The Impetus.

You can’t really understand MAKI International unless you understand the storied city of Ayacucho, Peru. Nestled at 9000 feet in the Andes, Ayacucho used to be a popular stop for travelers on the route from Peru’s capital city, Lima to the historical capital of Cuzco. It was a small but thriving city that benefited from the patronage of foreigners and Peruvian tourists alike. Everything changed in the 1980s when a rebel guerilla group called The Shining Path took root in Ayacucho. As a result of the fighting that ensued between The Shining Path and the Peruvian military, roughly 70,000 civilians lost their lives. Those with money or resources fled from Ayacucho to save their families and themselves. By the time the killing stopped in 2000, only the impoverished remained and the city had been thoroughly cut off from the rest of Peru and the rest of the world. A generation of people - and, in particular, a generation of women - came of age in a time of terror with almost no access to education or any form of basic government services. That perilous reality impacts Ayacucho to this day. Many people in the region have remained subsistence farmers cultivating barely enough to survive or have turned to the drug trade out of desperation to feed their families.  

Our Philosophy.

MAKI, which means ‘hands’ in the ancient Quechua language, is more than the name of our organization, it embodies our philosophy. We work hand in hand. That means our team consists primarily of people from Ayacucho - touching our community members directly. We believe in depth of impact first, scale second. We know their personal stories and their needs, and we can achieve much deeper impact as a result. We achieve scale by instilling a sense of commitment to service among our community members who impart their knowledge to others. Hands linked to hands linked to hands.

Our goal is to provide women the tools and sense of empowerment to improve their own lives with their own hands - quite literally.

Our local Peruvian team works on the ground with our communities to provide them basic education, skills training apprenticeship, education, and psychological support. self-esteem building and income generation opportunities.

Maki Communities. 

Yanamilla Prison Community: Yanamilla prison incarcerates 200 women, most of them are victims of the reality they found themselves in: no money, no choices and drug cartels approaching them with the promise of cash in their pocket and food for their children. When these women are caught working as drug mules, they often are charged as full-fledged cartel members and can end up spending decades of their life in prison for a first offense.  MAKI has built and staffed a classroom for these women where they can learn work skills, team building, self-esteem and attend lectures on relevant issues. We have also provided a classroom, learning supplies, books and toys for the children who reside in the prison with their mothers.

Occollo: COVID-19 hit this community at 13,000 feet particularly hard. MAKI has partnered with the pre-school and elementary school to provide a nutritious breakfast and lunch to all the children of Occollo daily. Our breakfast and lunch program has reduced anemia throughout the town and teachers have reported increased focus in the classroom.

Vinchos: In the mountains above Ayacucho, this impoverished community relies on subsistence farming.  Their daily meals are corn and potatoes.  MAKI has worked with the community to set up sustainable guinea pig farms and is partnering with local families to develop a co-op.

Hilos y Colores: This Peruvian social enterprise founded by Faustino and Mercedes Flores, a local entrepreneurs from the mountains above Ayacucho, provides work for 1000+ women who are primarily subsistence farmers in the mountains.  For the last decade, Maki has partnered with HyC to provide skill building; to share best practices in production and marketing of the handicrafts; and to secure demand for products via contracts with multinational brands throughout the world.

Carmen Alto (Abused Women’s Cooperative): At-risk mothers gather weekly for MAKI sponsored events, activities and projects. Maki provides yarn and designs to many of these women and sells their products on this website.  MAKI support has enabled the Carmen Alto women to form their own  ‘Association’ which is recognized by the Peruvian government and has provided them with various work opportunities and grants.

Today, Maki International is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization and works with impoverished women throughout Ayacucho, Peru.