Our almost 30 years of experience has taught us how to be effective and strategic in carrying out relief aid, advocacy, and development programs. Each project is aimed at not only benefitting communities on a short-term, but to create a lasting and sustainable impact in them.
Advocacy
Areas of Work: Advocacy for religious freedom and related human rights in the Americas; training in understanding of and advocacy for religious freedom
Advocacy is at the heart of our organization. OAA brings awareness, promotes and equips partners on human rights and freedoms issues in the Americas, with emphasis on Cuba. As an organization we are dedicated to promoting freedoms, including religious freedom and the ending of violations in Central America and the Caribbean. We provide resources, education and training to bring awareness, capacity building, and empowerment. We collaborate with civil society grassroots organizations, activists, victims, religious leaders, government, and with other like-minded stakeholders to inspire the public to “look beneath the surface” and help find a solution to end discrimination and violations.
Click here to learn more about our advocacy work.
Key Goals
- Assist religious and human rights NGOs in promoting religious freedom in Central America and Cuba.
- Engage North American faith-based communities to learn about the situation of local faith-based organizations and invite them to participate in solutions.
- Create awareness that will empower people who are seeking freedoms and greater human rights.
- Conduct analyses of the legal landscape and mechanisms used to curtail freedom of religion or belief.
Relief
Areas of Work: Disaster Preparedness; Disaster Response; Food Security; Humanitarian Assistance; and Strengthening Resilience of Vulnerable Communities.
The cost of natural disasters is high. As climate change and erratic weather patterns increase the risks of devastating storms, droughts and floods, we are helping communities identify, assess and reduce their risks. Creating response plans and resilient strategies now can help better protect people tomorrow. Our program of Community & Port Resiliency Program (C-PReP) seeks to provide technical, material, and strategic tools to support communities and airports facing complex challenges both during and after a crisis event.
The overall purpose of our Relief Programs is to benefit disaster victims and reduce the suffering of the most vulnerable groups in the Americas, and to provide tools and resources needed to increase their preparedness and self-sufficiency.
Click here to learn more about our humanitarian assistance and disaster relief work.
Key Goals
- Implement disaster resiliency workshops in communities and airports in the Caribbean and Central America.
- Provide disaster victims with food, relief aid products, hygiene kits, clean water systems & products, and building materials.
- Participate in USAID’s Food for Peace program to help vulnerable communities in the Dry Corridor of Central America.
- Create strategic agreements with key non-profit and corporate partners to help reduce the suffering of the most vulnerable groups in the Americas.
The overall purpose of our Relief Programs is to benefit disaster victims, reduce the suffering of the most vulnerable groups in the Americas, and to provide tools & resources needed to increase their preparedness & self-sufficiency.
Development
Areas of Work: Empower Vulnerable Communities; Educate and Develop Youth & the Disabled; Civil Society Strengthening; and Self Employment Development.
OAA serves vulnerable people in the Americas through sustainable community development. OAA knows that building strong communities requires engaging people of diverse backgrounds and ages in a community and empowering them to face a wide range of development challenges. Therefore, OAA develops programs that include capacity-building classes, training and awareness-raising of key issues that are relevant to communities. These include violence, child and youth exploitation, human rights, employment and productivity and many others.
OAA has extensive experience strengthening civil society organizations throughout the Americas, building the capacity of local faith-based organizations (FBOs) and municipalities by working alongside them to face many issues. This approach has developed much needed leadership and improved how organizations tackle community challenges. OAA also provides technical assistance and other resources to help communities tackle problems with efficiency, effectiveness and transparency, strengthening capacity and initiative at the grassroots.
Click here to learn more about our development assistance work.
Key Goals
- Provide disadvantaged youth with tools for productive employment and provide tools to increase productivity.
- Improve technical training for disadvantaged youth.
- Increase youth impact by forming leaders through education and leadership training.
- Build strong communities by empowering them to face a wide range of development challenges and with programs that improve the quality of life.
