Two non-governmental organisations serving Hong Kong’s large community of about 400,000 domestic helpers, mostly women from the Philippines and Indonesia, have joined forces to train some of them as community leaders to support their peers.
Many NGOs may lack the resources and capacity to help individual workers, who work long hours far away from home and face a variety of issues. But Uplifters and EmpowerU have pulled together to create a programme that helps domestic helpers cope better with their financial and emotional stresses.
“They have a lot of pressure such as financial stress, family separation and symptoms of anxiety, and debt caused by high upfront recruitment fees and urgent family needs. Many turn to each other for support,” said Zoe Mau Hiu-tung, head of development and communications at Uplifters.
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“They are facing challenges themselves while also absorbing sad stories of their peers. It’s important to help them become better leaders to support others.”
The NGOs’ initiative, called “Dare to Lead”, is one of 13 selected to receive funding from the annual Operation Santa Claus (OSC) fundraising campaign this year.
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The funding will support the development and roll-out of an online course next year for 180 female migrant domestic workers, aged 20 to 50.