 50 Zonta Central Coast members and community volunteers. Many of the volunteers are young women in the Central Coast community, helping as part of their community service programme at their high school.
Birthing Kits are a simple, low-cost tool designed to create a clean birth environment for women in underprivileged areas. The primary objective for the distribution of these birthing kits is concentrated on the nations of Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa.
Each kit contains six essential items - soap, gloves, a plastic sheet, a sterile blade, gauze, and cord ties - that help reduce the risk of infection of mothers, babies, and birth attendants.
Infections are one of the leading causes of maternal and newborn deaths in developing countries.
Didi Foundation in Nepal
The Didi Foundation Inc. is an example of international organisations supported by Zonta members. This organisation works in Nepal to provide free vocational education to disadvantaged women, who have never had the opportunity to either attend school or reach their full potential through education.