UNITED WAY KICKS-OFF
AFRICAN COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT INITIATIVE

Newark, NJ-December 1, 2009- The United Way of Essex and West Hudson announces a new initiative to strengthen ties with the various African communities in its service area. The African Community Engagement Initiative (ACE) will have its kick-off on Thursday December 10, 2009 at the United Way office in Newark from 6:00 pm-8:00 pm for community leaders from the African Immigrant community and their supporters.

The United Way, the oldest and largest human service support organization has been working together on an international, national, regional and local level to further refine and refocus its community impact work in three areas that are basic to building blocks of a good life; Education, Income and Health. The United Way of Essex and West Hudson (UWEWH) has also been involved in its own strategic planning process where the focus of its work has been on designing initiatives in each priority area that will meet the specific needs of the communities its serve.

One of those significant areas, where UWEWH seeks to have a stronger impact, is ensuring its outreach to diverse immigrant populations. Located in the most ethnically diverse metropolitan area of the United States, UWEWH seeks to lead and measure its community impact in service delivery, community engagement and philanthropy.

As UWEWH refines its work, it is interested in taking a pulse to determine how effective it is in serving the various diverse communities in our catchment areas, especially with those communities who residents are foreign born and may not come from communities that have United Way. Most notable, is the growing African immigrant population that has tripled in it population since 1990. The 2007 Census data indicates that over 1.4 million foreign born individuals from Africa reside in the United States, making up 3.7 percent of all immigrants. Nearly 450,000 African immigrants, mostly from West Africa are living in the New Jersey/New York metropolitan area.

The ACE Advisory Council is being convened by Dr. A. Zachary Yamba, a Ghanaian and outgoing longtime President of Essex County College and co-chaired by Mayor Wayne Smith of Irvington, a UWEWH board member and whose city has a diverse population of African immigrants including business owners, churches and civic organizations. A planning committee will also be developed of representatives from African countries to provide deeper insight and partnership. Once established, several programs will be developed to strengthen the relationship and enhance visibility within these communities. The ACE Coordinator is Lorna K. Johnson, of Global Linkages, Inc. who has worked extensively in Africa, building partnerships between US and African institutions.

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